14 Jan Using the balance sheet

BUSN115 Introduction to Business and Technology

Week 1 Discussion

DQ1 Not-for-Profit Organizations

Read/review the following resources for this activity:

Textbook: Chapter 1

Lesson

Minimum of 1 scholarly source

Initial Post Instructions

As Rice (2018) notes, “the boundaries that formerly separated not-for-profit and for-profit organizations have blurred, leading to a greater exchange of ideas between the sectors” (p. 14). Choose a not-for-profit organization that operates in your community or in your career field. Next, choose a for-profit business that provides a similar service. Compare and contrast the mission of both organizations. How does each organization use resources to achieve its goal? Do the organizations benefit from any exchange of ideas?

Reference:

Rice University (2018) Introduction to Business. Retrieved from https://openstax.org/details/books/Introduction-to-Business

DQ2 Role of Government in Business

Read/review the following resources for this activity:

Textbook: Chapter 1

Lesson

Minimum of 1 scholarly source

The government regulates business in many ways. Businesses must get permission to operate in the form of licensing and state and federal agencies work to provide protections.

Search in the Chamberlain library for “role of government” and one of the following protections.

Consumer protection

Employee protection

Environmental protection

Investor protection

Choose an article that you find from your search. Summarize the article and discuss its implications.

BUSN115 Introduction to Business and Technology

Week 2 Discussion

Global Trade and Quality of Life

Read/review the following resources for this activity:

Textbook: Chapter 3

Lesson

Minimum of 1 scholarly source

Initial Post Instructions

It has been said that global trade improves the quality of life. Do you believe that this is true? Are there examples of global trade lessening the quality of life in a particular country or region? Does everyone benefit equally from global trade? Why or why not?

Using research, argue either for or against the statement that global trade improves the quality of life.

BUSN115 Introduction to Business and Technology

Week 3 Discussion

DQ1 Entrepreneurship

Read/review the following resources for this activity:

Textbook: Chapter 5

Lesson

Minimum of 1 scholarly source

Initial Post Instructions

Consider a small business you want to create. In your post, address the following:

What type of business would you create?

Conduct some research on companies offering a similar product. What distinguishes you from your competitors?

Name 2-3 risks you need to consider in your new venture? Consider the risk factors similar companies may have encountered.

How could you leverage e-commerce and social media to make your business profitable?

DQ2 Forms of Business Ownership

Read/review the following resources for this activity:

Textbook: Chapter 4

Lesson

Minimum of 1 scholarly source

Initial Post Instructions

Consider the company/organization that you currently work for (or if you are not currently working, a company/organization you would like to work for). What type of ownership model does the company/organization use? Why do you think this type of ownership model was chosen? What would be different in your organization if a different ownership model were used?

BUSN115 Introduction to Business and Technology

Week 4 Discussion

Code of Ethics

Read/review the following resources for this activity:

Textbook: Chapter 2

Lesson

Minimum of 1 scholarly source

Initial Post Instructions

Developing a code of ethics is a way for a company to share its core values and practice ethical business. For example, the National Association for Healthcare Quality has formulated a code of ethics that can be found at https://nahq.org/about/code-of-ethics (Links to an external site.).

Think about a company or organization you currently work for or do business with. Find the code of ethics for the company or organization and post the link for the class.

Using the code of ethics you found, give an example that you are familiar with in which the company has stayed true to the code of ethics and demonstrated ethical business practices.

BUSN115 Introduction to Business and Technology

Week 5 Discussion

DQ1 The Role of Management

Read/review the following resources for this activity:

Textbook: Chapter 6

Lesson

Minimum of 1 scholarly source

Initial Post Instructions

The four key functions of the managerial process are planning, leading, organizing, and controlling.

Think about your current or former manager. Give a specific example of how your manager fulfills each role within your organization.

In your opinion, which of the four activities is most important for a manager? Why?

