BUSS5020
Essay 2
Semester2, 2020
Essay 2 task description
What follows is a scenario from which you are required to make a choice for Jane Cortez.
October 2020
After spending three hours with other orange growers in Wagga Wagga, Jane Cortez was
driving home to ‘Naranjas’. Opening the car window, she could smell the fruit trees getting
ready to deliver the harvest. Jane was thinking that harvest was the best time, such joy and
excitement. COVID-19 had put a stop to that. The government had banned all travellers into
Australia. The only people allowed to land were Australians wanting to come home. This had a
major impact in the agricultural sector. The fruit growers were facing a harvest where the fruit
would rot on the ground, as there would be no one to pick the fruit.
Jane reflected on the meeting she had just attended. The discussion had been about getting
people to pick the fruit and had ranged from someone saying they could take on the
unemployed. This was dismissed as quickly as it was brought up, no one would be comfortable
asking people to work for nothing, or very little. However, the one area that might be given
government approval was to bring in Pacific Islanders to help pick the fruit. A few of the
farmers had been selected to go the Canberra to put their case to the Government.
November 2020
The Government had approved the scheme, and providing that the farmers paid to have the
Pacific Islanders quarantined, they could advertise to get pickers from the Pacific Islands. The
farmers were very excited, they could see that the harvest, a very good harvest, would go
ahead. Jane gave a huge sigh of relief, now her oranges would be picked and not rot on the
ground. She quickly phoned her friends Bill and Bob to discuss how the scheme would work.
She said that they could come to Naranjas tomorrow, and she promised them tea and scones.
The following morning Bill and Bob arrived, and Jane produced the tea and scones as promised.
Bob: Good news about the pickers, can’t wait to get them started.
Bill: I have heard that the wages could be good for business.
Jane: What do you mean?
Bill: Well, I heard that we won’t have to pay as much for the pickers, we just pay them the
minimum wage. Much better than using Australians, because you have to pay them more! And,
they are lazy.
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BUSS5020
Essay 2
Semester2, 2020
Bob: Gee, Bill that’s not acceptable. Remember in the past, we had those pickers from Sydney,
and they did a good job. They cost more, but they worked hard.
Bill: We won’t have problems with the Pacific Islanders. Some of them are young and so you
don’t need to pay them an adult wage. I mean not all of them, but quite a few, and this means
that you only have to pay junior wage, approximately 60 -70 % of the adult wage. Most of them
are coming in families so they can all sleep in the same place, so a bit of a saving there as well.
Bob: Bill, don’t you think they deserve more than the minimum wage, I mean they are picking
fruit and that is hard work, especially in this climate where it is very hot. I have had a few arrive,
and I must say I am a bit concerned about the younger ones.
Jane: Don’t you think they can pick the fruit?
Bob: No, it’s just they look very young. I don’t think some of them should be working as fruit
pickers.
Bill: My children have been picking fruit since the time they could stand! I wouldn’t be worried
about that.
Bob: But Bill those are your children, and that’s fine, but this is employing them. I have asked
the families they say the children are 15, but some seem younger than that. One little boy looks
about 12. I mean I know there is no minimum age for them to start work, but usually it is 13
that’s acceptable. Even 13 you need a special permit to get them to work. But the families say
the children are 15 and you want to believe them.
Bill: Well, the families should know the age of the children. They would bring them if they had a
problem. And since 15 is the minimum age to work without a permit, I would say just accept it.
Jane: What if they are not? What if they are only 13 or 14, or worse 12 as Bob has indicated?
Could we get in trouble for child exploitation?
Bill: Jane, come on! If the families say the children are 15 then we accept them as 15. And as I
said before, they will be cheaper than the adults, so a saving there. Besides, these children
probably work at home, and let’s face it, they need the money. I understand that the Pacific
Islanders send most of the money home to support other members of their family. If you don’t
employ them that will be an impact on the whole community in the Pacific Islands.
Bob: Well, why don’t we pay them a proper wage, that’s something that can help them, rather
than the minimum wage. I am sure they would appreciate the higher wages.
Bill was ignoring Bob’s comment, and directed his comments to Jane.
