Shareholder Value vs. Stakeholder Value. Pick one company that was discussed by your classmates in Discussion 1. Do not select your own company and do not select a company that has already been discussed in this discussion forum. In your opinion, which of the following best characterizes the purpose of the firm? Explain your answer and describe possible implications to the other stakeholders. For example, if you believe the purpose of the firm is to “maximize shareholder value”, what would be the implications to customers or employers? If you believe the purpose of the firm is to “create value for a broad set of stakeholders”, what would be the implications to shareholders, customers, or employees?

 

Company Discussed

Company: McKesson Corporation

Indicate whether the company is a for-profit or non-profit organization: For-profit

Company mission statement: “Together with our customers and partners, we are creating a sustainable future for health care. Together we are charting a course to better health.”

Company vision statement: “To advance the health care system for better health for all.”

Corporate Strategy – in which industry or market does the firm compete? Healthcare (pharmaceuticals)

Business Strategy – how does the firm compete within its industry or market (competitive advantage)? According to Preston Pysh who is a writer for Forbs, there are four main components regarding McKesson’s competitive advantage. First, Mckesson delivers 1/3 of all prescription medicine in North America. The second advantage is efficiencies of scales; in total, McKesson has around 45 distribution centers between the US and Canada which “achieve a 99.98% order accuracy across North America distribution and services and a 99.90% inventory accuracy across International distribution and services” (Pysh, 2017). Next is their intangible assets; McKesson has a large patient portfolio as well as 48 “U.S. protected patents.” Protected patents make it very hard for competitors to enter certain market spaces. And lastly, McKesson competes with two other pharmaceuticals that they blow out of the water in the ROA, ROIC, FCF/Sales, net profit margin percent, and operating margin percent.

Fun little fact from reading about McKesson…When a company is a competitor of theirs, they normally eventually just buy the competitor out.

 

 

 

Citation:

McKesson Values. (n.d.). Retrieved September 4, 2018, from https://www.mckesson.com/about-mckesson/mckesson-values/

Pysh, P. (2017, October 19). The Intrinsic Value Of McKesson Corp. Retrieved September 4, 2018, from https://www.forbes.com/sites/prestonpysh/2017/10/18/mckesson-mck-stock-value/#3ca2709b3ed4 (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.

We Stand for Better Health. (n.d.). Retrieved September 4, 2018, from https://www.mckesson.com/about-mckesson/who-we-are/

Question 1. Using Porter’s Diamond (Figure 7.7), how would you explain the current configuration of Iowa’s industries and economy? (5 points) If you need background, here is a link to an overview http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iowa#Economy

 

Question 2. Read this article on Botswana. Using the logic of any two (2) trade theories of your choice, what recommendations would you give the government in terms of future economic growth? Be sure to justify your assertions using the assumptions of the theories.

 

Read and site the two websites below as well as the article pasted beneath.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-13040376

https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/bc.html

 

Botswana’s Impatient President: Diamonds are not forever”

published in The Economist, October 22, 2009

“When diamonds were discovered in 1967, a year after independence, Botswana was among the ten poorest countries in the world. Now, because it supplies 22% of the world’s total output (in value) of rough diamonds, it is a middle-income country with a GDP of nearly $14,000 a head at purchasing-power parity. Diamonds produced by Debswana, a joint venture between Botswana’s government and De Beers, the world’s biggest rough-diamond trading company, account for a third of the country’s GDP, half of its public spending and three-quarters of its foreign earnings.

At least it did until the global economic crisis hit the diamond market. Also, diamond jewelry markets had fallen in comparison to other luxury goods. The behavior of consumers had changed and the diamond industry had been slow to respond to market dynamics. In past times of falling demand, De Beers used to stockpile its gems to keep prices up. But this was ruled an illegal antitrust practice. Now it simply stops digging, in effect stockpiling the gems underground. Between January and May, Debswana shut all four of its Botswana mines. This year’s output is likely to be 40% down, hugely shrinking profits ($1.7 billion last year) and public revenues.

Botswana has long been held up as one of Africa’s most stable, prosperous and best-governed democracies. In a good-governance index issued this month by the Mo Ibrahim Foundation, it came top of Africa’s mainland countries (it was topped by three island states). It is also deemed one of Africa’s lowest credit risks. But a rare spell of economic and even political turbulence may beckon as President Khama seeks to enforce his values of hard work, discipline, self-reliance and accountability on a country that must wake up to the reality that its diamonds are not forever.

At present output, Botswana’s diamond deposits may run out by 2030. The government has talked for decades about diversifying the economy, but little has been done. So Mr. Khama is promoting commercial farming and safari tourism in Botswana’s vast expanses of game-filled pristine bush. But it will be hard to create a diverse economy on a large scale in a country of just 2 million people.”

