MBA EMBA DBA DISTANCE EDUCATION

ANSWER SHEETS

ASSIGNMENT SOLUTIONS

CASE STUDIES

PROJECTS AND THESIS ASSISTANCE

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Human Resource Management

1. It is a cultural attitude marked by the tendency to regard one’s own culture as superior to othersa. Geocentrismb. Polycentrismc. Ethnocentrismd. Egocentrism

2. It is the systemic study of job requirements & those factors that influence the performance of those job requirementsa. Job analysisb. Job rotationc. Job circulationd. Job description

3. This Act provides an assistance for minimum statutory wages for scheduled employmenta. Payment of Wages Act, 1936b. Minimum Wages Act, 1948c. Factories Act, 1948d. Payment of Gratuity act, 1972

4. __________ is the actual posting of an employee to a specific joba. Inductionb. Placementc. Attritiond. None

5. Broadening an individual’s knowledge, skills & abilities for future responsibilities is known asa. Trainingb. Developmentc. Education

d. Mentoring

6. Change that is designed and implemented in an orderly and timely fashion in anticipationof future eventsa. Planned changeb. Technology changec. Structural changed. None

7. It is a process for setting goals and monitoring progress towards achieving those goalsa. Performance appraisalb. Performance gapc. Performance factord. Performance management system

8. A method which requires the rates to provide a subjective performance evaluation along a scalefrom low to higha. Assessment centreb. Checklistc. Rating scaled. Monitoring

9. It is the sum of knowledge, skills, attitudes, commitment, values and the liking of the people inan organization

a. Human resourcesb. Personal managementc. Human resource managementd. Productivity

10. A learning exercise representing a real-life situation where trainees compete with each other toachieve specific objectivesa. Executive developmentb. Management gamec. Programmed learningd. Understudy

1. What is the importance of Career Planning in industry?2. List the various features of HRM.3. How can you explain the concept of Performance Appraisal?4. Differentiate between on- the- job and off- the- job training.

                                      CASE STUDIES

Uptron Electronics Limited, is a pioneering and internationally reputed firm in the electronics industry. It is one of the largest firm in the country. It attracted employees from internationally-reputed institute and industries by offering high salaries, perks, etc. It has advertized for the position of an electronic engineer recently. Nearly 150 candidates applied for the jobMr. Sashidhar, an electronics Engineering Graduate from the Indian Institute Of Technology with 5 years working experience in a medium sized electronics firm, was selected from among the 130 candidates who took tests and interview. The interview board recommended an enhancement in his salary by Rs 5,000 more than his present salary at his request. Mr Sashidhar was very happy to achieve this and he was congratulated by a number of people including his previous employer for his brilliant interview performance, and wished him good luck. Mr Sashidhar joined Uptyron Electronics Ltd., on 21st January, 2002, with greater enthusiasm. He also found his job to be quite comfortable and a challenging one and he felt it was prestigious to work with this company during the formative years of his career. He found his superiors as well as subordinates to be friendly and cooperative. But this climate did not live long. After one year of his service, he slowly learnt about a number of unpleasant stories about the company, management, the superior subordinate relations, rate of employee turnover, especially at higher level But he decided to stay on as he has promised several things to the management in the interview. He wanted to please and change the attitude of management through his diligent performance, firm commitment and dedication. He started maximizing his contributions and the management got the impression that Mr. Sashidhar had settled down and will remain in the company. After some time, the superiors started riding rough- shod over Mr Sashidhar. He was overloaded with multifarious jobs. His freedom in deciding and executing was cut down. He was ill treated on a number of occasions before his subordinates. His colleagues also started assigning their responsibilities to Mr Sashidhar. Consequently there were imbalances in his family life and organizational life. But he seemed to be calm and contented. Management felt that Mr Sashidhar had the potential to bear with many more organizational responsibilities. So the general manager was quite surprised to see the resignation letter of Mr Sashidhar along with a cheque equivalent to a month’s salary one fine morning on 18th January, 2004. The General Manager failed to convince Mr Sashidhar to withdraw his resignation. The General Manager relieved him on 25th January, 2004. The General Manager wanted to appoint a committee to go into the matter immediately, but dropped the idea later.

Questions:1. What is wrong with the recruitment policy of the company?

2. Why did Mr. Sashidhar’s resignation surprise the General Manager?

contexts in which human resources are managed in today's organizations are constantly, changing. No longer do firms utilize one set of manufacturing processes, employ a homogeneous group of loyal employees for long periods of time or develop one set way of structuring how work is done and supervisory responsibility is assigned. Continuous changes in who organizations employ and what these employees do require HR practices and systems that are well conceived and effectively implemented to ensure high performance and continued success.1. Automated technologies nowadays require more technically trained employees possessing multifarious skills to repair, adjust or improve existing processes. The firms can't expect these

employees (Gen X employees, possessing superior technical knowledge and skills, whose attitudes and perceptions toward work are significantly different from those of their predecessor organizations: like greater self control, less interest in job security; no expectations of long term employment; greater participation urge in work activities, demanding opportunities for personal growth and creativity) to stay on without attractive compensation packages and novel reward schemes.2. Technology driven companies are led by project teams, possessing diverse skills, experience and expertise. Flexible and dynamic organizational structures are needed to take care of the expectations of managers, technicians and analysts who combine their skills, expertise and experience to meet changing customer needs and competitive pressures.3. Cost cutting efforts have led to the decimation of unwanted layers in organizational hierarchy in recent times. This, in turn, has brought in the problem of managing plateau employees whose careers seem to have been hit by the delivering process. Organizations are, therefore, made to find alternative career paths for such employees’4. Both young and old workers, these days, have values and attitudes that stress less loyalty to the company and more loyalty to oneself and one's career than those shown by employees in the past, Organizations, therefore, have to devise appropriate HR policies and strategies so as to prevent the flight of talented employees

1. Discuss that technological breakthrough has brought radical changes in HRM.

LONG QUESTIONS

1. Several types of interviews are commonly used depending on the nature & importance of the position to be filled within an organization. Explain the different types of Interviews.

