Research Master Essays

5.12 You are trying to develop a strategy for
… investing in two different stocks. The anticipated
annual return for a $1,000 investment in each stock under
four different economic conditions has the following probability
distribution:
Returns
Probability Economic Condition Stock X Stock Y
0.1 Recession -100 50
0.3 Slow growth 0 150
0.3 Moderate growth 80 -20
0.3 Fast growth 150 100
Compute the
a. expected return for stock X and for stock Y.
b. standard deviation for stock X and for stock Y.
c. covariance of stock X and stock Y.
d. Would you invest in stock X or stock Y? Explain.

 

Question 5.13
Suppose that in Problem 5.12 you wanted to create a
portfolio that consists of stock X and stock Y. Compute the
portfolio expected return and portfolio risk for each of the
following percentages invested in stock X:
a.30%
b.50%
c.70%
d. On the basis of the results of (a) through (c), which portfolio
would you recommend? Explain

 

 

Assignment 2: Harley-Davidson: External and Internal Analysis

Harley-Davidson: Business Overview for New Planning Team Members

Instructions for this assignment: Perform all of the elements listed below.

This assignment has you complete two parts of a strategic business plan. To see how those parts fit into a full business plan, click here for a strategic business plan outline.

Part I – Analysis of the External Environment

As part of the Strategic Business Plan, you have been asked to:

• Identify and analyze the major driving forces for change in the external environment of the motorcycle industry.
• Analyze the dynamics of competition using Porter’s Five Forces Model of Competition. Correctly assess the dynamics of competition.
• Provide at least three statistics about the size of the motorcycle industry such as revenue, growth rate, number of units sold by manufacturer/country, etc.
• Summarize the strategic issues firms in this industry face and identify their biggest threats.

This section should be titled “The Analysis of H-D’s External Environment.”

Part II – Internal Environment Analysis

Financial

Gather the financial information necessary to do a complete ratio analysis and the Balance Score Card (BSC) key metrics information.

If you were going to create a BSC, what would be the key metrics you would measure in each of the four BSC areas:

• Financial
• Customer
• Internal Business Process
• Learning and Growth

Perform a ratio analysis using H-D’s five-year financial performance. Interpret the meaning of the ratios and financial performance.

This section should be titled “The Analysis of H-D’s Current Strategy: Two Views.” Be sure to include the ratio analysis. You may also include other graphics to support your narrative.

Competitors

Based on your analysis, you must decide which two competitors present the biggest competitive threat to H-D.

Perform a financial ratio analysis for the competitors after looking at trends in financial performance over five years, and compare the trends to industry averages.

Be sure you have a clear ranking of the industries’ competitors.

This section should be titled “Competitor Analysis.” Be sure to include the financial ratio analysis. You may also include other graphics to support your narrative.

This assignment should be 4 to 8 pages in length.

Submit your Word document to the Submissions Area by the due date assigned.

Assignment 3 Grading Criteria Maximum Points

External environment analysis: driving forces, dynamics of competition, and at least three statistics about the size of the industry. (15 points)

Summarized strategic issues faced by the industry and identified their biggest threats.(20 points)

Performed a financial ratio analysis using H-D’s five-year financial performance and interpreted the ratios—see the text for which ratios to perform. Concluded how well the firm’s strategy is working.(20 points)

Created a hypothetical BSC for H-D after selecting which measures you believe are important in the four areas: serving customers, improving processes, learning, and growth and financial performance.(15 Points)

Performed a ratio analysis of the financial performance of two competitors and compared them to H-D. Developed a Word document entitled “The Analysis of H-Ds Current Strategy: Two Views,” which includes analysis of your findings.(15 points)

Developed the documents that include analysis of your findings. Justified ideas and responses by using appropriate examples and references from texts, Web sites, and other references or personal experience. Followed APA rules for attributing sources.(15 points)

Total:100 points

  

Question 1 

An effective team needs people not only with the technical skills necessary to perform the work, but also problem-solving skills, interpersonal skills, and:

  

ability to control a group of people.

 

a reduced send of self-efficacy.

 

psychological flow.

 

decision-making skills.

Question 2 

Goal contagion is a form of norm setting in which people adopt a goal held by others. Goal contagion is more likely in what circumstance?

  

A person feels threatened by other   members of the team to adopt a certain goal.

 

Adopted when a team member wishes to   differentiate themselves from the group

 

When the team desires or admires a   goal held by a competing team

 

Between people in the same work group   or team

Question 3 

Execution is the ability of teams to communicate effectively and combine their efforts. All of the following can enhance team execution EXCEPT:

  

setting clear performance standards.

 

practice and rehearsal.

 

training team members together.

 

increasing the size of the team.

Question 4 

A number of factors must be in place for a team to perform well. All of the following are considered essential for team effectiveness EXCEPT the:

  

ability to coordinate effort and   communicate well with others.

 

motivation to accomplish the goals of   the team.

 

knowledge and skill regarding the   team task.

 

ability to identify the different   personality styles of team members.

Question 5 

In a team, a person’s efforts are less identifiable than when that person works independently. Because the person’s efforts are less identifiable, in extreme circumstances this can lead to:

  

choking under pressure – a person’s   performance declines despite incentives for optimal performance.

 

relational loss – or when an employee   perceives that support is less available as team size increases.

 

deindividuation – a psychological   state in which a person does not feel individual responsibility.

 

a positive illusion bias – or   unwarranted beliefs in one’s own superiority.

Question 6 

When the least capable member of a team feels particularly indispensable for group success, the entire group works harder to achieve their goals. This effect is best termed:

  

positive illusion bias.

 

team identifiability.

 

relational loss.

 

social striving effect.

Question 7 

Regarding team performance, leaders can more easily control ________ than ________.

  

team Integration; team separation

 

the demands of a task; the process of   accomplishing a task

 

team cohesion; resources

 

performance threats; synergies

Question 8 

A team norm is best described as:

  

the personality of the team.

 

a generally agreed upon set of rules   that guides the behavior of team members.

 

the normal number of people to be on   a given team.

 

a goal held by the group that is   adopted by a newcomer.

Question 9 

In regards to expertise, critical skills for team members include all of the following EXCEPT:

  

a strong ability to communicate   effectively.

 

a large network of influential   company contacts.

 

conflict resolution.

 

collaborative problem solving.

