Questions and Answers of Business Essentials

Would you categorize the Cheesecake Factory as a service provider or a provider of goods, or both? How would your classification affect your quality control decisions? How would it affect the way you
U.S. restaurants must comply with local health regulations. The results of periodic inspections have to be posted or published, or both. What actions would you recommend be considered by restaurants
Describe the “Big Five” personality traits and how they contribute to employee performance.
Describe several strategies and techniques for enhancing employee motivation and give examples of each.
Use equity theory, expectancy theory, or two-factor theory to explain Aetna’s decision.
Using Herzberg’s two-factor theory, determine which factor is more important to you and describe how you would assess a potential employment situation for those factors.
What are your views on drug testing in the workplace? What would you do if your employer asked you to submit to a drug test?
Go to Sedar.com and find the balance sheets of two different corporations operating in the same industry. Determine the relative emphasis each business has placed on raising money through debt versus
Interview the financial manager of a local business. What are the investment goals of this organization? What mix of securities does it use? What advantages and disadvantages do you see in its
What are the risks and benefits associated with the sources of short-term funds (trade credit, secured and unsecured loans, and factoring accounts receivable)? How do these risks and benefits compare
Which of the three measures of common stock value is most important? Why?
1. In your own words, explain what bitcoin is and how it can be used by consumers to buy products and services.2. Why does BloomNation accept bitcoin?3. How does partnering with BloomNation help
1. What type of financing has Johnny Cupcakes relied upon so far?2. What are the financial objectives of Johnny Cupcakes?3. How does Johnny Cupcakes manage cash flows?
1. What has Thierry Annez learned about negotiating deals from this experience?2. Could Thierry Annez have obtained the needed funds on his own by selling stocks or bonds? Explain.3. What lessons
1. Why is it so difficult to predict which IPOs will be long-term successes?2. What factors influence the market price of a share of stock? Which factors were most important for each of the companies
Consider historical currency exchange rates for the Canadian dollar versus the U.S. dollar and the euro. If you had bought those currencies with Canadian dollars five years ago, what would be their
Interview the manager of a local chartered bank branch. Identify the ways in which the Bank of Canada helps the bank and the ways in which it limits the bank.
Interview several consumers to determine which banking services and products they use (debit cards, ATMs, smart cards, etc.). If interviewees are using these services, determine the reasons. If they
Should banks be regulated, or should market forces be allowed to determine the money supply? Defend your answer.
Should credit cards be counted in the money supply? Why or why not? Support your definition by using the definition of money.
The bitcoin phenomenon has been much in the news recently, so this boxed insert should be of interest to students. The first critical thinking question also gives them an opportunity to apply some
This boxed insert provides interesting information on the ancient business practice of bartering, and how bartering has been modernized by the internet.What are the advantages and disadvantages of
What are the most important factors in the Bank of Canada’s interest rate decisions?
The opening case provides some interesting statistics about the housing market in Canada, the future of interest rates, the role of banks in providing mortgages, and some cautionary remarks about
Choose two advertising campaigns that have recently been conducted by similar businesses in your area. Choose one that you think is effective and one that you think is ineffective. What differences
This box describes the controversy that arose when TransCanada applied for approval to build the Keystone Pipeline. Environmental concerns were raised about the pipeline, and its approval also became
The direct mail industry has been around for many decades, but a few years ago some industry experts expressed the view that it was going to be in trouble because of the internet. But new
1. Describe the Lincoln commercials featuring Matthew McConaughey. Do you think the ads effectively communicate the message? What’s the message? Why do you think Lincoln chose to air commercials
From the manufacturer's point of view, what are the advantages and disadvantages of using intermediaries to distribute products? From the end-user’s point of view?
