• Product Development & Operations – Category Manager Analysis

  Due Date
  Week 3
  Note: While representative of possible situations faced by Alikay Naturals, all scenarios in this assignment are fictional.
  Real Business
  Let’s roll up our sleeves and use what we’ve learned this week in a real-life business situation. Each week, you’ll encounter a scenario where you will assume the role of a business person at or who works at a national discount retail store, like a Walmart or Target. These companies provide important, everyday staples for millions of people across the country and have become very successful businesses in the process.
  Discount retail stores have locations in communities across the country. They often have strong and recognizable brands that are household names. We will explore how business works throughout this course by taking on a few of the many different roles at successful companies like these.

  Your Role
  This week, you’ll assume the role of a Category Manager for the Beauty Products category at a national discount retail store.
    WHAT IS A CATEGORY MANAGER?
  Category Managers are responsible for related groups of products (for example, baseball equipment or laundry detergents) for a retail business. They use research, information and insights about the category to change shopper behavior and increase sales of the products in the category. They also work with the suppliers of the products in their category to ensure that good products and services are available to customers.
    As a Category Manager, part of your role is to analyze data and information about how well a product is selling to help the maker of that product improve the product and consider introducing new products. Rochelle and her team at Alikay Naturals have asked you, the Beauty Products Category Manager, to review one of their products and determine where it lies in the product life cycle. Additionally, they have asked you to recommend ways to improve the product in order to increase sales.

  INSTRUCTIONS

  Click DOWNLOAD TEMPLATE and DOWNLOAD RESOURCES at the bottom for all of your assignment materials!
  Step 1: Product Life Cycle
  Read the Product Report for Alikay Naturals Moisturizing Black Soap Shampoo. The Product Report contains important information that will help you to identify where the product stands in the Product Life Cycle and give you clues about what changes customers might like to see. Respond to Rochelle and her team at Alikay Naturals based on the information in the Product Report.
   

  • Identify where Moisturizing Black Soap Shampoo is currently positioned in the product life cycle and describe the rationale for your position.
     
  • Compose 3 questions that Rochelle should pose to her team to better understand the product’s positioning and potential at this particular stage in its life cycle. (E.g., if you have determined the product is in the Introduction Phase, you might suggest the question: How have competitors priced similar products?)
     
  • Step 2: Product Changes
    Based on what you’ve learned:
     
  • What recommendation(s) do you have for Alikay Naturals to improve or replace Moisturizing Black Soap Shampoo?
     
  • Step 3: New Product Development
    Read the New Product Proposal, which contains three examples of possible products that could be developed to replace Moisturizing Black Soap Shampoo. Based on the information in this proposal and the customer feedback in the Product Report:
     
  • If you had to recommend one product, which product would you recommend they create? Explain your decision.
     
  • Determine which type of innovation this represents from among the four main types discussed this week. Briefly explain why you chose that type of innovation.
     
  • Note: You should complete Step 4 after reading the material in Week 3

    Step 4: Production Methods
    Based on your understanding of Alikay’s position in the product life cycle and expected sales volume:
     

  • Which production method do you think Alikay is using for the Black Soap Shampoo? Explain your rationale.
     
  • If Alikay chose to keep the Moisturizing Black Soap Shampoo and launch your recommended product as a ͞limited time only͟ trial, what production method should Alikay use for the test market product? Why?
     
  • Step 5: Real-World Application
    Choose a product at your company or one that you are familiar with that is in the mature stage of the product life cycle. Briefly describe the product, why you believe it is in this phase, and what improvements could be made to change its current path.
                
          
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•  NEXT : REFLECT >>
     

This is the creative week! You will use what you have learned in the last two modules to create an Integrated Marketing Communications Plan for your product/service- MY PRODUCT IS A BULLETPROOF VEST. In business world, materials like this are presented clients or upper management; be persuasive in your recommendations.

You will report on three communication channels:

• Digital Marketing (REQUIRED)

Select two of the following:

• Broadcast Advertising (TV, radio)
• Print Advertising
• Outdoor/Out-of-Home Advertising
• Sales Promotion
• Direct Marketing (traditional)
• Public Relations
• Personal Selling

Communications Channel 1: Digital Marketing

• Why was it chosen? Explain how it is a good fit for your target market.
• Advantages/drawbacks (research required)
• Detail the media plan: What types of digital marketing will be used? Why?