Question 10 

The organizational context, team design, and team culture are three important aspects that affect the ultimate performance of a team. Which of these three aspects does a leader have the most control over?

  

The organizational context

 

Team design

 

Team culture

 

All three about equally

Question 11 

When in the psychologic state of “Flow,” which of the following is the most TRUE?

  

A person is extremely relaxed, and   very comfortable with the task at hand.

 

A person is intimidated by the task.

 

A person is keenly aware of the time   they are spending on the task at hand.

 

For the individual, the process of   engaging in the task is its own reinforcement.

Question 12 

The belief that a group has in themselves, or their group potency, is a significant predictor of actual performance. This “thinking we can” contributes to group performance more than the:

  

diversity of team members.

 

individual, positive illusion biases.

 

pure cognitive abilities of the team.

 

team norms.

Question 13 

The positive illusion bias refers to:

  

people who work harder for the team   hoping to improve the overall team’s reputation within the larger   organizational context.

 

a team member who has positive news   to share about the group’s task in hopes that it will spur morale and   increase productivity.

 

managers who convey a positive   attitude in order to positively influence their team’s group mood.

 

people who believe themselves to be   superior and more talented than others on their team.

Question 14 

Which of the following situations demonstrates the best example of social facilitation?

  

Sonya is an up and coming dancer, and   her teacher puts quite a bit of pressure on her to perform perfectly. In her   dance recital, despite weeks of rehearsals, Sonya’s mind goes blank, and she   can’t remember her routine.

 

Mary, who is a new member of the   ballet class, is asked to demonstrate a step sequence for the senior members   of the company. Mary is concerned that her technique will not be up to par   with the rest of the team.

 

Julia is a strong dancer, and when   asked to demonstrate her solo to a room full of classmates, her performance   is more energetic, and her leaps are higher.

 

John is an excellent lead dancer, and   when learning a new routine, loses track of time because he is so engaged in   his task.

Question 15 

As team size gets larger and larger, team members perceive that there is less support available, and freeriding increases. This experience can lead to:

  

diminished motivation.

 

lower performance.

 

greater cohesion between team   members.

 

both diminished motivation and lower   performance.

Question 16 

The team performance equation attempts to predict the actual productivity of a team. It states that the AP (actual productivity) of a team equals:

  

the potential productivity of a team,   plus team synergies, minus team threats.

 

the potential productivity of a team,   plus task design, plus team culture.

 

the potential productivity of a team,   plus team culture, minus free-riding.

 

cohesion, plus learning, plus   integration.

Question 17 

Which of the following performance criteria is the most important one to use when evaluating the success of a team?

  

Productivity

 

Rewards

 

Diversity

 

Financial profit

Question 18 

Several factors can threaten the ability of teams to accurately share and use knowledge. One of these problems, the uneven communication problem, is best illustrated in which of the following situational examples?

  

In a brainstorming meeting with 6   team members, 3 of the team members did 70% of the talking, while the other   team members barely had a chance to voice their opinions and concerns.

 

Julia is helping Kari bake a cake for   a client, so she prepares the kitchen by getting out Kari’s preferred tools   and rescheduling a vendor appointment because Julia knows Kari hates to be   interrupted when she is working.

 

Fern and Sybil have the same manager,   but Fern sits next to her manager and so has many opportunities to discuss   project progress, but Sybil sits in an office on a different floor and only   gets to see her manager during staff meetings.

 

Pete keeps records on customer   orders, and Ross keeps records on product recalls, but neither are aware of   this.

Question 19 

Regarding information dependence issues, which of the following examples best illustrates the concept of a hidden profile?

  

Carl, David, and Jean are considering   six pieces of information regarding the decision about the location of their   company retreat. Even though each piece of decision criteria seems to be of   equal importance, Dan and Carl have been overemphasizing the importance of   access to nature trails. Mary feels pressured to overweigh this individual   decision point at the expense of other criteria.

 

Ted, Paul, and Laurel together have   done their research about the choices for the location of the company   retreat. Each person knows the same information, both good and bad, as the   other group members.

 

Kelly, Bob and Dan have separately   researched options for next year’s company retreat. Each team member has   unique information regarding the choices for the event location. No one   location seems to be the best choice for the retreat.

 

Mary, Talia, and Sue have researched   where the company retreat should be held this year, and they seem to agree on   the location. However, Talia has found out some information that she hasn’t   yet shared with the group; a motorcycle convention at the same time and   location as their retreat, which, if shared, will probably contradict the   team’s common choice.

Question 20 

________ coordination is the synchronization of members’ actions based on assumptions about what others on the team are likely to do and members’ attempts to coordinate work in this way begins prior to actual team interaction.

  

Tacit

 

Gatekeeping

 

Orienting

 

Strategic

Question 21 

A study at an R&D organization, where teams worked together for more than five years, revealed what?

  

The performance of the groups   remained steady over time, but declined sharply after five years of working   together.

 

The performance of the groups increased   over time, but only up to a point; after five years of working together,   performance declined steeply.

 

The performance of the groups   increased over time in a steady, consistent fashion.

 

The performance of the groups   decreased steadily over time.

Question 22 

In a longitudinal study of teams that worked together for over 5 years, a series of behavioral changes took place in these aging groups. Each of the following occurred EXCEPT:

  

behavioral stability.

 

selective exposure.

 

role assimilation.

 

group homogeneity.

Question 23 

What is one of the best ways for improving the quality of pooled information collected during a collaborative problem-solving session?

  

The group shares ideas in the moment   they occur to them.

 

Have teams pair off, and create   collaborative observations to be shared later with the group as a whole.

 

Allow individual group members the   time to internally recall and record details or observations to be shared   later with the group.

 

Allow the group to have an   unstructured method for gathering and sharing information.

Question 24 

Each of the following are effective interventions to defeat the common information effect, EXCEPT:

  

build trust and familiarity among   team members.

 

approach the task as a problem to be   solved, rather than a judgment to be made.

 

prediscussion polling.

 

leaders asking questions and repeat   unshared/shared information.

Question 25 

A team mental model is a common understanding, shared by members of a team, about how something works. Mental models most efficiently develop through the process of:

  

watching others outside of the group   figure out how something works.

 

team members sharing information regarding   their specialized knowledge, skills, and abilities.

 

trust exercises.

 

hiring an outside consultant to teach   the team how something works.