2. How would you explain Organizational Change and Development?

                                  Managerial Economics

Multiple choices:1. It is a study of economy as a whole.a. Macroeconomicsb. Microeconomicsc. Recessiond. Inflation2. A comprehensive formulation which specifies the factors that influence the demand for the product.a. Market demandb. Demand schedulec. Demand functiond. Income effect3. It is computed when the data is discrete and therefore incremental changes is measurable.a. Substitution effectb. Arc elasticityc. Point elasticity

d. Derived demand4. Goods & services used for final consumption is called:a. Demandb. Consumer goodsc. Producer goodsd. Perishable goods5. The curve at which satisfaction is equal at each point.a. Marginal utilityb. Cardinal measure of utilityc. The Indifference Curved. Budget line6. Costs that are reasonably expected to be incurred in some future period or periods are:a. Future costsb. Past costsc. Incremental costsd. Sunk costs7. Condition when the firm has no tendency either to increase or to contract its output:a. Monopolyb. Profitc. Equilibriumd. Market8. Total market value of all finished goods & services produced in a year by a country’s residents is known as:a. National incomeb. Gross national productc. Gross domestic productd. Real GDP9. The sum of net value of goods & services produced at market prices:a. Government expenditureb. Product approachc. Income approachd. Expenditure approach10. The market value of all the final goods & services made within the borders of a nation in an year.a. Globalizationb. Subsidiesc. GDPd. GNP

1. Discuss the concept of Demand Schedule.2. Explain the law of ‘Diminishing marginal returns’.3. List the various forms of Market Structure.4. What are the various methods of measuring national income?

CASE STUDIES

The war on drugs is an expensive battle, as a great deal of resources go into catching those who buy or sell illegal drugs on the black market, prosecuting them in court, and housing them in jail. These costs seem particularly exorbitant when dealing with the drug marijuana, as it is widely used, and is likely no more harmful than currently legal drugs such as tobacco and alcohol. There's another cost to the war on drugs, however, which is the revenue lost by governments who cannot collect taxes on illegal drugs. In a recent study for the Fraser Institute, Canada, Economist Stephen T. Easton attempted to calculate how much tax revenue the government of the country could gain by legalizing marijuana. The study estimates that the average price of 0.5 grams (a unit) of marijuana sold for $8.60 on the street, while its cost of production was only $1.70. In a free market, a $6.90 profit for a unit of marijuana would not last for long. Entrepreneurs noticing the great profits to be made in the marijuana market would start their own grow operations, increasing the supply of marijuana on the street, which would cause the street price of the drug to fall to a level much closer to the cost of production. Of course, this doesn't happen because the product is illegal; the prospect of jail time deters many entrepreneurs and the occasional drug bust ensures that the supply stays relatively low. We can consider much of this $6.90 per unit of marijuana profit a risk-premium for participating in the underground economy. Unfortunately, this risk premium is making a lot of criminals, many of whom have ties to organized crime, very wealthy. Stephen T. Easton argues that if marijuana was legalized, we could transfer these excess profits caused by the risk premium from these grow operations to the government: If we substitute a tax on marijuana cigarettes equal to the difference between the local production cost and the street price people currently pay – that is, transfer the revenue from the current producers and marketers (many of whom work with organized crime) to the government, leaving all other marketing and transportation issues aside we would have revenue of (say) $7 per [unit]. If you could collect on every cigarette and ignore the transportation, marketing, and advertising costs, this comes to over $2 billion on Canadian sales and substantially more from an export tax, and you forego the costs of enforcement and deploy your policing assets elsewhere. One interesting thing to note from such a scheme is that the street price of marijuana stays exactly the same, so the quantity demanded should remain the same as the price is unchanged. However, it's quite likely that the demand for marijuana would change from legalization. We saw that there was a risk in selling marijuana, but since drug laws often target both the buyer and the seller, there is also a risk (albeit smaller) to the consumer interested in buying marijuana. Legalization would eliminate this risk, causing the demand to rise. This is a mixed bag from a public policy standpoint: Increased marijuana use can have ill effects on the health of the population but the increased sales bring in more revenue for the government. However, if legalized, governments can control how much marijuana is consumed by increasing or decreasing the taxes on the product. There is a limit to this, however, as setting taxes too high will cause marijuana growers to sell on the black market to avoid excessive taxation. When considering legalizing marijuana, there are many economic, health, and social issues we must analyze. One economic study will not be the basis of Canada's public policy decisions, but Easton's research does conclusively show that there are economic benefits in the legalization of marijuana. With governments scrambling to find new sources of revenue to pay for important social objectives such as health care and education expect to see the idea raised in Parliament sooner rather than later.

Questions:1. Plot the demand schedule and draw the demand curve for the data given for Marijuana in the case above.2. On the basis of the analysis of the case above, what is your opinion about legalizing marijuana in Canada?

