1.       Which statement(s) is (are) correct?

a.       The planning horizon for any business is between three and five years.

b.      Forecasts that extend beyond the planning horizon are less credible.

c.       The planning horizon should be the furthest point in the future considered by the business plan.

d.      The planning horizon for a hotel owner is determined by the length of the management contract.

2.       What statement would a hotel owner prefer to see in the business plan for a hotel destination spa, if he or she wants to evaluate whether the GM has the support of the management team?

a.       I have decided that we need to invest more money in the spa.

b.      These financial objectives for the spa are in line with those revealed to me privately by our closest competitors.

c.       The spa manager and head of rooms division have presented the following alternative scenarios for the development of the spa business following our recent brainstorming session.

d.      The future success of the spa business is probably not assured but it is not considered something we can do much about.

3.   What are the two missing items in this list of planning components for a hotel owning company? Historical data, Forecasting, Strategy , Management

a.       Statement of Source and Application of Funds

b.      Profit and Loss Account

c.       Benchmarking

d.      Experience

4.   What is the group of words missing from this statement about organizational planning?

One category of organizational planning is to ______ what may happen in the future, by using known facts, _______ and _________ to generate a ________ of future performance.

a.      Guess, Relationships, Assumptions, Forecast

b.      Predict, Relationships, Assumptions, Budget

c.       Predict, Relationships, Facts, Forecast

d.      Predict, Relationships, Assumptions, Forecast

5.   What is the group of words missing from this statement about organizational planning?

Another category of organizational planning is to ________ established theories on how the business ________, by looking at generally accepted _____ or current relationships between business processes and the ________ generated.

a.       Challenge, Operates, Past, Outcomes

b.      Disprove, Operates, Past, Outcomes

c.       Challenge, Operates, Past, Profits

d.      Challenge, Manages, Future, Outcomes

6.   What is the group of words missing from this statement about organizational planning?

A third category of organizational planning is to ________ and ______ a ______ business model. This type of planning allows ___________ to assess changes to the way the business operates.

a.       Broken, Innovate, Management, Repair

b.      Innovate, Renew, Established, Management

c.       Innovate, Grow, Established, Human Resources

d.     Maintain, Reinforce, Established, Management

7.   Which of these statements is unsuitable for inclusion in a business plan?

a.       We will make sure that we do things as well as the competition does in order to maintain our position in the market.

b.      We will focus our planning efforts on business process and not on the outcome.

c.       Too much emphasis on the outcome may cause short-term decision-making and the risk that strategy will be forgotten.

d.      The planning process must aim to make the business better than the competition.

8.   In order to establish a business planning strategy that can be aligned with budgets, managers need to (select the 4 statements that apply from the list below):

a.       Communicate how these actions relate to individual departments.

b.      Write a vision and mission statement

c.       Ensure that adequate resources are available.

d.      Get approval of the annual budget from shareholders

e.      Choose a course of action to meet these goals for a given business environment.

f.        Set realistic goals.

SWOT Analysis

            Marriott International Inc. is a leading firm in its industry. It is known for aiming to maintain its dominance in its position in the market. A SWOT analysis of Marriott shows the following;  

Strength

Marriott has a track record that shows it has never failed in integrating complementary firms. It has always been successful to do all this through mergers and acquisition. It has done all this to ensure its operation are smooth and with less completion. Marriott is innovative and has hotels all over the world. They are innovative because they recently launched a mobile app. You can see advertisements about it on Facebook or other social media platforms. (Marriott corporate.2017). You no longer must use a key to get into your room. You just unlock it with your phone now. Not just that but you can do a mobile check-in and skip the front desk. Also, Marriott has its presence and reputation all over the world which makes them well-known in quality business.

Weakness

            Marriott Inc. is well known for its desire need to expand. The business has expanded so much to the extent of failing to monitor and maintain the quality of their services throughout. I know this first hand all their hotels are not the same. Some may mention the fact that the Marriott is a family company and how this creates room for error. And it could. Understanding that family tradition and family opinions can offend others or promote an atmosphere that feels "stuck" can put a roadblock up for those future investors. (Marriott corporate.2017). Another weakness is even though they are expanding to many other countries, this could also lead to over population of the hotels and not further along other local companies or promote more of a diversity in the market.

