Questions and Answers of Strategic Management Technological Innovation

Exercise 10: Supposing you were a person in charge of the microwave business of Matsushita, summarize the SWOT of Matsushita, and make recommendations regarding the strategic directions to pursue in
Exercise 9: Check a couple of articles regarding IoT or Internet of Things and consider what will happen in the household electronics industry in the near future.
Exercise 8: Based upon the basic SWOT analysis as a summary of the 4Cs analysis, make recommendations regarding the future direction/s and strategic options in each direction for Galanz to take.
Exercise 7: Using the product market growth matrix, clarify how Galanz has expanded the scope of business since its establishment up to now.
Exercise 6: Clarify how the key buying factors (KBF) in emerging countries are different from those in developed countries.
Exercise 5: Point out the main key factors for success (KFS) that explain Galanz’s rapid growth by comparing the value chain of Galanz with that of one of the manufacturers you selected in Exercise
Exercise 4: Based upon the information regarding Galanz in Section 3.1, describe their core competences and value chain.
Exercise 3: Enumerate the five forces that are assumed to have an impact or influence over the industry, and clarify how they may influence Galanz in the future.
Exercise 2: Check the web site of a few suppliers who you think could be competitors for Galanz, such a Panasonic/ Matsushita, and review their future directions according to the competitor analysis
Exercise 1: Check the message stated on the web site of Galanz, and try to clarify their mission.
Form small groups. Each member of the group should check with a current or previous employer (or some other employer if this is not convenient) to determine whether the organization is outsourcing
Go to the Resources and Fact Sheets page of the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada website. Scroll down the page and review the ten employer responsibilities under PIPEDA. What are the ways
Discuss three ways in which an organization can evaluate the effectiveness of its compensation systems.
What are the key forces that could trigger a need to adapt or modify the compensation system? Which of these do you think are the most important?
Why is it so important to have a process for evaluating the compensation system?
What issues should you consider when deciding whether to outsource compensation functions?
Why is compensation communication such an important aspect of an effective compensation system?
Analyze the “Plastco Packaging” case in the Appendix, and identify the benefits system (including specific benefits) that would make the most sense for this firm.
Analyze “The Fit Stop Ltd.” case in the Appendix, and identify the benefits system (including specific benefits) that would make the most sense for this firm.
Three firms are described briefly below. For each firm, identify the role (if any) that you believe indirect pay should play in the compensation system, and the specific benefits that it would make
Go to the Web links for the Benefits and Pension Monitor and the Canadian Human Resources Reporter listed above and make a list of the key issues that came up most frequently in these publications in
Assume that you have been hired to implement a benefits plan by your employer. What are the key steps you will advise your CEO to take? Assume that you have been hired to implement a benefits plan by
“Flexible benefits plans are beneficial to both employers and employees because they allow both groups to satisfy their needs.” Do you agree with this statement? Discuss why or why not.
“Wellness and work/life balance programs are all very nice, but other than providing a safe working environment, why should it be up to the employer to look after an employee’s health and
“Defined contribution pension plans are nothing more than an attempt by employers to shift risk from themselves to employees, who are much less able to bear this risk.” Do you agree or disagree
done, the plan should be ready for implementation.
You have decided that The Fit Stop in the Appendix would be well suited to an organizational performance pay plan. Select the specific organization pay plan that would seem to work best; then design
You are a team of top-notch compensation consultants hired by Alliston Instruments, the manufacturer in the case study in the Appendix. After analyzing the various options available, you have decided
Assume you are an employee in a firm that is planning to implement profit sharing. As an employee, identify the design features you would like to see included. Then, in a small group, compare your
Examine the two profit-sharing plans described in Compensation Today 11.3. Evaluate the possible impact of each. Which do you think will be most effective, and why do you think so? What additional
Go to the National Center for Employee Ownership website, and identify the factors the Center suggests are important to the success of employee share ownership plans.
Review expectancy theory from Chapter 3. Now, using expectancy theory, discuss the potential motivational impact of profit-sharing pay systems on employees.
Discuss the pros and cons of nonmonetary reward programs.
Of the various types of employee share plans, which do you think would best fit a privately held corporation?
