Texas A & M Central. Graduate Program. MKTK-508 Marketing Management. Online Format

Transcription

1 Texas A & M Central Graduate Program MKTK-508 Marketing Management Online Format I. INSTRUCTOR Name: Dr. Russell Casey For all class matters use Course in the Blackboard Course Website. Position: Adjunct Professor of Marketing, Texas A & M Central II. COURSE DESCRIPTION Students will gain a working knowledge of marketing management by learning to think strategically and to develop marketing plans aligning marketing initiatives with market opportunities. Students will be able to implement the functional strategies and marketing plans to optimize customer and organizational value. IV. COURSE MATERIAL a. Required Materials 1. Textbooks Kotler, P. & Keller, K.L. (2012). Marketing Management. 14 th or 15 th or 16 th Edition. Pearson publishers. ISBN: V. SCHEDULE OF ASSIGNMENTS See more detail below. Students will prepare an Executive Briefing and Team Business Plan for a computer company developed as part of participation in the marketing simulation. You will be divided into teams, as these exercises will be collaborative. Groups will be assigned early in the

2 semester (Sept. 8th). The Executive Briefing and Team Business Plan will be submitted to the Assignment tab after the end of Quart 4 (Oct. 13th) and Quarter 8 (Nov. 10th). In addition, you are required to participate in a computer simulation (see details below). You will be responsible for wrapping up each quarter online at the simulation website. Your first submit for Quarter 1 will be Sept. 10th (Tuesday) in the third week of class and then second submit for Quarter 2 will be the Sept. 15th (Sunday) end of the Third week of class. Quarter 3 will wrap-up on Sept. 22nd (Sunday), Quarter 4 will submit Oct. 6th (Sunday), Quarter 5 will submit Oct. 13th (Sunday), Quarter 6 will submit Oct. 20 th (Sunday), Quarter 7 will submit Oct. 27 th (Sunday) and the final submit in Quarter 8 will be Nov. 3rd (Sunday). As part of the simulation you will turn in an Executive Briefing and Team Business Plan. You will upload your attached files to the Assignment tab. Students are expected answer the discussion question each week, with examples and supportive evidence, as well as, well-informed, constructive, and relevant comments to fellow discussion participants during discussion boards (see details below) FOR ONLINE CLASSES: 1. Weekly Discussion Board: At the beginning of each week, the Professor will post a discussion questions on the weekly Discussion Board. A rule of thumb is that each answer should be well thought-out and complete. Post your answers to the week s discussion questions as one post and as a reply to the discussion question thread begun by the instructor. Discussion Question answers each week are due by Thursday 8 AM and students are then expected to critique and comment on each other s answers. Weekly Discussion Board Grade: Discussion Board: You are expected to respond to bulletin board items with some regularity. This means that you are to post at least a few times a week. You do not have to respond to each and every posting every week. 4-5 substantive* postings a week will get you there. I do find the more you participate in the discussion the more likely you are to be less confused and the better grade you earn. Just because you post a response to the discussion board does not give you full points. The post needs to be well researched, and extend on a point or class discussion. A post such as I agree with you, is worth little in the form of participation. Your initial response to the discussion board should be by Thursday by 8am CT each week. * Substantive according to Webster: having substance: involving matters of major or practical importance to all concerned. A posting that is more then merely agreeing with someone else s comments. It actually expresses your thoughts, observations, or comments. Note: Weekly participation will not be required during the Executive Briefing and Team Business Plan weeks. Week 7 and Week 12 Simulation: Each team will participate in a computer simulation. See more about the simulation below on Page 13. Due dates can be found in below under the Schedule of Assignments section. The designated Team Leader is responsible for collecting their team member s work

3 electronically, consolidating that work, and uploading the Executive Briefing and Team Business Plan to the Assignment tab in Blackboard. Guidelines for this assignment are posted below. VI. GRADE COMPONENTS Deliverable & % of Grade Date Due Points Participation in discussion board Week 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10, 11, 13, 14, 15, 16 Day 7 14 pts. (1 pt. each week Final 3 Weeks Presentations and Feedback additional pts. see below.) 10 pts. Executive Briefing Week 7 (after Quarter 4 in simulation) (Based on Simulation) Day 7 Simulation Performance Week pts. Team Business Plan 20 pts. (Based on Simulation) Presentation (including Moderating Discussion (6pts)Board For Final Presentation Week 14 Day 7 6 pts. Evaluating other teams (4pts) Total 5 pts. 100 pts. VII.TIMETABLE AND REQURED PREPARATION Week 1 1. Read Chapters 1 and Get familiar with Blackboard and your fellow classmates through the Welcome discussion the discussion board. 3. Participate on Discussion Board for Week 1 at least 2 days during the week 4. Read Syllabus including information on the simulation Learning Objectives Chapter One