Question 26 

The common information effect is best described as the tendency for groups to:

  

want to delay making important   decisions, even when they have all of the relevant information necessary to   make a decision.

 

consider and implement solutions that   other groups have used rather than experiment with novel solutions.

 

spend too long attempting to reach   consensus on a problem.

 

discuss and consider information that   they all have in common more than unique information (that only one person in   the group may be aware of).

Question 27 

Transactive Memory Systems are the ways in which teams encode, store, process and retrieve critical information necessary for doing their work. Of the following, select the best situational example of a Transactive Memory System.

  

Molly keeps track of all her own work   files by an elaborate cross-referencing system.

 

Julia has considerable experience in   product engineering and Nathan has a background in product parts sourcing,   and they are able to remember more about a new client because each knows the   other’s skill set.

 

Karen keeps records on customer   satisfaction reviews, and Kari keeps records on product reliability, but   neither are aware of this.

 

Tom secretly stashes away all of the   new business leads, so that he can follow up with them himself.

Question 28 

The greater the overlap, or commonality of experience, or among team members’ mental models, the greater the likelihood that team members will:

  

create new innovation for old   problems.

 

engage in healthy conflict.

 

be able to cope with unexpected   demands.

 

be able to avoid interpersonal   conflict.

Question 29 

When a team consists of members who come from different functional areas, with different areas of expertise, different information, different priorities, and different perceptions of problems and opportunities, the ________ is exacerbated.

  

uneven communication problem

 

indirect speech acts effect

 

information dependence problem

 

saying is believing effect

Question 30 

A team that has a large representational gap has:

  

success in enticing other team   members to adopt their position.

 

a majority of members who privately   agree with the minority.

 

disagreements about how to approach a   task and who should do what.

 

inconsistent views and mental models   about the definitions of the team’s problem or task.

Question 31 

A team with a high adaptive capacity brings what capability to their organization?

  

Team’s capacity to assimilate new   knowledge

 

Knowledge capacity

 

Ability to change or shift their   strategy in the face of upheaval

 

Team’s capacity to apply new   information and knowledge

Question 32 

In regards to the common information effect, what is the main problem with an uneven distribution of information?

  

The collective intelligence between   the partners can be unbalanced.

 

Certain pieces of information get   more time, attention, and emphasis than alternative pieces of information.

 

Some team members are willing to   share information with others, but some are not.

 

Certain group members can be   uninterested in the discussion and not want to participate.

Question 33 

A situational example of a team putting knowledge to practice through knowledge adaptation is:

  

a manager discovers, by lots of   personal research, that his department has created a new type of adhesive   that is not sticky when wet but very sticky when dry. The manager challenges   himself and his employees to improvise fixes to an employee’s broken bicycle   with this product.

 

a manager challenges the use of a   newly developed fixture at her departmental status meeting. This manager   pushes the fixture design department to keep refining the design with new   parameters in mind.

 

in order to shorten his team’s   R&D phase, a manager visits the company archives and researches past   formulas that led to unsuccessful results.

 

a manager finds out that their newest   product is not doing well in the market. He pushes the team to take a new   look at their product research, and make changes to the product based on the   team expanding their knowledge of marketplace trends.

Question 34 

Functionally diverse teams are composed of people who have different information, knowledge, and expertise and must share and integrate it. ________ problem-solving is the art and science of sharing and using knowledge, and making inferences that no individual group member could have inferred.

  

Strategic

 

Collaborative

 

Tactical

 

Transactive

Question 35 

Groups perform better than individuals on a wide range of demonstrable tasks. What is a key reason why groups outperform individuals faced with the same task?

  

Groups outperform individuals due to   a process in which group members become more accurate during the group   interaction.

 

Groups are much more overconfident   than individuals, regardless of their actual accuracy.

 

Groups are more likely to neglect   case-specific information and ignore base-rate information.

 

Groups are more likely to exacerbate   some of the shortcomings displayed by individuals.

Question 36 

In terms of creating conditions that encourage ethical decision making in organizations, all of the following are valid EXCEPT:

  

rewarding people based upon their   bottom line profitability.

 

having ethical leaders

 

eliminating conflicts of interest.

 

making people accountable for their   behavior

Question 37 

The confirmation bias is best described as the tendency for people to:

  

put unwarranted confidence in their   decisions.

 

want others to agree with them   because of their need to be liked.

 

not want to act as a devil’s advocate   in a group, even though it would help the group.

 

seek and consider evidence that   supports their preferred hypothesis, and discount or ignore information that   refutes their beliefs.

Question 38 

There are four key processes involved in the escalation of commitment cycle. Which of the following is NOT one of those processes?

  

Psychological determinants

 

Risk determinants

 

Project-related determinants

 

Structural determinants

Question 39 

All of the following are true about conformity EXCEPT:

  

conformity is greater when people   value and admire their team.

 

conformity is greater when the rest   of the group is unanimous.

 

conformity is greater when people   have high social status in their team.

 

conformity is greater when people   make difficult judgments.

Question 40 

There is a tendency for a person to look to the group to seek information on the reality of a situation. The more team members who hold a particular opinion, the more right an answer seems. This bias is best termed:

  

the need to be liked.

 

plurality.

 

group-to-individual transfer.

 

the need to be right.

Question 41 

The framing bias makes specific predictions about how people will behave when faced with a sure course of action versus a gamble. Which of the following best describes the effects of the framing bias?

  

People tend to be risk-averse when   choosing among gains, but risk-seeking when choosing among losses.

 

People are risk-averse (i.e.,   preferring a sure thing) for both gains and losses.

 

People tend to be risk-seeking when   choosing among gains, but risk-averse when choosing among losses.

 

People are risk-seeking (i.e.,   preferring a gamble) when choosing among gains and losses.

Question 42 

Because individuals who deviate from their team’s opinion are more harshly evaluated than those who conform to it, which of the following is a reason why team members are more likely to conform to the majority viewpoint? 

  

The team member can express their   opinion in a non-public forum.

 

The team member’s individual reward   is independent from the group’s reward.

 

Team members anticipate future   interactions with other group members.

 

The team member is confident in his   or her own opinion.

Question 43 

Groupthink occurs when team members place the goal of ________ above all other decision priorities.

  

good judgment

 

consensus

 

ethical decisions

 

efficiency

Question 44 

Marilyn, Bob, and Carl all believe a certain defendant is probably guilty and should be sentenced. Individually their recommendations for a sentence are 3, 5, and 7 years. When they meet as a group however, they recommend 10 years. This change and collective shift is called:

  

an escalation of commitment.