DQ2 Leadership Styles

Read/review the following resources for this activity:

Textbook: Chapter 7

Lesson

Minimum of 1 scholarly source

Initial Post Instructions

Leadership styles can be broken into different categories such as participatory vs. autocratic or transformational vs. transactional. Choose two leadership styles from the textbook and lesson. Using your own research and the information you have learned this week, compare and contrast the leadership styles. Include your own opinion of which leadership style would be best for your current or former workplace with a justification for that leadership style choice.

BUSN115 Introduction to Business and Technology

Week 6 Discussion

Theories of Motivation

Read/review the following resources for this activity:

Textbook: Chapters 8 and 9

Lesson

Minimum of 1 scholarly source

Initial Post Instructions

There are many theories in relation to motivation – Taylor’s scientific management, Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, Herzberg’s two factor motivation, McGregor’s Theory X and Y, Ouchi’s Theory Z, etc. Choose one theory from the textbook or lesson reading. Find an article in the Chamberlain library that applies that theory to nursing or healthcare in general. Discuss how the theory is still applicable to motivational situations in the workforce.

BUSN115 Introduction to Business and Technology

Week 7 Discussion

Marketing your business

Read/review the following resources for this activity:

Textbook: Chapters 11 and 12

Lesson

Week Three discussion response

Minimum of 1 scholarly source

Initial Post Instructions

Think back to the business you proposed in week three’s discussion about entrepreneurship. Briefly propose a marketing strategy for your business. Consider the following questions.

Who is your target market?

What is your competitive advantage?

How will you use the five elements of the marketing mix: product, price, place, promotion and people?

BUSN115 Introduction to Business and Technology

Week 8 Discussion

Balance Sheets

Read/review the following resources for this activity:

Textbook: Chapter 14

Lesson

https://www.sec.gov/edgar/searchedgar/companysearch.html

Minimum of 1 scholarly source

Initial Post Instructions

As discussed in Chapter 14, the balance sheet of a company can give us a snapshot of the financial health of a company at a given time. For this discussion, you will find the balance sheet of a company of your choosing. Then you will use that balance sheet to evaluate the company’s financial health.

Go to https://www.sec.gov/edgar/searchedgar/companysearch.html and type in a company you would like to research. Find the company’s most recent quarterly report and click on “interactive data”. In the left-hand navigation choose, balance sheet.

Take a screenshot of the balance sheet or put the balance sheet into a word document to share with the class.

Using information you learned in the textbook, what observations can you make about the company’s financial health given the balance sheet?

BUSN115 Introduction to Business and Technology

Week 2 Assignment

Trade Agreements and the Healthcare Industry

Read/review the following resources for this activity:

Textbook: Chapter 3

Lesson.

Minimum of 2 scholarly sources

Instructions

The various trade organizations and agreements discussed in the textbook and lessons affect a variety of industries, including healthcare. Choose an aspect of healthcare you would like to research. Some example might include medical devices, information technology, pharmaceuticals, public health, etc. Find at least two articles in the Chamberlain library that discuss your research topic and the effect of at least one global trade organization/agreement.

Write a 1.5 – 2 page essay explaining how the global marketplace affects your chosen topic. Your essay should include a summary of the trade agreement or organization chosen as well as the affects (both positive and negative) that agreement/organization has had on your given topic.

BUSN115 Introduction to Business and Technology

Week 4 Assignment

Ethics in Business

Read/review the following resources for this activity:

Textbook: Chapter 2

Lesson

Minimum of 1 newspaper article

Instructions

Find a newspaper article that discusses one of the unethical business practices listed on pages 62 – 63 of the OpenStax book.

Summarize the unethical business practices discussed in the article you chose

Discuss at least two changes you would make to this company’s practice to follow more ethical business practices.

Discuss how your policy change would align with one of the following concepts: justice, utilitarianism, deontology, or individual rights.

BUSN115 Introduction to Business and Technology

Week 6 Assignment

Motivational Strategies

Read/review the following resources for this activity:

Textbook: Chapters 8 and 9

Lesson

Minimum of 1 scholarly source

Instructions

Issues with morale at the workplace are common in many industries. Often, these problems can be overcome by managers employing a specific motivational strategy to help improve morale.