When designing a profit-sharing plan, what design issues do you think would prove to be the most difficult to decide?
CEO Henderson has decided to go ahead with a performance appraisal system, and she has decided to link it to merit pay. Impressed with your earlier work for the company (see Question 1), she has
“Henderson Printing" in the Appendix currently has no formal performance appraisal system. The CEO, Georgette Henderson, thinks that a performance appraisal system might be useful, and she has
Assume you are the HR manager in a small firm with ten employees; all the employees are eligible for merit pay. You have been allocated $10,000 to reward these employees. Design a performance
In groups of six to eight, share your experiences with performance appraisal. Group members who have been subject to a performance appraisal system should indicate whether they believe their
On the website http://www.buisenessballs.com you will find a template for a performance appraisal form. Using the material in this chapter, assess the pros and cons of this form. Which type of
What are the key issues related to merit pay for individuals in teams?
One alleged problem with performance appraisal is that most employees seem to think they are above average and do not like to be told otherwise. Do you think this is true, and, if so, how could you
Take several jobs that you or other members of your class have held or are currently holding and discuss whether and how you would go about designing a useful performance appraisal and merit system
You are the head of human resources at "Alliston Instruments” in the Appendix. You would like to do a compensation survey to determine whether your pay rates are in line with those in the industry.
In a large group, survey the hourly pay levels for all those group members who are currently employed or were recently employed in common jobs such as salesclerk, cashier, or fast-food worker. If
After completing Question 1, develop a compensation structure for the same firm; but this time, assume it uses the human relations managerial strategy. Then do the same for the classical managerial
Table 9.2 provides data from a compensation survey for the job of industrial engineer, collected from the same employers as the compensation survey for accounting clerks discussed earlier in the
How fair is the pay of NHL hockey players relative to their performance? Use the Canadian Business website for your information source on what the market is paying NHL hockey players relative to
Take four jobs that are of interest to you and that are included in both the PayScale and Salary Wizard databases. Using your own geographic area as the basis for your search, identify what
What are the key limitations of market surveys?
Based on the concept of “compensating differentials,” develop a list of job/organizational characteristics that would make you willing to work for less money. Then develop a list of
Examine the list of industries and pay rates in the opening vignette. Discuss possible reasons each industry has the relative pay level that it does.
After completing Question 1, apply the procedures required under the Ontario Pay Equity Act to determine whether pay equity exists for the female job classes at Eastern Provincial University. The
Using the point method and the four basic factor categories, develop a job evaluation system for the “Eastern Provincial University” case in the Appendix. Then apply your system to the different
In a small group or on your own, use Figure 8.2 to develop a base pay structure for a Canadian hospital, including pay grades and ranges, and criteria for salary movement within the range.
Rank the hospital jobs shown in Table 8.2 according to your own impressions of how valuable each job is to the hospital, disregarding the hypothetical job evaluation results. Share your rankings with
After completing Question 1, use Microsoft Excel to prepare a market line based on data from your benchmark jobs and market comparator jobs. Examine the resulting line, and discuss all of the
In a small group or on your own, select benchmark jobs for the Canadian hospital in Table 8.2. Then use Monster’s Salary Wizard as your market database to find appropriate market comparator jobs
Apart from gender bias, what are the key pitfalls of job evaluations? How can you minimize their potential problems?
Discuss the hierarchy of jobs for a Canadian hospital shown in Table 8.2. Does everything about this ranking of job values make sense to you? Are there specific jobs that seem out of order to you? If
Discuss the issue of gender bias in compensation and the ways it can affect the development of a base pay structure. In your employment experience, have you noticed possible examples of gender bias
Examine the job descriptions that are used in the “Eastern Provincial University” case in the Appendix. What are their strengths and weaknesses? What would you change about them?
Examine the job description presented below. Using the information in Compensation Notebook 7.1, assess whether this is a good job description and what improvements could be made to it.
In your class, do a quick anonymous survey of the pay of students (in their current or last job). You can do so, for instance, by asking each student to write only his/her gender and pay on a piece
As individuals at home, complete the “position analysis questionnaire,” as found in the website indicated at “Using the Internet” Question 2 above, for your most recent job. Then bring the
To see how information for job analysis is collected, apply a position analysis questionnaire to your most recent job. To find the form to use, go to the Position Analysis Questionnaire.