The Stock Market The stock market is very close to a perfect competitive market. The price of a stock usually is determined by the market forces of demand and supply of the stock and individual buyers and sellers of the stock have little effect on price (they are price-takers). Resources are mobile as stock is bought and sold frequently. Information about prices and quantities is readily available. Funds flow into stocks and resources flow into uses in which the rate of return. Thus stock prices provide the signal for efficient allocation of investment in the economy. However, imperfections occur here also though the stock market is very close to a perfect competition, for example, sale of huge amount of stocks by a large corporation will certainly affect (depress) the price of its stocks.

Question 1. Find out the characteristic of National Stock Exchange.

. LONG ANSWER QUESTIONS

1. What do you understand by Monitory Policy? Discuss roles and functions of RBI.2. What is the concept of law of demand? Discuss Elasticity of Demand in detail.

                                 Marketing Management

Multiple Choices:1. It is a concept where goods are produced without taking into consideration the choices or tastes of customers.a. Marketing mixb. Production conceptc. Marketing conceptd. Relationship marketing

2. It involves individuals who buys products or services for personal use and not for manufacture or resale.a. Environment analysisb. Macro environmentc. Micro environmentd. Consumer

3. It is the groups of people who interact formally or informally influencing each other‟s attitudes& behavior.a. Consumer behaviorb. Culturec. Reference groupsd. Primary groups

4. The concept of the product that passes through various changes in its total life known as: a. Product life cycleb. Line stretchingc. Consumer adoptiond. Product

5. It refers to unique set of brand associations that brand strategist aspires to create or maintain:a. Brandingb. Packagingc. Brand identityd. Brand image

6. It involves a pricing strategy that charges customers different prices for the same product or service.a. Promotional pricingb. Price discriminationc. Non price competitiond. None of the above

7. It refers to an arrangement where another company through its own marketing channel sells the products of one producers.a. End customerb. Wholesalerc. Retailingd. Strategic channel alliance

8. It involves facility consisting of the means & equipments necessary for the movement of passengers of goods.a. Logisticsb. Warehousingc. Transportationd. None of the above

9. The advertising which is used to inform consumers about a new product or feature & to build primary demands is known as:a. Advertisingb. Informative advertisingc. Persuasive advertisingd. Advertising strategy

10. An art that predicts the likelihood of economic activity on the basis of certain assumptions:a. Compensationb. Sales forecastingc. Sales budgetingd. Selling policy

1. Define Marketing Mix.2. Discuss the concept of Benchmarking.3. Write a short note on Target Marketing.

4. What do you understand by Pricing Strategy?

CASE STUDIES

Ask the company top brass what „almost there‟ means. The answer: a premier Indian retail company that has come to be known as a specialty chain of apparel and accessories. With 52 product categories under one roof, Shoppers‟ Stop has a line-up of 350 brands. Set up and headed by former Corona employee, B. S. Nagesh, Shoppers‟ Stop is India‟s answer to Selfridges and Printemps. As it proudly announces, „We don‟t sell, we help you buy.‟ Back in 1991, there was the question of what to retail. Should it be a supermarket or a departmental store? Even an electronics store was considered. Finally, common sense and understanding won out. The safest bet, for the all-male team was to retail men‟s wear. They knew the male psyche and felt that they had discerning taste in men‟s clothing. The concept would be that of a lifestyle store in a luxurious space, which would make for a great shopping experience. The first Shoppers‟ Stop store took shape in Andheri, Mumbai, in October 1991, with an investment of nearly Rs. 20 lakh. The original concept that formed the basis of a successful marketing campaign for seven years is here to stay. And the result is an annual turnover of Rs. 160 crores and five stores, nine years later. Everything went right from the beginning, except for one strange happening. More than 60 per cent of the customers who walked into Shoppers‟ Stop in Mumbai were women. This gave rise to ideas. Soon, the store set up its women‟s section. Later, it expanded to include children‟s wear and then, household accessories. The second store in Bangalore came in 1995. The store at Hyderabad followed in 1998 with the largest area of 60,000 sq. ft. The New Delhi and Jaipur stores were inaugurated in 1999. All this while, the product range kept increasing to suit customer needs. The most recent experiment was home furnishings. Secure in the knowledge that organized retailing in global brands was still in its infancy in India, Shoppers‟ Stop laid the ground rules which the competition followed. The biggest advantage for Shoppers‟ Stop is that it knows how the Indian consumer thinks and feels while shopping. Yes, feeling – for in India, shopping remains an outing. And how does it compare itself to foreign stores? While it is not modeled on any one foreign retailer, the „basic construct‟ is taken from the experience of a number of successfully managed retail companies. It has leveraged expertise for a critical component like technology from all over the world, going as far as hiring expatriates from Littlewoods and using state-of-the-art ERP models. Shoppers‟ Stop went a step further by even integrating its financial system with the ERP model.Expertise was imported wherever it felt that expertise available in-house was inadequate. But the store felt there was one acute problem. A shortage of the most important resource of them all was trained humans. Since Indian business institutes did not have professional courses in retail management, people were hired from different walks of life and the training programme was internalized. By 1994, the senior executives at Shoppers‟ Stop were taking lectures at management institutes in Mumbai. The Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies (NMIMS) even restructured its course to include retail management as a subject. Getting the company access to the latest global retail trends and exchange of information with business greats was an exclusive membership to the Intercontinental Group of Department Stores (IGDS). It allows membership by invitation to one company from a country and Shoppers‟ Stop rubs shoulders with 29 of the hottest names in retailing – Selfridges from the UK, C.K. Tang from Singapore, Lamcy Plaza from Dubai and the like. With logistics I in place, the accent moved to the customer. Shoppers‟ Stop conducted surveys with ORG-MARG and Indian Market Research Bureau (IMRB) and undertook in-house wardrobe audits. The studies confirmed what it already knew. The Indian customer is still evolving and is very different from, say, a European customer, who knows exactly what he wants to purchase, walks up to a shelf, picks up the