4 Recognize why marketing is important (cc1) Describe the scope of marketing (cc1) Know some of the fundamental marketing concepts (cc3) Explain how marketing management has changed (cc1) Recognize the necessary tasks for successful marketing management (cc2) Topics-Chapter One This chapter of this textbook introduces the subject and defines marketing and marketing management. It sets the scene for the remainder of the book. 1. What is marketing? 2. What is marketed? 3. Who markets? 4. Core marketing concepts 5. Company orientation towards the marketplace 6. Marketing management tasks Learning Objectives Chapter Two Describe how marketing affects customer value (cc2) Explain how strategic planning is carried out at different levels of the organization (cc1) Identify what is included in a marketing plan (cc4) Topics-Chapter Two This chapter presents the key ingredients of the marketing management process. It discusses how to develop marketing strategies and plans 1. Marketing and customer value 2. Corporate and division strategic planning 3. Business unit strategic planning 4. The nature and contents of a marketing plan Week 2 1. Read Chapter 3 2. Participate on the Discussion Board for Week 2 at least 2 days during the week 3. Turn in your self-evaluation to the assignment area of the classroom by Thursday. Learning Objectives Chapter 3

5 Identify the components of a modern marketing information system (cc4) Recognize what are useful internal records (cc4) Be able to discuss what is involved with a marketing intelligence system (cc4) Explain the key methods for tracking and identifying opportunities in the macroenvironment (cc4) Know what are some important macroenvironment developments (cc4) Topics-Chapter Three This chapter provides information about gathering information and scanning the environment. The marketing environment is constantly presenting new opportunities and threats and therefore marketers have to continuously monitor it. 1. Components of the modern marketing information system 2. Internal records and marketing intelligence 3. Analyzing the macroenvironment 4. The demographic environment 5. Other macroenvironments Week 3 1. Read chapter 4 2. Participate on the Discussion Board for Week 3 at least 2 days during the week 3. Submit the Self-Evaluation by Thursday of this week No Exceptions 4. Sign-up for simulation after you have received your from instructor identifying your group and how to sign-up for the simulation. 5. Submit Quarter 1 in the simulation by Tuesday 11:45 PM CT 6. Submit Quarter 2 in the simulation by Sunday 11:45 PM CT Learning Objectives Chapter 4 Explain what constitutes good marketing research (cc2, cc4) Identify good metrics for measuring marketing productivity (cc4) Explain how marketers can assess their returns on investment of marketing expenditures (cc4) Know how companies can more accurately measure and forecast demand (cc4) Topics-Chapter Four This chapter is about conducting marketing research and forecasting demand. Good marketers want insights to help them interpret past performance as well as plan future activities.

6 1. The marketing research system 2. The marketing research process 3. Measuring marketing productivity 4. Forecasting and demand measurement Week 4 1. Read chapter 5 2. Participate on the Discussion Board for Week 4 at least 2 days during the week 3. Submit Quarter 3 in the simulation by Sunday 11:45 PM CT Learning Objectives Chapter 5 Explain customer value, satisfaction, and loyalty, and identify how companies deliver them (cc1) Know what is the lifetime value of customers and how marketers can maximize it (cc1) Explain how companies can cultivate strong customer relationships (cc1) Illustrate how companies can both attract and retain customers (cc1) Discuss database marketing (cc4) Topics-Chapter Five This chapter shows how marketers can create customer value, satisfaction and loyalty. Marketers must connect with customers-informing, engaging, and maybe even energizing them in the process. 1. Building customer value, satisfaction and loyalty 2. Maximizing customer lifetime value 3. Cultivating customer relationships 4. Customer databases and database marketing Week 5 1. Read Chapter 6 2. Participate on the Discussion Board for Week 4 at least 2 days during the week Learning Objectives Chapter 6 Describe how consumer characteristics influence buying behavior (cc1) Explain the major psychological processes influence consumer responses to the marketing program (cc2) Describe how consumers make purchasing decisions (cc2) Know how marketers analyze consumer decision making (cc2)

7 Topics-Chapter Six Marketers are always looking for emerging customer trends that suggct new marketing opportunities. This chapter deals with consumer behavior. 1. What influences consumer behavior 2. Key psychological processes 3. The buying decision process: The five-stage model 4. Other theories of consumer decision making Week 6 1. Read chapter 7 2. Participate in Week 6 Discussion Board at least two days during the week 3. Submit Quarter 4 in the Simulation by Sunday 11:45 PM CT Learning Objectives Chapter 7 Discuss business markets, and how they differ from consumer markets (cc1) Know the buying situations that organizational buyers face (cc3) Identify the participants in the business-to-business buying process (cc3) Explain how business buyers make their decisions (cc3) Discuss how companies can build strong relationships with business customers (cc1) Describe how institutional buyers and government agencies do their buying (cc3) Topics-Chapter Seven This chapter deals with Business-to-Business Markets. To create value, marketers need to understand these organizations needs, resources, policies, and buying procedures. 1. What is organizational buying 2. Participants in the business buying process 3. The purchasing/procurement process 4. Stages in the buying process 5. Managing business-to-business customer relationships 6. Institutional and government markets Week 7 1. Read Chapter 8 2. Turn in the Executive Briefing based on the Simulation as a team to the Assignments tab in the classroom by Sunday 11:45 PM 3. Submit Quarter 5 in the simulation by Sunday 11:45 PM CT