Opportunity

            The opportunities Marriott has been modernizing their hotels rooms to fit the trending market and more profitable emergence into new marketable areas. (Marriott International Inc.2017) For the interior design point, there is room to create more of a unique home familiar style within the walls of its rooms. This allows for a better experience for the loyal customer and to the old customer who thought they may have not liked the hotel franchise. The other opportunity of emerging into new markets creates a profitable growth for the company to expand their presence into new categories such as the technology market. Bringing in the google home or amazon Alexa experience or personalize the delights that customer have in their everyday home and bringing it into the hotel room will only further the experience. (Marriott International Inc. 2017)

Threat

            Vulnerability to terror attacks- the travel industry is one that is highly targeted by terrorists. Especially 5 star rated properties. If it were to get attacked, the firm would lose its trust in their esteem clients. Threats to Marriott include more competition to enter the existing hotel industry and price freezing. As more and more innovative companies make a break through, there is more attraction to them and the idea to try something new in the customer's perspective, leaving Marriott to fend for themselves in the fight of hotel rooms. Also, as the market expands, the prices of other companies can tend to look better, especially if they offer the same amenities and rewards.

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• Identify the most important or critical items on your SWOT Matrix that you believe warrant immediate attention to improve strategic management. Select one from each of the four categories.
• Be sure you justify your decisions.

You have an opportunity to purchase the 23 site Plum Creek manufactured home/RV park for $250,000. The park caters to extended stay residents (six months or longer) and charges a market rental rate of $240 per site per month. You expect to be able to raise site rentals 3% per year to account for inflation. There are no tenant reimbursements or passthroughs. You plan a five year holding period so you create a six year proforma. The owner reports an annual vacancy rate of 10% but you believe an annual 15% vacancy rate every year of the holding period is a more realistic estimate. You use 15%. For expense estimates, you rely on public records (tax office), an income/expense statement provided by the owner/seller, and Darrell Hess & Associates, a national manufactured home park brokerage company that compiles expense data from hundreds of parks nationwide. The previous year’s property taxes were $5,042. The new assessment and tax rate has not been set, so the previous year’s taxes are used in your pro-forma for the first year. Hazard and liability insurance is estimated to be 2% of effective gross income (EGI) in first year. Each site is individually metered for electricity and the tenants are responsible for their usage. The park owner reported annual water and trash removal expenses of $5,460 for the previous year, and this amount appears reasonable for your first year projection. The annual administrative/management expense (part time on-site manager, advertising, legal fees, accounting fees and office expenses, etc.) is estimated to be 29% of EGI by Darrell Hess & Assoc. The owner did not report any maintenance expense as he did all of the work himself. You believe a $2,000 first year expense is reasonable for the road maintenance, landscape maintenance, etc. You expect expenses to increase 3% each year of the five year holding period except insurance and management expenses tied to EGI. Page 7 of 7 You have obtained a loan commitment from a bank for 80% (20% down payment aka equity contribution) of the purchase price with a 20 year amortization at 6% interest. 1) Create a six year Pro-forma statement of cash flows on an Excel spreadsheet. 2) Calculate the following ratios and indicators (all before tax) by Excel formulas at the bottom of the spreadsheet to three decimals: A) Operating expense ratio (annual operating expense/EGI); according to Darrell Hess & Associates, operators can expect a 50% operating expense ratio. B) All Five Years of Debt Coverage Ratio (NOI/debt service); 1.3 or greater is considered good by the lender. C) All Five Years Return on Equity (BTCF/equity invested); investor surveys indicate 13% or better is expected for each year. D) Using the IRV formula, calculate the indicated overall rate (cap rate) RO for Year One to see if it is within the 9-11% range for manufactured home parks indicated by a national investor survey. Use the $250,000 asking price as the value in IRV for the calculation. E) Calculate the value of the subject after the five year holding period (the reversion) using a 10.5% terminal RO. Remember to carry the pro-forma to a sixth year to obtain Year Six NOI. F) Calculate the unleveraged IRR of the cash flows using the $250,000 asking price. G) Calculate the NPV of the property using a 12% IRR