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BUSS5020
Essay 2
Semester2, 2020
Bill: Jane, this could save you money and you need it. However, if you wanted to do something,
then what about the local children’s hospital in Wagga Wagga. They are doing a fundraising
event for Christmas you could help by volunteering or, better still, give them a donation from
Naranjas. It would take all the money that you get from paying a minimum wage, if that is what
it takes to make you feel better. It would be good for you in the community. Shows a
community spirit, it would be good for Naranjas brand!
Bob: Jane, if you are going to do something, then do it for the Pacific Islanders. For example,
every tonne of oranges sold you could put some money, you need to work how much, aside to
renovate or build schools for the Pacific Islanders in their home country.
Jane: I am not sure. I will have to think on that.
Jane could feel the tension between Bill and Bob, so she changed the conversation to lighter
topics, with Jane teasing Bob about his romance with one of the other farmers.
After they had left, Jane reflected on the conversation, and she felt a little uneasy. She
remembered the work you had done on choosing the options for selling and decided that you
could help her again. Jane want you to help her decide what to do.
Task
As a consultant to Jane Cortez, she has asked your advice on what she should do now, as the
picking is about to start.
However, Jane wanted to create a more socially responsible business. She wants the farm to
make money so she can pay dividends to the investors, this is mostly her family, but she was
equally interested in doing the right thing for her stakeholders and the environment. It was
obvious to her that this wasn’t going to be easy and it was going to take time.
As you are her trusted consultants, Jane asked for your help. As well as running a successful
business she wants to run a socially responsible business. In your recommendations, you will
have to evaluate possible CSR and/or CSV approaches to help her achieve her goal.
Jane wants the answers to these questions in an essay format. The essay should evaluate the
issues and the conclude with a clear and well justified recommendation for Jane. You need to
make sure that you use relevant course content in your essay.
In the essay you must:
1. write a succinct introduction;
2. critically evaluate the options; and
3. conclude with a well-justified recommendation.
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BUSS5020
Essay 2
Semester2, 2020
Critical thinking is a key component of the exercise and we are looking for originality of
thought. In so doing, you must draw on reliable English language sources, especially peerreviewed academic journal articles and, if applicable, relevant industry, government and nongovernment publications.
By way of guidance, it is recommended that your essay should spend:
1. Roughly 100 words on introduction;
2. 1000 - 1150 words on critically evaluating the argument(s); and
3. 150 words on a conclusion.
4. Your essay must include a reference list.
This Essay task is worth 25% of your final grade, and should not exceed 1,500 words in length,
including in-text references, reference list, and any text in tables, diagrams, etc. Your essay
must also contain a reference list, which is also included in the word count. The essay must be
submitted in .doc or .docx format.
The Essay is due no later than 10:00AM (Sydney time) on Monday 30 November 2020.
Your filename must take the format SID_BUSS5020_2020S2_Essay2.docx, where SID is your SID,
e.g. A student with the SID 012345678 would have the filename:
012345678_BUSS5020_2020S2_Essay2.docx
The essay must be properly referenced in accordance with the American Psychological
Association (APA) 6th edition style. Details are available on the Library website. The essay must
adhere to the University’s Academic Honesty in Coursework Policy 2015, and other relevant
University policies.
The University has authorised and mandated the use of text-based similarity detecting software
for all text-based written assignments. The task must therefore be submitted through Turnitin
on Canvas. You may resubmit the essay until the due date/time, after which no further
resubmissions will be accepted. You are responsible for ensuring the correct document (not a
draft) is submitted. The document submitted at the deadline is the document that will be
marked, and no discussion will be entered into to the contrary nor any special pleading
entertained.
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BUSS5020
Essay 2
Semester2, 2020
Grading
Essays will be graded against the following criteria:
• conforming with instructions;
• critical analysis and evaluation;
• research; and
• presentation and communication.
Please see the rubric on Canvas for a more detailed explanation and additional resources.
Standard Business School penalties apply for papers submitted late and/or over the word limit.
It is your responsibility to ensure you are acquainted with these policies.
Late penalties
Assessments which are submitted after the assessment deadline will incur a late penalty of 5%
per day or part thereof up to 10 calendar days, after which a mark of zero is applied. The closing
date is 10 calendar days after the due date. Since submission is electronic, for the purpose of
calculating penalties, weekends, public holidays, and ordinary working days ALL count as days.
