GT 2 - STRATEGY MEMO
Accounting 2220 Zeigler: Group Task #2 Assign - Spring 2015
Capsim Foundation Simulation - Strategy Memo to the Board of Directors
Passed/posted 3/24 – Due & Collected Tuesday, March 31st
As senior management, your decisions will affect employees, customers, creditors and shareholders.
It is therefore important for your company to develop a long-term strategic plan for achieving success in the competitive sensor industry. NOTE: Additional support discussion for your company’s choice of strategy, vision and mission considerations is posted on our class website.
Given the stakeholders involved, your Board of Directors has a fiduciary (i.e. good faith, trust and legal) responsibility. Accordingly, they require a clearly-defined plan of action from its management team. The Board requires a written discussion of your goals for the company, including your overall strategic plan and the operational tactics planned for achieving those goals.
A) Strategic Plan & Management Team Overview:
Each company is to prepare a 3-4 page, double-spaced, memorandum (MS Word) outlining their company’s strategic objectives and tactics. Your discussion must include:
1) Your company name, long-term strategic goal(s) and a “Mission” Statement.
2) Mgmt member roles (who will be responsible for what and who has final decision authority?)
3) A summary MS Word “table” of your companies’ eight “Success Measure” allocations. After preparing your table, provide a written explanation of why you chose the allocations you did. Each metric must have a minimum weighting of at least 1%. Note that these final Success Measures are due by the due date for Round 2 and cannot be changed after this time.
B) Tactical Plans: What will be your tactics to achieve the above? Teams must discuss, and indicate using the numbers shown below, at least five (5) of the following questions in their memorandum:
1) How many products will you ultimately offer? In which market segment(s) will you compete?
2) What will be your approach to Research & Development? Product Positioning? MTBF?
3) How will you capture more than average industry market share in your chosen segment(s)?
4) What information will be used to develop your annual marketing plan & sales forecast?
5) Production: Will you plan for excess inventory? Will you run a second shift?
6) Do you prefer human labor or automation when planning your production plan/cost structure?
7) Will you fund (pay for) your operations with debt (bonds) or equity (stock)? Why?
8) What, specifically, will you do to stay away from Big Al?
9) What pages of the industry newsletter (Fasttrack) are most important to you? Why?
10) What (and where) is the “Balanced Scorecard”? How will you use this information?
Required Deliverables:
Address your professional memorandum “to” the Board of Directors of your company and “from” your management team (list all management member names and the titles determined). Companies may choose one of the six basic strategies, outlined in the Student Guide, or they may create one of their own. The memorandum will be graded on the depth of your discussion analysis and overall quality of the product (including grammar, spelling, logical organization, professional presentation and writing clarity).
Note: Your memo will be used to evaluate company progress in a future “Board Meeting” (see G/T#6).
A stapled package (no binders) with cover sheet (class period, names, industry# and company graphic) is expected for this professional product to the Board. Print/Attach the grading grid (page two) of this assignment to the end of your staple packet and circle the minimum five specific questions discussed.
Note: There is no "magic bullet" winning strategy. Each industry has its own unique competitive dynamic(s). Poor tactics can undermine a good strategy while good tactics can overcome a poor strategy. Successful firms will focus on long-term planning, strategic alignment, teamwork, competitor analysis, and tactical adjustments. For further information on strategy, log on to Capsim, click on Help then Online Guide. The guide opens in a new window. Click on Six Basic Strategies for more information.
Support:
- All Office Hours as posted on our class website.
- Capsim Website: and Capsim Toll-Free: 1.877.477.8787
Company ______________________ Sim# F705 ___ Class: 11:30 1:00
Group Task #2 - Strategy Memorandum Grading Grid (20 Points)
| |*Attach this Grading Grid to the end of your memo* |Points Available |Points Earned |
| |Three Evaluation Components | | |
|A |Memo Introduction & Overview (all three required): | | |
| |Company name, long-term strategic goals of the management team and a “Mission” | | |
| |Statement. | | |
| | |6 | |
| |Management team member roles (i.e. specifically discuss how you will organize your | | |
| |company). | | |
| | | | |
| |A “table” summary of your final company “Success Measure” allocations (percentages)| | |
| |and an explanation of why you chose the allocations you did. | | |
|B |Circle below the minimum five memo items discussed: | | |
| | | | |
| |How many products will you ultimately offer? In which market segment(s) will you | | |
| |compete? | | |
| | | | |
| |What will be your approach to Research & Development? Product Positioning? MTBF? | | |
| | | | |
| |How will you capture more than average industry | | |
| |market share in your chosen segment(s)? |10 | |
| | | | |
| |What information will be used to develop your yearly marketing plan & sales | | |
| |forecast? | | |
| | | | |
| |How will you manage production? Will you plan for excess inventory? Will you run | | |
| |a second shift? | | |
| | | | |
| |Do you prefer human labor or automation when planning your production plan/cost | | |
| |structure? | | |
| | | | |
| |Will you fund (pay for) your operations with debt (bonds) or equity (stock)? Why? | | |
| | | | |
| |What, specifically, will you do to stay away from Big Al? | | |
| | | | |
| |What pages of the industry newsletter (Fasttrack) are most important to you? Why? | | |
| | | | |
| |What (and where) is the “Balanced Scorecard”? How will you use this information? | | |
|C |Instructions followed, this grading grid attached, overall | | |
| |quality of the product, including grammar, spelling, logical |4 | |
| |organization, professional presentation and writing clarity. | | |
|Board Feedback/Commentary: |
| |
| |
| |
|Strategy Memorandum Points Summary |20 | |
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