 

Question: A major FDI debate over the past few years has been the Keystone XL Pipeline, a large project by TransCanada in the USA, that was blocked by the Obama administration so far. Take a look through the links below. What kind of FDI is it? Using the material on slides 21-25, how would you analyze this case? What are the potential costs and benefits of allowing this FDI project to proceed?

 

http://keystone-xl.com

http://www.nrdc.org/energy/keystone-pipeline/

http://www.washingtontimes.com/topics/keystone-xl-pipeline/

https://www.dailysignal.com/2018/06/01/one-year-after-trumps-approval-where-keystone-xl-dakota-pipeline-stand/

 

 

Slide 21: Costs to the Host Country

1. Adverse effects of FDI on competition within the host nation

• subsidiaries of foreign MNEs may have greater economic power than indigenous competitors because they may be part of a larger international organization

1. Adverse effects on the balance of payments

• when a foreign subsidiary imports a substantial number of its inputs from abroad, there is a debit on the current account of the host country” balance of payments

1. Perceived loss of national sovereignty and autonomy

• decisions that affect the host country will be made by a foreign parent that has no real commitment to the host country, and over which the host country’s government has no real control

 

Slide 22-23: Benefits to the Home Country

The benefits of FDI for the home country include:

1. The effect on the capital account of the home country’s balance of payments from the inward flow of foreign earnings
2. Employment effects that may arise from outward FDI. For example, components that need to be made at headquarters and exported for assembly overseas.
3. The gains from learning valuable skills from foreign markets that can subsequently be transferred back to the home country
4. The home country’s balance of payments can suffer
   1. from the initial capital outflow required to finance the FDI
   2. if the purpose of the FDI is to serve the home market from a low cost labor location
   3. if the FDI is a substitute for direct exports
5. Employment may also be negatively affected if the FDI is a substitute for domestic production
6. But, international trade theory suggests that home country concerns about the negative economic effects of offshore production (FDI undertaken to serve the home market) may not be valid

 

The balance of payments is negatively affected by the initial capital outflow required to finance the FDI, if the purpose of the investment is to serve the home country from a low cost production location, and if the FDI is a substitute for direct exports.

These concerns are linked with the concerns about exports.

If FDI effectively replaces home country production, there will be a negative effect on employment.

Keep in mind though, that international trade theory suggests that the concerns about the negative effects of FDI may not be valid.

Companies that use offshore production, or FDI undertaken to serve the home market, may actually be freeing up resources that could be used more effectively elsewhere.

 

Slide 24: How Do Governments Influence FDI?

• Governments can encourage outward FDI
  • government-backed insurance programs to cover major types of foreign investment risk
• Governments can restrict outward FDI
  • limit capital outflows, manipulate tax rules, or outright prohibit FDI
• Governments can encourage inward FDI
  • offer incentives to foreign firms to invest in their countries
    • gain from the resource-transfer and employment effects of FDI, and capture FDI away from other potential host countries
  • Governments can restrict inward FDI
    • use ownership restraints and performance requirements

 

Given that there can be both positives and negatives associated with FDI, how can governments regulate it?

Well, there are various ways that home countries can encourage or discourage FDI by local firms.

We’ll begin with policies to encourage FDI.

A key reason that firms may resist FDI is because of the risk involved.

To minimize this concern, many countries have government-backed programs that cover the major forms of risk like the risk of expropriation, war losses, or the inability to repatriate profits.

Some countries have also developed special loan programs for companies investing in developing countries, created tax incentives, and encouraged host nations to relax their restrictions on inward FDI.

To discourage outward FDI, countries regulate the amount of capital that can be taken out of a country, use tax incentives to keep investments at home, and actually forbid investments in certain countries like the U.S. has done for companies trying to invest in Cuba and Iran.

Host countries can also restrict or encourage FDI.

Recall that we’ve moved away from the radical stance that discouraged FDI in general and towards a more free market approach, and pragmatic nationalism.

To encourage inward FDI, host countries usually offer incentives for investment like tax breaks, low interest loans, or subsidies.

Why would countries offer these benefits to foreign firms?

Because they want to gain the benefits of FDI that we talked about earlier!  Kentucky for example, offered a $112 million package to Toyota to get it to build its U.S. plants in the state!

When a country wants to restrict FDI, it will usually implement ownership restraints or performance requirements.

In Sweden for example, foreign companies aren’t allowed to invest in the tobacco industry.

Ownership restraints accomplish two things.