Communications Channel 2

• Why was it chosen? Explain how it is a good fit for your target market.
• Advantages/drawbacks (research required)
• Detail the media plan: What aspects of the marketing communications channel will be used? Why?

Communications Channel 3

• Why was it chosen? Explain how it is a good fit for your target market.
• Advantages/drawbacks (research required)
• Detail the media plan: What aspects of the marketing communications channel will be used? Why?

Since you are engaging in research, be sure to cite and reference the sources in APA format. The paper should be written in third person; this means words like “I,” “we,” and “you” are not appropriate. For more information see Differences Between First and Third Person.

See the Student Guide to Writing a High-Quality Academic Paper, including pages 13 and 14 on in-text citations. Another resource is the “Writing Style Guide,” which is found under “My Resources” on the TLC portal. All research should be cited in the body of the paper. In-text citations and corresponding references should be included in your paper. The use of direct quotes is strongly discouraged.

Use the attached APA-formatted template (MKT301 Case3) to create your submission.

Assignment Expectations

Your submission will include:

• Trident University International’s cover page
• A two-page paper with APA citations (2-3 sentence introduction, body, 2-3 sentence conclusion)
• The reference list page in APA format.

Discussion Questions:

1. Which of the many views of the data that Romeo provided shows the most promise to help answer the question of why the patient experience scores have slipped?

2. What do you think of Kat Vasilova’s approach to data analysis?

3. Discuss the connection Sylvia Sosa found between the mysterious Spanish calls and the patient experience scores.

4. There is a difference between correlation and causation, as represented by Sylvia Sosa’s incredulity that the automated calls were to blame. Discuss how data analysis helps us move beyond correlation and into causation.

5. Discuss how the degree of cultural competency of an organization can affect patients’ satisfaction.

see attached Case

 and Discussion

Each student will be responsible for completing 3 annotated bibliography assignments throughout the semester.  For each assignment, you are required to read two articles and complete an annotated bibliography for each article (scholarly/peer-reviewed journal articles). See syllabus for example. 

Annotated Bibliography

1. You are to research two peer-reviewed articles from the CU Library. You can find the directions to accessing the library at the top of our Moodle page.                                                                                                                       Your AB’s should be 1⁄2 to 3⁄4 pages long. It should be double-spaced, and you are to use Times new Roman 12 font.
   For your AB, you must have:

• Your name, date, course, and AB number at the top (see example)
• APA Reference before the information (see example)
  Annotated bibliographies must be written in manner, in which, they are understandable. You must describe all-important data such as:
• The participants
• The reason the study was conducted
• What research design was used (surveys, interviews, case study, etc.)
• Which research analysis was used (MANOVA, ANOVA, Kruskal Wallace, etc.)
• The results of the study along with any conclusions of the author(s)
  Your study must include all of these (if applicable). Your AB MAY NOT be copied and pasted directly from the source. There MUST NOT be any form of plagiarism in your annotated bibliography (or any other assignment). You are required to write this assignment in your own words. You should pick the topic for your AB from the objectives listed at the beginning of each week’s module or from the syllabus.

Over the past five weeks you have learned about different elements related to critical thinking. You related the concepts to your personal experiences, and evaluated your critical thinking skills. You’ve identified fallacies, evaluated arguments, and learned the role of these concepts in your daily life. Now it’s time to apply the concepts together. In this assignment, you will review a real-world scenario and apply the critical thinking skills you have developed.

Review the Critical Thinking Scenario.

Write a 350- to 700-word reflection on the scenario, using the Reflection Template. Follow the instructions within the template to complete your reflection. You will need to include an introduction paragraph to introduce your reader to the topics you will be discussing; 3 body paragraphs, each with specific questions that need to be addressed within; and a conclusion paragraph to bring your paper to a close.

Note: The Reflection Template is already formatted appropriately, and you do not need to make any changes to the format. Be sure to demonstrate your critical thinking abilities in your responses to the questions, and ensure your paper flows well from topic to topic. 

Principles of Inventory Management

Read Chapter 8, pages 130-147.

In a 3-5 page paper, please discuss the following:

• Distinguish among cycle, safety, pipeline, and speculative stock.
• Define what is meant by inventory carrying costs, and list its primary components.
• What are ordering costs, and what is the trade-off between inventory carrying costs and ordering costs?
• Distinguish between a fixed order quantity and fixed order interval system. Which one generally requires more safety stock? Why?
• Explain the logic of the EOQ model and the assumptions associated with the model.