merchandise, pays and walks out. In India, customers like to touch and feel the merchandise, and scout for options. Also, the majority of Indian shoppers still prefer to pay in cash. So, transactions must be in cash as against plastic money used the world over. Additionally, the Indian customer likes being served – whether it is food, or otherwise. The company‟s customer profile includes people who want the same salesperson each time they came to the store to walk them through the shop floors and assist in the purchase. Others came with families, kids and maids in tow and expected to be suitably attended to. Still others wanted someone to carry the bags. So, the shops have self-help counters, with an assistant at hand for queries or help. The in-house wardrobe audit also helped with another facet of the business. It enabled Shoppers‟ Stop to work out which brands to stock, based on customer preferences. In fact, the USP of Shoppers‟ Stop lies in judiciously selected global brands, displayed alongside an in-house range of affordable designer wear. The line-up includes Levi‟s, Louis Philippe, Allen Solly, Walt Disney, Ray Ban and Reebok, besides in-house labels STOP and I. Brand selection is the same across the five locations, though the product mix may be somewhat city-based to accommodate cuts and styles in women‟s wear, as well as allowing for seasonal variations (winter in Delhi, for instance, is a case in point). Stocking of brands is based on popular demand – recently, Provogue, MTV Style, and Benetton have been added. In-house labels are available at competitive prices and target the value-for-money customer and make up around 12 per cent of Shoppers‟ Stop‟s business. Sometimes in-house brands plug the price gap in certain product categories. To cash in on this, the company has big plans for its in-house brands: from re-branding to repositioning, to homing in on product categories where existing brands are not strong. Competition between brands is not an issue, because being a trading house, all brands get equal emphasis. The in-house brand shopper is one who places immense trust in the company and the quality of its goods and returns for repeat buys. And the company reposed its faith in regular customers by including them in a concept called the First Citizen‟s Club (FCC). With 60,000 odd members, FCC customers account for 10 per cent of entries and for 34 per cent of the turnover. It was the sheer appeal of the experience that kept pulling these people back. Not one to let such an opportunity pass, the company ran a successful ad campaign (that talks about just this factor) in print for more than eight years. The theme is still the same. In 1999, a TV spot, which liked the shopping experience to the slowing down of one‟s internal clock and the beauty of the whole experience, was aired. More recently, ads that spell out the store‟s benefits (in a highly oblique manner) are being aired. The campaign is based on entries entered in the Visitors‟ Book. None of the ads has a visual or text – or any heavy handedly direct reference to the store or the merchandise. The ads only show shoppers having the time of their lives in calm and serene locales, or elements that make shopping at the store a pleasure – quite the perfect getaway for a cosmopolitan shopper aged between 25 and 45. The brief to the agency, Contract, ensured that brand recall came in terms of the shopping experience, not the product. And it has worked wonders. Value-addition at each store also comes in the form of special care with car parks, power backup, customer paging, alteration service and gift-wrapping. To top it all, cafes and coffee bars make sure that the customer does not step out of the store. In Hyderabad, it has even created a Food Court. Although the food counter was not planned, it came about as there was extra space of 67,000 sq. ft. Carrying the perfect experience to the shop floor is an attempt to stack goods in vast open spaces neatly. Every store has a generic structure, though regional customer variances are accounted for. Each store is on lease, and this is clearly Shoppers‟ Stop‟s most expensive resource proposition – renting huge spaces in prime properties across metros, so far totaling 210,000 sq. ft of retail space. Getting that space was easy enough for Shoppers‟ Stop, since its promoter is the Mumbai-based Raheja Group, which also owns 62 per cent of the share capital.

Questions:

1. What are the significant factors that have led to the success of Shoppers‟ Stop?2. How should Shoppers‟ Stop develop its demand forecasts?

