Writing Assignment #1: A Few of My Favorite Things
What are some of the people, places and things that make you happy?

Part I

Write 12 Noun Phrases naming them. Remember not to write a whole sentence just a Noun Phrase. Show that you know the variety of structures you have been taught. You can do this by including examples of:
• Definite Noun Phrases
• Indefinite Noun Phrases
• General Noun Phrases
• Noun Phrases that use a Prepositional Phrase
• Noun Phrases that use an Adjective Clause
Some examples:
1) Sadiyat Beach
2) a cuddly kitten
3) two cups of coffee
4) an ice-cream cone on a hot summer’s day
5) the happy text message that I got from a friend yesterday

Part II

Use the noun phrases you wrote in part I in sentences. Show that you know the variety of places a noun phrase can be in a sentence: subject, object, object of a preposition and predicate nominative. Identify the place the noun phrase occupies in brackets at the end of each sentence.
1) Yesterday I went to Sadiyat Beach. (Object of a Preposition)
2) I want a cuddly kitten for my birthday. (Object)
3) Two cups of coffee are too much for me in the morning. (Subject)
4) My favorite snack is an ice-cream cone on a hot summer’s day. (Predicate Nominative)
5) The happy text message that I go from a friend yesterday really cheered me up. (Subject)

You will be graded on the variety of structures you use, the grammatical accuracy of your writing and the accuracy of your analysis.

Explore a national or global socialissue in your area, at least one of its causes, and a potential solution. For your topic, the social issue should be a problem that can be proven to exist and has potential to be solved.

Begin by stating a thesis that defines the problem, identifies and evaluates at least one aspect of the cause, and offers one potential solution. These three points—problem, cause, and solution—will be used as level I headings for the major parts of the body content.

Requirements:

The paper should be 6-8 pages in length (double-spaced), plus a reference page/title page, and should use a minimum of eight credible sources. The CSU-Global Library is an excellent place to search for credible, scholarly sources.
Document and citation formatting should be in conformity with the CSU-Global Guide to Writing & APA. At the top of your paper, include an open-ended research question that defines the problem and asks how the problem can be solved.
Example/research question: What would it take to reduce obesity in the United States/Ohio?

The research question should be followed by a thesis, which answers the research question by stating a problem, cause, and solution. The thesis can be two sentences long if necessary.

Example/thesis: [Problem] Obesity across the United States is on the rise [Cause] partly due to the amount of trans fats contained in restaurant food. [Solution] One solution would be to regulate the amount of trans fats restaurants are permitted to include in the food they serve and to require restaurants to clearly indicate the level of trans fats contained within each menu item.

NOTE: The sample topic above cannot be used for your project. Topics that should be avoided are those currently being debated widely among media sources. Some topics to avoid include abortion, sex trafficking, gun control, and immigration.

Refer to the Portfolio Project Rubric available in the Module 8 Folder for more information on assignment expectations and grading.

Paramount to the success of any organizational restructuring or reengineering is a leader’s ability to “know where the organization needs to go.” This is called the vision, and the ability to create the right vision can determine the success or failure of a change management strategy. Discuss the principle components of an effective and compelling vision. Then present the vision for your current/previous organization, detailing how you would improve upon that vision to ensure that it conforms to your earlier list of the principle components of an effective vision.

Embed course material concepts, principles, and theories, which require supporting citations along with two scholarly peer-reviewed references in supporting your answer.

Cawsey, T. F., Deszca, G., & Ingols, C. (2016). Organizational change: An action-oriented toolkit (3rd ed.).
Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publishing. ISBN-13: 9781483359304

Essay 2 can be over any of the readings from Module 4 and 5 of the course. For this assignment, I want you to come up with some kind of argument and support this throughout your essay. Be sure that you don’t summarize the story — that is not arguing a point.