8 Learning Objectives Chapter 8 Identify the different levels of market segmentation (cc3) Discuss how a company can divide a market into segments (cc3) Explain how a company should choose the most attractive target markets (cc4) Know what are the requirements for effective segmentation (cc2) Topics-Chapter Eight Identifying market segments and target is discussed in this chapter. To develop good marketing plans, managers need to understand what makes each segment unique and different. 1. Levels of market segmentation 2. Bases for segmenting consumer markets 3. Bases for segmenting business markets 4. Market targeting Week 8 1. Read Chapter 9 2. Participate in the Discussion Board Week 8 at least two days during the week 3. Submit Quarter 6 of the Simulation by Sunday 11:45 PM CT Learning Objectives Chapter 9 Express what a brand is and how branding works (cc1) Know what brand equity is (cc1) Explain how brand equity is built, measured, and managed (cc3) Discuss the important decisions in developing a branding strategy (cc2) Topics-Chapter 9 This chapter is about how to build strong brands. Astrong brand commands intense consumer loyalty. At the heart of a successful brand is a great product or service 1. What is brand equity 2. Building brand equity 3. Measuring brand equity 4. Managing brand equity 5. Devising a brand strategy 6. Customer equity

9 Week 9 1. Read Chapters 10 & Participate in Week 9 Discussion Board at least two days during the week 3. Submit Quarter 7 in the simulation by Sunday 11:45 PM CT Learning Objectives Chapter 10 Express how a firm can choose and communicate an effective positioning in the market (cc3) Explain how brands are differentiated (cc3) Topics-Chapter 10 This chapter discusses the concept of brand positioning. As part of the strategic brand management process, each offering must represent a compelling, distinctive big idea in the mind of the target market. 1. Developing and communicating a positioning strategy 2. Differentiation strategies Learning Objectives Chapter 11 Explain how marketers identify primary competitors (cc3) Discuss how we should analyze competitors strategies, objectives, strengths, and weaknesses (cc2) Describe how market leaders can expand the total market and defend market share (cc3) Illustrate how market challengers should attack market leaders (cc3) Identify how market followers or nichers can compete effectively (cc3) The market (cc3) Explain how brands are differentiated (cc3) Topics-Chapter 11 This chapter deals with competitive strategy. Building strong brands requires a keen understanding of competitors, and competition grows more intense every year. 1. Competitive forces 2. Identifying competitors 3. Analyzing competitors 4. Competitive strategies for market leaders 5. Other competitive strategies 6. Balancing customer and competitor orientations Week 10

10 1. Read Chapters 12 &13 2. Participate in Week 10 Discussion Board at least two days during the week 3. Submit Quarter 8 of the Simulation by Sunday 11:45 PM CT Learning Objectives Chapter 12 Describe the characteristics of products and how marketers classify products (cc3) Explain how companies can differentiate products (cc3) Identify how a company can build and manage its product mix and product lines (cc3) Know how companies can combine products to create strong co-brands or ingredient brands (cc3) Know how companies can use packaging, labeling, warranties, and guarantees as marketing tools (cc3) Topics-Chapter 12 This chapter deals with how to set a product strategy. The product is a key element in the marketing offering. At the heart of a great brand is a great product. 1. Product characteristics and classifications 2. Product differentiation 3. Product and brand relationships 4. Packaging, labeling, warranties and guarantees Learning Objectives Chapter 13 Explain how services are defined and how they differ from goods (cc3) Discuss how services are marketed (cc3) Discuss how service quality can be improved (cc3) Know how service marketers create strong brands (cc3) Discuss how goods marketers improve customer-support services (cc3) Topics-Chapter 13 This chapter deals with the design and management of services. As product companies find it harder and harder to differentiate their physical products, they turn to service differentiation. 1. The nature of services 2. Marketing strategies for service firms 3. Managing service quality 4. Managing service brands 5. Managing product-support services

11 Week Read Chapter Participate in Week 11 Discussion Board at least 2 days during the week(for criteria see Discussion Board information at the beginning of Syllabus above) Learning Objectives Chapter 14 Discuss how consumers process and evaluate prices (cc3) Explain how a company should set prices initially for products or services (cc3) Describe how a company should adapt prices to meet varying circumstances and opportunities (cc3) Know when a company should initiate a price change (cc3) Identify how a company should respond to a competitor s price change (cc3) Topics-Chapter 14 This chapter discusses how to develop pricing strategies and programs. Price is the key element of the marketing mix that produces revenue; the other elements produce costs. 1. Understanding pricing 2. Setting the price 3. Adapting the price 4. Initiating and responding to price changes Week Read Chapter 15 & Participate in the Discussion Board Week 12 at least two days during the week 3. Turn in the Team Business Plan based on the Simulation as a team to the Assignments tab in the classroom by Sunday 11:30 PM Learning Objectives Chapter 15 Identify a marketing channel system and a value network (cc1) Know what work marketing channels perform (cc3) Describe how channels should be designed (cc3) Explain what decisions companies face in managing their channels (cc1) Discuss how companies should integrate channels and manage channel conflict (cc1) Discuss what are the key issues with e-commerce (cc3)