The requirements below must be met for your paper to be accepted and graded:

• Write between 750 – 1,250 words (approximately 3 – 5 pages) using Microsoft Word in APA style, see example below.
• Use font size 12 and 1” margins.
• Include cover page and reference page.
• At least 80% of your paper must be original content/writing.
• No more than 20% of your content/information may come from references.
• Use at least three references from outside the course material, one reference must be from EBSCOhost. Text book, lectures, and other materials in the course may be used, but are not counted toward the three reference requirement.
• Cite all reference material (data, dates, graphs, quotes, paraphrased words, values, etc.) in the paper and list on a reference page in APA style.

References must come from sources such as, scholarly journals found in EBSCOhost, CNN, online newspapers such as, The Wall Street Journal, government websites, etc. Sources such as, Wikis, Yahoo Answers, eHow, blogs, etc. are not acceptable for academic writing. 

The purpose of this assignment is for you to think critically about how a National Incident Management System (NIMS) and Incident Command System (ICS) could impact your leadership style as an emergency manager. Think about all of the leadership theories that you studied in this course. Think about the theories that align with your leadership style. Then, write a two-page essay that answers each of the following questions: 

• How does NIMS impact your leadership style as an emergency manager? 
• How does ICS impact your leadership style as an emergency manager? 
• Which leadership theories might conflict with NIMS and ICS? Explain. 
• Thinking back to the Unit I assignment, how does your own leadership style align with NIMS and ICS? Explain. 

Be sure to address each of the questions, proofread your work, and submit it in  for grading. If outside sources are used, please adhere to APA Style when creating citations and references for this assignment. APA formatting, 

Select one of the following case studies (located in your textbook):

• Case 10-1: Willful Violation, or a Problem That Can Be Corrected? 
• Case 10-2: Constructive Discharge and Reinstatement of Strikers.

Then complete the following: 

• Add your opinion about the choices and decisions being made—if this was your company, would you make this choice? 
• What would you do differently?   

You are strongly encouraged to make your initial post by the middle of each week so that you have plenty of time to respond to your classmates. 

The assessment questions do not need to have any references. 

Also the case study should be on a separate word document. All sources used, including the textbook, must be referenced; paraphrased and quoted material must have accompanying citations in APA format 7th edition

Assessment

1. Several national labor policies were created with the establishment of unions. Discuss the impact of the Norris-LaGuardia Act, The Wagner Act, Executive Order 10988, Women’s Trade Union League, and Fair Labor Standards Act. What circumstances prompted Congress to pass these acts along with the Taft-Hartley Amendments and the Landrum-Griffin Act? What are the key provisions of these acts? Your response should be at least 400 words in length.

2. According to the reading in this unit, there have been some noted differences among private sector and public sector labor relations. Discuss in detail how public employees’ rights generally differ from those of private sector employees. Discuss right to strike and its impact on private and public employees. Identify and explain some of the challenges of public sector collective bargaining. Your response should be at least 400 words in length.

3. Describe the onset of the American labor movement, and explain how it relates to the growth of national unions. Your response should be at least 200 words.

4. Realizing every workforce is different, identify and discuss the four basic steps involved in launching a union organizing campaign. Does this differ in the public and private sector? Explain. Your response should be at least 300 words in length.

5. Identify and discuss in detail the steps in a secret ballot representation election. Who initiates this process? Explain. Your response should be at least 300 words in length.

Unit III Case Study

Labor Relations and Collective Bargaining, 10th Edition

Christina Heavrin, J.D.; Michael R. Carrell

Down below is the case study that’s comes from Labor Relations and Collective Bargaining, 10th Edition Christina Heavrin, J.D.; Michael R. Carrell

Read Case Study 4-1, “Salting,” on pages 155-156 of your textbook. Then, address the following: 

1. Explain how the company’s treatment of both the “covert” and “overt” salts applications for jobs compares to the recommended counter-salting steps for employers. 
2. Would either the “covert” or the “overt” salts in this case satisfy the NLRB ruling that applicants for employment must be genuinely interested in seeking employment before claiming protection under the NLRA? 
3. Does the company’s opposition to becoming a union shop indicate that there was anti-union animus in refusing to consider the “overt” salts for employment? 

Your response should be a minimum of 150 words per question. All sources used, including the textbook, must be referenced; paraphrased and quoted material must have accompanying citations in APA format.