First, they keep foreign firms out of certain industries on the grounds of national security or competition, allowing the local firms to develop.

Second, they help maximize the resource transfer effect and employment benefits that are associated with FDI.

In Japan for example, until the early 1980s, most FDI was prohibited unless the foreign firm had valuable technology.

Then, the foreign firm was allowed to form a joint venture with a Japanese company because the government believed this would speed up the diffusion of the technology throughout the Japanese economy.

 

Slide 25: FDI Decision Matrix

The decision to undertake FDI depends on the nature of a firm’s products:

1. Case Cite: 

Orosco v Sun-Diamond Corp. 51 Cal. App 4^th 1659 (1997) Case #_, page ___.

2. Facts:
   Joe Orosco was an employee of Sun-Maid Growers. He lost his arm in an industrial accident in a raisin elevator in 1991. His employer Sun-Maid was one of four members of a marketing coop, Sun-Diamond Corporation. According to the agreement between the corporations, Sun-Diamond was to provide certain management services to Sun-Maid. Joe sued Sun-Diamond and his employer, Sun-Maid, on the legal premise that both Sun-Diamond and Sun-Maid were involved in a joint venture that designed, built, tested and maintained the processing line on which Joe lost his arm.

 

3. Issue for the court to decide:

Were the two corporations involved in a joint venture and if so, should Sun-Diamond be held liable for Orosco’s injuries?

(Note – it is in the form of a question, and is short and to the point)

4. Analysis of the case

A joint venture is an association of two or more parties that share profits and responsibilities related to a specific project. The legal test of whether a joint venture exists is found on page 402 in the text, and in the case of Fitchie v. Yurko, discussed on page 402-3 of the text. In that case, the court considered four elements: (1) was there an agreement to carry out an enterprise; (2) was there a demonstration of intent to be joint venturers; (3) was there a joint interest evidenced by a contribution of property, funds or effort by the parties; and (4) was there a provision for sharing profits and losses.

In the case involving Sun-Maid and Sun-Diamond, there was a construction of a process (the one that caused the loss of Joe’s arm). There can be a presumption that there was an agreement, and that each party contributed to the effort. The parties formed Sun-Diamond to further a joint interest. What is not known is whether there was an agreement for sharing profits and losses from the joint venture. Moreover, while the case notes that Sun-Diamond was to provide “certain management services”, there is no clarification of what those services are. If the services that are provided by Sun-Diamond do not relate to the cause of Joe’s loss of his arm, then Sun-Diamond may not be liable. However, for that to happen, the process that caused the injury would have to be solely under the control of Sun-Maid, with clear language in an agreement, and must be a process that Sun-Diamond has not managed.

 

5. How to apply this case

This case illustrates the importance of clearly stating which party in a multiple-party activity is responsible for each activity related to the joint venture. If such clear delineation is not made, then any accident in any part of the JV could result in everyone being sued, when in fact only one party might be liable. Duties should be clearly defined, and boundaries clearly drawn. Right now, I’m involved in a team activity to revise a software process at work. We’ve divided the work among us, but we’ve not specifically clarified who is responsible for the outcome of each segment. I’ll work to get that specificity made clear, so that everyone knows who is responsible for what, not just what everyone is working on.

(Note that this “how to apply” is very personal to YOU – It is NOT a ‘lecture’ about how others should do it. It does not reference the case that I analyzed either – it is all related to how YOU will use what you learned in that case.)

respond only to one question. You will not get credit if you answer all of the questions.
How have people used art to commemorate events in their lives throughout history? Give two examples of images and elaborate on artist style and presentation of depicting the event.
Describe three different examples of architectural work – each built for a different purpose (residential, community needs, commercial needs, governmental and/or worship), and discuss specific features of the work that are designed to meet certain distinctive needs
Compare and contrast two works of art that best describe a personal or national identity.
Any use of sources must be documented in MLA style. You should only use signed sources (that is, sources that have a named author). Wikipedia should not be used as a source itself. Read through your paper several times before you submit, revising where your prose is unclear or needs further explanation and correcting any errors in spelling, grammar or syntax.