Saint Mary’s University jointly runs a dual degree program with the Beijing Normal University at Zhuhai. In order to do so, Saint Mary’s provides faculty to instruct in China. For the spring session scheduled to run from April 22^nd to May 31^st, 2019 Saint Mary’s had an individual prepared to instruct this course. This person entered into a contract with SMU which stated in part that the individual would instruct in China during the entirety of the spring session, but said nothing about cancellation by either party. At some point on or about late February, this individual advised Saint Mary’s that they would not be able to come to Zhuhai. Assume for the purposes of this assignment that the individual had been diagnosed with cancer, and was unable to travel.

In or about early March Professor Scott had been offered and had accepted a position as the new instructor by Saint Mary’s. A contract was entered into that included, among other things, clear instructions that he would need to secure the appropriate Visa that would allow him to travel to Zhuhai. As time was tight (in legal terms we say that time was of the essence) Scott was encouraged to go ahead and book flights and make the necessary arrangements in order to be in China to start classes on April 22.

In Canada, the Chinese embassy is responsible for issuing appropriate Visas for travel to China. In order to facilitate the processing of applications, the embassy utilizes an independent company known as the Chinese Visa Processing Centre Limited…this company is a separate entity from the government and operates at arm’s length from the embassy. Applications are filled out online, and when complete, the applicant must print the application form and attend in person at the offices of the Chinese Visa Processing Centre where they pay a fee and also provide biometric scans that enable the embassy to conduct their work. The Chinese Visa Processing Centre essentially pre screens visa applications to ensure conformity with the established decision parameters. If there are readily apparent issues, for example an expired passport or things of an administrative nature, then the Chinese Visa Processing Centre will hold an application pending the correction of the issue by the applicant. The Processing Centre also states that applicants who cannot pick up their passport in person must provide a prepaid pre-addressed return envelope so that the passport containing the Visa can be returned to the applicant.

Scott prepared the online application form as advised. Given the type of Visa required, Scott needed a letter, known as the Foreign Expert Invitation Letter issued by the provincial government in Guangdong, China. Although this letter was not mentioned in the contract, Saint Mary’s represented verbally that they would secure the letter for Scott. Saint Mary’s did, in fact secure the letter, which was advanced to Scott via email on March 19. Having completed the application, and with the letter in hand, Scott flew to Ottawa to deliver the visa application.

Before that however, Scott had booked flights from Halifax to Zhuhai that would have him arrive in China on April 19 in time to begin classes on the 22^nd. Scott was instructed to secure cancellation insurance on all flights. Scott did, in fact, pay for and receive a policy of insurance that clearly stated that it would cover the cost of flights cancelled due to medical emergencies or death, including medical emergencies or death to immediate family members of the insured party.

While sitting in the departure lounge awaiting his return flight to Halifax, having attended at the Visa Processing Centre as required Scott received a telephone call from the Chinese Visa Processing Centre and was told that the embassy has already had a look at the Foreign Expert Invitation Letter. Scott was advised that the letter would not suffice because it lacked certain information, and also because it needed to be issued by the appropriate government authorities in the Guangdong Province. The letter had actually been issued by the University, in accordance with past practice This issue had not been raised for previous applications.

As a result of this problem, it became impossible to travel as planned and Scott advised his travel agent that the flights would need to be cancelled or changed. Further, Scott and officials at Saint Mary’s decided that he should not rebook any travel until it was absolutely certain that the new letter could be obtained.

On April 19, Scott received a different Foreign Expert Invitation Letter and forwarded it to the Chinese Visa Processing Centre. They acknowledged receipt on April 22 and indicated that he should receive confirmation that the Visa had been processed by April 26.

With this new knowledge, Saint Mary’s and Beijing Normal University at Zhuhai amended the start date of the course to May 6.