Which reading did you like the most? Why? Did you find a hidden meaning of some kind within the essay? Did something make you curious? Why? You should think about the message that the author is trying to convey. Remember, you must take some kind of position and argue this throughout your essay. For instance, if I argue that the snow represents the innocence and purity of Shelly Williams Jackson, then I will argue this point within the essay, but more importantly, support this notion with evidence from the text.

story: http://jeremiahcommunity.ca/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/OConner-A-Good-Man-is-Hard-to-Find.pdf

if possible you have Making literature matter 7th addition please go off those page numbers on page 990

in 900-1050 words, excluding the title and references pages, select one problem to focus on solving throughout this class. If necessary, narrow the focus of your problem to one that is potentially solvable on a local level through a specific project. Discuss why this problem is important to the field, making specific references to relevant theory and research from the literature.
Then, brainstorm about at least three broad project ideas that you could potentially use to solve this problem. For instance, if your identified problem is low retention rates among African American college students, three possible project ideas might include a summer bridge program, a cultural diversity student support center, or a peer mentoring program. In later weeks, you will identify a specific project and flesh out your solution in more detail. For this assignment, you are simply thinking through some options.

As an Asian American with a Korean background, I believe I can see the world with a more diverse perspective. I personally faced many stereotypes as a child, such as being expected to be extremely good at math. I hated hearing people say “You’re an Asian. You should be good at math” However, I have learned to be aware of and embrace my culture and appreciate its benefits. I realized that having dual cultures in my life helps me to understand the importance of diverse opinions and different values depending on the situation. If I become a student in UNC, I believe that my efforts to see people without prejudice will contribute to creating positive environment among the UNC student body. Demonstrating positivity and respecting others regardless of their background or beliefs is just as important as being academically competent. By sharing my Korean culture with others, I can share how Korean people are much more than just the Asian stereotypes people often depict them to be. I hope I can contribute to UNC student’s community to broaden their experiences after being indulged into different cultures. An interest to broaden one’s perspective opens the mind to numerous opportunities to help benefit others and increases the significance of education to them.

1. Each team performs a financial statement comparative analysis following instructions posted below in this week’s Content area. Answers should show all calculations using Excel and be thoroughly discussed. Submit the analysis and discussion in the Group Assignment Folder.

W3 Group Assignment instructions for Financial Statement Analysis

Required Reading:
2016 R June Financial Statement Analysis Power Point with notes
2016 July DMBA R Sample Week 3 Answer
*”Research Starters: Financial Ratios” posted in this week’s Content Module
Required Multimedia:
The Cash Flow Statement http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-eietCf5nNI&feature=related
Cash Flow Ratios http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vzdNgaPhBMQ&feature=PlayList&p=84588A1A1F1F96D1&index=15
Market Ratios http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K1WmGQLIwTY&feature=related

Recommended Support Materials:
For a “how to” explanation of Financial Statement Analysis: see the attached Power Point file 2016 R June Financial Statement Analysis and the Word file, “Diagram of Financial Ratios.”

Assignment Financial Statement Analysis:
Your team has been assigned to the CEO of a major company. The CEO keeps an eye on the competition, and asks your team to do the following: Following the 2016 R DMBA Sample Week 3 Answer, research current year data for two selected firms, and use ratio analysis to compare these two major competitors in the same industry and compare them to the most current data for industry ratios. The sample compares Southwest Airlines Company with Jet Blue Airline Company.