Word limit and Format
A penalty is applied to papers which exceed the word limit. Where a student exceeds the word
limit, the student will lose 10% of the total marks when the submission is 10% above the word
limit and 10% for each 10% over-limit thereafter. Note that the word limit includes the
executive summary, in-text referencing, and the reference list at the end of the document. Any
text in tables, images, etc. is also included. Since the stated word limit for this assessment is
1,500 words, this means students can write up to 1,650 words without incurring a word limit
penalty.
Format – The font is Times New Roman – 12pt and 1.5 line spacing.
Feedback
The final mark and written feedback will be made available to students via Canvas when
available.
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BUSS5020 – Essay 2 Rubric 2020 Semester 2
Research
Depth, synthesis and
application of relevant and
quality research.
20%
Depth of Critical Analysis
Quality and depth of the
analysis.
35%
Evaluation
Quality and depth of the
evaluation.
20%
Communication
Quality and clarity of business
or academic writing,
presentation and structure
20%
Referencing
Adherence to APA 6th edition
referencing style.
5%
HD 85% - 100%
Extensive use and synthesis of
relevant, quality peer-reviewed
journal articles. Additional high
quality and relevant research is
evident. Source quality and
credibility has been critically
considered.
D 75% - 84%
Very good use and synthesis of
relevant, quality peer-reviewed
journal articles. Additional
research is generally of a high
quality and relevance.
CR 65% - 74%
Shows a good understanding of
the role of research and uses
some quality peer-reviewed
articles. There is some room for
more relevant selection and
application of research.
Excellent critical analysis
displaying comprehensive
evidence of examining or
engagement with information
given by the task. Consistent,
logical, and showed awareness of
hidden assumptions or potential
bias. No improvement was
needed.
Very good critical analysis
demonstrating very good
evidence of examining or
engagement with information
given by the task. Mostly
consistent, logical, and showed
awareness of hidden assumptions
or potential bias. But there were
minor areas that could be
improved.
Good quality, in-depth critical
evaluation showing considerable
depth of insight into multiple
perspectives on the different
options and arrives at a
synthesised and balanced overall
recommendation or judgement.
Some areas for improvement.
Good critical analysis
demonstrating some evidence of
examining or engagement with
information given by the task. But
there were some areas where the
analysis was inconsistent.
Very good presentation.
Information was presented in a
clear and organised and
structured manner.
The level of communication
showed a good understanding of
business or academic writing
style. Information was
appropriately categorised.
High quality, in-depth critical
evaluation showing outstanding
depth of insight into multiple
perspectives on the different
options and arrives at a
synthesised and balanced overall
recommendation or judgement.
The work showed a near
publishable use of business or
academic writing style.
Information was presented in
flawlessly clear and organised
manner.
Referencing was consistently
accurate in content and style,
adhering to the APA 6th edition.
Demonstrated a reasonable
evaluation, where discussion on
the different options was critically
engaged, and a synthesised and
reasonable overall
recommendation or judgement
was presented. Some areas for
improvement.
Referencing was very good in
Good referencing, in adhering to
th
adhering to APA 6 edition, but
APA 6th edition, but there were
there was one mistake which
minor issues throughout the text.
appeared consistently throughout
the text.
PASS 50% - 64%
Demonstrates some depth and
application of relevant, quality
research. Some use of quality
peer-reviewed articles. However,
in-depth use of quality research is
lacking. There is significant room
for more relevant selection and
application of research.
Reasonable critical analysis
demonstrating some evidence of
examining or engagement with
information given by the task. But
there were too many areas where
the analysis was inconsistent.
FAIL 0 - 49%
Research is consistently of very
limited relevance and quality.
Generally basic critical evaluation.
Discussion on the different
options was presented, and a
basic recommendation or
judgement was arrived at.
However, the overall
recommendation or judgement
was weakly justified and lacking in
quality. Major areas for
improvement remain.
The level of communication
showed a basic understanding of
business or academic writing
style.
The level of evaluation was very
limited. The paper failed to arrive
at any overall judgement or
addressing the task question.
In-text and end of text
referencing was present where
required, but with errors. Did
mostly adhere to APA 6th edition,
but considerable room for
improvement.
Limited critical analysis,
demonstrating little or no
evidence of examining or
engagement with information
given by the task.
The level of communication was
not appropriate for an academic
or business writing. There were
frequent errors in spelling and
grammar. The work caused
significant strain on the reader.
