Lead Report
Part A: Short-Answer Questions (7 questions, 13 points)
1) The United States is, by many accounts, facing an opioid crisis. Among various hypotheses that have been advanced for this phenomenon, one hypothesis is that increased pharmaceutical advertising on television causes increased substance dependency. Evaluate the main pros and cons of using each of the following four research instruments to collect data that will allow for testing this hypothesis: survey questionnaires, qualitative methods, eye-tracking, and neuro-methods. Which would you recommend using and why? (2 points)
2) Using relevant elements of consumer behavior, explain your buying decision process for choosing Seattle University to do your MBA degree. Also explain whether your evaluation of alternatives followed a compensatory decision model or a non-compensatory decision model, along with why you think so. (2 points)
3) View the following advertisements for Dove Men+Care: Advertisement 1 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zAW7iWhjJbU) and Advertisement 2 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KJDIDKQIMNI). Write down two appropriate positioning statements for Dove Men+Care, one based on each advertisement. Evaluate the evolution in Dove Men+Care’s positioning from Advertisement 1 to Advertisement 2. Explain whether you think this evolution was a good decision, and why. (1.5 points)
4) Consider any brand that you are extremely loyal to. Specific to this brand, use the Brand Resonance Model to explain how the various brand building blocks have resulted in evolving levels of brand equity for you as a consumer over time. (2 points)
5) A hoverboard is a levitating board similar in shape and size to a skateboard; it is typically used for personal transportation (see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hoverboard). Although long considered fictional, there have been increasing recent attempts to create real hoverboards. Explain how the various characteristics of hoverboards as an innovation are likely to influence their rate of adoption among the general populace. (2 points)
6) According to USA Today’s Ad Meter, “Groundhog Day” was the highest-rated Super Bowl LIII commercial (you can view the commercial at https://admeter.usatoday.com/commercials/groundhog-day/
(Links to an external site.)
). What are the commercial’s likely IMC objectives, and why do you think so? Of Cialdini’s principles, which ones does the commercial use? Explain how the commercial’s use of these principles might influence consumers and help Jeep meet its objectives for the commercial. (2 points)
7) Warby Parker is a retailer of eyeglasses, sunglasses, and contact lenses. Founded in 2010 as a completely online company, Warby Parker was able to manufacture its own eyewear and leverage its direct channel structure to sell prescription eyeglasses at $95, compared to the $200 or higher charged by major eyeglass retailers. Additionally, for each pair of eyeglasses that Warby Parker sells, the company donates a pair of eyeglasses to non-profit organizations that distribute the eyeglasses among the one billion people worldwide who otherwise lack access to eyeglasses. Based on this information, explain the various ways in which Warby Parker’s holistic marketing approach enables its channel strategy, pricing, and corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives to support each other. (1.5 points)
Part B: Case Analysis (4 questions, 6.5 points)
Use the following case based on a real company to answer the questions in this part (note: some facts have been disguised to preserve confidentiality):
Global Tech LLC (Global Tech) is a privately-owned information technology (IT) and business processing outsourcing (BPO) services company that was founded in 1999, with headquarters in “Silicon Valley,” California. In 1999, the company also started operations in Hyderabad, India, and its business model was simple. The US operations would generate business from US clients, and the Indian operations would fulfill the business by providing IT and BPO services. The company’s vision was “To be the best IT and BPO services company in the world.”
1999 was a “boom” time for the IT industry, especially companies with Indian operations, who were able to leverage cost advantages to “patch” older software for Y2K compliance. To aid business development, Global Tech quickly hired 10 salespeople in the US, and this helped the company reach $101M annual revenue within five years. Although the company is tight-lipped about current revenue and profit, analysts estimate that revenue had a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 5% from 2004 till today. The company has also grown from around 1,000 employees in 2004 to 5,021 employees today, most employed in India, but also including 51 US-based salespeople. Global Tech’s competitive strategy was and still is driven to a large extent by cost differentiation, using hourly billing rates as low as $15 to acquire new clients, and then providing satisfactory services to secure repeat business at similarly low billing rates, resulting in gross margins of less than 35% as opposed to the 40% to 45% margins made by other companies in the same industry.
