Course Project
Week 8
Guidelines and Grading Rubric (200 points)
Use your Course Project organization selected during Week 2 for this assignment.
COMPANY NAME, WEBSITE, and INDUSTRY
State the company name, website address, and industry.
BACKGROUND and HISTORY
Briefly describe the company in the case analysis. What is their primary business, who were
the officers or key players described in the case study? If the case study company is
currently in business, list the company’s current CEO, total sales, and profit or loss for the
last year where data is available. Identify key events or phases in the company’s history.
Describe the performance of this company in the industry. Visit the company’s website and
use http://finance.yahoo.com and/or some other financial search engine to find this data.
(15 points)
NOTE: Make sure to use APA citations throughout the paper. The textbook should be
cited if it is the source of information. If you are not familiar with APA citation, check
out the tutorial APA Guidelines for Citing Sources at the end of the course
Syllabus. There are videos to help you with the APA format and business research in
the Week 1 Llecture.
ANALYSIS VIA PORTER’S FIVE FORCES MODEL
Analyze the competitive environment by listing the threat of new entrants, the bargaining
power of buyers, the bargaining power of suppliers, the threat of substitute products and
services, and the intensity of rivalry among competitors in the industry (Chapter 2).
Summarize your key points in a figure. (25 points)
STRATEGY USED
How does this company create and sustain a competitive advantage? What strategy from
the readings was undertaken by this company? Were they successful? Can all companies
use this strategy? How is the strategy affected by the life cycle in the industry? Remember
to reference Porter’s generic strategies identified in Chapter 5 of the textbook, THIS IS
CRITICAL. (40 points)
Specific STRATEGY(S)
Choose six specific strategies from this list.
Ensuring Coherence in Strategic Direction (pages 26–32)
Value Chain Analysis (pages 81–93)
Resource View of Firm (pages 93–104)
Industry Life Cycle Strategies (pages 187–195)
Turnaround Strategies (pages 193–195)
1
Vertical Integration (pages 210–214)
Portfolio Management and the BCG Matrix (pages 216–226)
Strategic Alliances and Joint Ventures (pages 226–228)
Achieving Competitive Advantage (pages 256–267)
Entry Model (pages 267–272)
Entrepreneurial Strategy (pages 292–311)
External Governance Control (pages 340–347)
Linking Strategic Rewards (pages 366–372)
Creating Ambidextrous Organization Designs (pages 383–387)
Leadership (pages 392–416)
Apply them in detail to the organization. Be sure to think strategically and show the results
clearly. Use the strategy as a sub-header for each section so it is clear what is being
applied. (90 points)
COURSE OF ACTION RECOMMENDED
If you were in a position to advise this company, what strategy would you recommend to
sustain competitive advantage and achieve future growth? Be specific and list the steps the
company should take for successful implementation of your course of action. (15 points)
OPINION
What do you think of this case study? Describe what you believe are the lessons learned
from this case. (10 points)
REFERENCES
When you have completed the paper using the above sections, insert a page break and
have a separate reference page. The references should be listed in accordance with the APA
guidelines as shown in the tutorial. (5 points)
FORMAT
•
Use a title page.
•
Font: Use Times New Roman, 12 point.
•
Place your name in the upper left hand corner of the page.
•
Each section of your paper should be headed by the bolded, capitalized item
described above.
2
•
Indent paragraphs.
•
Insert page numbers bottom right.
•
Paper length should be six to eight double-spaced pages not including title
page, references, or illustrations and tables.
•
Use APA citations throughout the paper. If you are not familiar with APA
citation, refer to tutorial, which is contained in the last section of our course
Syllabus.
•
Include a separate Reference page at the end of the paper.
•
Please prepare reference page as follows.
References
Dess, G., Lumpkin, G., & Eisner, A. (2012). Strategic Management (6e). Boston: McGrawHill Irwin.
Side Notes
•
Save your paper in the following format: Your last name, initials of your first
and middle name, and the company discussed in the case study.
EXAMPLE: If your name is Edward R Jones and you are writing a case study
on Google, then the file name for your paper would be jonesergoogle.doc
•
Place the paper in the Dropbox designated by the weekly assignment.
Note that the report is worth 200 points and points are allocated for each
section as noted in the outline.
3
Course Project: Development and Analysis
Objectives
Select, develop, and analyze an in-depth case analysis. The purpose
of this project is to utilize course concepts to strategically analyze an
organization of your choosing.