12 Topics-Chapter 15 This chapter shows how to design and manage integrated marketing channels. Successful value creation needs successful value delivery. Marketers must examine the whole value chain. 1. Marketing channels and value networks 2. The role of marketing channels 3. Channel-design decisions 4. Channel-management decisions 5. Channel integration and systems 6. Conflict, cooperation and competition 7. E-commerce marketing practices Learning Objectives Chapter 16 Identify the major types of marketing intermediaries that occupy this sector (cc3) Discuss what marketing decisions these marketing intermediaries make (cc3) Describe what are the major trends with marketing intermediaries (cc4) Topics-Chapter 16 This chapter examines retailers, wholesalers and logistics. The various types of retailers and wholesalers are discussed. 1. Retailing 2. Private labels 3. Wholesaling 4. Market logistics Week Read Chapters 17, 18 & Participate in the Discussion Board for Week 13 at least two days during the week Learning Objectives Chapter 17 Describe the role of marketing communications (cc3) Discuss how marketing communications work (cc3) Know what are the major steps in developing effective communications (cc3) Explain what the communications mix is and how it should be set (cc3) Identify an integrated marketing communications program (cc3) Topics-Chapter 17

13 This chapter shows us how to design and manage integrated marketing communications. To effectively reach and influence target markets, holistic marketers are creatively employing multiple forms of communications. 1. The role of marketing communications 2. Developing effective communications 3. Deciding on the marketing communications mix 4. Managing the integrated marketing communications process Learning Objectives Chapter 18 Describe the steps involved in developing an advertising program (cc3) Understand how sales promotion decisions are made (cc3) Discuss the guidelines for effective brand-building events and experiences (cc3) Explain how companies can exploit the potential of public relations and publicity (cc1) Topics-Chapter 18 This chapter presents mass communications: advertising, sales promotions, events and experiences, and public relations. Mass media is still very important to companies if used correctly. 1. Developing and managing an advertising program 2. Deciding on media and measuring effectiveness 3. Sales Promotion 4. Events and experiences 5. Public relations Learning Objectives Chapter 19 Discuss how companies can integrate direct marketing for competitive advantage (cc3) Describe how companies can do effective interactive marketing (cc3) Identify how marketers can bct take advantage of the power of word of mouth (cc1) Understand what decisions companies face in designing and managing a sales force (cc3) Know how salespeople can improve selling, negotiating, and relationship marketing skill (cc3) Topics-Chapter 19 This chapter deals with personal communications: direct and interactive marketing, word of mouth and personal selling. New technologies have encouraged companies to move from mass communication to more targeted, two-way communications. 1. Direct marketing 2. Interactive marketing 3. Word of Mouth and Social Networks

14 4. Designing the salesforce 5. Managing the salesforce 6. Principles of personal selling Week Read chapter Turn in to the classroom assignments tab Team Business Plan 11:30 PM Sunday 3. Participate in Week 14 Discussion Board at least two days during the week (Teams 1-3 post your presentation and comment on others presentations) Learning Objectives Chapter 20 Discuss what challenges a company faces in developing new products and services (cc1) Explain the organizational structures and processes used to manage new-product development (cc3) Identify the main stages in developing new products and services (cc3) Describe the bct way to manage the new product development process (cc3) Know what factors affect the rate of diffusion and consumer adoption of newly launched products (cc1) Topics-Chapter 20 This chapter deals with new product offerings. Companies need to grow their revenue over time by developing new products and services and expanding into new markets. New product development shapes the company s future. 1. New-product options 2. Challenges in new-product development 3. Organizational arrangements 4. Managing the development process 5. The consumer-adoption process Week Read chapter Participate in Week 15 Discussion Board at least two days during the week (post your presentation Teams 4 & 5 and comment on others presentations) Learning Objectives Chapter 21 Identify the factors a company should review before deciding to go abroad (cc3)