1. Describe the greatest challenges of promoting music today as opposed to 10 years ago. How has music promotion change?2. Conduct some research on Canada’s Music Incubator (CMI). What are the
1. How have young children like Maya, Hulyan, and Evan found success on YouTube?2. If you were a marketer of children’s toys how would this form of promotion fit into your promotion mix? Talk about
How do cost-oriented pricing and break-even analysis help managers measure the potential impact of prices? What general factors motivate marketing managers to price their products at, above, or below
In recent years, there have been many new product introductions in a yogurt market that is quite old. The new twist is “Greek yogurt,” and it fits with the increased emphasis on healthy living
1. How would you describe this consumer product? What category does it fall under? Explain?2. Good entrepreneurs see opportunities that others miss. Describe the product development process. As you
1. Describe the advertising mix being used in Hollywood’s new marketing campaign.2. What are the main reasons for the new campaign? How do you recommend they measure results?3. How might the
What pricing strategy should the company use for their new products? Is skimming or penetration more appropriate?
There has been rapid growth of the “apps” industry. In this insert, the experiences of two entrepreneurs are described. One has a technical background and the other has a general business
What pricing strategy should the company use for their existing products?
Retailing is a highly competitive business, so retailers are always looking for ways to get a competitive edge. This insert describes several high-tech systems that retailers useto gather information
New product development is critical for business success, and this case provides information on techniques such as outsourcing and strategic partnerships that companies are using to reduce their
The opening case describes how Procter & Gamble (P&G) is moving away from its traditional emphasis on marketing to middle class consumers. It is adopting this strategy because it sees the
Interview a production manager in a local firm and determine which of the tools for total quality management the company is using. Also determine why the company has chosen not to use some other
Describe three high-contact service operations and three low-contact service operations. Do the concepts of intangibility and unstorability have different implications for low- and high-contact
Develop a service flow analysis for some service that you use frequently, such as buying lunch at a cafeteria, having your hair cut, or riding a bus. Identify areas of potential quality or
Pick three physical products (not services) that you regularly use. Then do some research to determine which of the basic production processes are used to produce these products (chemical,
This insert provides information about industrial robots and the expanding number of situations where they are useful. But there are concerns about robotic automation, because when robots do the work
Briefly describe several areas where Jevons’s ideas apply. Are there areas where his ideas do not apply?
Is your college a “make-to-order” or make-to-stock” operation? Explain your reasoning.
This boxed insert is designed to help students think critically about a current issue that is hotly debated by business people, politicians, and the general public. The focus is not really on finding
Is Jevons’s idea sound? Defend your answer.
The opening describes provides information about the importance of manufacturing in the Canadian economy, including some trends in manufacturing that worry some people. For example, during the past
Think of the job you now have or a job you had in the past. How many of the five kinds of power did your boss use? Give examples.
Interview the human resources manager of a local company and ask what strategies the company uses to enhance employee job satisfaction.
Ask a manager what traits he or she thinks are necessary for success. How does the manger’s list compare with the “big five” list in this chapter? How many differences are there? Why would
Interview your employer or an administrator at your college. Ask the person what they believe motivates their employees. Identify one or more theories of motivation that seem consistent with this
Describe the type of circumstance in which it would be appropriate to apply each of the theories of motivation discussed in this chapter. Which theory would be easiest to use? Which one would be
If you personally were selected for a leadership development program, what would you expect to encounter during the training and development? How do you think you might be different after the
This boxed insert provides interesting material which is designed to get students thinking about environmental issues and how those issues are impacted by the four-day workweek and telecommuting.1.
How is the job enrichment/job design approach to motivation different from the modified work schedules (flextime, compressed workweek) approach to motivation? Are there similarities between the two
Consider the following statement: “Given the reality of the regression to the mean concept, it is clear that rewards and punishments should not be applied in the workplace.” Do you agree or
How easy do you think it would be to select managers for leadership and development in a company?
This insert raises a question that is becoming increasingly important in our technology-based society: How much power should companies have to discipline employees who use Twitter and Facebook to
1. Describe how Maslow’s needs hierarchy could be applied to Google’s approach to employee motivation.2. Use Herzberg’s two-factor theory to explain how Google motivates employees.3. What types
Describe the psychological contract you currently have or have had in the past with an employer. If you have never worked, describe the psychological contract that you have with the instructor in
In general, managers want to have satisfied and motivated employees because their positive behaviours create positive outcomes and value for the company. But managers are also very interested in
Interview the managers of two local companies, one unionized and one non-unionized. Compare the wage and salary levels, benefits, and working conditions of workers at the two firms.