On April 26, Scott received word that his Visa had been processed and his passport had been placed in the provided pre-paid, pre-addressed envelope and put in the mail. The expected delivery date was April 29. Unfortunately, on April 29 it was discovered that the passport had been delivered to any entirely different address, not in Halifax Nova Scotia, but in Mississauga Ontario, 2000 kilometres away. The address label on the envelope that had been purchased from Canada Post had been tampered with before it was sold. When it was placed in the postal system by the Chinese Visa Processing Centre, it had two different addresses, and Canada Post picked one but they picked the wrong one. When contacted by Scott, Canada Post officials advised that once the envelope had been placed in the mailbox of the receiver, it became the receiver’s property, and Canada Post could not recover it because this would constitute theft. They took no responsibility for the envelope, saying it was the buyer’s problem.

Fortunately the passport was located. The individual that had the passport said that he would return it if Scott came to get it at his home. When Scott travelled to the home, the gentleman said he would only return it if Scott paid a significant reward. At first Scott declined, but the gentleman indicated that he would call the police and state that Scott was trespassing on his property. Scott felt he had no choice, and so he complied and made the payment.

When Scott returned to his hotel with the passport, the rain started to fall heavily. The stone walkway at the front of the hotel was quite slippery, and unfortunately Scott fell and injured his shoulder. Hotel staff would take no responsibility for the injury, stating Scott should have been more careful as it was raining. A sign on the wall of the hotel indicated that the paving stones could become slippery when wet, and patrons of the hotel were cautioned that the hotel accepted no responsibility for injuries. Unfortunately, the hotel concierge had left a luggage cart in front of the sign such that it was not visible.

1. IDENTIFY ALL THE POTENTIAL LEGAL ISSUES WITH REFERENCE TO THE MATERIALS COVERED IN THE COURSE. YOU MAY PREPARE YOUR ANSWER IN POINT FORM. NOTE ALSO THAT YOU ARE ASKED ONLY TO IDENTIFY THE POTENTIAL LEGAL ISSUES, SO A COMPLETE ANALYSIS IS NOT REQUIRED. (50 points)

2. ASSUME YOU ARE A LAWYER RETAINED BY SAINT MARY’S. ADVISE SAINT MARY’S OF ALL OF THEIR RIGHTS AND OBLIGATIONS IF SCOTT HAD NOT BEEN ABLE TO SECURE THE VISA. (10 points)

3. IDENTIFY, WITH REFERENCE TO RISK MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES, AREAS WHERE RISK WAS ENCOUNTERED AND HOW THE PARTIES DEALT WITH THE RISK. SPECIFY THE PARTICULAR RISK MANAGEMENT STRATEGY. (35 points)

4. WOULD IT MAKE ANY DIFFERENCE TO YOUR ANALYSIS IF SCOTT WAS PAID OR IF HE WAS A VOLUNTEER? WHY OR WHY NOT? (5 points)

IAS 7 - Consolidated Cash Flow Statement

The following are the consolidated financial statement from the records of MT Bhd (MTB) for 2011 incorporating its subsidiary JK Bhd (JKB).

Consolidated Statement of Comprehensive Income for the year ended 31 December 2011

Consolidated Statement of Financial Position as at 31 December 2011

Additional Information:

1).     MTB had acquired 80% interest in JKB on 1 January 2001. On that date the shareholders’ funds of JKB totaled RM800K. Before the purchase, an item of long term asset which was undervalued by RM50K was subsequently revalued. MTB had paid RM830K for JKB shares. The payment consisted of 200K shares (RM1 par) and RM230K cash. The market value of MTB shares on the acquisition date was RM3 per share.

2).     There is no impairment of goodwill for the current year.

3).     During the year 2011, MTB paid RM320K dividend. JKB earned net income of RM500K and paid RM150K dividend.

4)      During the year an additional piece of land was purchased for RM500K. The existing land was revalued to RM1,200K.

