Calculating Ratios Short Answer

1. What is “agency theory?” How can setting the appropriate goals for the firm minimize the agency problem?

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2. Differentiate between profit maximization and wealth maximization.

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3. Why must organizations focus on both shareholder wealth and the stakeholders?

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4. Differentiate between the three financial statements with which managers should be familiar. How are they linked?

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(If needed:)

References

APA-formatted citation

APA-formatted citation

The project needs brushing up I have included a couple things that need to be added.

Total Points Possible

100

Insufficient/Not Evident

Progressing

Competent

Exemplary

Earned Points

Included one interview

(20 Max Point Value)

(0-9pts.)

Content was not included or incomplete, and/or extremely inaccurate

(10-13pts.)

Content shows a basic understanding of key ideas, yet includes some inaccuracies.

(14-17pts.)

Content meets criteria with minimal errors, is accurate and shows a clear understanding through appropriate examples and explanations

(18-20pts.)

Content meets or exceeds criteria, is accurate and shows an extraordinary understanding through rich examples and explanations.

0

You don’t have an interview included.

Critical Thinking:

Discussed the problem, alternative solutions, evaluated the alternatives, discussed selected alternative, and discussed follow-up to determine the effectiveness of decision.

(20 Max Point Value)

(0-9pts.)

Content was not included or incomplete, and/or extremely inaccurate

(10-13pts.)

Content shows a basic understanding of key ideas, yet includes some inaccuracies.

(14-17pts.)

Content meets criteria with minimal errors, is accurate and shows a clear understanding through appropriate examples and explanations

(18-20pts.)

Content meets or exceeds criteria, is accurate and shows an extraordinary understanding through rich examples and explanations.

12

You didn’t present the time line for your implementation or how you will implement your proposal.

Needs to have an interview, and also the critical thinking!!

To: stakeholders

From: student

Subject: diversity

Date: March 11th 2016

Diversity is an important issue to every company due to an increase in employees that are from different cultures, ages, religion and other factors that make people different. Nokia is a company that has been having problems dealing with a diverse workforce due to an acquisition that took place in 2013. The companies that merged in the process are Nokia Corporation and the Microsoft Corporation. Diversity is an issue that has been of much concern in companies in the world. Nokia and the Microsoft Corporation are working towards ensuring that they have embraced diversity and urged the employee to work together. The intention of this memo is to discuss the diversity problem facing Nokia and suggesting a solution to the problem so that the company can realize benefits.

The problem or opportunity

The problem that has been facing the company is that it has been difficult for employees from different continents to cope well with the change. This problem has made them less productive than when they were working for individual companies as compared to when the companies have merged. Further, these employees are finding it hard to cope since they were initially working for two big companies that had different cultures, values, rules and other things and brought them together to work under the different environment is difficult for them.

The problem with such a situation is that the employees that belonged to Nokia are excluding themselves from associating with those employees that came from Microsoft. This feature has led to a decline in sales as well as the productivity of the company as employees are not working as they are expected.

Additionally, there is a drop in the innovativeness that is being experienced and the designing of new products. The problem of lack of diversity within the employees is that the stakeholders are likely to be affected based on the reduction in the profitability. The business will reduce in its productivity. The problem started after the acquisition of the Nokia’s mobility section in 2013.

The lack of the employees to embrace their diverse nature and work together has made the company low in its creativity as well as innovativeness. Being innovative and creativity are factors that can be realized by having a diverse workforce and encouraging each to be unique so that one can critically think and share ideas as a team in working towards a successful company

Diversity is thereby an important feature that needs to be encouraged throughout the organization for the company to realize an increase in sales as well as profitability. The company needs to identify a solution that will help in solving the diversity issue that is affecting the company (Brown, 2010).

The alternative solutions to the problem

The alternatives solutions to the problem are several. The first alternative is to engage the employees in a meeting such that the issue is discussed, and they are encouraged to embrace diversity and to work with each other. The managers need to explain why their involvement and collaboration with each other is important and how it will benefit them as employees and the whole company. With the talk, most employees are likely to feel to work with their counterparts and, therefore, achieving the goal of encouraging and embracing diversity.