 

groupthink.

 

group polarization.

 

the Abilene paradox.

Question 45 

Key symptoms of groupthink take root and blossom in groups that succumb to the pressures of reaching unanimity. Which of the following is one of those symptoms?

  

There is a diversity of opinions   within the group.

 

The group’s process of creating ideas   and reaching decisions is balanced, and out-group member opinions are   respected.

 

Members of the group regard   themselves as invulnerable, morally correct, and exempt from organizational   standards.

 

Group members constantly discuss   their reservations about the group’s controversial viewpoint.

Question 46 

Group polarization is best described as the tendency for:

  

group discussion to intensify group   opinion; producing more extreme judgment than might be obtained by pooling   individuals’ views separately.

 

groups to ostracize members who do   not agree with them.

 

group discussion to mitigate group   opinion; producing less extreme judgment than might be obtained by pooling   individuals’ views separately.

 

people in groups to follow the crowd,   and, in some cases, engage in mob behavior.

Question 47 

An example of the overconfidence bias is:

  

a judge in a criminal court hears   over 80 cases a day. The defendants whose cases are heard late in the day   were given harsher sentences.

 

Joe makes a stock price prediction   and believes that there is only a 5% chance that his estimate is wrong;   overlooking recent articles about the bad financial health of the business.

 

Bill’s tendency to consider evidence   that supports his position on illegal immigration, but disregards evidence   that refutes his beliefs.

 

Carol and her team have been working   on a new product for several years and one expensive prototype has become   their main focus. When evaluating the choices for launch, the group judges   the top prototype as the best one for launch over less expensive options.

Question 48 

All of the following can help minimize the escalation of commitment EXCEPT:

  

seeking external review.

 

setting limits.

 

recognizing and accepting sunk costs.

 

continuing to invest based upon how   many resources have already been invested.

Question 49 

Research has found that instigating and upholding task-oriented conflicts in the decision-making process can be a strategy to counteract biased information seeking. One conflict-stimulating procedure involves assigning a counterargument role to a group member. When consensus on a particular decision solution has emerged, the contrary employee tries to identify all weaknesses inherent in it. The group must then react to this criticism, and see if the arguments put forth can be invalidated. This procedure is an example of what type of dissent?

  

Escalation of commitment

 

Devil’s advocate procedure

 

Abilene paradox

 

Confirmation bias

Question 50 

Leader behavior that is associated with too much concern for political ramifications, or the analysis of alternatives in terms of their political repercussions, are key determinants of:

  

the overconfidence bias.

 

majority rule.

 

the framing bias.

 

groupthink.

Debate This: Respondeat Superior – 3

From Advanced Business LawNo unread replies.No replies.

• Debate This: Respondeat Superior
• Chapter 2, p. 661

Lynne Meyer, on her way to a business meeting and in a hurry, stopped by a Buy-Mart store for a new car charger for her smartphone. There was a long line at one of the checkout counters, but a cashier, Valerie Watts, opened another counter and began loading the cash drawer. Meyer told Watts that she was in a hurry and asked Watts to work faster. Watts, however, only slowed her pace. At this point, Meyer hit Watts. It is not clear whether Meyer hit Watts intentionally or, in an attempt to retrieve the car charger, hit her inadvertently. In response, Watts grabbed Meyer by the hair and hit her repeatedly in the back of the head, while Meyer screamed for help. Management personnel separated the two women and questioned them about the incident. Watts was immediately fired for violating the store’s no-fighting policy. Meyer subsequently sued Buy-Mart, alleging that the store was liable for the tort (assault and battery) committed by its employee. Using the information presented in the chapter, answer the following questions.

1. Under what doctrine discussed in this chapter might Buy-Mart be held liable for the tort committed by Watts?
2. What is the key factor in determining whether Buy-Mart is liable under this doctrine?
3. Did Watts’s behavior constitute an intentional tort or a tort of negligence? How would this differ-ence affect Buy-Mart’s potential liability
4. Suppose that when Watts applied for the job at Buy-Mart, she disclosed in her application that she had previously been convicted of felony assault and battery. Nevertheless, Buy-Mart hired Watts as a cashier. How might this fact affect Buy-Mart’s liability for Watts’s actions

Debate This:

The doctrine of respondeat superior should be modified to make agents solely liable for some of their own tortious (wrongful) acts

 

For this Discussion Board, please complete the following:

One of the reasons for the rising cost of healthcare in the United States is the cost of prescription drugs. It is a complex problem and poses many ethical dilemmas for which solutions have yet to be implemented. Pharmaceutical companies set the prices for drugs and negotiate the actual payments with insurers. Insurers do not always cover the full cost of the drugs, leaving even insured patients to pay out-of-pocket for their prescription drugs. Pharmaceutical companies spend a lot of money on developing new medications to help people. The price of the medication must cover the upfront costs of drug discovery, development and testing, and manufacturing. It must also include the cost of the clinical trials required for approval by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) before the medication can be sold.

Read the following 3 articles about the high cost of drugs and how the pharmaceutical industry sets prices:

After reading the articles, answer the following questions:

• What may be legally permitted is not necessarily ethical. What are your concerns from an ethical standpoint about the pricing of prescription drugs and the new therapies based on precision medicine discoveries such as the gene therapy described in the first article?
• Pharmaceutical companies must make a profit to stay in business, be accountable to their investors, and be able to continue developing new medications. Imagine you are responsible for drug pricing for a pharmaceutical company. The CEO has tasked you with setting a price for a newly developed drug that is profitable for the company and shareholders based on the time and resources that were used for production. If you turn a profit, you will receive a bonus as well. How would you handle the price setting in this situation? Use the resources to justify your decision.

 Assignment Content

1. After reading the Chapter 5, view the three videos (video 1, video 2, video 3). Writ a response to the following questions, in essy format.

   1. What was the common practice with each scenario?
   2. Was best practices adhered to in each case? If no, what could have been done differently? If yes, what were the strong points?
   3. Was the client engaged? Yes or no. If not, what could have been done differently?
   4. Were referrals made? If yes, were they appropriate?

   This submission should be in essy format, 12 point New Times Roman Font, double space and APA style. 1 to 2 pages.