15 Examine how companies can evaluate and select specific foreign markets to enter (cc4) Understand the major ways of entering a foreign market (cc3) Know to what extent the company must adapt its products and marketing program to each foreign country (cc3) Describe how the company should manage and organize its international activities (cc1) Topics-Chapter 21 This chapter deals with global markets. Products and services developed in one country are finding enthusiastic acceptance in others. Companies need to be able to cross boundaries within and outside their country. 1. Competing on a global basis 2. Deciding whether to go abroad 3. Deciding which markets to enter 4. Deciding how to enter the market 5. Deciding on the marketing program 6. Country-of-origin effects 7. Deciding on the marketing organization Week 16 Assignments 1. Read Chapter Participate in Week 16 Discussion Board at least two days during the week (post your presentation Team 6 & 7 and comment on others presentations) Learning Objectives Chapter 22 Discuss the important trends in marketing practices (cc4) Describe the keys to effective internal marketing (cc1) Explain how companies can be responsible social marketers (cc1) Discuss how a company can improve its marketing skills (cc4) Know what tools are available to help companies monitor and improve their marketing activities (cc7) Topics-Chapter 22 This final chapter pulls all the concepts together and deals with the management of a holistic marketing organization. Holistic marketers must engage in a host of carefully planned, interconnected marketing activities and satisfy an increasingly broader set of constituents. 1. Trends in marketing practices 2. Internal marketing

16 3. Socially responsible marketing 4. Marketing implementation 5. Evaluation and control 6. The future of marketing Note on uploads to BB9 course website: Because of compatibility issues with certain browsers, only upload Word files saved as 2003.doc or.rtf files. By

17 ErnCT R. Cadotte Professor of Marketing University of Tennessee Knoxville, TN Modifications by Dr. Russell Casey

18 Business Management The overall objective of this course is to develop your marketing skills. Through computer simulation, we will place you into a very realistic international business setting where you will run a company for two years in compressed time (eight rounds of decision-making). You will work closely with a teammate to manage a highly complex and integrated business. Personal leadership and strong interpersonal skills will be necessary to succeed. Learning Objectives This course will employ the Marketplace simulation as a learning environment. The exercise is a transformational experience. You will learn what it is like to compete in the fast-paced, competitive market where customers are demanding and the competition is working hard to take away your business. In the Marketplace, you start up and run your own company, struggling with business fundamentals and the interplay between marketing, distribution, operations, finance, and accounting. You are given control of a simulated business and must manage its operations through several decision cycles. Repeatedly, you must analyze the situation, plan a business strategy to improve it and then execute that strategy out into the future. You face great uncertainty from the outside environment and from your own decisions. Incrementally, you learn to skillfully adjust your strategy as you discover the nature of your real-life decisions, including the available options, linkages to other parts of the business, conflicts, tradeoffs and potential outcomes. Here is a list of the specific tasks that Marketplace players do: Analyze market research data Plan and roll out a marketing campaign Design brands to appeal to different market segments Devise advertising campaigns, sales force incentives, and price option Allocate scarce funds to R&D, manufacturing, quality, advertising, and distribution Select and prioritize R&D projects, leading to new product features Negotiate strategic partnerships with competitors for new technology Initiate and defend lawsuits over false advertising Set up and manage a distribution channel Schedule production and manage plant capacity Manage cash Negotiate equity and debt financing for new business development Compete head-to-head with other business teams Adjust strategy and tactics in response to financial performance, competitive tactics, and customer needs. The specific goal of the simulation exercise is to develop your management skills by giving you an integrated perspective of the entire business operation. In terms of specifics, the exercise can: Develop strategic planning and execution skills within a rapidly changing environment Crystallize the linkages between business decisions and financial performance Instill a bottom line focus and the simultaneous need to deliver customer value Internalize how important it is to use market data and competitive signals to adjust the strategic plan and more tightly focus business tactics Promote better decision-making by helping you see how your decisions can affect the performance of others & organization as a whole Facilitate learning of important business concepts, principles and ways of thinking Experience the challenges and rewards of the entrepreneur by starting up and running a new business venture Build confidence through knowledge and experience To accomplish all of this, it will be necessary to forge a strong team that can effectively manage many tasks in concert. Leadership, teamwork and interpersonal skills will be part-and-parcel of what it takes to succeed. Your