To trace the steps required to create a gender-neutral job evaluation system that complies with Ontario Pay Equity legislation, go to the Pay Equity Office.
Discuss the general process for conforming to pay equity legislation. Does legislating pay equity seem like a good idea to you?
Discuss the issue of red-circled employees and the way they should be handled. Assume that your current or most recent employer has developed a new pay structure and that 20 percent of current
Discuss the key issues in managing the job evaluation process.
Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of job analysis.
Discuss the purpose of job evaluation and the main steps in conducting job evaluation.
Using the five-step compensation strategy formulation process (Figure 6.1), formulate a compensation strategy for production workers in the “Multi-Products Corporation” case in the Appendix and
Susan Superfit, CEO in “The Fit Stop Ltd.” case in the Appendix, has hired you to formulate a compensation strategy for her firm. Using the five-step compensation strategy formulation process
Canada Chemicals Corporation has decided to move to a high-involvement managerial strategy and has hired you as a consultant to implement that process. Aside from the compensation strategy, what
You are a prominent compensation consultant and you have been hired by the board of directors of Canada Chemicals Corporation to recommend a compensation strategy for the firm’s top executives. In
How do the employment standards in your province vary from those in other provinces? Go to the Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) website, and compare the minimum wages aspect of
What are the key problems with executive stock options?
Discuss and explain the five main steps in the compensation strategy formulation process (Figure 6.1). Which do you think is the most difficult step?
Discuss the legislated constraints that set the parameters for the compensation strategy.
Managers need to possess four key understandings in order to formulate an effective compensation strategy. Discuss how each understanding contributes to effective compensation strategy formulation.
Do you think that The Fit Stop Ltd. (Appendix) would be a suitable organization in which to implement an organization performance pay plan? Explain why or why not. If The Fit Stop is suitable, what
Suppose that management at Alliston Instruments (Appendix) has decided to scrap the current individual performance pay system. However, the company has not decided what, if anything, will replace
Analyze the pay system at Alliston Instruments in the Appendix. Why is the new pay system apparently not working? Do you think that the individual production bonus system could work if some changes
Form groups of six to eight people. Divide each group into two, or three to four people, with one group proposing and one group opposing and debate this topic: “University professors should be paid
Form small groups of four to six people. Each group member will contact one local retailer and find out about its pay system for its sales staff. Compare the systems and discuss whether any of these
Form small groups of four to six people. Then develop several alternative ways of using the reward and compensation system to solve the problems identified at the CNE soft-drinks booth, described in
Implemented for the right reasons, an employee share plan can be an effective organizational pay plan. Using the ESOP Association of Canada website, explain the four main motives for implementing
Discuss the considerations you would use in deciding whether to apply profit sharing or employee share ownership to a given organization.
Discuss the considerations you would use in deciding whether to apply gain sharing or goal sharing to a particular work group.
Analyze the “Multi-Products Corporation” case in the Appendix and determine what would be the most appropriate method for determining base pay. What factors led you to the choice you made?
Analyze “The Fit Stop Ltd.” case in the Appendix and determine whether base pay should be an important component of compensation for the sales staff. If so, identify the most appropriate method
Three firms are briefly described below. For each firm, identify the role (if any) that you believe indirect pay should play in the compensation system, and give examples of specific benefits to
In a small group, discuss how important benefits will be to you in choosing your next job. Then have each member identify the three benefits that are most important to him or her. Do these vary
Form small groups of four to six people. Each group member should describe the compensation mix for her or his most recent employer, focusing on the extent to which base pay, performance pay, and
For each job, subtract the “median base salary” from the “median total cash compensation” and then divide this difference by the “median total cash compensation” to derive the proportion
Using Salary Wizard, identify four different types of jobs in which you have some interest. Choose jobs that are as different from one another as possible. For each job, record the “median base
Discuss the key steps in designing a skill-based pay system.
Discuss why organizations might prefer job evaluation to market pricing.
Discuss why organizations would ever want to use indirect pay.

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