The rise of personal computers in the mid 1980s spurred interest in computer games. This caused a crash in home Video game market. Interest in Video games was rekindled when a number of different companies developed hardware consoles that provided graphics superior to the capabilities of computer games. By 1990, the Nintendo Entertainment System dominated the product category. Sega surpassed Nintendo when it introduced its Genesis System. By 1993, Sega commanded almost 60 per cent of Video game market and was one of the most recognized brand names among the children. Sega‟s success was short lived. In 1995, Saturn (a division of General Motors) launched a new 32-bit system. The product was a miserable failure for a number of reasons. Sega was the primary software developer for Saturn and it did not support efforts by outside game developers to design compatible games. In addition, Sega‟s games were often delivered quite late to retailers. Finally, the price of the Saturn system was greater than other comparable game consoles. This situation of Saturn‟s misstep benefited Nintendo and Sony greatly. Sony‟s Play Station was unveiled in 1994 and was available in 70 million homes worldwide by the end of 1999. Its “Open design” encouraged the efforts of outside developers, resulting in almost 3,000 different games that were compatible with the PlayStation. It too featured 32-bit graphics that appealed to older audience. As a result, at one time, more than 30 per cent of PlayStation owners were over 30 years old. Nintendo 64 was introduced in 1996 and had eye-popping 64-bit graphics and entered in more than 28 million homes by 1999. Its primary users were between the age of 6 and 13 as a result of Nintendo‟s efforts to limit the amount of violent and adult-oriented material featured on games that can be played on its systems. Because the company exercised considerable control over software development, Nintendo 64 had only one-tenth the number of compatible games as Sony‟s PlayStation did. By 1999, Sony had captured 56 per cent of the video game market, followed by Nintendo with 42 per cent. Sega‟s share had fallen to a low of 1%. Hence, Sega had two options, either to concede defeat or introduce an innovative video machine that would bring in huge sales. And Sega had to do so before either Nintendo or Sony could bring their next-generation console to market. The Sega Dreamcast arrived in stores in September 1999 with an initial price tag of $199. Anxious gamers placed 300,000 advance orders, and initial sales were quite encouraging. A total of 1.5 million Dreamcast machines were bought within the first four months, and initial reviews were positive. The 128-bit system was capable of generating 3-D visuals, and 40 different games were available within three months of Dream cast‟s introduction. By the end of the year, Sega had captured a market share to 15 per cent. But the Dreamcast could not sustain its momentum. Although its game capabilities were impressive, the system did not deliver all the functionality Sega had promised. A 56K modem (which used a home phone line) and a Web browser were meant to allow access to the Internet so that gamers could play each other online, surf the Web, and visit the Dreamcast Network for product information and playing tips. Unfortunately, these features either were not immediately available or were disappointing in their execution. Sega was not the only one in having the strategy of adding functionality beyond games. Sony and Nintendo followed the same approach for their machines introduced in 1999. Both Nintendo‟s Neptune and Sony‟s PlayStation 2 (PS2) were built on a DVD platform and featured a 128-bit processor. Analysts applauded the move to DVD because it is less expensive to produce and allows more storage than CDs. It also gives buyers the ability to use the machine as CD music player and DVD movie player.

As Sony marketing director commented, “The full entertainment offering from Play Station 2 finitely appeals to a much broader audience. I have friends in their 30s who bought it not only because it‟s a gaming system for their kids, but also a DVD for them.” In addition, PlayStation 2 is able to play games developed for its earlier model that was CD-based. This gives the PS2 an enormous advantage in the number of compatible game titles that were immediately available to gamers. Further enhancing the PS2‟s appeal is its high-speed modem and allows the user‟s easy access to the Internet through digital cable as well as over telephone lines. This gives Sony the ability to distribute movies, music, and games directly to PS2 consoles. “We are positioning this as an all-round entertainment player,” commented Ken Kutaragi, the head of Sony Computer Entertainment. However, some prospective customers were put off by the console‟s initial price of $360. Shortly after the introduction of Neptune, Nintendo changed its strategies and announced the impending release of its newest game console, The GameCube. However, unlike the Neptune, the GameCube would not runon a DVD platform and also would not initially offer any online capabilities. It would be more attractively priced at $199. A marketing vice president for Nintendo explained the company‟s change in direction, “We are the only competitor whose business is video games. We want to create the best gaming system.” Nintendo also made the GameCube friendly for outside developers and started adding games that included sports titles to attract an older audience. Best known for its extra ordinary successes with games aimed at the younger set, such as Donkey Kong, Super Mario Bros, and Pokemon, Nintendo sought to attract older users, especially because the average video game player is 28. Youthful Nintendo users were particularly pleased to hear that they could use their handheld Game Boy Advance systems as controllers for the GameCube. Nintendo scrambled to ensure there would be an adequate supply of Game Cubes on the date in November 2001, when they were scheduled to be available to customers. It also budgeted $450 million to market its new product, as it anticipated stiff competition during the holiday shopping season. With more than 20 million PlayStation 2 sold worldwide, the GameCube as a new entry in the video game market would make the battle for market share even more intense. For almost a decade, the video game industry had only Sega, Nintendo, and Sony; just three players. Because of strong brand loyalty and high product development costs, newcomers faced a daunting task in entering this race and being competitive. In November 2001, Microsoft began selling its new Xbox, just three days before the GameCube made its debut. Some observers felt the Xbox was aimed to rival PlayStation 2, which has similar functions that rival Microsoft‟s Web TV system and even some lower level PCs. Like the Sony‟s PlayStation 2, Xbox was also built using a DVD platform, but it used an Intel processor in its construction. This open design allowed Microsoft to develop the Xbox in just two years, and gave developers the option of using standard PC tool for creating compatible games. In addition, Microsoft also sought the advice of successful game developers and even incorporated some of their feedback into the design of the console and its controllers. As a result of developers‟ efforts, Microsoft had about 20 games ready when the Xbox became available. By contrast, the GameCube had only eight games available. Microsoft online strategy was another feature that differentiated of the Xbox from the GameCube. Whereas Nintendo had no immediate plans for Web-based play, the Xbox came equipped with an Ethernet port for broadband access to Internet. Microsoft also announced its own Web-based network on which gamers can come together for online head-to head play and for organized online matches and tournaments. Subscribers to this service were to pay a small monthly fee and must have high-speed access to the Internet. This is a potential drawback considering that a very low percentage of households world over currently have broadband connections. By contrast Sony promoted an open network, which allows software developers to manage their own games, including associated fees charged to users. However, interested players must purchase a network adapter for an additional $39.99. Although game companies are not keen on the prospect of submitting to the control of a Microsoft-controlled network, it would require a