19 team will serve as a live case study within which you can develop your personal style of working with others. You will deal with such issues as the selection of professional colleagues, working with diversity, organization of work, decision-making processes, conflict management, performance appraisal, and culture. Organization of the Exercise Table 1 contains a chronological listing of selected simulation activities that you and a team of fellow students will encounter while competing in this exercise. Each quarter or decision period has a dominant activity and a set of decisions that are linked to it. These dominant activities take the team through the business life cycle from start-up, to development, to growth, to near maturity. As you work through the business life cycle, we will phase in the disciplinary material as it becomes relevant to the current decisions of the team. Thus, the delivery of the learning material is not organized by discipline, but rather by its relationship to decisions being faced by your firm. Each quarter's activities not only result in new material being introduced, but also build upon the prior content so that there is considerable repetition. We have found that business activities such as leadership, team management, pro forma cash flow analysis, value creation in product design, demand-based production scheduling, activity-based costing, and strategic planning and management are not easily absorbed. They require repetitive exercise in order to set them into the natural thinking of the students. For each new decision, there is reading material in the accompanying textbook, The Management of Strategy in The Marketplace, which lays out the nature of the decision being faced, the issues to be dealt with, its linkages with other decisions, and the tradeoffs to be considered. The chapters are laid out according to the normal process of starting, growing, and maturing a business. Team Effort You will team up with one other students to form an entrepreneurial firm that will compete in a "business strategy game." During an eight-week period, you will take your fledgling business through the natural stages of business growth, including emergence, development, and maturity. Along the way, you will learn to develop and refine your strategies and tactics. Virtual Teams The virtual firm is fast becoming a reality. When you take your job after graduation, you may work out of your home in Dallas, confer with your management team in London, coordinate shipments from the factory in Shanghai, all to service the customer in Montreal. You will use cell phones, , instant messaging, the World Wide Web and video conferencing to communicate with everyone up and down the supply chain. To help you learn to work within a virtual organization, the Marketplace exercise will be delivered over the Internet. In logistical terms, we will create a common data set for the team s decisions and store it on an Internet accessible file server. Thus, your team will be able to work from any location where there is a PC with an Internet connection. Any member of the team will be able to log onto the server, review the current situation on the web, make decisions, and then save them for the next student to work on. As each team member completes his or her area of responsibility, he or she will report the analysis and decisions to the rct of the team for their consideration. You and your team will still need to confer on your analysis, strategy and tactics. The advantage of this Internet system is that each team member will be able to work on the most up-to-date decision file so that everyone is looking at the same data set. The file server setup will also facilitate the coaching role of the instructor. Just like you, the instructor will be able to log on at any time to review the current situation with any team or the exercise as a whole. Thus, the instructor can monitor activity and results and adjust the content of any discussion groups or individual coaching efforts.

20 Required Texts and Software for Simulation The simulation that will be used in this course is entitled Business Management (2005) by ErnCT R. Cadotte. It is available through Innovative Learning Solutions, Inc. Your software license can be purchased online with a credit card at You will not be able to purchase the license until after your team has been formed a couple of weeks into the course. Software Demos and Signup Procedures Three flash demos have been prepared to introduce you to the Marketplace software. Please go to and review the Student s Overview, Student s Signup, and Business Management demo. Grade Calculation for Simulation Team Simulation Performance A cumulative balanced scorecard for quarters 5 through 8 will be used to judge the success of each firm. A team s grade will be determined by its relative ranking on the CBS compared to the other firms in its industry.. Executive Briefing Team Business Plan 20 Presentation (includes moderation of week 16 discussion board and evaluating other groups presentations) points Team Simulation Performance 1 st place 45 points 2 nd place 42 points 3 rd place 40 points 4 th place 39 points 5 th place 37 points 6 th place 36 points 7 th place 35 points 8 th place 34 points Wrap Up The schedule will be posted for the next eight weeks regarding when decisions are due. If a team misses a wrap up for any reason (since the due dates are listed at the start of the course) the team regardless of the reason will be penalized 10% of the entire grade for the simulation.

21 Missing two submits in the semcter for any reason will lead to a zero out of 160 points. I will explain in our first chat that you cannot go ahead as the inputs that other students do will affect your decisions in this course. At the graduate level you should have strong time management skills, please do not miss any of the submits throughout the simulation. I will reinforce this in chat, as I want you to be successful. Computation of Simulation Performance A Balanced Scorecard will be used to measure your firm s performance. The team s total business performance will be based upon its financial performance, market effectiveness, marketing performance, invctments in the firm s future, manufacturing productivity, asset management, and creation of wealth. A total score will be computed for each firm competing in the Marketplace. At the end of the exercise, each team will be ranked in the order of performance for the total score. A letter grade will be assigned depending upon your team s ranking and how close it is to the team(s) above or below it. The rubric for assigning the letter grade will also be posted on Blackboard. Role on the Executive Team Management of your entrepreneurial firm will be a challenging task. Successful firms divide up the responsibility and share the workload. You will need to take on one of the following roles: 1) VP Marketing 2) VP Sales Management 3) VP Marketing Research 4) VP Manufacturing, and 5) VP Finance and Accounting. One of our goals is to develop management skills of all the students. For this reason everyone will also take on the responsibility of managing the team and serve for a period of time as the president of the company. The president s job is to manage the schedules and meetings, oversee the assignment of tasks, monitor overall performance (balanced scorecard) and help the team in every way possible to achieve a strong business performance. Team Formation Early in the semcter, you will prepare a resume to apply for one of the executive positions in the new firm. You will present yourself to the class and highlight why you are a good candidate for the position you would like to fill. The teams will be formed via a sports-type draft. The class will be divided into 8 groups of 2 students. One group will be selected at random to serve as the first president. On the day of team selection, the presidents will step into the hallway and review the resumes of the first group of students. Each president will pick the first team member from this group. The order of picking will be random. Individual Effort Your performance evaluation will be based upon your team s performance on the business plan, report to the board and overall simulation. In addition, you will have personal responsibility for the two or more performance criteria in the balanced scorecard. Ownership of Balanced Scorecard. As noted above, you will take on one of the vice-presidential roles within the firm. To insure that you see the link between your decisions and the balanced scorecard, you will be asked to take ownership of at least two of the performance criteria that make up the scorecard. At the end of the exercise, part of your individual evaluation will be judged by how well your firm performed on these criteria compared to the performance of other firms in your industry.