The other alternative to solve the problem is by having a good reward system whereby those employees that are seen to be embracing diversity and working closely with others are rewarded, and those that are not doing so are warned. The reward system can help those employees that are embracing diversity to continue with the behavior whole those that are against with working with a diverse group are encouraged to stop the behavior and join the rest who are actively working towards achieving diversity (Paludi, 2012).

The other alternative would be to welcome various experts in the diversity area so that they can help the employees with the change process. These experts have the knowledge and experience of encouraging employees and helping them towards embracing diversity. They have dealt with companies that have been facing the same kind of problem, and they are capable of helping the company with its problems so that it can return to working as it did to be in the past.

Evaluation of the alternatives

The criteria used to select the best solution are the cost of implementation of change, the timing of the changes, and the increase of revenues that will be experienced.

The first initiative which involves the managers meeting to discuss with them the problem and trying to get the solution is a tactic that can be cost effective since it does not require any resources of the company to do so. With the strategy, the managers can also organize the most convenient time for both the managers and the employees so that it does not inconvenience the operations of the company. The strategy can also be effective as it can increase the revenues of the company as desired.

The other strategy is that one of rewarding those employees that show the characteristic of embracing diversity by working with others. This strategy has a cost implication whereby the company will need to part with some money so as to give employees who do well in the project. The timing of the change is another factor that cannot be pointed out as the reward system will need to continue for a long time before the goal can be realized. The methodology can be effective as it can be used in increasing the revenues for the company (Powell, 2011).

The other alternative would be to welcome various experts in the diversity area so that they can help the employees with the change process. The cost implication for this strategy is that they will demand payment after they deliver the services which will mean that the company will need to commit more money to them. It can be hard for Nokia to afford such a methodology due to financial implications. The experts can also choose a time frame that would not be convenient to the company, therefore, affecting the company negatively.

The alternative selected and why

The solution that is the most suitable in the given organization is that one that encourages embracing diversity and changing the manner through which operations are taking place within the organization. The methodology also needs to be cost effective such that it does not take much of the resources of the organization since it is not as well as it should.

The strategy should also be appropriate to the company regarding its timing such it does not interfere with the operations of the company thereby causing more problems. The methodology also needs to be effective in encouraging innovativeness and creativity so that the company can increase its revenues and profits.

The alternative that has been selected is that one of the managers arranging a meeting with the employees to encourage them to embrace diversity and agree to work hand in hand with one another so as to achieve the company’s goals. This methodology adheres to the criteria that have been stated above and needs to be implemented by the company so that it can see results.

Follow-up to determine effectiveness of decision

A follow-up needs to be put to ensure that the company monitors the progress of the change and to measure the effectiveness of the decision. Observation can be used in studying the behavior of employees’ son as to ensure that the employees are monitored whether they are interacting and working with each other. The management should also interview some employees to see whether the strategy is being effective or not. The head of departments needs to be summoned to determine whether there is any improvement regarding productivity that is being realized after the implementation of the decision

Conclusion

Diversity is a problem that requires being discussed quickly, and the benefits that are obtained from embracing the diversity are many. The company is expected to benefit from embracing diversity because the employees will opt to work together thus generating more revenues and coming up with new products. The solution to the issue will be a major step towards the company regaining its former status.

From:

References

Brown, S. L. (2010). Diversity in the workplace: A study of gender, race, age, and salary leveL. Minneapolis: Capella University.

Paludi, M. A. (2012). Managing diversity in today's workplace: Strategies for employees and employers. Santa Barbara, Calif: ABC-CLIO.

Powell, G. N. (2011). Managing a diverse workforce: Learning activities. Thousand Oaks, Calif: SAGE.

753-29 Spreading the Financial Statements Spread the balance sheets and income statements of Lake of Egypt Marina, Inc., for 2015 and 2014. (LG3-6)

3-30 Calculating Ratios Calculate the following ratios for Lake of Egypt Marina, Inc., as of year-end 2015. (LG3-1 through LG3-5)