Course Materials Text(s): Theory, Practice and Trends and Human Services, 6th Edition, ISBN: 978- 133781917-6 by Neukrug. (MindTap). 

  

psychiatric evaluation of a patient with major depressive disorder

The psychiatric evaluation of a patient with major depressive disorder is designed to gather the necessary information to assess the client’s condition as well as to begin establishing a therapeutic advanced practice psychiatric mental health nurse-client relationship. The information gathered during this process will allow the advanced practice psychiatric mental health nurse to develop a diagnosis from which a precise treatment plan is prescribed.

****CASE TO BE ANALYZED LISTED BELOW THE 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. 

NOTE: Make sure to use APA citations throughout the paper. The textbook should be cited if it is the source of information.

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). Each of the five forces should have a paragraph within this section.  Summarize your key points in a figure.
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 the textbook, THIS IS CRITICAL. 

Specific STRATEGY(S)
**Important to note, this is the second required strategy section in this paper. Considering this paper is worth 150 total points I’d like to draw attention to how each of these two strategy sections totals 80 points. This is the heart of the paper!  Choose two specific strategies from the below list.  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.
Related Diversification
Achieving Competitive Advantage
Entry Mode
Entrepreneurial Strategy
Creating Ambidextrous Organization Designs
Leadership

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.
OPINION
What do you think of this case study? Describe what you believe are the lessons learned from this case.
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.
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.
Indent paragraphs.
Insert page numbers bottom right.

Paper length will be four to six double-spaced pages not including title page,
references, or illustrations and tables.  If your paper is shorter it will lose 25
points per page it is short.
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. (2016). Strategic Management
(8e). Boston: McGraw-Hill Irwin.

******************* BELOW IS THE CASE THAT THIS PAPER IS ABOUT*************

JOHNSON & JOHNSON*

On January 20, 2015, Johnson & Johnson CEO Alex Gorsky proudly announced that his firm had sales of $74.3 billion during the previous year, representing an increase of 4.2 percent over 2013. Most of this growth came from the firm’s pharmaceutical division, which Gorsky pointed out was clearly generating the largest revenues and was the fastest-growing such division in the drug industry in the United States. The results of this division compensated the relatively modest increases in revenue from the firm’s medical devices and consumer health divisions, both of which were recovering from lawsuits and recalls.

Several years earlier, Johnson & Johnson (J&J) had settled with an estimated 8,000 patients over problems with its flawed all-metal artificial hip. The device had a design flaw that caused it to shed large quantities of metallic debris after implantation. It was finally recalled by the firm in 2010, after Johnson & Johnson had covered up the problems for almost five years after they began to surface. The settlement cost the firm as much as $3 billion to compensate patients who had to have the artificial hip replaced. The problems with this device would classify it as one of the largest medical failures in recent history.

The problems with the medical devices unit were compounded by serious issues that arose with the consumer products unit, leading it to recall many of its products—including the biggest children’s drug recall of all time—that were potentially contaminated with dark particles. The Food and Drug Administration also slapped a plant at one of its business units, McNeil Consumer Healthcare, with a scalding inspection report, causing the company to close down the factory to bring it up to federal standards. The publicity that arose from these problems tarnished the name of one of the nation’s most trusted firms.

Much of the blame for Johnson & Johnson’s stumbles fell on William C. Weldon, who stepped down as CEO in April 2012 after presiding over one of the most tumultuous decades in the firm’s history (see Exhibits 1 and 2). Critics said the company’s once-vaunted attention to quality had slipped under his watch. Weldon, who had started out as a sales representative at the firm, was believed to have been obsessed with meeting tough performance targets, even by cutting costs that might affect quality. Erik Gordon, who teaches business at the University of Michigan, elaborated on this philosophy: “We will make our numbers for the analysts, period.”1

Weldon was replaced by Alex Gorsky, who had headed the medical devices and diagnostics unit. Like his predecessor, Gorsky had worked his way up by meeting tough performance targets as a sales representative, and his appointment as CEO continued the firm’s 126-year tradition of hiring leaders from within. “The future of Johnson & Johnson is in very capable hands,” said Weldon.2 However, the decision to hire another insider raised concerns that the firm was not very serious about changing the corporate culture that had created so many of its recent problems. “As somebody steeped in J.&J. culture, I would be very surprised to see big changes,” said Les Funtleyder, a portfolio manager at a firm that owned J&J stock.3

EXHIBIT 1

Income Statement ($ millions)

Source: Johnson & Johnson.

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EXHIBIT 2

Balance Sheet ($ millions)

Source: Johnson & Johnson.

Cultivating Entrepreneurship

Johnson & Johnson relied heavily upon acquisitions to enter into and expand into a wide range of businesses that fell broadly under the category of health care. It purchased more than 70 different firms over the past decade. Among Johnson & Johnson’s recent moves was the $20 billion purchase of Synthes, a leading player in trauma surgery. In November 2014, J&J completed its $1.75 billion acquisition of Alios BioPharma, which produced therapeutics for viral infections.

As it grew, Johnson & Johnson developed into an astonishingly complex enterprise, made up of over 250 different subsidiaries that were divided among three different divisions. The most widely known of these was the division that made consumer products such as Johnson & Johnson baby care products, Band-Aid adhesive strips, and Visine eyedrops. The division grew substantially after J&J acquired the consumer health unit of Pfizer in 2006 for $16.6 billion, the biggest acquisition in its 120-year history. The acquisition allowed J&J to add well-known products to its lineup, such as Listerine mouthwash and Benadryl cough syrup.

But Johnson & Johnson reaped far more sales and profits from its other two divisions. Its pharmaceuticals division sold several blockbuster drugs, such as anemia drug Procrit and schizophrenia drug Risperdal. A new drug, named Zytiga, prescribed to treat prostate cancer, was selling well. The medical devices division was responsible for best-selling products such as DePuy orthopedic joint replacements and Cypher coronary stents. These two divisions generated operating profit margins of around 30 percent, almost double those generated by the consumer business.

To a large extent, however, Johnson & Johnson’s success across its three divisions and many different businesses hinged on its unique structure and culture. Most of its far-flung subsidiaries were acquired because of the potential demonstrated by some promising new products in their pipelines. Each of these units was therefore granted near-total autonomy to develop and expand upon its best-selling products (see Exhibit 3). That independence fostered an entrepreneurial attitude that kept J&J intensely competitive as others around it faltered. The relative autonomy that was accorded to the business units also provided the firm with the ability to respond swiftly to emerging opportunities.