22 You Can Be Fired It is permissible to fire a team member who is not making a substantive contribution to the success of the team. Missed meetings, poor preparation, failure to complete assignments, etc. are all indicative of underperformance. Before a person can be fired, the team must give the student an opportunity to correct his or her deficiencies. In terms of protocol, the team must provide the student with a written statement of the problems associated with his or her work. A peer evaluation may be used in conjunction with this statement. When an individual receives a poor performance report, the student must respond in writing as to how he or she will correct the problems cited. If the problems continue, the team may fire the underperforming team member with a letter of dismissal. A copy of all correspondence must be submitted to the instructor for approval. A person who is fired will be assigned to compete in another simulation where the student is responsible for all the firm s activities, including weekly decisions, and the preparation of a Business Plan and Report to the Board. This new simulation will begin in Quarter 1 and continue through the quarter 8. Being fired will also limit the student s maximum potential grade by one-and-half letter grade. Specifically, 15 points will be deducted from the student s final point score for all completed assignments. Thus, if the student earned a final score of 90 out of 100 points, then the adjusted final score would be 75 points. The final grade would be based upon the adjusted final score. The same conditions will be applied if a person quits a team. Odds and Ends QuCTions to the Business Coach. The help files in the software contain all of the directions you will need to participate in the strategic business simulation. Nonetheless, there is a tendency for students to ask the Business coach for help rather than look in the help files. With the number of students currently playing the game, it can become a very large burden. For this reason, the instructor/coach will charge $10,000 to answer any question already addressed in software. Workload. The first part of the course requires a normal workload for any reading and lecture course. Once the simulation begins, the work will vary according to the activities within the exercise. During the first quarter of play, the work is fairly light. However, it will increase each week up through the presentation of the Business Plan. Students report spending 3 to 4 hours per week during quarters three and four and 8 to 10 hours per week during the preparation of the Business Plan. Following acceptance of the business plan, the majority of student s reports spending 2 to 3 hours per week. This reduction of time is due to familiarity with the software, game procedures, and market, and having a plan of action that requires modification rather than creation. Time Management. Time management will be vital to your success in participating in the Business War Game. There is more work than any one person can do. Also, it is not wise for everyone to participate in all aspects of the business. Too much time would be wasted. Therefore, it is necessary to divide up the work. There are suggctions on how to divide up the responsibility in the help files within the software. Feel free to depart from these guidelines if individual preferences, experiences, or workloads would allow a more equitable allocation of tasks. Also, do not hesitate to reallocate responsibility if conflicts arise or the workload is unevenly distributed. The president should preside over each executive meeting, making sure that the discussion does not wander from the business at hand. Each team meeting should begin with an agenda and a timetable. Meetings should not last more than two hours. Long drawn out meetings are not productive and raise frustration levels about not getting things done. The meeting should conclude with a set of action items for each executive. The outcome of these actions should be reviewed at the start of the next meeting.

23 To facilitate executive meetings, each team member should prepare his/her work in advance. The executive should know the ins and outs, problems, and tradeoffs of his/her area of responsibility. When the executive committee meets as a whole, each executive should have a plan of action to recommend to the team. The executive should be prepared to thoroughly discuss the options open to the company and be flexible on the final decision of the executive team. Table 1. Sequence of Simulation Activities Quarter 1: Organize team to do the job Focus on process of working as a team to achieve goals assess team members' skills, personalities, & work styles set organizational and personal goals organize the work determine how to manage the organization CTablish leadership Quarter 2: Evaluate market opportunities, setup operations & prepare for tct market Analyze market opportunities -- evaluate segments, geographic markets & potential competition Select target segments Create customer value -- design initial brands for tct market match components to benefits desired (quality function deployment (QFD)) evaluate impact of different components on changeover costs & scale economies Setup manufacturing operations -- evaluate financial tradeoffs compare regional cost differences of labor and distribution on plant location evaluate economy & liquidity of different capacity invctments Select tct markets -- setup sales offices Quarter 3: Go to market to tct strategy and market assumptions Marketing strategy -- evaluate tactical options and choose marketing mix pricing & price promotions sales force management - number employed, training, incentives advertising -- ad copy design, media selection, ad frequency Manufacturing -- plan production and inventory levels forecast demand by brand set 65-day production schedule Market research -- budget collection of information Quarter 4: Evaluate tct market performance and revise strategy, become a learning organization Evaluate performance financial performance -- financial statements, ratios, industry norms market performance -- customer opinion of brand designs, prices, advertising, sales force competitor tactics -- segments targeted, selection of marketing tactics Revise marketing and manufacturing tactics as needed and continue tct marketing Quarter 5: Seek external funding -- prepare business plan, negotiate equity invctment Evaluate performance - financial, marketing, & competitive Develop two year business plan goals - marketing, financial and ownership marketing strategy manufacturing strategy

