CASE STUDY

The recent outbreak of novel coronavirus (COVID-19) has introduced new challenges to the business environment. It is also having an impact on the global economy with tourism, aviation, education and hospitality the initially hardest hit industries. Almost all global supply-chains are affected at some level. Realistically, many sectors will be affected to different degrees, with many organizations implementing policies to limit employee travel and to prepare employees to work from home if necessary and if possible, to ensure the safety of their employees. The outbreak is moving quickly, and most countries are trying to respond quickly to contain the impact. However, the spread of the virus may continue through 2020 and impact the operations of many industries for months to come.

Taking Arab Open University as an example,

Question 2 - Maximum 800 words (+/-10%).

Critically analyze the main paradoxes that could face the university in managing required organizational change? Then explain why might the university not change after such global crises?

Gale & Co. has applied for a loan from the Trust Us Bank in order to invest in several potential opportunities. In order to evaluate the firm as a potential debtor, the bank would like to compare Gale & Co. to the industry. The following are some key financial ratios

                                                            2016                2017                Industry Norm(2017)

Current Ratio                                      4.3X                5.7X                            5.0X

Quick Ratio                                         2.1X                2.8X                            3.0X

Inventory Turnover                             1.0X                1.3X                            2.2X

Average Collection Period                 90days             78.3days                      90days

Debt Ratio                                           33%                 28%                             33%

Times Interest Earned                         5.0X                6.0X                            7.0X

Total Asset Turnover                          .46X                .54X                            .76X

Fixed Asset Turnover                          .92X                .99X                            1.0X   

Operating Profit Margin                     29.1%              25.6%                          20%

Net Profit Margin                                12.0%              14.6%                          16.3%

Return on Total Assets                       7.1%                7.5%                            9.0%

Basic Earning Power Ratio                 13.4%              13.7%                          15.0%

Return on Equity                                10.6%              10.4%                          13.4%

What are the firm’s financial strengths and weaknesses? Should the bank make the loan? Why or why not?

The following economic transactions are drawn from a country's balance of payments for the 2016 in US dollars billions.
i) Export of civilians goods.                             224.4
ii) imports of civilian goods                             368.7
iii) military sales abroad                                         8.9
iv) military purchase abroad                                     12.6
v) exports of service (investment income & fees earned, foreign tourism)                                         139.5
vi) import services (investment income paid out) 117.2
vii) Net unilateral transfers (gifts)                            15.7
viii) foreign private investments in home country 202.7
ix) Home country investments overseas        94.4
x) Foreign official lending in home country   34.7
xi) Home country lending overseas             1.9
xii) Net in home country official reserve   0.30

You are required to categorise the above transactions as either credit or debit in balance of payments account.

Develop the following:
1.Trade balance
2.Current account balance
3. Capital account balance
4. Official reserves balance
5. Indicate whether surplus/deficits balance in all the account balances.

A study published in 2008 in the American Journal of Health Promotion (Volume 22, Issue 6) by researchers at the University of Minnesota (U of M) found that 124 out of 1,923 U of M females had over $6,000 in credit card debt while 61 out of 1,236 males had over $6,000 in credit card debt.

10. Verify that the sample size is large enough in each group to use the normal distribution to construct a confidence interval for a difference in two proportions.

11. Construct a 95% confidence interval for the difference between the proportions of female and male University of Minnesota students who have more than $6,000 in credit card debt (pf - pm). Round your sample proportions and margin of error to four decimal places.

12. Test, at the 5% level, if there is evidence that the proportion of female students at U of M with more that $6,000 credit card debt is greater than the proportion of males at U of M with more than $6,000 credit card debt. Include all details of the test.

On October 31, 2017, Cool Company sells a truck that originally cost 140,000 $ for 95,000$ cash. The truck was placed in service on January 1, 2012. It was depreciated using the straight-line method with an estimated salvage value of 28,000 and a useful life of 10 years. Record all the transaction. On July 19, 2018, Cool Co. purchased a machine for 260,000 SA from Saudi Machine Company (SMC). Omar gave SMC 7% note due in 120 days in payment for the machine. What is the maturity date of the note? How much interest will Omar pay to SMC on this note? Record the note? On October 16, 2018, Cool informs us that the company is unable to pay the note or interest?

CASE B: Steps Toward Cultural Competence

Three students are about to graduate from Temple Dental School in a few months, and they are about to open their own practice upon graduation.  They hire your consulting company to help them design a culturally competent practice.  You receive the following email from one of the students:

Dear __________,

I understand that you provide consultation services for healthcare organizations who want to be more culturally competent.  My friends and I are joining together to start our own dental practice, and we want to make sure that we are getting off on the right foot.  We went to school at Temple University Dental School, which exists in North Philadelphia.  We want to stay connected to the local community, so we are opening our practice nearby. 

Some of our concerns are:

·         Meeting the needs of a low income community while still staying afloat financially as a business

·         Diversity of our own staff (we are three white men)

·         Designing policies that are culturally competent

·         Uncovering our unconscious biases

·         How to incorporate our passion for cultural competency into our mission statement

Can you help us? 

Sincerely,

Brian Jones

For this case study, answer the following questions:

1. Design a concise email response to this inquiry.  I want to see that you can write a professional email.  There is nothing specific you need to include in terms of content.  Please just show me your best professional conduct in a brief response.  Use this email to set up a meeting. 

2. Now imagine your email was so well-written that Brian agrees to meet with you to hear your ideas.  Upon meeting Brian Jones and his 2 partners, what information would you like to know in order to design a plan of action?  List 2 questions to ask these gentlemen BEFORE you can begin working with them.

3. Provide a sample statement that could be added to the organization’s mission statement.

4. How would you address the diversity of the employees at this healthcare organization?  In other words, what would you do to incorporate more diversity on the team?

5. What policies do they need to consider in their workplace management? Name at least 2 specific policies and explain how those policies address the concerns presented in Brian’s email.  Think about policies intended for the employees, not necessarily the patients.

1. Compute the Mean and Median. Explain the meaning of these statistics. Which measure is  more appropriate for this sample? Explain why

The starting annual salaries of a sample of 20 recent MBA graduates are recorded. The data is presented below.

Exceed, a US Company acquired all of the Outstanding Common Stock of Silver company on Jan 1 2019. Silver Company's functional currency is the peso. The exchange rates are as follows:

REQUIRED: Translate the 2019 financial statements of the subsidiary to U.S. Dollars from Pesos.

Western State University (WSU) is preparing its master budget for the upcoming academic year. Currently, 16,500 students are enrolled on campus; however, the admissions office is forecasting a 8 percent growth in the student body despite a tuition hike to $85 per credit hour. The following additional information has been gathered from an examination of university records and conversations with university officials:

WSU is planning to award 200 tuition-free scholarships.

The average class has 20 students, and the typical student takes 15 credit hours each semester. Each class is three credit hours.

WSU’s faculty members are evaluated on the basis of teaching, research, and university and community service. Each faculty member teaches five classes during the academic year.

Required:

Prepare a tuition revenue budget for the upcoming academic year.

Determine the number of faculty members needed to cover classes.

Assume there is a shortage of full-time faculty members. Select at least five actions that WSU might take to accommodate the growing student body by selecting an "X" next to the action.

You have been requested by the university’s administrative vice president (AVP) to construct budgets for other areas of operation (e.g., the library, grounds, dormitories, and maintenance). The AVP noted: “The most important resource of the university is its faculty. Now that you know the number of faculty needed, you can prepare the other budgets. Faculty members are indeed the key driver—without them we don’t operate.” Are faculty members a key driver in preparing budgets?