Johnson & Johnson was actually quite proud of the considerable freedom that it gave to its different subsidiaries to develop and execute their own strategies. Besides developing their strategies, these units were also allowed to work with their own resources. Many of them even had their own finance and human resources departments. While this degree of decentralization had led to relatively high overhead costs, none of the executives who ran J&J, Weldon included, had ever thought that this was too high a price to pay. “J&J is a huge company, but you didn’t feel like you were in a big company,” recalled a scientist who used to work there.4

Pushing for More Collaboration

The entrepreneurial culture that Johnson & Johnson developed over the years clearly allowed the firm to show a consistent level of high performance. Indeed, Johnson & Johnson had top-notch products in each of the areas in which it operated. It had been spending heavily on research and development for many years, taking its position among the world’s top spenders (see Exhibit 4). In 2014, it spent about 12 percent of its sales on about 9,000 scientists working in research laboratories around the world. This allowed each of the three divisions to continually introduce promising new products.

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In spite of the benefits that Johnson & Johnson derived from giving its various enterprises considerable autonomy, there were growing concerns that these units could no longer be allowed to operate in near isolation. Shortly after Weldon had taken charge of the firm, he realized that J&J was in a strong position to exploit new opportunities by drawing on the diverse skills of its various subsidiaries across the three divisions. In particular, he was aware that his firm might be able to derive more benefits from the combination of its knowledge in drugs, devices, and diagnostics, since few companies were able to match its reach and strength in these basic areas.

EXHIBIT 3

Segment Information ($ millions)

Source: Johnson & Johnson.

This led Weldon to find ways to make J&J’s fiercely independent units work together. In his own words: “There is a convergence that will allow us to do things we haven’t done before.”5 Through pushing the various far-flung units of the firm to pool their resources, Weldon believed that the firm could become one of the few that was actually able to attain that often-promised, rarely delivered idea of synergy. To pursue this, he created a corporate office that would get business units to work together on promising new opportunities. “It’s a recognition that there’s a way to treat disease that’s not in silos,” Weldon stated, referring to the need for collaboration between J&J’s largely independent businesses.6

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For the most part, however, Weldon confined himself to taking steps to foster better communication and more frequent collaboration among Johnson & Johnson’s disparate operations. He was convinced that such a push for communication and coordination would allow the firm to develop the synergy that he was seeking. But Weldon was also aware that any effort to get the different business units to collaborate must not quash the entrepreneurial spirit that had spearheaded most of the growth of the firm to date. Jerry Cacciotti, managing director of consulting firm Strategic Decisions Group, emphasized that cultivating those alliances “would be challenging in any organization, but particularly in an organization that has been so successful because of its decentralized culture.”7

EXHIBIT 4

Research Expenditures ($ millions)

Source: Johnson & Johnson.

EXHIBIT 5

Significant Innovations

Source: Fast Company, March 2014.

These collaborative efforts did lead to the introduction of some highly successful products (see Exhibit 5). Even the company’s fabled consumer brands started to show growth as a result of increased collaboration between the consumer products and pharmaceutical divisions. The firm’s new liquid Band-Aid was based on a material used in a wound-closing product sold by one of J&J’s hospital-supply businesses. And J&J used its prescription antifungal treatment, Nizoral, to develop a dandruff shampoo. In fact, products that were developed in large part out of such cross-fertilization allowed the firm’s consumer business to experience considerable internal growth.

Confronting Quality Issues

Even as Johnson & Johnson was trying to get more involved with the efforts of its business units, it ran into quality control problems with several over-the-counter drugs made by McNeil Consumer Healthcare. Since 2008, FDA inspectors had found significant violations of manufacturing standards at two McNeil plants, leading to the temporary closure of one of them. These problems had forced the firm to make several recalls of some of its best-selling products. Weldon did admit that problems had surfaced, but he insisted that they were confined to McNeil. He responded to them in an interview: “This is one of the most difficult situations I’ve ever had to personally deal with. It hits at the core of who J&J is. Our first responsibility is to the people who use our products. We’ve let them down.”8

Quality problems had arisen before, but they were usually fixed on a regular basis. Analysts suggested that the problems at McNeil might have exacerbated in 2006 when J&J decided to combine McNeil with the newly acquired consumer health care unit from Pfizer. Johnson & Johnson believed that it could achieve $500 million to $600 million in annual savings by merging the two units. After the merger, McNeil was transferred from the heavily regulated pharmaceutical division to the marketing-driven consumer products division, headed by Colleen Goggins. Because the consumer executives lacked pharmaceutical experience, they began to demand several changes at McNeil that led to a reduced emphasis on quality control.

Weldon realized the significance of the threat faced by Johnson & Johnson as a result of its problems with quality. He was especially concerned about the FDA’s allegation that the firm had initially tried to hide the problems that it found with Motrin in 2009, hiring a contractor to quietly go from store to store buying all of the packets on the shelves. McNeil’s conduct surrounding the recalls led to an inquiry by both the House Committee on Oversight and Investigations and the FDA’s Office of Criminal Investigations.

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Various changes were subsequently made at McNeil to resolve these quality issues. Goggins was pushed out of her post as senior executive in charge of all consumer businesses. Weldon allocated more than $100 million to upgrade McNeil’s plants and equipment, appoint new manufacturing executives, and hire a third-party consulting firm to improve procedures and systems. Bonnie Jacobs, a McNeil spokeswoman, wrote in a recent email: “We will invest the necessary resources and make whatever changes are needed to do so, and we will take the time to do it right.”9

The problems at McNeil, coupled with growing problems with J&J’s artificial hips and contact lenses, also led Johnson & Johnson to make changes to its corporate oversight of its supply chain and manufacturing. In August 2010, the firm appointed Ajit Shetty, a longtime executive, to oversee a new system of companywide quality control that involved a single framework for quality across all of the operating units and a new reporting system. The need for these changes was highlighted by Erik Gordon, a professor at the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan: “Nothing is more valuable to Johnson & Johnson than the brand bond of trust with consumers.”10

Passing the Baton

In April 2012, Johnson & Johnson appointed Gorsky to lead the health care conglomerate out of the difficulties that it had faced over the previous few years. He had been with the firm since 1988, holding positions in its pharmaceutical businesses across Europe, Africa, and the Middle East before leaving for a few years to work in Novartis. Shortly after his return to Johnson & Johnson in 2008, he took over its medical device and diagnostic group. Because of his extensive background with the firm, and with the division that was being investigated about its faulty hip replacements, Gorsky might have been regarded as the ideal person to take over the job.