24 financial strategy tactical plan chart (show tactics over time) pro forma cash flows and financial statements size of equity requct, number of shares offered and share price Present business plan to venture capitalists and negotiate equity invctment Begin roll out of business plan Quarter 6: Monitor, improve and execute Evaluate team - self assessment of roles played, contributions made, & adjustments needed Evaluate performance - financial, marketing, & competitive Skillfully adjust strategy marketing -- make incremental changes in tactics use activity based costing (ABC) to evaluate profitability of brands, sales outlets conduct demand analysis to CTimate brand, price, advertising, sales force elasticities invct in R&D for new technology manufacturing -- work on quality improvements with statistical process control (SPC) demand-- driven production scheduling capacity utilization by reducing changeover time and costs reducing pipeline whiplash by managing market stimulation activities project cash flows & adjust strategy within financial capability Quarters 7-8: Monitor, improve and execute (continue) Manage strategy skillfully adjust strategy to unanticipated competitive moves continuously improve brand features (R&D), pricing, promotions, distribution product quality, production efficiency, & asset management project cash flows & adjust strategy within financial capability Executive Briefing Since your invctors funded you a total of nine million dollars for the simulation they want you to create a report detailing what your strategies were to be the dominant computer provider in the world. Please create a DETAILED report of at least four pages that discusses the following: What is your performance to date? (Balanced scorecard, financial performance). Why is it good or why does it need improvement? What areas you strong and what areas are you weak as a company? Please be sure to discuss your competition (those you are competing against, what type of computer are they selling, what type of price point they have, and what you are going to do to try to improve your market position, including forward thinking thoughts such as where you see opening more sales offices). What is your plan now that four quarters have passed? What would you do differently (be specific), and what is your plan to end up being the dominant computer provider in the world?

25 Again, please be as detailed as if you are really giving this report to an invctor whose group is funding you with nine million dollars. Each and every student must be prepared to defend the analysis and the logic behind all of the team s decisions and plans.

26 Outline for the Business Plan (this plan needs to be 10 to 12 pages double-spaced as a minimum) The Business Plan should include the following components: 1. Executive Summary (one page) 2. Review of financial and market performance during the past year 3. Assessment of current situation and the market A. Customers B. Competition C. Company s strengths and weaknesses D. Major problems/opportunities to be dealt with in next year 4. Strategy for the next year in business (What will it take to get ahead or stay ahead?) A. Marketing Strategy B. Manufacturing Strategy C. Sales Channel Strategy D. Financial Strategy 5. Financial requct A. Amount of money being sought B. Projected ROI at end of year two C. Desired stock price and share of company being offered 6. Pro forma cash flow, balance sheet and income statement (Quarter 1 to 8) 7. Tactical plan (Quarters 1 to 8) The communication style should emphasize objectivity and candor. Week 14, Week 15 and Week 16 Discussion Board Presentations Week 16 Discussion Board PowerPoint Presentation, Moderation of Discussion Board and Evaluation of other teams presentations. (Instructions will also be in Week 14, Week 15 and Week 15 Discussion Board areas) Using Blackboard Collaborate or another tool that works for you and your group, you want to create a 15 minute presentation (minimum) including audio with each member of the team participating by presenting (with audio) part of the presentation. You will post the link to this presentation that you created using either Collaborate or Elluminate Live (I suggct this tool) and it is available from your campus. There is no fixed format for the presentation, but you want to be sure to cover the eight quarters of the marketing simulation, what you learned and why you made the decisions you did. Please be sure to speak clearly, and present professionally as your peers (other teams will be assessing you on your presentation content and presentation skills). The teams that aren t presenting will be sending me a rubric (I will provide) indicating scoring the teams that presented on different criteria. A portion of your grade will be determined by

27 how well you assessed others based on the criteria. Thus, please do not give everyone full points unless they have earned it as this could cause you to lose points for not meeting the criteria. In week fourteen, teams one & teams two will post their link to their recorded presentations. They will take that week to moderate (I will help as well) the discussion board for that week. The next week (fifteen), teams three & four will post the links to their presentations and moderate the discussion board. The final week (sixteen), teams five & six will post their presentations and moderate the discussion board. Please be sure if you aren t presenting as part of your presentation that week, you are posting to the discussion board, and uploading the rubric evaluation to the Assignments tab of the classroom for that week. I will be providing the rubric to you. We are fortunate to be able to do this exercise as I find that evaluating others helps to build our critical thinking skills and implementing feedback from our peers is a good growing experience.