Choose ONE (1) of the following questions and write a 1200-1500 word essay (1500 words maximum
for the entire exam – this is a strict limit) answering the question. Make sure you use the “word count”
tool in Word before you submit your exam. While I admire that some of you are so interested in the
topic that you cannot limit yourselves to 1500 words, writing more is not fair to those students who
remain within the limit. You will be penalized according to the following scale if you go over the word
limit: 1-100 words over: -1 point, 101-200 words over: -2 points, etc. Please edit and revise your
answers so they fit within the word limit. Editing and revision are very important skills for writers in
general and historians in particular). This exam is worth 20% of your final grade for the course.
Since you will have more than one week to write it, we expect you to use proper grammar, spelling,
diction, etc. Please proofread your work.
1. How did the tournament, hunting, and ball games influence medieval and early modern
European views of social status, gender, and age?
2. How did the Church view games in medieval and early modern Europe. Did church officials
all share the same opinions about the value or danger of games and pastimes? Why or why
not?
We will be evaluating your essay based on two factors: 1) the quality of your arguments and your
presentation of these arguments; 2) the breadth and depth of your knowledge of games and play in
medieval and early modern Europe as demonstrated by your use of the most relevant evidence from
the course materials (texts, images, films, websites, lectures, etc.) to support your arguments. You
should focus on the primary sources, but you should also use the secondary sources to help support
your arguments. Make sure to present balanced and nuanced analyses. Do not simply ignore
contradictory evidence. Do not use outside sources. You are responsible for all materials
assigned in weeks 1-4, and you should consider materials from all four weeks when
answering either of the questions. CITE ALL YOUR SOURCES (not just direct quotations) –
parenthetical citations with abbreviations are fine – e.g. (Charny, 22). If you cite my lectures put the
week and lecture number – e.g. (Milliman 4.1). If you use an Internet source, please give the URL.
Your citations do not need to be perfect, so don’t worry if you cannot figure out exactly how to cite a
source. Just do your best. The purpose of citations is to make your research reproducible, so your
readers can look up your references. If you have any questions, please ask me.
Under no circumstances should you even consider plagiarizing or other forms of cheating. It
is better to get a bad grade on one assignment than to fail the entire course, which is what will
happen if you get caught cheating. This essay must be your own original work. This is not a group
project.

A professionally presented essay 3,000 words in length (+/- 10%) that answers these questions:

 

 

1. Given the performance of PayPal between 2015 and 2018, in your view, is PayPal better off independent of eBay? Why or Why not?
2. Given the performance of PayPal between 2015 and 2018, in your view, what have been the successes and failures to implement the “new vision” described in the case.
3. What do you see as the greatest risk(s) for Dan Schulman in the five years to 2024? Why?
4. How is(are) the risk(s) identified in C above, different or similar to those described in the case study? Why?
5. How should PayPal respond to the launch of (choose only one):
   1. Apple Pay & Android Pay
   2. Cryptocurrencies
   3. PSD2 (Revised Payment Services Directive)
   4. B2B Fintech (business to business payments apps)
6. Considering your answers to C, D, and E above, delineate a plan for the company suggesting how PayPal should confront this challenge. Your response should include a discussion of one of the following:
   1. how can PayPay mitigate fraud and cybercrime for individuals?;
   2. how can PayPal insert itself in the B2B market?;
   3. will the acquisition of iZettle be enough for PayPal increase its presence amongst small business and microfinance institutions – traditionally the most cash-reliant merchants?;
   4. how can PayPal alleviate financial inclusion?

 

NOTES

 

1. Using concepts and theories introduced during the module, you should have a specific section where you address the conceptual elements/theory that will frame your own analysis. This section will appear right after the introduction
2. Most of your essay should be devoted to responding E and F above (at least 1,500 words).
   1. Your plan in point F should be realistic and consider, as far as possible, the budget and skill implications of its implementation.
   2. Be specific as to which country(ies) you are analysing.
   3. You will have to support your answers with appropriate research.
   4. As part of your research, you will not to use online dictionaries, Wikipedia, Investopedia, Google books, and any other source of questionable quality. The use of these will be penalised/cap marks.
   5. You can only reference material to which you had full access.
   6. Your conclusion should be at least 500 words long.
3. Formatting
   1. For professionally presented I expect: coversheet (including your details and wordcount), active use of headings and subheadings, appropriate citations, and referencing, etc.

1. 1. Use Arial, Font 12, 1.5 or double space throughout.
   2. Be sure to add your estimated word count and place it clearly in the coversheet.
   3. You may cut and paste graphs, tables or figures from the Internet provided you reference the source.

1. No appendices.
2. Abstract and list of references do not add to the total wordcount.

4. If you use an editor or proof reader to help you improve the readability of your essay, the name and contact details of this editor should be included in the coversheet. You should also keep a copy of the draft with your own words before it was sent to the editor.
5. Referencing and citation
   1. Be sure to support any statement of general nature with evidence or reference to a relevant source.