When he took over, DePuy, the firm’s orthopedic unit, was already running into trouble with its newest artificial hip. The firm finally recalled the artificial hip, amid growing concerns about its failure among those who had received the implant. Until then, however, executives from the firm had repeatedly insisted that the device was safe. Andrew Ekdahl, the current president of DePuy, recently reiterated that position. “This was purely a business decision,” he said.11 In the trial in Los Angeles Superior Court regarding the defective hip replacement, however, Michael A. Kelly, the lawyer making the case against Johnson & Johnson, suggested that company executives might have concealed information out of concern for firm profits.

In spite of all these issues, Johnson & Johnson did not attempt to clarify what information Gorsky might have had about the problems associated with the artificial hip. Under the circumstances, his promotion to lead the firm surprised Dr. Robert Hauser, a cardiologist and an advocate for improved safety of medical devices. “He’s been overseeing one of the major J&J quality issues and the board of J&J sees fit to name him the new C.E.O.,” he questioned.12 These issues raised concerns about the ability of the firm to effectively deal with the quality concerns and to take steps to prevent them from recurring in the future.

Gorksy’s first job as Johnson & Johnson’s chief executive was, in fact, to reassure shareholders that the firm would move quickly to overcome its problems with manufacturing defects, product recalls, and lawsuits. “We’ve got to adapt faster than ever before, be more agile than ever before,” he stated at the firm’s annual meeting after taking over.13 He acknowledged that some of the problems could partly be attributed to the firm’s attempt to continue to meet Wall Street’s increasingly short-term demands. Gorsky announced that moving forward, J&J was committed to managing for the long term, actively soliciting feedback from all quarters and adhering to the mission that made customers the first priority.

Gorsky’s biggest challenge, however, came from a proposal that Johnson & Johnson might be better off if it was broken into smaller companies, perhaps along the lines of its different divisions. There were growing concerns about the ability of the conglomerate to provide sufficient supervision to all of its worldwide subsidiaries. Gorsky dismissed the proposal, claiming that J&J drew substantial benefits from the diversified nature of its businesses. He did concede, however, that the firm would have to be more selective, careful, and decisive about the products that it would pursue.

Is There a Cure Ahead?

Under Gorksy, Johnson & Johnson began to divest some of its lower-growth businesses and reduce annual costs by $1 billion. In 2014, the firm sold off its blood-testing unit, called Ortho-Clinical Diagnostics, for $4.15 billion to the private equity firm Carlyle Group. It was actively seeking a buyer for Cordis, which made medical devices such as stents and catheters. Johnson & Johnson, which had helped to develop the roughly $5 billion global market for cardiac stents, announced that it was shifting its focus to other medical technologies that showed more potential for growth.

To repair the damage to its reputation from the many recalls across two of its divisions, Johnson & Johnson recently announced that it would remove a host of potentially harmful chemicals, like formaldehyde, from its line of consumer products by the end of 2015. It was the first major consumer products company to make such a widespread commitment. “We’ve never really seen a major personal care product company take the kind of move that they are taking with this,” said Kenneth A. Cook, president of the Environmental Working Group.14

As he tried to plot a course for the future of Johnson & Johnson, Gorsky realized that he had to deal with a variety of issues. He was aware that much of the firm’s success to date resulted from the relative autonomy that it granted to each of its businesses. At the same time, he realized that he had to provide more direction for the businesses to collaborate with each other in order to pursue emerging opportunities. He also understood that it was critical for J&J to develop sufficient controls that could minimize future problems with quality control.

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In overall terms, it was clear that the health care giant had to rethink the process by which it managed its diversified portfolio of companies in order to ensure that it could keep growing without creating issues that could pose further threats to its reputation. “This is a company that was purer than Caesar’s wife, this was the gold standard, and all of a sudden it just seems like things are breaking down,” said William Trombetta, a professor of pharmaceutical marketing at Saint Joseph’s University in Philadephia.15

 

Chapter 6 discusses four types of perceptual distortions: stereotyping, halo effects, selective perception, and projection. Define each of these types of perceptual distortions and provide a full example of each perceptual distortion.

For all discussions questions a primary response of 300 word must be posted to the discussion forum, the post must be submitted by Wednesday at midnight. Each student is to post a reply to another students’ posting (minimum 200 words) and must be posted Sunday by Midnight. All late submissions will receive a zero grade.

Requirements (please read)

For each discussion, you are required to write an initial post (300 words) and one secondary post (200 words).  The discussion forums will be worth 40 points apiece—25 points for the initial post and 15 points for the secondary post.  For your initial and secondary posts, you must have two academic peer-reviewed articles for references.  You must get them from the library.  There are directions at the top of our Moodle page showing how to utilize the library.

Grading for discussions.

• All discussions must be completed on-time and must include in-text citations and references in APA style formatting. If you do not use in-text citations or they are not in APA format you will lose 3 points.  If you do not have references or if they are not in APA format, you will lose 5 points. (You do not need citations and references for secondary posts).
•  You will lose 10% based on word count if your posts are too short.  For example, your initial post is 300 words, if you have 250 words you will lose 5 points.  50 words short times 10% (50 x .10 = 5).
•  If any part of your post is copied and pasted (ANY POST), you will receive a “0”.  I will not ask you about it and you will not have a chance to resubmit the post.

Response -1 (satish)

 

Perception is the choice and association of ecological data to give significant encounters to the perceiver. It is the way toward comprehending tactile information. Perception fills in as a channel or guard so we are not overpowered by every one of the jolts that assault us. We have to focus on three parts of perception: arranging information, selective consideration, and perceptual predisposition.

We have various perceptual distortions that outcome from our specific method for arranging data and extra core interest. Some normal distortions incorporate halo/horn effects, projection, selective perception and stereotyping.

·         Stereo Types: Stereotyping is the very successive aftereffect of quick, programmed perception and attribution forms when we are managing individuals we consider to be not quite the same as us. A stereotype is a misrepresented evaluative conclusion or judgment about a gathering of individuals connected to a person. Stereotyping happens when we characteristic conduct, dispositions, thought processes, or potentially ascribes to a man based on the gathering to which that individual has a place. Because stereotyping is so normal in the public arena does not mean we ought to acknowledge stereotypical relating as unavoidable. Stereotypes have negative results seeing someone at work.