Select a job currently held by you or a close friend. Draw up a job description and job specification for this position.
Survey 10 of your acquaintances and determine (a) how important benefits are to them as opposed to salary, (b) the benefits they think are the least and most important in attracting and keeping
Interview a human resource manager at a local company. Select a position for which the firm is currently recruiting applicants and identify the steps in the selection process. Do the steps match
This insert explains the difference between defined benefit (DB) pension plans and defined contribution (DC) pension plans. It also notes the rather dramatic trend away from DB pension plans and
When developing the job specification, how did your group determine the education and experience necessary for the job?
More and more graduates say they want to work for companies with a commitment to the environment. They are therefore exploring the possibilities of a green career by getting jobs that didn’t even
1. What proportion of the blame for Air Canada’s difficulties rests with the top management of Air Canada, and what proportion rests with the company’s unions? Defend your answer.2. Air Canada
What is the most difficult part of developing a job description? Do you feel that you needed any additional information?
1. Which category do you fit into? Do the characteristics that are normally described for your age group fit you? How useful do you think the categories are?2. Consider the following statement:
1. What are the key features of organizational structure? Which ones are evident in the Occupy Wall Street movement? Which ones are absent?2. Consider the following statement: In order to be
Select any organization of which you are a member (your company, your family, your place of worship, or a club). Explain the relevance of the management functions of planning, organizing, directing,
Interview an administrator at your college or university and get that person’s views on the school’s strengths and weaknesses, and on the threats and opportunities the school is facing. Then use
Review the example of the decisions made by Airbus and Boeing regarding new large aircraft. Then research the most current information on the status of the two planes. Which company seems to have
Can you identify any organizations where the technical skills of top managers are more important than human relations or conceptual skills? Can you identify where conceptual skills are not important
Research consistently shows that managers who set goals that are specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-framed achieve higher performance than managers who don’t. This boxed insert
Identify the managers by level and area at your college or university.
This insert describes several key challenges that managers face (e.g., maintaining the energy that is needed to keep up with their heavy workload, coping with huge amounts of information, dealing
This insert describes the activities of StellaService, a company that provides online retailers with information about how effective their online activities are in the eyes of consumers.How do the
1. What are the functions of management? How are these functions illustrated in this case?2. What are the skills of management? Which skills are most exemplified in Sergey Brin and Larry Page?3. What
Visit the website of a major global company such as Coca-Cola and enter some of their international sites. Make sure to choose countries from different parts of the world. What are some of the
What attributes of your province or region (cultural, geographical, economic, etc.) would be of interest to a foreign firm thinking about locating there? Visit provincial government sites and find
Select a familiar product. Conduct some research on the culture of India and identify the problems that might arise in trying to market this product to India's citizens.
Interview the manager of a local firm that does at least some business internationally.Identify reasons why the company decided to "go international," as well as the level of the firm's international
Explain how the economic system of a country affects foreign firms interested in doing business there.
1. How does this video demonstrate the power of technology and the potential dangers that are ever-present in this technological age?2. Briefly describe the concerns regarding online reviews and
Consider the following statement: “Because of intense international competition, companies really don’t have any alternative but to locate their manufacturing facilities in countries with low
1. What factors contributed to this decision? In answering this question, relate your response to the external environment of business.2. How will McDonald’s move toward natural chicken affect the
Develop a group response to the following question: Can your team identify other solutions to this dilemma?
1. Based on what you have read, how does this case demonstrate the complexity of being an entrepreneur in a global context?2. Describe the various forms of international expansion discussed in this
1. After watching this video describe the potential advantages and disadvantages of franchising as they relate to Velofix. Do you think it is a good potential investment for franchisees today?2. In
Considering the interests of all stakeholders, what is the best option in this situation?
What are the advantages and disadvantages of globalization from a Canadian consumer’s point of view? From a Canadian manufacturer’s point of view?
1. What motivates companies like Starbucks to expand into international markets with little perceived interest for their product?2. How has Starbucks adapted to Chinese culture?3. Are you concerned
There are thousands of mobile applications on the various mobile platforms (you probably use some of them on a weekly or daily basis). Identify an idea for a new application that can serve a consumer

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