Some in-text references missing,
or some quotation marks missing.
Some references that are
occasionally inaccurate in content
or some items missing from
reference list. Did not adhere to
APA 6th edition.
Word Count Penalty
Where a student exceeds the word limit length, the student will lose 10% of the total marks. However, when the submission is 10% above the word length, they will lose 10% of the total mark, but for each 10% over,
they will lose a further 10% of the total marks.
Late Penalty
BUSS5020 – Essay 2 Rubric 2020 Semester 2
Late submission penalty will be 5% per day after the due date for up to 10 calendar days, after which a mark of zero is applied. The closing date is 10 calendar days after the due date.
Buss5020
Week 12
Content Review
The University of Sydney
Page 1
Unit overview
This semester we aimed to:
§ Develop critical thinking
§ Help you to build communication skills
§ Help you to build business knowledge & skills for your future
§ To provide a foundation for other units
§ To help you form networks with each other
The University of Sydney
Page 2
Unit overview
Intro
Business in
the Business Environment
Responding to
the Business Environment
Markets
Government & politics
Strategy
Introduction
Demographics
Ethics
Business basics
Culture
Technology
People
Environment
The University of Sydney
Page 3
Week 2 - What is ‘Business’?
Think of ‘business’ as an activity: the activity of production – the
transformation of various inputs into diverse outputs in the form
of goods and services to meet particular wants or needs of
people in society
(Bovee and Thill, 2015)
The University of Sydney
Page 4
Week 2 - Inputs and outputs / supply and demand
Supply of these
‘factors of
production’
influences
costs
La
nd
Labour
Ca
The University of Sydney
Business process
(depends on
technology)
a
t
i
p
l
oo
G
Se
rv
ds
ice
s
Demand for
these outputs
influences
revenue (on
which, more
later)
Page 5
Week 2 - Layers of the business environment
The macro-environment
Industry (or sector)
Competitors
The
organisation
The University of Sydney
Source: Johnson, Scholes & Whittington: Exploring Corporate Strategy
Page 6
Week 2 - The Industry Environment
Porter's Five Forces framework helps identify the attractiveness
of an industry in terms of five competitive forces:
– Threat of new entrants
– Threat of substitutes
– The bargaining power of buyers
– The bargaining power of suppliers
– Rivalry among existing competitors
(Johnson, 2008)
The University of Sydney
Page 7
Week 2 - The Macro Environment
•
•
•
PESTEL Analysis is a framework to
categorize the EXTERNAL forces in the
business environment.
PESTEL itself is just a structure, the analysis
is up to the analyst. To this end, one must
use relevant theories/concepts to adjudge
the opportunities and risks in various
environments.
This helps you understand the "big picture"
forces of change that you're exposed to,
and, from this, take advantage of the
opportunities that they present.
The University of Sydney
Political
Economic
Socio-cultural
Technological
Environmental
Legal
Page 8
Week 2 - Understanding business
Internal perspective
- Mission, vision and values;
- Resources, competences and
capabilities; and
- Supply chain & value chain
analysis.
Identify Strengths and
Weaknesses, examine
interactions
The University of Sydney
External perspective
- PESTLE analysis
- Porter’s five forces
- Industry life cycle analysis
- Competitor analysis
- Market segmentation
SWOT
Analysis
TOWS
Analysis
Identify Opportunities and
Threats, examine
interactions
Page 9
Week 3 – Economic Environment
– Economic Systems
– Key economic variables
•
•
•
•
•
Output
Prices
Unemployment
Interest rates
Exchange rates
– Government and economy
The University of Sydney
Page 10
Week 3 - Market types & firm behaviour
– Monopoly: only one firm. No competitors to worry about, so firms try to
maintain this status by stopping others entering the market.
– Oligopoly: a few firms. Firms tend to watch their rivals carefully, and
respond to changes in price or product offering to protect their place in the
market.
– Competitive market: lots of firms! Firms tend to compete on cost (& price)
– When firm develop a strategy, they have to consider not just their own
situation, but their competitors’ behaviour as well, on which, more in Week 9.
The University of Sydney
Page 11
Week 4 - Business and Government
What is government?
– Declaratory vs Constitutive theories of state
– National security, Economic security and ideology
– Unitary systems and Federal systems
– Systems of government (democratic and totalitarian)
What governments do?