A simplified value chain of the IT industry suggests that companies at the high end engage in differentiated activities that are more proprietary and less imitable, allowing them to appropriate more value. These include firms such as Google, SAP, and Microsoft, who engage in R&D services to develop their own products and services. IT consulting companies such as IBM and Accenture engage clients to understand business and functional requirements that can be fulfilled by products or services from companies such as Google and SAP. IT consulting companies then pass this information on to their IT services SBUs or other IT services providers. IT services providers work on these requirements to develop, port, maintain, or test IT systems and software that meet clients’ requirements. Development is the most lucrative as it allows providers to create new solutions that typically command a higher price, followed by porting, which involves migrating an existing solution from one environment to another (for example, Windows 8 to Windows 10). Maintenance and testing are less lucrative as they involve troubleshooting or validating existing solutions, although maintenance comprises the largest volume of business for many companies. IBM and Accenture have their own IT services SBUs, and are major players in this space, along with HP, Fujitsu, and Indian IT companies such as Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) and Infosys Limited. Finally, BPO services in the IT industry typically focus on call center operations and other back office operations such as finance and accounting services and human resources management services, with Capgemini and Genpact among the major players. For the most part, Global Tech is focused on IT and BPO services, although it also provides IT consulting services to some clients.
A majority of the company’s business comes from North America, with three clients – Costco Wholesale, Safeway, and WellPoint Health Networks – making up almost 25%. In addition to these three clients, the company has almost 500 smaller US clients in various industries such as banking & financial services, energy & utilities, media & entertainment, public sector, retail, and telecommunications. Most of the work for Costco and WellPoint involves the maintenance of legacy mainframe solutions, but this has been decreasing over time as clients port their old mainframe solutions to more stable solutions from Oracle and Microsoft. The work for Safeway, on the other hand, involves a balanced mix of development, porting, and maintenance, and the work for the company’s other clients broadly follows its balanced mix for Safeway. Global Tech also has alliances with IBM and Microsoft, which allow it to position itself as a preferred IT services provider for products, services, or consulting solutions involving these companies.
Although the company has been around for almost 20 years, it has grown organically along many dimensions, and the senior management has been exploring some strategic moves to set course for the next ten years and beyond. For starters, almost everyone on the senior management team felt that the company needed a clear mission statement that went beyond the company’s vision. Additionally, they agreed on the need to have a clear positioning, but they could not agree on what would be best for Global Tech in terms of the customers it should focus on, and what message it should highlight in its marketing communications. At a recent meeting, the VP of Marketing also stressed the need to be more mindful in redesigning the company’s logo (currently just the company’s name in plain, black text), with special focus on a distinct color palette that would also be consistent with the company’s positioning.
Finally, the CEO repeated an issue that she had been highlighting for some time: that the company should be more scientific in the way it decided on salesforce staffing. She felt that the company’s salesforce had pretty much grown at the same rate as the rest of the company, with growth across the rest of the company being driven by increased headcount at the offshore operations. Although offshore headcount might indicate volume of business and, thereby, appropriate salesforce size, given that up to 33% of the offshore team was sometimes on the “bench,” without active projects to work on, it was possible that the company didn’t need as many salespeople either. On the other hand, it was possible that the current salesforce was operating at maximum capacity, so adding more salespeople might generate more business, but it was difficult to say for sure.
The VP of Sales was tasked with validating whether the current salesforce size was appropriate or not. To determine this, he decided that he would continue with the company’s current expectation that, on average, each salesperson made one daily sales call per client or prospect. He knew that the annual overall salesforce objectives included getting 10 new clients, but that this would require engaging with at least 100 prospects. He also wanted to distinguish between call frequency for prospects (twice a week) and clients (weekly for 10 of the company’s biggest accounts and fortnightly for the other accounts, in order to keep repeat business flowing in small increments at regular intervals). Armed with this information, he set out to address the task before him.
