Project for Aem 220

AEM220 – Spring 2008 – OPTIONAL BUSINESS PROJECT

The objective of the assignment is to select and analyze a publicly traded company using basic business tools, concepts, and methods, as taught in the course.

DEADLINE FOR REGISTRATION

Groups must file a page stating the members of the group and the chosen publicly traded company with Victoria Parker (107 Warren Hall) by Friday April 11 at 1 pm. Every group should consist of 3 students, no more and no less. Vicki, the TAs, and the Professor will not accept emails for registration. There are no extensions to this deadline.

REQUIREMENTS

Every report must include the following:

1. Introductory page stating the name of the company, its date of incorporation, the main businesses that it participates in, and its mission statement. If the company does not have a mission statement, state so and suggest one. (3 pts)

2. A financial statement analysis including:

a. A “Du-Pont” system analysis for the last 5 years;

b. A basic ratios analysis for the last 5 years;

c. A comparison of ratios with two relevant competitors for the last 5 years;

d. A comparison of ratios with the overall industry your selected firm belongs to for the last 5 years.

The objective of the financial statement analysis is to examine the financial health of the business. While we ask that you use both Du-Pont and ratios, do not limit yourself to these tools. If you suspect some specific liquidity or profitability concerns, or if you feel that the organization is inefficient, or if you have a sense that upcoming events (maturing long-term debt, pending litigation, etc.) will significantly affect the financial health of the organization, state your case and base your analysis on it! Be sure to explain what all of the ratios mean and what the calculated values indicate. Do not simply perform the calculations. (15 pts)

3. Analyze the following five environments of the company (9 pts):

a. Social environment (external);

b. Political, legal and regulatory environment (external);

c. Diversity issues (internal, i.e. how does the firm confront diversity issues within their workforce and promote diversity among their employees?);

d. Global presence and issues (external);

e. Sustainability and triple bottom line issues (i.e. physical environment, contribution to social welfare, contribution to economic development).

4. On the basis of current news and information, select two of the above five environments that will likely have the greatest impact on your selected organization. Justify your two selections by describing relevant news, information, and current events, and explaining their influence on the business. How will the liquidity and profitability of the business be affected by the changes in these two environments, if at all? For example, the legal and regulatory environment will become increasingly important as new regulatory laws are passed. Explain what the regulation is and how it will likely impact the business. (6 pts)

5. Examine two productivity-related initiatives recently undertaken at the company. Consider initiatives that are geared towards improving the productivity of the business. This includes HR, operations, and physical plant investments. Mergers, acquisitions, and international expansion have to be looked at more carefully. Are they geared towards competitive pressures, or are they genuinely related to improving technology, or increasing scale? (15 pts)

6. Pick either the best selling product of the company or one of its new products. Thoroughly analyze it in terms of the Product / Price / Place / Promotion