Find an example of a workplace suffering from motivational issues (either a personal example or a case study that you research). Determine the best motivational strategy to apply to the problem. The paper should be written in essay form but should answer at minimum the following questions.

What is the specific problem affecting workplace morale?

What specific motivational strategy can be used to solve the problem?

Why is this the best motivational strategy to use in this situation?

BUSN115 Introduction to Business and Technology

Week 7 Assignment

Evaluating the Marketing Mix

Read/review the following resources for this activity:

Textbook: Chapters 11 and 12

Lesson

Minimum of 1 scholarly source

Instructions

In this assignment, you will evaluate the marketing mix of a company of your choice.

Choose any company that operates in your local area. Do some research on the marketing strategy of that company. Evaluate the company’s marketing mix.

Your paper should begin by discussing the target market and competitive advantage of the chosen company. Then, your paper should have both a description AND an evaluation of the marketing strategy in each of four areas:

Product strategy

Pricing strategy

Place (distribution) strategy

Promotion strategy

BUSN115 Introduction to Business and Technology

Week 8 Assignment

Final Exam

Question 1 (CO 1) One external factor affecting business is political. Give two reasons why political factors can influence business and give specific, current, relevant examples of each reason.

Question 2 (CO 2) The WTO is an organization that affects the global marketplace. Explain what the WTO is and give an example of how the WTO affects the global marketplace.

Question 3 (CO 3) Pete Yankin and Ken Lowery consider themselves to be experts on hunting in the mountains in North Carolina. As a result, the two men established a company that markets hunting expeditions. Yankin and Lowery share responsibilities for booking the trips, gathering supplies, and guiding groups of five to seven hunters into locations where they can hunt for deer and bear. The two will share any profit equally. What type of business ownership is represented here? What are two risks and two benefits in this type of business? Why is this the best business model in these circumstances?

Question 4 (CO 8) What is a code of ethics? Why is it important for a company to have a code of ethics?

Question 5 (CO 4) Compare and contrast participative leadership and free-rein leadership. Give specific examples of each.

Question 6 (CO 5) What is the expectancy theory of motivation? Give a specific example.

Question 7 (CO 6) Identifying a target market is the first step of any marketing strategy. What is a target market? Give a specific example of a target market for a specific product or service.

Question 8

1. Amgen Income Statement 09.30.18

Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income – USD ($)
shares in Millions, $ in Millions

3 Months Ended

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2018

Sep. 30, 2017

Sep. 30, 2018

Sep. 30, 2017

Revenues:

Total revenues

$ 5,904

$ 5,773

$ 17,517

$ 17,047

Operating expenses:

Cost of sales

1,037

990

3,005

3,010

Research and development

926

877

2,555

2,519

Selling, general and administrative

1,293

1,170

3,773

3,443

Other

325

297

303

347

Total operating expenses

3,581

3,334

9,636

9,319

Operating income

2,323

2,439

7,881

7,728

Interest expense, net

355

325

1,040

972

Interest and other income, net

126

267

519

627

Income before income taxes

2,094

2,381

7,360

7,383

Provision for income taxes

235

360

894

1,140

Net income

$ 1,859

$ 2,021

$ 6,466

$ 6,243

Earnings per share:

Basic (in usd per share)

$ 2.88

$ 2.78

$ 9.67

$ 8.52

Diluted (in usd per share)

$ 2.86

$ 2.76

$ 9.61

$ 8.46

Shares used in calculation of earnings per share:

Basic (in shares)

645

728

669

733

Diluted (in shares)

649

733

673

738

Dividends paid per share (in usd per share)

$ 1.32

$ 1.15

$ 3.96

$ 3.45

Product sales [Member]

Revenues:

Product sales

$ 5,510

$ 5,453

$ 16,532

$ 16,226

Other revenues [Member]

Revenues:

Total revenues

$ 394

$ 320

$ 985

$ 821

Using the balance sheet above, answer the following questions:

1. Did the company show growth or decline?

2. What in the income statement might indicate growth or decline? Give a specific example.

3. If you were an investor in this company, would you consider this a successful quarter? Why or why not?