8) Perform a SWOT Analysis for Global Tech. Please ensure that you analyze the main issues (as opposed to identifying and listing case facts). (2 points)
9) Do you agree with Global Tech’s vision? Why or why not? Based on what you think might be an appropriate vision for the company, come up with a good mission statement for Global Tech, and explain why it is a good mission statement. (1.5 points)
10) Explain which customers Global Tech should focus on, and what its key message to these customers should be. Based on the customers and message, what would a good brand logo look like, and why? Note: You do not need to actually design a logo, although you are welcome to do so if you would like. More important is your rationale for the various logo elements. (1.5 points)
11) Estimate and explain what you think the company’s salesforce size should be. (1.5 points)
12) Professionalism, including adhering to the submission guidelines (.5 point).
Assignment Details
Format: Your Assignment should be no more than 10 double-spaced letter-sized (8.5″ x 11″) typed pages (Arial 11 pt. font with one-inch margins on all sides) excluding exhibits. Appendices can be incorporated at the end of the assignment and do not count toward the page limit, but please note that appendices are only meant for additional content that are not necessary to address the questions; all necessary content should be within the page limit. Please submit a .docx or a .doc file, so that it is easier to provide feedback.
Keys to Strong Assessment: Clear and concise analysis and recommendations, Quality of written communication, In-depth and thoughtful analysis, Evident use of course materials, Logical and grammatical consistency.
Note: Your responses should be original rather than based on someone else’s work that is posted on the Internet or elsewhere. Additionally, to save space, there is no need to state the questions; just number your responses. Finally, for full credit, please do the following:
1) Show and explain all calculations and formulae that you are doing/using.
2) Provide in-depth explanations and justifications, especially for any assumptions.
3) Answer all parts of the question, and provide specific responses to the questions asked.
Rubric
20FQ OMBA 5170 LEAD Assignment Individual Examination
20FQ OMBA 5170 LEAD Assignment Individual Examination
Criteria Ratings Pts
This criterion is linked to a Learning Outcome
Professionalism (Q12)
0.5 pts
Superior
Does an excellent job following all the submission guidelines on formatting, with extremely high levels of professionalism (including grammar and timely submission) and almost no deficiencies
0.25 pts
Inadequate
Does an inadequate job following all the submission guidelines on formatting, with at least somewhat inadequate levels of professionalism (including grammar and timely submission) and perhaps some deficiencies
0.0 pts
Negligible
Does a bad job following all the submission guidelines on formatting, with almost completely inadequate levels of professionalism (including grammar and timely submission) and many deficiencies
0.5 pts
This criterion is linked to a Learning Outcome
Q1
2.0 pts
Superior
Does an excellent job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with extremely clear pros vs. cons and recommendation, with almost no deficiencies
1.75 pts
Good
Does a decent job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with clear pros vs. cons and recommendation, with limited deficiencies
1.5 pts
Adequate
Does a satisfactory job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with acceptably clear pros vs. cons and recommendation, with perhaps some deficiencies
1.25 pts
Inadequate
Does a somewhat inadequate job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with somewhat unclear pros vs. cons or recommendation, with some clear deficiencies
1.0 pts
Poor
Does a clearly inadequate job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with unclear pros vs. cons or recommendation, with quite a few deficiencies
0.0 pts
Negligible
Does a bad job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with extremely unclear pros vs. cons or recommendation, with many deficiencies
2.0 pts
This criterion is linked to a Learning Outcome
Q2
2.0 pts
Superior
Does an excellent job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with extremely clear and comprehensive process and rationale for model in use, with almost no deficiencies
1.75 pts
Good
Does a decent job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with clear and comprehensive process and rationale for model in use, with limited deficiencies
1.5 pts
Adequate
Does a satisfactory job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with acceptably clear and comprehensive process and rationale for model in use, with perhaps some deficiencies
1.25 pts
Inadequate
Does a somewhat inadequate job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with somewhat unclear or non-comprehensive process or rationale for model in use, with some clear deficiencies
1.0 pts
Poor
Does a clearly inadequate job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with unclear or non-comprehensive process or rationale for model in use, with quite a few deficiencies
0.0 pts
Negligible