CASE STUDIES Case Study 4-1 Salting

The Company is engaged in the business of removing or cleaning hazardous waste. Most of its employees fall into three categories; (1) field technicians who are unskilled laborers; (2) drivers and operators of trucks; and (3) field supervisors who go out into the field and are in charge of jobs. The driver and equipment operator positions require commercial driving licenses (CDL). All parties agree that the people who are called field supervisors are employees and not supervisors within the meaning of Section 7of the act.

The Union was engaged in organizing companies in the area handling hazardous materials. The Union sent a letter dated March 9 to the Company indicating (a) that it was commencing an organizing drive; (b) that the NLRA precluded the employer from restraining or coercing its employees; and (c) that it would be distributing literature to its employees at various projects. Subsequently, the Union began leafleting to the Company’s employees on their way into and out of the workplace.

On March 21, the Company placed a help-wanted ad, seeking to hire operators who had CDL licenses and H&T (hazardous material handling endorsements). The Union sent two members, Castillo and Rivera, to apply for a job. And even though neither had the required commercial driver’s license, they were allowed to fill out applications and were interviewed. They both were told that they could have jobs as field technicians, and arrangements were made for them to get a drug test. Neither informed the Company that they were members of a union or that they intended to organize employees on behalf of the Union. They were “covert” salts and were instructed to keep their union membership secret until the appropriate time. Castillo and Rivera were told by the Union that if they obtained jobs, the Union would make up the difference in the wage rate paid by the Employer and the wage rate that they had been getting from being employed as shop stewards at union employers. Also, the Union agreed to provide them with any benefits not provided by the Company. They started as field techs on April 16 or 17.

On the morning of April 13, the Union sent teams of union agents into the Company’s office to apply for work at the Company as “overt” salts. The overt salts went to the Company’s facility in pairs, wearing union clothing and carrying recording devices to record what was said during the application process. When the overt salts entered the facility, they asked the Company’s receptionist for employment applications and advised her that it was their intention to organize the Company. She responded that the Company was not interested in becoming a union shop, but informed the applicants that they could apply for one of the available driver positions but that, in order to apply for such positions, they would have to produce driver’s licenses with CDLs and HAZMAT endorsements. Although some of the applicants indicated to the Receptionist that they possessed those licenses, it is undisputed that, in fact, none of them did. When none of the individuals were able to produce the required licenses, she advised them that they could come back and fill out applications when they had obtained them. One of the applicants then inquired whether he could fill out an application for a field technician position. She told him that the Company did not have openings for field technicians at that time, but that he could complete an application and she would keep it on file. He did not, however, complete an application. None of the applicants returned to the Company after April 13, nor did they make any further attempt to apply for employment with the Company.

The Union filed an unfair labor practice charge against the Company for refusing to hire or consider for hiring the union members in violation of the NLRA.

In order to establish a refusal-to-hire violation the Union must establish the following elements: (1) that the Company was hiring, or had concrete plans to hire, at the time of the alleged unlawful conduct; (2) that the applicants had experience or training relevant to the announced or generally known requirements of the positions for hire, or in the alternative, that the employer has not adhered uniformly to such requirements, or that the requirements were themselves pretextual or were applied as a pretext for discrimination; and (3) that antiunion animus contributed to the decision not to hire the applicants. In order to establish a refusal- to-consider violation the Union has to show (1) that the Company excluded applicants from a hiring process; and (2) that antiunion animus contributed to the decision not to consider the applicants for employment.

The Company argued that none of these applicants had the qualifications necessary to be hired as drivers. Nor were these “overt salts” actually looking for employment. All of them had full-time jobs at the Union, as business agents, organizers, or dispatchers. When they were invited by the office person to submit applications for nondriver jobs, accompanied by their social security cards and driver licenses, they never followed up on this invitation and not one made any further attempt to apply for employment. Furthermore, the Company, having recently decided to hire around four laborers (including union salts Castillo and Rivera), did not immediately need any field technicians. Put simply, they were not qualified for the jobs advertised and they did not apply for jobs for which they were qualified, but which were not immediately available.

The Union argued that the Company’s decision not to hire or consider for hire the “overt salts” was clearly motivated by antiunion animus for when the two “covert salts” applied for jobs for which they were not qualified, the Company allowed them to complete the application process and they were, in fact, hired as field techs. In addition, the Receptionist’s statements that the Company did not want to be a union shop clearly showed the antiunion animus amid the ongoing organizing drive.

Source: Adapted from Allstate Power Vac, Inc. and Laborers International Union of North America, Local 78, 354 NLRB No. 111 (2009).