significant investment for them to manage their own service on the Sony-based network. Initially the price of Microsoft‟s Xbox was $299. Prior to the introduction of Xbox, in a competitive move Sony dropped the price of the PlayStation 2 to $299. Nintendo‟s GameCube already enjoyed a significant price advantage, as it was selling for $100 less than either Microsoft or Sony products. Gamers eagerly snapped up the new consoles and made 2001 the best year ever for video game sales. For the first time, consumers spent $9.4 billion on video game equipment, which was more than they did at the box office. By the end of 2001 holiday season, 6.6 million PlayStation 2 consoles had been sold in North America alone, followed by 1.5 million Xbox units and 1.2 million Game Cubes. What ensued was an all out price war. This started when Sony decided to put even more pressure on the Microsoft‟s Xbox by cutting the PlayStation 2 price to $199. Microsoft quickly matched that price.Wanting to maintain its low-price status, Nintendo in turn responded by reducing the price of its the GameCube by $50, to $149. By mid 2002, Microsoft Xbox had sold between 3.5 and 4 million units worldwide. However, Nintendo had surpassed Xbox sales by selling 4.5 million Game Cubes. Sony had the benefit of healthy head start, and had shipped 32 million PlayStation 2s. However, seven years after the introduction of original PlayStation, it was being sold in retail outlets for a mere $49. It had a significant lead in terms of numbers of units in homes around the world with a 43 per cent share. Nintendo 64 was second with 30 per cent, followed by Sony PlayStation 2 with 14 per cent. The Xbox and GameCube each claimed about 3 per cent of the market, with Sega Dreamcast comprising the last and least market share of 4.7 per cent. Sega, once an industry leader, announced in 2001 that it had decided to stop producing the Dreamcast and other video game hardware components. The company said it would develop games for its competitors‟ consoles. Thus Segaslashed the price of the Dreamcast to just $99 in an effort to liquidate its piled up inventory of more than 2 million units and immediately began developing 11 new games for the Xbox, four for PlayStation 2, and three for Nintendo‟s Game Boy Advance. As the prices of video game consoles have dropped, consoles and games have become the equivalent of razors and blades. This means the consoles generate little if any profit, but the games are a highly profitable proposition. The profit margins on games are highly attractive, affected to some degree by whether the content is developed by the console maker (such as Sony) or by an independent game publisher (such as Electronic Arts). Thus, the competition to develop appealing, or perhaps even addictive, games may be even more intense than the battle among players to produce the best console. In particular, Nintendo, Sony, and Microsoft want games that are exclusive to their own systems. With that in mind, they not only rely on large in-house staffs that design games but they also pay added fees to independent publishers for exclusive rights to new games. The sales of video games in 2001 rose to 43 per cent, compared to just 4 per cent increase for computer-based games. But computer game players are believed to be a loyal bunch, as they see many advantages in playing games on their computers rather than consoles. For one thing, they have a big advantage of having access to a mouse and a keyboard that allow them to play far more sophisticated games. In addition, they have been utilizing the Internet for years to receive game updates and modifications and to play each other over the Web. Sony and Microsoft are intent on capturing a portion of the online gaming opportunity. Even Nintendo has decided to make available a modem that will allow GameCube users to play online. As prices continue to fall and technology becomes increasingly more sophisticated, it remains to be seen whether these three companies can keep their names on the industry‟s list of “high scorers”.

Questions:1. Considering the concept of product life cycle, where would you put video games in their life cycle?2. Should video game companies continue to alter their products to include other functions,

such as email?

LONG QUESTIONS1. What do you understand by product life cycle? Discuss implications and limitations of product life cycle concept.

2. Describe role of marketing channels. List the different types of marketing channels.

                            Principles and Practices of Management 

1. A plan is a trap laid to capture the ________a. Futureb. Pastc. Policyd. Procedure

2. Which of the following is the function for employing suitable person for the enterprise?a. Organizingb. Staffingc. Directingd. Controlling

3. ___________ means “ group of activities & employees into departments”:a. Orientationb. Standardizationc. Processd. Departmentation

4. This theory states that authority is the power that is accepted by others:a. Acceptance theoryb. Competence theoryc. Formal authority theoryd. Informal authority theory

5. Which of the following means dispersal of decision-making power to the lower levels of the organization?a. Decentralizationb. Centralizationc. Dispersiond. Delegation

6. This chart is the basic document of the organizational structure:a. Functional chartb. Posts chart

c. Master chartd. Departmental chart

7. Communication which flow from the superiors to subordinates with the help of scalar chain is known as:a. Informal communicationb. Downward communicationc. Upward communicationd. Oral communication

8. Needs for belongingness, friendship, love, affection, attention & social acceptance are comes under___________a. Physiological needsb. Safety needsc. Ego needsd. Social needs

9. A management function which ensures “jobs to be filled with the right people, with the right knowledge, skill & attitude” is comes under__________a. Staffing definedb. Job analysisc. Manpower planningd. Recruitment

10. It is a process that enables a person to sort out issues and reach to a decisions affecting their life:a. Selectionb. Rainingc. Rewardd. Counseling

1. What do you understand by Maslow‟s Theory of Motivation?2. Define Management By Objective.3. Differentiate between co- ordination and co-operation.4. Write a short note on „Acceptance theory‟.