Instructions:
• Pick any two U.S. public companies in the same industry.
• One of the two companies can be the same company someone on the team used in Week 2.
• Select the 10 most important financial ratios for the two companies and calculate each for the last 2 fiscal years using Excel.
• Follow the format of the example 2016 July DMBA R Sample Week 3 Answer for 2 airlines. This is also separately posted in this week’s content module. Use the “Compare” worksheet. Note: It is not necessary to complete all ratios
• Explain how each ratio was calculated in your own words
• Explain the significance of the answers found.
1. Create a single Excel file for your entire assignment.
2. The team may obtain financial information and the companies’ latest annual reports on the web directly from the Securities and Exchange Commission for the company website. MSN Money or Yahoo Finance also have information but in some situations it may be incomplete. Current stock price information is not available from the SEC web site.
3. The team should calculate, and comment upon, at least 10 financial ratios for the last 2 fiscal years.
4. All calculations should be shown, and all answers should be thoroughly explained.
5. It is useful to compare financial ratios for a company with financial ratios of its industry. Industry financial ratios can be found on Morningstar.com, Yahoo Finance and MSN Money and http://www.bizstats.com/corporations.asp?profType=ratios
6. Whenever the team uses balance sheet items to calculate ratios, it is more accurate to average the beginning-of-year and end-of-year amounts to get the average for that year. Dec 31, 2014 and Dec 31, 2015 would be beginning and end of year for 2015. Note: Averaging is NOT required. For some students taking averages leads to calculation mistakes. The example answer does not use averaging and includes most if not all possible ratios.
7. What can the team tell from the analysis? What are the strengths and weaknesses of each company? Which is the stronger competitor? Give reasons.
8. Show that you have read and understood the required readings, links and attached files – cite and reference them where appropriate.
9. The final Excel file should be submitted by one team member into the Group Assignment folder.
The 2016 R DMBA Week 3 sample answer file contains a comprehensive analysis of the financial statements of two large airline companies. It illustrates and explains how different companies succeed by focusing on different key ratios like Net Income/Sales, or Sales/Total Assets (asset turnover) or Total Assets/Common Equity (leverage). Also, it further explains how these different strategies are revealed through DuPont Analysis (a powerful technique that many companies use to devise, implement, and monitor their business strategies. It shows the source for every number on every Excel worksheet: just click on any number in any Excel worksheet and you will see where it comes from. Showing the source for every number on every Excel worksheet is very important and helpful to readers, and you should do this on all of your Excel spreadsheets.
All of the data in the example comes from SEC interactive data. Under the company name in interactive data is a small red link that says view excel document. All numbers in this document are easy to use in calculations. Data copied from some other sources may not calculate correctly in Excel.

These assignments are designed to help you to develop your analytical ability and your ability to explain your analysis in words. There are many uses for financial statement ratio analysis, especially in business strategy – for an example, see the “Strategic Control Map” developed by McKinsey & Company, the well-known international strategy consulting firm by clicking here:
http://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/strategy-and-corporate-finance/our-insights/enduring-ideas-the-strategic-control-map

here are several web sites where you can find the financial statements of U.S. public companies.
SEC is best
The best source of data for public companies is the U S Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). One can be sure that the data is accurate and it is easily available in an Excel document.
Go to WWW.sec.gov
Midway down the right column is a box for the company name or stock market ticker symbol. The box is titled Search EDGAR, Free access to 21 million filings.
Type in the company name or ticker symbol. In my case I use LUV for Southwest Airlines Company. There is a page for EDGAR search results with many forms. Since I am interested in the Annual Report, I type 10-K in the box for Filing Type in the line for Filter Search Results and hit search.
Next I click on the box that says Interactive data.
In the new page under the company name is a link to print Document and another for View Excel Document. I click on View Excel Document. That brings up an Excel spread sheet with many statements. I can pick the one needed for the assignment.
Label Concerns
Even in SEC financial statements, the labels can differ. For example, sometimes they report Revenue or Net Revenue. Sometimes it is Sales. These two mean the same. If there is a question, the notes to the financial statements define the terms. Unfortunately this can be confusing.
Other sources
Companies have investor relations pages on their web sites with annual reports.
Probably the most convenient are MSN MONEY and Yahoo Finance. Go to MSN MONEY or Yahoo Finance. Either look up or provide the stock symbols for each company (for example: FDX for FedEx and UPS for UPS, or KO for Coca-Cola and PEP for Pepsico) and all the relevant financial information will become available. Industry information can also be found in MSN MONEY and Yahoo Finance.
Be aware that the financial statements in MSN MONEY and Yahoo Finance are standard formats, and can differ slightly from the actual financial statements that are in the SEC Forms 10-K of the respective companies (accessible from MSN MONEY and Yahoo Finance) and on the corporate web sites. For our purposes, you need not worry about these small differences in most cases. Only rarely do Yahoo and MSN leave out data to better fit their standard format. Unfortunately it may not be possible to copy and paste the numbers into Excel and have the program recognize the numbers for calculations.

Article Reviews – Each student will complete a total of four (4) four full-page, double spaced, article reviews for a total of 100 points, therefore making the individual assignments 25 points each. You may pick any compensation and benefits item you wish to discuss, so long as it is from one of the following sources:
1) Buearu of Labor Statistics (BLS);
2) Society for Human Resources Managers (SHRM);
3) Dept. of Labor (DOL);
4) ONet;
5) Henry Kaiser Family Foundation; or the 6) Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC).