5)      During the last quarter, a piece of machinery which had originally cost RM180K and had been depreciated RM70K was sold by MTB for RM130K. Another machine was immediately purchased for RM270K paying by a promissory note of RM70K and the balance by cash.

You are required to prepare:

a).     The worksheet for the preparation of a consolidated cash flow statement.

b).     The consolidated statement of cash flows for the year ended 31 December 2011.

Required information

Exercise 5A-2 Least-Squares Regression [LO5-11]

[The following information applies to the questions displayed below.]

Bargain Rental Car offers rental cars in an off-airport location near a major tourist destination in California. Management would like to better understand the variable and fixed portions of it car washing costs. The company operates its own car wash facility in which each rental car that is returned is thoroughly cleaned before being released for rental to another customer. Management believes that the variable portion of its car washing costs relates to the number of rental returns. Accordingly, the following data have been compiled:

Exercise 5A-2 Part 2

2. Using least-squares regression, estimate the variable cost per rental return and the monthly fixed cost incurred to wash cars.

Lexington Company produces baseball bats and cricket paddles. It has two departments that process all products. During July, the beginning work in process in the cutting department was half completed as to conversion, and complete as to direct materials. The beginning inventory included $40,000 for materials and $60,000 for conversion costs. Ending work-in-process inventory in the cutting department was 40% complete. Direct materials are added at the beginning of the process.

Beginning work in process in the finishing department was 80% complete as to conversion. Direct materials for finishing the units are added near the end of the process. Beginning inventories included $24,000 for transferred-in costs and $28,000 for conversion costs. Ending inventory was 30% complete. Additional information about the two departments follows:

Calculate the Cost per equivalent unit for the Finishing department, for Direct Materials,
Convesion Costs and Transferred in costs, using the FIFO method

Lavage Rapide is a Canadian company that owns and operates a large automatic car wash facility near Montreal. The following table provides data concerning the company’s costs: Fixed Cost per Month Cost per Car Washed Cleaning supplies $ 0.70 Electricity $ 1,400 $ 0.08 Maintenance $ 0.15 Wages and salaries $ 4,300 $ 0.40 Depreciation $ 8,300 Rent $ 2,200 Administrative expenses $ 1,700 $ 0.04 For example, electricity costs are $1,400 per month plus $0.08 per car washed. The company expects to wash 8,400 cars in August and to collect an average of $6.80 per car washed. The actual operating results for August appear below. Lavage Rapide Income Statement For the Month Ended August 31 Actual cars washed 8,500 Revenue $ 59,220 Expenses: Cleaning supplies 6,380 Electricity 2,042 Maintenance 1,500 Wages and salaries 8,020 Depreciation 8,300 Rent 2,400 Administrative expenses 1,936 Total expense 30,578 Net operating income $ 28,642 Required: Calculate the company's revenue and spending variances for August. (Indicate the effect of each variance by selecting "F" for favorable, "U" for unfavorable, and "None" for no effect (i.e., zero variance). Input all amounts as positive values.)

Lavage Rapide is a Canadian company that owns and operates a large automatic car wash facility near Montreal. The following table provides data concerning the company’s costs:

For example, electricity costs are $1,400 per month plus $0.08 per car washed. The company expects to wash 8,000 cars in August and to collect an average of $6.90 per car washed.

The actual operating results for August are as follows:

Required:

Calculate the company's revenue and spending variances for August. (Indicate the effect of each variance by selecting "F" for favorable, "U" for unfavorable, and "None" for no effect (i.e., zero variance). Input all amounts as positive values.)

Lavage Rapide is a Canadian company that owns and operates a large automatic car wash facility near Montreal. The following table provides data concerning the company’s costs:

For example, electricity costs are $1,100 per month plus $0.08 per car washed. The company expects to wash 8,500 cars in August and to collect an average of $6.80 per car washed.

The actual operating results for August are as follows:

Required:

Calculate the company's revenue and spending variances for August. (Indicate the effect of each variance by selecting "F" for favorable, "U" for unfavorable, and "None" for no effect (i.e., zero variance). Input all amounts as positive values.)