– Policy, Legal system
– Taxes
– Regulation
– International law
Political risk
– Corruption
– Red tape
– Judicial system
– Economic freedom
– Ease of doing business
The University of Sydney
Institutions
State
Territory
People
Page 12
Week 5 - Demographics
– The statistical study of social
aggregates and how they change, e.g.
population, income, rates of
urbanisation, age, sex ratio, ethnicity,
income, education levels
– The study of the institutions of society,
e.g. education, religion, civil society,
politics
Socio-cultural
environment:
Demographics
Industry (or sector)
Competitors
Business
– To understand the nature of the
demand and supply sides the market
and how best to operate
The University of Sydney
Page 13
Week 5 - Why should businesses care about demographic
changes?
– A changing demography can lead to potential opportunities or a need to
change business strategy
– A country may have an ageing population, but there may be relatively youthful
areas where demand for aged-care services is low;
– A country may have a rapidly growing economy, but there may be poorer areas
where demand for luxury goods is low;
– There are many more demographic related factors, but you need to work out
which demographic changes are most relevant for your business
The University of Sydney
Page 14
Week 6 - Culture is…
– shared within a social group. These groups are often based on ethnic, regional,
religious, professional or economic lines;
– learned from members of the social group (through the institutions we discussed
last week); and
– based on a series of unconscious assumptions and values.
–
Cultures change over time to reflect alterations to ethnic makeup, technology,
economics, politics, religion and heterogeneous social interactions.
The University of Sydney
Page 15
Week 6 - Cultural frameworks – Hofstede’s Cultural dimensions
The University of Sydney
Page 16
Week 6 - Cultural frameworks – GLOBE study
Cultural
dimension
Definition
Performance
Orientation
The degree to which a collective encourages and rewards (and should encourage and reward) group members for performance
improvement and excellence.
Assertiveness
The degree to which individuals are (and should be) assertive, confrontational, and aggressive in their relationship with others.
Future
Orientation
The extent to which individuals engage (and should engage) in future-oriented behaviors such as planning, investing in the future,
and delaying gratification.
Humane
Orientation
The degree to which a collective encourages and rewards (and should encourage and reward) individuals for being fair, altruistic,
generous, caring, and kind to others.
Institutional
Collectivism
The degree to which organizational and societal institutional practices encourage and reward (and should encourage and
reward) collective distribution of resources and collective action.
In-Group
Collectivism
The degree to which individuals express (and should express) pride, loyalty, and cohesiveness in their organizations or families.
Gender
Egalitarianism
The degree to which a collective minimizes (and should minimize) gender inequality.
Power Distance
The extent to which the community accepts and endorses authority, power differences, and status privileges.
Uncertainty
Avoidance
The extent to which a society, organization, or group relies (and should rely) on social norms, rules, and procedures to alleviate
unpredictability of future events. The greater the desire to avoid uncertainty, the more people seek orderliness, consistency,
formal procedures, and laws to cover situations in their daily lives.
The University ofstructure,
Sydney
Page 17
(House, et al., 2004)
Week 7 - What is technology?
Firstly, this definition allows us to place technologies in their wider context: their
configuration with socio-cultural, political, economic and other contexts.
Secondly, this allows us to redefine technology as new methods arise, looking at
stability and change. What are the current dominant technologies, and are there
new technologies arising?
Alignment between
(heterogeneous)
elements
‘Configurations that work’ (Rip and Kemp 1998, p.330)
Function/role
The University of Sydney
Page 18
Week 7 - Disruptive Innovation (Bower and Christensen 1995)
– Describes a process by which a product or service takes root
initially in simple applications at the bottom of a market and
then relentlessly moves up market, eventually displacing
established competitors
– ‘disruptive technologies introduce a very different package
of attributes from the one mainstream customers historically
value’ (Bower and Christensen 1995, p. 45)
– typical characteristics: simplicity, convenience, accessibility,
and affordability
The University of Sydney
Page 19
Week 7 - The Multi-Level Perspective (MLP)
Many models of technological change
have a bias towards novelty
Technological transitions
Socio-technical configurations
Resistance to change
Socio-technical configuration of personal transport (Geels, 2002)
The University of Sydney
Page 20
Week 8 – The Environment - Externalities
Definition:
Externalities refers to situations when the effect of production or consumption of
goods and services imposes costs or benefits on others which are not reflected
in the prices charged for the goods and services being provided.