Does a bad job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with extremely unclear or non-comprehensive process or rationale for model in use, with many deficiencies
2.0 pts
This criterion is linked to a Learning Outcome
Q3
1.5 pts
Superior
Does an excellent job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with extremely clear and accurate positioning statements, evaluation, and rationale, with almost no deficiencies
1.25 pts
Good
Does a decent job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with clear and accurate positioning statements, evaluation, and rationale, with limited deficiencies
1.0 pts
Inadequate
Does a somewhat inadequate job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with somewhat unclear or inaccurate positioning statements, evaluation, and rationale, with some clear deficiencies
0.75 pts
Poor
Does a clearly inadequate job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with unclear or inaccurate positioning statements, evaluation, and rationale, with quite a few deficiencies
0.0 pts
Negligible
Does a bad job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with extremely unclear or inaccurate positioning statements, evaluation, and rationale, with many deficiencies
1.5 pts
This criterion is linked to a Learning Outcome
Q4
2.0 pts
Superior
Does an excellent job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with extremely clear, comprehensive, and accurate brand resonance model and building blocks, with almost no deficiencies
1.75 pts
Good
Does a decent job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with clear, comprehensive, and accurate brand resonance model and building blocks, with limited deficiencies
1.5 pts
Adequate
Does a satisfactory job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with acceptably clear, comprehensive, and accurate brand resonance model and building blocks, with perhaps some deficiencies
1.25 pts
Inadequate
Does a somewhat inadequate job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with somewhat unclear, non-comprehensive, or inaccurate brand resonance model and building blocks, with some clear deficiencies
1.0 pts
Poor
Does a clearly inadequate job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with unclear, non-comprehensive, or inaccurate brand resonance model and building blocks, with quite a few deficiencies
0.0 pts
Negligible
Does a bad job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with extremely unclear, non-comprehensive, or inaccurate brand resonance model and building blocks, with many deficiencies
2.0 pts
This criterion is linked to a Learning Outcome
Q5
2.0 pts
Superior
Does an excellent job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with extremely clear and comprehensive explanation of the appropriate innovation characteristics, with almost no deficiencies
1.75 pts
Good
Does a decent job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with clear and comprehensive explanation of the appropriate innovation characteristics, with limited deficiencies
1.5 pts
Adequate
Does a satisfactory job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with acceptably clear and comprehensive explanation of the appropriate innovation characteristics, with perhaps some deficiencies
1.25 pts
Inadequate
Does a somewhat inadequate job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with somewhat unclear or non-comprehensive explanation of the appropriate innovation characteristics, with some clear deficiencies
1.0 pts
Poor
Does a clearly inadequate job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with unclear or non-comprehensive explanation of the appropriate innovation characteristics, with quite a few deficiencies
0.0 pts
Negligible
Does a bad job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with extremely unclear or non-comprehensive explanation of the appropriate innovation characteristics, with many deficiencies
2.0 pts
This criterion is linked to a Learning Outcome
Q6
2.0 pts
Superior
Does an excellent job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with extremely clear objectives, Cialdini’s principles, and rationale, with almost no deficiencies
1.75 pts
Good
Does a decent job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with clear objectives, Cialdini’s principles, and rationale, with limited deficiencies
1.5 pts
Adequate
Does a satisfactory job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with acceptably clear objectives, Cialdini’s principles, and rationale, with perhaps some deficiencies
1.25 pts
Inadequate
Does a somewhat inadequate job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with somewhat unclear objectives, Cialdini’s principles, or rationale, with some clear deficiencies
1.0 pts
Poor
Does a clearly inadequate job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with unclear objectives, Cialdini’s principles, or rationale, with quite a few deficiencies
0.0 pts
Negligible
Does a bad job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with extremely unclear objectives, Cialdini’s principles, or rationale, with many deficiencies
2.0 pts
This criterion is linked to a Learning Outcome
Q7
1.5 pts
Superior
Does an excellent job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with extremely comprehensive evaluation of Warby Parker’s holistic marketing approach, with almost no deficiencies
1.25 pts
Good