1. 1. Citations in the body text not listed in the references as well as bibliographies will be penalised/cap marks.
   2. Additional learning resources could you draw on to help build the criticism include podcast, tv, books, articles, trade press, etc.
   3. We expect for you to use correct referencing throughout. All source material (including websites) should be cited using the author/date convention (also known as Harvard style). See the following links:

http://www.bangor.ac.uk/library/help/documents/harvardreferencingguide.pdf

http://infolit.bangor.ac.uk/evalu5.php?subid=0

 

Select a well documented historical case study of an individual who experienced a neurological disorder, disease, or accident that resulted in an interruption in his or her vision, hearing, or motor control.

Prepare a 7- to 10-slide Microsoft® PowerPoint® presentation addressing the following questions:

What neurological disorder, disease, or accident took place to interrupt this individual’s ability?
What behaviors were exhibited by this individual following the disorder, disease, or accident?
What were the individual’s deficits as a result of this disorder, disease, or accident?
What treatments did the individual seek? Were any available at the time?
What are the research implications of the case study? How did this help scientists and doctors better understand the disorder or disease? How did this case help scientists and doctors better understand how the brain works?

In order to write a persuasive essay, you will need to do your homework on the topic in which you choose. That basically means that you will need to be familiar with both sides of the coin – your side as well as the opposing argument. As long as you are strong on both sides – that is that you are capable of presenting possible oppositions to your argument – you will be able to have a very successful persuasive essay. Persuasive essays have substantial facts in support of the topic in which the essay presents. Yet still the main purpose of writing a persuasive essay is to convince the reader to concur with your position.

When writing a persuasive essay, your purpose is to convince your audience to embrace your idea or point of view. A persuasive essay can be compared to a sales pitch, except your essay is not selling a product – it more or less is selling a point of view.

 

Requirements

• 12-15 pages, no larger than 12-point font, double-spaced, APA style.

Demonstrates a thorough understanding of context, audience, and purpose that is responsive to the assigned task(s) and focuses all elements of the work.

Uses appropriate, relevant, and compelling content to illustrate mastery of the subject, conveying the writer’s understanding, and shaping the whole work.

Demonstrates detailed attention to and successful execution of a wide range of conventions particular to a specific discipline and/or writing task (s) including organization, content, presentation, formatting, and stylistic choices

Demonstrates skillful use of high- quality, credible, relevant sources to develop ideas that are appropriate for the discipline and genre of the writing.

Control of Syntax and Mechanics Uses graceful language that skillfully communicates meaning to readers with clarity and fluency, and is virtually error- fre:

Given the emphasis on African Americans, it should be noted that contemporary black Americans are a heterogeneous group which consists of those born in the United States and refuges or immigrants from Haiti, the Caribbean, South America, and Africa. (Cabral, Freid, Levenson, Amaro, & Zuckerman, 1990). Each group differs in terms of heritage, language, culture and health beliefs and health practices. Guidelines to begin the process of incorporation of race consciousness as a component of cultural competence professional development would consist of:

1. Conducting a self-appraisal of racial and ethnic heritage that includes:
   • Place of birth
   • Length of time in country and history of migration
   • Ethnic affiliation and identity
   • Primary and secondary languages
   • Style of communication
   • Religion
   • Food practices
   • Health beliefs and health practices
   • Customs around transitions, such as births and illnesses (Lipson et al., 1996)
   • How the AA feels about attitudes, feelings, and beliefs towards African Americans and persons of color

 

Watts, R. (2003). Race consciousness and the health of African Americans. OJIN, 8(1), http://www.nursingworld.org/MainMenuCategories/ANAMarketplace/ANAPeriodicals/OJIN/TableofContents/Volume82003/No1Jan2003/RaceandHealth.html

 

Assignment

You can complete this assignment one of two ways:

1. Interview an African American (AA) if possible one not from the U.S. or
2. Research one of the heterogeneous groups of AA from the United States and refugees or immigrants from Haiti, the Caribbean, South America, and Africa.

watch this video

In your own words, think about and explain the following…

Does this video talk about the law of effect? Are there any examples of the law of effect in the video? Explain. If you don’t see any, write about an activity in daily life in which the law of effect operates. Explain.

Write about how using games to leverage rewards could use both positive and negative reinforcement (you’ll want to explain the differences and similarities between the two).

Explain how these concepts have worked in your own life to help you develop and maintain professional work behaviors (punctuality, working productively with others, time/workload management, the impact of nonverbal communication on professional work image), helping you act responsibly and learn from mistakes. Share at least one personal workplace example or experience of negative reinforcement and one example of punishment.

Submission Instructions
Compose your work in a .doc or .docx file type using a word processor (such as Microsoft Word, etc.) and save it frequently to your computer. For those assignments that are not written essays and require uploading images or PowerPoint slides, please follow uploading guidelines provided by your instructor.