Example (negative market externalities):
Pollution is an obvious example of a negative externality, also termed an
external diseconomy. Chemicals dumped by an industrial plant into a lake may
kill fish and plant life and affect the livelihood of fishermen and farmers
nearby.
(OECD, 2020)
The University of Sydney
Page 21
Week 8 – Sustainability
– A sustainable development which is “…development that meets the needs of
current generations without compromising the ability of future generations to
meet their needs” (United Nations World Commission on Environment, 1987,
p. 8).
The University of Sydney
Page 22
Week 8 – Triple Bottom Line
Triple Bottom Line is a term that was presented by John Elkington (1994;1997).
He argued that modern organisation has three broad areas of impact:
o economic,
o social and
o environmental.
He suggest that organisations need to focus not just on how much money they
are making, but also on how they are impacting the world around them.
The University of Sydney
Page 23
Week 8 – Environment
PM
Ø Value: profit maximisation
Ø Free-enterprise, private property
system
Ø Bottom-line focussed.
CSR
Ø Value: doing good
Ø Citizenship, philanthropy,
sustainability
CSV
Ø Value: economic and societal
benefits relative to cost
Ø Joint company and community value
creation
SE
Ø Value: social change and innovation
Ø Sustainable blended value creation
Ø Integral to mission
Ø Discretionary or in response to
external pressure
Ø Integral to competing
Ø Integral to impact maximisation
Ø Separate from profit maximisation
Ø Integral to profit maximisation
Ø Agenda responds to complex social
problems
Ø Must operate within the rules of the
game, including all levels of law
Ø Agenda is determined by external
reporting and personal preferences
Ø Agenda is company specific and
internally generated
Ø Whole of budget
Ø Organisation’s have an moral and
ethical responsibility to maximise
profit
Ø Impact limited by corporate footprint
and CSR budget
Ø Realigns the entire company budget
Ø Employee is responsible to owners,
business responsible to
shareholders
Ø Example: Fair trade purchasing.
Ø Example: Microfinance
Ø Example: Transforming procurement
to increase quality and yield.
Ø Social responsibility is an ethical
issue owned by the people, not
organisations.
Ø Example: Offshoring production
The University of Sydney
Page 24
Week 9 – What is strategy?
Strategy is…
A central, integrated externally oriented concept of how the business will
achieve its objectives; an integrated set of choices; and how the business
intends to engage its environment
(Hambrick and Fredrickson, 2001)
The creation of a unique and valuable position, involving many different
kinds of activities.
(Porter, 1968)
The direction and scope of an organisation over the long term, which
achieves advantage in a changing environment through its configuration of
resources and competences with the aim of fulfilling stakeholder
expectations.
(Johnson, Scholes, and Whittington, 2008)
The University of Sydney
Page 25
Week 9 – Putting Strategy in Its Place
Input & output of the strategy ‘sequence’
Tools ≠ Strategy
Figure below leaves out feedback arrows
and other indications that great strategists
are iterative, loop thinkers. The key is not in
following a sequential process, but rather in
achieving a robust, reinforced consistency
among the elements of the strategy itself.
(Hambrick and Fredrickson, 2001)
‘Who we are’
‘Why we exist’
The University of Sydney
Page 26
Week 9 – Porter’s Generic Strategies
• Cost-leadership strategy involves
becoming the lowest-cost
organisation in a domain of activity.
• Differentiation involves uniqueness
along some dimension that is
sufficiently valued by customers to
allow a price premium.
• A focused strategy targets a narrow
segment or domain of activity and
tailors its products or services to the
needs of that specific segment to the
exclusion of others.
The University of Sydney
Page 27
Week 9 – The Strategy Clock
The Strategy Clock identifies three zones of
feasible strategies, and one zone likely to lead
to ultimate failure.
• Differentiation (zone 1)
• Low-price (zone 2)
• Hybrid strategy (zone 3)
• Non-competitive strategies (zone 4)
(Faulkner and Bowman,1995)
The University of Sydney
Page 28
Week 9 – What are strategic capabilities?
– Strategic capabilities are the capabilities of an organisation that contribute to
its long-term survival or competitive advantage.
– There are two components of strategic capability: resources and competences.