Does a decent job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with comprehensive evaluation of Warby Parker’s holistic marketing approach, with limited deficiencies
1.0 pts
Inadequate
Does a somewhat inadequate job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with somewhat inadequate evaluation of Warby Parker’s holistic marketing approach, with some clear deficiencies
0.75 pts
Poor
Does a clearly inadequate job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with clearly inadequate evaluation of Warby Parker’s holistic marketing approach, with quite a few deficiencies
0.0 pts
Negligible
Does a bad job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with extremely inadequate evaluation of Warby Parker’s holistic marketing approach, with many deficiencies
1.5 pts
This criterion is linked to a Learning Outcome
Q8
2.0 pts
Superior
Does an excellent job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with extremely comprehensive SWOT Analysis including accurate classification of items, with almost no deficiencies
1.75 pts
Good
Does a decent job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with comprehensive SWOT Analysis including accurate classification of items, with limited deficiencies
1.5 pts
Adequate
Does a satisfactory job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with acceptably comprehensive SWOT Analysis including accurate classification of items, with perhaps some deficiencies
1.25 pts
Inadequate
Does a somewhat inadequate job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with somewhat inadequate level of comprehensiveness for SWOT Analysis or somewhat inaccurate classification of items, with some clear deficiencies
1.0 pts
Poor
Does a clearly inadequate job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with clearly inadequate level of comprehensiveness for SWOT Analysis or clearly inaccurate classification of items, with quite a few deficiencies
0.0 pts
Negligible
Does a bad job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with extremely inadequate level of comprehensiveness for SWOT Analysis or clearly inaccurate classification of items, with many deficiencies
2.0 pts
This criterion is linked to a Learning Outcome
Q9
1.5 pts
Superior
Does an excellent job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with extremely clear rationale and mission that meets requirements of a good mission statement, with almost no deficiencies
1.25 pts
Good
Does a decent job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with clear rationale and mission that meets requirements of a good mission statement, with limited deficiencies
1.0 pts
Inadequate
Does a somewhat inadequate job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with somewhat unclear rationale or mission that doesn’t clearly meet requirements of a good mission statement, with some clear deficiencies
0.75 pts
Poor
Does a clearly inadequate job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with unclear rationale or mission that clearly doesn’t meet requirements of a good mission statement, with quite a few deficiencies
0.0 pts
Negligible
Does a bad job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with extremely unclear rationale or mission that clearly doesn’t meet requirements of a good mission statement, with many deficiencies
1.5 pts
This criterion is linked to a Learning Outcome
Q10
1.5 pts
Superior
Does an excellent job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with extremely clear customers, message, and rationale for logo elements, with almost no deficiencies
1.25 pts
Good
Does a decent job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with clear customers, message, and rationale for logo elements, with limited deficiencies
1.0 pts
Inadequate
Does a somewhat inadequate job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with somewhat unclear customers, message, or rationale for logo elements, with some clear deficiencies
0.75 pts
Poor
Does a clearly inadequate job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with unclear customers, message, or rationale for logo elements, with quite a few deficiencies
0.0 pts
Negligible
Does a bad job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with extremely unclear customers, message, or rationale for logo elements, with many deficiencies
1.5 pts
This criterion is linked to a Learning Outcome
Q11
1.5 pts
Superior
Does an excellent job addressing the requisite prompt in the question with extremely accurate and clear estimate, assumptions, and rationale, with almost no deficiencies
1.25 pts
Good
Does a decent job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with accurate and clear estimate, assumptions, and rationale, with limited deficiencies
1.0 pts
Inadequate
Does a somewhat inadequate job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with somewhat inaccurate or unclear estimate, assumptions, or rationale, with some clear deficiencies
0.75 pts
Poor
Does a clearly inadequate job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with inaccurate or unclear estimate, assumptions, or rationale, with quite a few deficiencies
0.0 pts
Negligible
Does a bad job addressing the requisite prompts in the question with extremely inaccurate or unclear estimate, assumptions, or rationale, with many deficiencies
1.5 pts
Total Points: 20.0