Each of these resources are available online. When completing your article reviews please ensure that they are in APA format, at least four (4) full pages, double spaced and grammatically correct. A complete source citation is required including the web link.
The review should include a summary of the article in your own words and reflect on what was interesting to you and what you are taking away from this article. Please also explain why you agree or disagree with the article as well as sharing some of your personal thoughts as well. Please note that article reviews should be substantive in nature.

The essay is worth 30% with a word limit of 1,500 words. It is due 11:59pm Thursday October 4
2018. You need to choose one (and only one) of the following statements and clearly take a position
on whether you agree or disagree with the statement:
1. Providing equitable pay and meaningful work is a more effective way to motivate employees
than pay for performance schemes.
Or
2. It is difficult for management to increase workforce productivity in the short-term without
increasing workforce strain and burnout.
Make sure that you clearly take a position by stating whether you agree or disagree with the
statement. It is essential that you use literature to defend your view point.
Cover Page:
• Include the title of your case analysis, your name, student number, unit code (MGB200), tutor’s
name, tutorial time, and the final word count of your essay.
Reference List:
• Your reference list must be formatted in the current (6th edition) APA Style
• Use a hanging indent (paragraph formatting setting)
• Do not use Wikipedia, consultant websites or online essays
• Do not reference the lecture slides. Instead, look at the references in each slide or at the end of
a set of slides to guide your research for supporting arguments.
• Do use (reference) journal articles and the textbook to support your arguments
Length/Word Count:
The word limit for the essay is 1500 words. This word count includes general text, headings,
citations, tables, footnotes, etc. However, the word limit does not include the cover page or
reference list. The word limit is 1500 words. Anything beyond 1500 words will not be read or
marked. If you go beyond the word limit you are likely to lose marks for your written expression and
quality of argument.
Penalty for Late Submission of Assessment
Assessment submitted after the due date without an approved extension will not be marked and will
receive a grade of 1 or 0%. If special circumstances prevent you from meeting the assessment due
date, you can apply for an extension. If you don’t have an approved extension you should submit the
work you have completed by the due date and it will be marked against the assessment criteria.

Business Environment Seminars :
Assignment
A Greek tax resident individual entrepreneur (software engineer) considers acquiring 100% of the shares of a Cypriot company, established under Cypriot law, whose registered seat is in Limassol. The accounting books of the Company are currently kept in Cyprus by a local accounting firm and he also considers registering himself personally as the Company’s Director after the acquisition. He will remain, though, a Greek tax resident as an individual, since his family will remain in Greece.
The income of the company will comprise of fees by Greek tax resident companies and by foreign entities (clients). However, all the work will be performed by the individual from his home in Greece, since the Cypriot Company will neither employ any personnel, nor will have an office space available in Cyprus (the registered seat is the office of the lawyer in Limassol that helped with the Company’s incorporation and the intention of the new shareholder is to keep this unchanged).
The individual’s objective is in fact to invoice all the services he renders in the name of the Cypriot company to benefit from the 12.5% Corporate Income Tax in Cyprus, compared to the 29% CIT in Greece or the marginal 45% for business income rendered by Greek tax resident individuals.
Please analyze the tax issues that you would advise the Greek tax resident individual to take into account before implementing his business plan.

Technology & Operations Management:

Select an organisation that you can easily visit and readily conduct observations. The
organisation can also be a remote one, but this has to be agreed with Dimi. Select one/two
topics from the contents of the module, and try to apply the tools you are being taught in
class to improve the operations efficiency of the company. This could be a service operation,
such as a coffee shop, or a manufacturing operation, such as a factory. I expect that students
prepare a business report based on the findings that includes the areas below.
Required Elements:
1. Evaluate the objectives of the selected operation. Use relevant concepts to evaluate the
objectives. These could include IP matrix, spider diagrams or similar graphs that show the
performance measurements of this particular organisation.
2. Observe and analyse the process. Collect data on the process, observe the customer
interaction, and process flow. Analyse this data to assess the performance of the operation
in its current state. The data can be primary data, that you collect yourself by interviewing
the manager and employees and observations or secondary data that you find in the
internet, surveys, academic literature or other sources.
Tools could include layout map and optimisation, Little’s Law and queues, vehicle routing
methods, location models, process and value stream mapping, and other.
3. Recommendations. Based on your analysis make recommendations for improvement.
Projects might also include a feasibility analysis and timeline for implementation.