CASE STUDIES

Mr. Vincent, the Manager of a large supermarket, was taking a management course in the evening programme at the local college. The Professor had given an interesting but disturbing lecture the previous night on the various approaches to management. Vincent had always thought that management involved just planning, organizing and controlling. Now this Professor was saying that management could also be thought of as quantitative models, systems theory and analysis, and even something called contingency relationships. Vincent had always considered himself a good manager, and his record with the supermarket chain had proved it. He thought of himself, “I have never used operations research models, thought of my store as an open system, or developed or utilized any contingency relationship. By doing a little planning ahead, organizing the store, and making some things got done, I have been a successful manager. That other stuff just does not make sense. All the professor was trying to do was

complicate things. I guess I will have to know it for the test, but I am sticking with my old plan, organize and control approach to managing my store.”

Questions:1. Critically analyze Mr. Vincent‟s reasoning.2. If you were the professor and you knew what was going through Vincent‟s mind, what would you say to Vincent?

The Regional Administration Office of a company was hastily set up. Victor D‟Cuhna a young executive was directly recruited to take charge of Data Processing Cell of this office. The data processing was to help the administrative office in planning and monitoring. The officer cadre of the administrative office was a mix of directly recruited officers and promote officers (promotion from within the organization). Females dominated the junior clerical cadre. This cadre was not formally trained. The administrative office had decided to give these fresh recruits on-the-job training because when results were not upto the expectations blame was brought on the Data Processing Cell. Victor D‟Cuhna realized that the administrative office was heading for trouble. He knew that his task would not be easy and that he had been selected because of his experience, background and abilities. He also realized that certain functional aspects of the administrative office were not clearly understood by various functionaries, and systems and procedures were blindly and randomly followed. Feedback was random, scanty and controversial, and Data Processing Cell had to verify every item of feedback. Delays were inevitable. D‟Cuhna sought the permission of senior management to conduct a seminar on communication and feedback of which he was an expert. The permission was grudgingly given by the senior management. Everyone appreciated the seminar. Following the first seminar, D‟Cuhna conducted a one week training course for the clerical cadre, especially for the junior, freshly recruited clerks. Amongst othertopics, D‟Cuhna laid emphasis onfiling system, information tracking, communication, and feedback. This helped reorient attitudes to some extent. But the female clerks preferred to ignore the theme and widely circulated the belief that D‟Cuhna was an upstart and a show off. Within a short time, considerable friction had been generated in the administrative office While directly recruited officers supported D‟Cuhna‟s initiative and the specialist officers admired him, senior management became cautious and uncomfortable. The junior promotee officers were prejudiced against him. The grand finale followed swiftly. D‟Cuhna happened to get annoyed with a female clerk. During the absence of her officer, who was on sick leave and had not been substituted by another officer, she began submitting nil returns. D‟Cuhna took pains to explain to her that for certain topics a nil feedback wasnot tenable. The current status had to be reported— the stage at which the matter was pending, what had been done, and what would be done about it? The lady reported that it was none of his business to tell her this. He should talk to her officer when the officer reports back from leave. D‟Cuhna said he would, but in the meanwhile she should present the correct picture. When D‟Cuhna called for the files, she refused to part with them. D‟Cuhna fired her and reported the situation to the Chief Regional Manager. The other ladies were up in the arms against D‟Cuhna. The lady also complained to higher management that D‟Cuhna had made passes at her. Other ladies supported her complaint. She also complained that D‟Cuhna had no business to scold her. D‟Cuhna countered that had there been a male clerk in her place he would have scolded him too. When females enjoyed equal rights with males, D‟Cuhna felt he must remain impartial. Nevertheless, D‟Cuhna was transferred to another place. The transfer to another place, rather than to another department in same place, was particularly humiliating to him. A shocked and disillusioned D‟Cuhna quit the enterprise

Questions:1. Diagnose the problem and enumerate the reasons for the failure of D‟Cuhna?2. What could D‟Cuhna have done to avoid the situation in which he found himself?

LONG QUESTIONS1. What are the common drawbacks in classical and Neo classical theories of management?2. What is Training? Explain the different methods of training.

                                      Financial Management 

Multiple choices:1. The approach focused mainly on the financial problems of corporate enterprise.a. Ignored non-corporate enterpriseb. Ignored working capital financingc. External approachd. Ignored routine problems

2. These are those shares, which can be redeemed or repaid to the holders after a lapse of the stipulated period.a. Cumulative preference sharesb. Non-cumulative preference sharesc. Redeemable preference sharesd. Perpetual shares

3. This type of risk arises from changes in environmental regulations, zoning requirements, fees, licenses and most frequently taxes.a. Political riskb. Domestic riskc. International riskd. Industry risk

4. It is the cost of capital that is expected to raise funds to finance a capital budget or investment proposal.a. Future costb. Specific costc. Spot costd. Book cost

5. This concept is helpful in formulating a sound & economical capital structure for a firm.a. Financial performance appraisalb. Investment evaluationc. Designing optimal corporate capital structured. None of the above

6. It is the minimum required rate of return needed to justify the use of capital.a. From investorsb. Firms pointc. Capital expenditure pointd. Cost of capital

7. It arises when there is a conflict of interest among owners, debenture holders and the management.a. Seasonal variationb. Degree of competitionc. Industry life cycled. Agency costs

8. Some guidelines on shares & debentures issued by the government that are very important for the constitution of the capital structure are:a. Legal requirementb. Purpose of financec. Period of financed. Requirement of investors