Example: Applying the total characteristics of the old individuals to an old individual.

·         Halo Effects: A halo impact happens when one characteristic of a man or circumstance is utilized to build up a general impression of the individual or circumstance. Like stereotypes, these contortions will probably happen in the association phase of perception. Halo effects are basic in our regular day to day existences. When meeting another individual, for instance, a lovely grin can prompt a constructive initial introduction of an in general “warm” and “legit” individual. The consequence of a halo impact is the same as that related with a stereotype, nonetheless: Individual contrasts are clouded.

Example: If it accepted that if a man is grinning then that individual can be considered as a legit individual when contrasted with that of glaring individual.

·         Selective perception: Selective perception is the propensity to single out those parts of a circumstance, individual, or question that is reliable with one’s needs, qualities, or mentalities. Its most grounded affect happens in the consideration phase of the perceptual procedure. This perceptual mutilation is recognized in an exemplary research consider including administrators in an assembling organization. At the point when requested to distinguish the key issue in a complete business approach case, every official chose issues predictable with his or her utilitarian zone work assignments. For instance, most advertising officials saw the key issue zone as deals, though creation individuals tended to see the issue as one of generation and association.

Example: If a moderator can see a similar grinning face when the arrival of new data, at that point the mediator can frame his/her own particular perceptions in transaction.

·         Projection: Projection is the task of one’s close to home ascribes to different people; it is particularly liable to happen in the translation phase of perception. An exemplary projection blunder is delineated by directors who expect that the requirements of their subordinates and their own particular correspond. Assume, for instance, that you appreciate obligation and accomplishment in your work. Assume that you are the recently delegated administrator of a gathering whose occupations appear to be dull and schedule. You may move rapidly to grow these employments to enable the specialists to accomplish expanded fulfillment from additionally difficult errands since you need them to encounter things that you, by and by, esteem in work.

Example: If delays in negotiations are not all acknowledged by a gathering then it expects that it will display dissatisfaction at the season of undertaking declaration

References:

J. G. Beerends J. A. Stemerdink(1994) List The Major Causes Of Perceptual Distortion, Journal of the Audio Engineering Society vol. 42 no. 3 pp. 115-123. 

M. P. Hollier M. O. Hawksford D. R. Guard(1993) Types of Perpetual Distortions, vol. 41 no. 12 pp. 1008-1021. 

Response-2 (Dinesh)

 

Perceptual distortions is nothing but incorrect understanding the things, or in other words it can say abnormal interpretation. Perceptual distortions usually occurs when the things are commonly perceived from others responses to varying with stimuli. We can all always relate things with mental disorders, drugs, sensory organ etc.

Different types of perceptual distortions are mental set, personality, halo effect, stereotype, first impression, attribution and selective perception.

Stereotyping

Its perceive about the group of people belong to one categories, based on characteristic group they belong.

For example, all the Irish ladies are very beautiful and good looking, statement two all Mexicans are pleasing guys. In all cases those two statements won’t be correct. It may be tampered in most of some cases.

Halo Effects

Judging the things based on one characteristics only, if the impressions is created on things that will influence entire community.

For example, we differentiate them with iphone and android users most of people buy android phone because of we can install free apps, easy to use and less in price but iphone doesn’t have those things still buy a iphone saying its iphone dude that so crazy about it.

Selective perception

Selective perception is nothing but perceiving the things what they want and ignoring the things want what they don’t want. Mainly the people like who are human judgement give people or decision making people are doesn’t fit under this one. They always support their things only on one side view only that to certain characteristics only.

For example, in media they will tell about any government both bad and good things, but selective perception people all ways takes only one thing in that one.

Projection Distortion

The way people looking the things, how the people co-relate the things with that corresponding events around them. Projection distortion is nothings but how the people are possessing or expressing their feelings about any things. Mainly people with Projection distortion means they can influence the other people perception very easily. This distortion will come under the personality distortion  only.

For Example, when I am trying to capture or accruing others personality behavior means its nothing but a projection.

References

Morris B., H. (1983). Using a Structural Model of Halo Effect to Assess Perceptual Distortion Due to

      Affective Overtones. Journal Of Consumer Research, (2), 247.

Negotiation, Lewicki, Barry, & Sanders, McGraw -Hill, 7th Edition (2015) ISBN 978-0- 07-802944-9

Thomas, A. K., & Dubois, S. J. (2011). Reducing the burden of stereotype threat eliminates age                                   

            differences in memory distortion. Psychological Science, 22(12), 1515-1517.

 

Project Part 4: Business Impact Analysis (BIA) and Business Continuity Plan (BCP)

Senior management at Health Network has decided they want a business impact analysis (BIA) that examines the company’s data center and a business continuity plan (BCP). Because of the importance of risk management to the organization, management has allocated all funds for both efforts. Your team has their full support, as well as permission to contact any of them directly for participation or inclusion in the BIA or BCP.Winter storms on the East Coast have affected the ability of Health Network employees to reach the Arlington offices in a safe and timely manner. However, no BCP plan currently exists to address corporate operations. The Arlington office is the primary location for business units, such as Finance, Legal, and Customer Support. Some of the corporate systems, such as the payroll and accounting applications, are located only in the corporate offices. Each corporate location is able to access the other two, and remote virtual private network (VPN) exist between each production data center and the corporate locations.The corporate systems are not currently being backed up and should be addressed in the new plan. The BCP should also include some details regarding how the BCP will be tested.For this part of the project:

1. Research BIAs and BCPs.
2. Develop a draft BIA plan for the Health Network that focuses on the data center. The BIA should identify:
   1. Critical business functions
   2. Critical resources
   3. Maximum acceptable outage (MAO) and impact
   4. Recovery point objective (RPO) and recovery time objective (RTO)
3. Develop a draft BCP that could recover business operations while efforts are ongoing to restart pervious operations. You may use or repurpose a BCP template you find online. Include a description of how you would test the plan.

Submission Requirements

• Format: Microsoft Word (or compatible)
• Font: Arial, size 12, double-space
• Citation style: Your school’s preferred style guide

Estimated length: 6–10 pages