Case studies are used extensively in teaching business. Typically,
students perform an analysis on a case study prepared by an author
or the professor—in this instance, the student is the author of the
cases. The case study research strategy provides the opportunity to
develop an in-depth understanding of an organization or event—data
can be collected from multiple sources (for example, company
websites, interviews, or published articles).
Choose an organization during the Week 2 Discussions. Be sure it is
not already chosen by another student by seeing what was posted in
that discussion. The organizations may be large, medium, or small
businesses as well as non-profits. Governmental organizations do not
qualify.
Guidelines
Case Analysis: The Course Project will build on the skills developed
by the Case Analysis assignments done in Weeks 3 and 6.
Research Skills: Each case uses four to six sources, and sources
are cited in the text and at the end of the case study in APA format.
Writing Skills: Ideas are communicated clearly in business English
and using the appropriate business terminology. Work should be
prepared following the development of a rough draft, revision, editing,
and proofing to produce a final polished report.
A successful project will meet all of these requirements to earn a
maximum of 200 points. At the conclusion of this project, it will be
beneficial to compare what factors are selected by your peers. Are
there patterns here?
Milestones
• Week 1: Read supporting documents in Doc Sharing.
• Week 2: In the Course Project selection and SWOT discussion
thread, post the organization you have chosen for your Course
Project.
• Week 2: Using your Course Project Organization, post an In-TheNews assignment which incorporates strategies and applies
them to your project.
• Weeks 3–7: Research and prepare rough draft and analysis,
followed by revision, editing, and proofing—obtaining feedback.
• Week 5: Using your Course Project Organization, post an In-TheNews assignment which incorporates strategies and applies
them to your project
• Week 8: Submit your Final Report.
Grading Rubrics
Category
Background and
History
Analysis via
Porter's Five
Forces Model
Points
Description
15
3 points deducted for each item not addressed.
25
5 points deducted for each item not addressed. Full credit is
awarded with a good faith effort to apply the model.
Strategy Used
40
Specific Strategy(s)
90
Course of Action
Recommended
Opinion
References
Total
8 points deducted for each item not addressed. Full credit is
awarded with a good faith effort to apply the model.
15 points deducted for strategy not addressed. Full credit is
awarded with a good faith effort to apply the model.
15
10
5
200
Paper Length: The paper should be 6- to 8-pages long. There will be
a 25 point deduction per full page below the minimum or over the
maximum and partial pages will have deduction proportionally.
Remember the title page, reference page, and illustrations and tables
do not count in the page count.
Best Practices
The Process for Developing a Case Study and Cross-Case
Analysis
• Generate topic ideas—brainstorm, use your experience, your
interests, and career oriented choices.
• Develop initial ideas—explore the Internet and library databases.
• Select a topic—find the best fit between assignment and
information, interest, and experience obtained.
• Develop a research question and set of questions (e.g., Why did
this strategy succeed?)—answering this question will guide
data collection and helps interpret results.
• Data collection and analysis
◦
Decide on suitable sources and means to access these
sources.
◦
Conduct interviews and observations, if appropriate.
◦
Collect published sources and record publication details (use
APA format).
◦
Review data and determine gaps that need to be filled.
◦
Determine case study structure (chronological or organized
around key events and issues).
◦
Interpret data in relation to the initial research question.
• Develop an outline—say what you are going to say, say it, and then
say you have said it (i.e., introduction, main body, summary,
and conclusion).
• Develop a rough draft, revise, edit, and proof—this is critical to
producing a good quality document.
• A good case study should be
◦
significant;
◦
complete;
◦
consider alternative perspectives;
◦
display sufficient evidence; and
◦
be written in an engaging manner.
Format
Use a title page.
• Font: Use Times New Roman, 12 point.
• Place your name in the upper left hand corner of the page.
• Each section of your paper should be headed by the bold and
capitalized item described above.
• Indent paragraphs.
• Insert page numbers at the bottom right.
• Paper length should be 6- to 8-pages, double-spaced not including
title page, references, and illustrations and tables.
• Use APA citations throughout the paper. If you are not familiar with
APA citation, refer to tutorial, which is contained in the last
section of our course Syllabus.
• Include a separate reference page at the end of the paper.
• Please prepare reference page as follows.
References
Dess, G., Lumpkin, G., & Eisner, A. (2012). Strategic Management
(6e). Boston: McGraw-Hill Irwin.
• Save your paper in the following format: Your last name, your
initials of your first and middle name, and the company
discussed in the Case Study.
EXAMPLE: If your name is Edward R Jones and you are writing a
case study on Google, then the file name for your paper would be
jonesergoogle.doc.
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