Strategic capabilities
Resources (What we have)
Competences (What we do well)
Machines, Buildings, raw materials, products,
patents, databases, computer systems, etc.
Physical
Ways of achieving utilisation of plant, efficiency,
productivity, flexibility, marketing, etc.
Balance sheet, cash flow, suppliers of funds,
etc.
Financial
Ability to raise funds and manage cash flows,
debtors, creditors, etc.
Managers, employees, partners, suppliers,
customers, etc.
Human
How people gain and use experience, skills,
knowledge, build relationships, motivate others
and innovate, etc.
Long-term survival and competitive advantage
The University of Sydney
(Johnson et al, 2014)
Page 29
Week 9 – VRIO analysis
– Distinctive capabilities are necessary for sustained competitive
advantage and superior economic performance.
– Four key criteria to assess strategic capabilities:
– Value
– Rarity
– Inimitability
– Organisational support
= VRIO
(Johnson et al, 2014)
The University of Sydney
Page 30
Week 9 – SWOT/TOWS Matrix
SWOT: focus on future choices and the extent to which the business is capable of supporting
these strategies.
TOWS: builds directly on the information from SWOT. Each box of the TOWS matrix
identifies different combinations of internal factors (S&W) and external factors (O&T).
•
•
•
•
Strengths and Opportunities (SO) – How to use your
strengths to take advantage of these opportunities?
Strengths and Threats (ST) – How to take advantage of
your strengths to avoid real and potential threats?
Weaknesses and Opportunities (WO) – How to use your
opportunities to overcome your weaknesses?
Weaknesses and Threats (WT) – How to minimise your
weaknesses and avoid threats?
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(Johnson et al, 2014)
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Week 10
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Week 10 - Big 5
– Big 5 Personality traits:
– Extraversion,
– Emotional Stability,
– Agreeableness,
– Conscientiousness
– Openness to Experience
– Measurement
– Impact on job performance,
occupation type, etc.1
– Mutability & permanence
1
See, for example,
Barrick, M. of
R., Sydney
& Mount, M. K. (1991). The big five personality dimensions and job performance: A meta-analysis. Personnel Psychology, 44(1), 1-26.
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Week 10 - Principal-agent problem
Principal: has certain goals and contracts an agent to set about achieving them.
E.g. business owner wants to maximise return on invested capital, employees
people to work for the firm. Expects employees to maximise effort for given
wage.
Agent: has own goals that they want to achieve.
E.g. employee wants to maximise income earnt for each unit of effort.
Principal-agent problem happens when interests and incentives are misaligned.
In this case, agent is incentivized to shirk. Principal can monitor, but this is costly.
Q: How can businesses maximize outcomes subject to monitoring cost schedule?
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Week 10 - Remuneration methods
Piece rate
Time rate
Efficiency wage
Commission
Profit sharing
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Week 10 - What is discrimination?
–
Different pay for ‘identical’ work.
–
Different pay for the same output is a more precise
definition.
–
Measurement problem.
–
Discrimination matters to firms. Perceived pay unfairness
can decrease commitment/increase intention to quit
(Shields et al. 2012).
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For more information see Strauss, D. A. (1991). The law and economics of racial discrimination in employment: The case for numerical standards. Georgetown Law Journal, 79(1), 1619-1657.
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Week 10 - Changes in the workplace
“…almost five million jobs [40%] face a high probability of being replaced in
the next decade or two while a further 18.4 per cent of the workforce has a
medium probability of having their roles eliminated. Jobs that involve low levels
of social interaction, low levels of creativity, or low levels of mobility and
dexterity are more likely to be replaced by automation.” (CEDA 2015, p.8)
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Week 11 - What is ethics?
Ethics is a word for the philosophical approach to determining right from wrong conduct.
What ethics is not…..
– Not the same as law, codes of conduct, corporate rules, etc.,
– These may have ethical foundations, but are not in themselves systems of ethics.
– Ethics is a way of looking at acts, not a specific system of rules and regulations.
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Week 11 - Consequentialism and Deontology
– Two competing approaches from the era of Enlightenment.
– Virtue ethics: based on ‘good traits’ in people, however, these
may vary from place to place and throughout history.
– Enlightenment approaches based on rationality and reason.
– Both claim to deliver a universally applicable system of ethical
decision making.
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Take care and good luck in your
studies.
Stay Safe!
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