9. It is that portion of an investments total risk that results from change in the financial integrity of the investment.a. Bull- bear market riskb. Default riskc. International riskd. Liquidity risk

10. _____________ measure the systematic risk of a security that cannot be avoided through diversification.a. Betab. Gammac. Probability distributiond. Alpha

1. What do you understand by wealth maximization?

2. Discuss the concept of factoring.3. Define Annuity.4. What is the Difference between NPV and IRR?

CASE STUDIES

Case1: Credit Decision - Agarwal Case On August 30, 2006, Agarwal Cast Company Inc., applied for a $200,000 loan from the main office of the National bank of New York. The application was forwarded to the bank's commercial loan department. Gupta, the President and Principal Stockholder of Agarwal cast, applied for the loan in person. He told the loan officer that he had been in business since February 1976, but that he had considerable prior experience in flooring and carpets since he had worked as an individual contractor for the past 20 year. Most of this time, he had worked in Frankfert and Michigan. He finally decided to "work for himself" and he formed the company with Berry Hook, a former co-worker. This information seemed to be consistent with the Dun and Bradstreet report obtained by the bank According to Gupta, the purpose of the loan was to assist him in carrying his receivables until they could be collected. He explained that the flooring business required him to spend considerable cash to purchase materials but his customers would not pay until the job was done. Since he was relatively new in the business, he did not feel that he could compete if he had to require a sizeable deposit or payment in advance. Instead, he could quote for higher profits, if he were willing to wait until completion of the job for payment. To show that his operation was sound, he included a list of customers and projects with his loan application. He also included a list of current receivables. Gupta told the loan officer that he had monitored his firm's financial status closely and that he had financial reports prepared every six months. He said that the would send a copy to the bank. In addition, he was willing to file a personal financial statement with the bank.

Question: 1. Prepare your recommendation on Agarwal Cast Company

This case has been framed in order to test the skills in evaluating a credit request and reaching a correct decision. Perluence International is large manufacturer of petroleum and rubber-based products used in a variety of commercial applications in the fields of transportation, electronics, and heavy manufacturing. In the northwestern United States, many of the Perluence products are marketed by a wholly-owned subsidiary, Bajaj Electronics Company. Operating from a headquarters and warehouse facility in San Antonio, Strand Electronics has 950 employees and handles a volume of $85 million in sales annually. About $6 million of the sales represents items manufactured by Perluence. Gupta is the credit manager at Bajaj electronics. He supervises five employees who handle credit application and collections on 4,600 accounts. The accounts range in size from $120 to $85,000. The firm sells on varied terms, with 2/10, net 30 mostly. Sales fluctuate seasonally and the average collection period tends to run 40 days. Bad-debt

losses are less than 0.6 per cent of sales. Gupta is evaluating a credit application from Booth Plastics, Inc., a wholesale supply dealer serving the oil industry. The company was founded in 1977 by Neck A. Booth and has grown steadily since that time. Bajaj Electronics is not selling any products to Booth Plastics and had no previous contact with Neck Booth. Bajaj Electronics purchased goods from Perluence International under the same terms and conditions as Perluence used when it sold to independent customers. Although Bajaj Electronics generally followed Perluence in setting its prices, the subsidiary operated independently and could adjust price levels to meet its own marketing strategies. The Perluence's cost-accounting department estimated a 24 per cent markup as the average for items sold to Pucca Electronics. Bajaj Electronics, in turn, resold the items to yield a 17 per cent markup. It appeared that these percentages would hold on any sales to Booth Plastics. Bajaj Electronics incurred out-of pocket expenses that were not considered in calculating the 17 per cent markup on its items. For example, the contact with Booth Plastics had been made by James, the salesman who handled the Glaveston area. James wouldreceive a 3 per cent commission on all sales made Booth Plastics, a commission that would be paid whether or not the receivable was collected. James would, of course, be willing to assist in collecting any accounts that he had sold. In addition to the sales commission, the company would incur variable costs as a result of handling the merchandise for the new account. As a general guideline, warehousing and other administrative variable costs would run 3 per cent sales. Gupta Holmstead approached all credit decisions in basically the same manner. First of all, he considered the potential profit from the account. James had estimated first-year sales to Booth Plastics of $65,000. Assuming that Neck Booth took the, 3 per cent discount. Bajaj Electronics would realize a 17 per cent markup on these sales since the average markup was calculated on the basis of the customer taking the discount. If Neck Booth did not take the discount, the markup would be slightly higher, as would the cost of financing the receivable for the additional period of time. In addition to the potential profit from the account, Gupta was concerned about his company's exposure. He knew that weak customers could become bad debts at any time and therefore, required a vigorous collection effort whenever their accounts were overdue. His department probably spent three times as much money and effort managing a marginal account as compared to a strong account. He also figured that overdue and uncollected funds had to be financed by Bajaj Electronics at a rate of 18 per cent. All in all, slow - paying or marginal accounts were very costly to Bajaj Electronics. With these considerations in mind, Gupta began to review the credit application for Booth Plastics.

Questions:1. How would you judge the potential profit of Bajaj Electronics on the first year of sales to Booth Plastics and give your views to increase the profit?2. Suggestion regarding Credit limit. Should it be approved or not, what should be the amount of credit limit that electronics give to Booth Plastics.

LONG QUESTIONS

1. Define Capital Structure. Discuss the important factors that should be considered while determining Capital Structure.2. What is the concept of working capital? Discuss the dangers of inadequate as well as excessive working capital.