“Process Improvement and Problem-Solving Tools” Please respond to the following:

Note: Online students, please select one of the two subjects to discuss.

• Among the tools (e.g., graphics tools, knowledge-based tools, etc.) that the author discussed in the textbook, determine the type of tool that you would use for process improvement framework. Next, determine the type of tool you would use for problem solving framework. Justify your response.
• Use the Internet or Strayer Library to research articles on process improvement and problem solving tools. Select one (1) business project that used one of the tools discussed in the textbook. Evaluate level of the efficiency and effectiveness of the utilization of the tool within the project that you selected. Justify your response.

Business research can help managers plan strategies by – identifying the existence of problems or opportunities present in the organization.

—William G. Zikmund, Barry J. Babin, John C. Carr,

and Mitch Griffith,
Business Research Methods

Despite having general areas of academic interest, many doctoral independent scholars find choosing a specific topic for their research study a challenge. In addition to making an academic contribution, your work will address a real-world business problem and have the potential to impact the daily practices of the business community. Writing and researching a Doctoral Study is an opportunity for you to explore a topic of interest, identify a problem, and express your viewpoint and perspective as your ideas evolve by way of you learning more about the topic and about your own questions and hypotheses.

Your past professional experience can be a valuable source for identifying a research topic during the initial stages of your search. You should also review the literature on topics of interest. Finding a practical business problem, for which your in-depth academic research efforts may help you uncover possible solutions, is a critical first step in a successful doctoral process.

To prepare for this Assignment, review the media piece “Choosing Your Doctoral Topic.” Consider a topic you might be interested in studying and a potential question for future research. Note: This is not the time to talk about the specifics of your Doctoral Study but rather to describe generally your topic of interest and why you have chosen it. This will acquaint the reader (or listener) with your study topic. Also keep in mind that many early doctoral independent scholars tend to focus on solutions. Instead, focus on clearly articulating a known business-related problem and not a social problem.Submit a 2- to 3-page paper (excluding cover and References pages) in which you formulate one or more business problems on your chosen topic. In your paper, do the following:

• Provide an overview of the topic you are interested in studying, including the context and your rationale for selecting your topic.
• Delineate a brief history of this area of study and the relevancy of this topic in today’s business world.
• Identify any similarities between your interests and those discussed in the media piece “Choosing Your Doctoral Topic.”
• Devise one or more business-related problems related to your chosen topic.
• Speculate what type of data you might need to research one of these business-related problems and how you might go about collecting that data.

Answer Problem 4-1; problem 4-2; problem 4-6; problem 4-8; and redo problem 4-6 by changing the word FVA to PVA; problem 5-1; problem 5-7 and Additional problems.

Additional Problems:

Problem 1:

A. Calculate the PV of $100 due in 5 years compounded monthly at 12%.

B. Calculate the FV of $1000 due in 3 years at 6%.

C. Calculate the FVA of $30 due at the end of each of the next 5 years at 4%.

D. Calculate the PVA of $30 due at the end of each of the next 5 years at 4%.

Problem 2:

Compute the EAR of 12% compounded monthly.

Problem 3:

You take out an amortized loan for $10,000. The loan is to be paid in equal installments at the end of each of the next 5 years. The interest rate is 8%. Construct an amortization schedule.

Problem 4:

A. Calculate the PV of $100 due in 5 years compounded daily at 12%.

B. Calculate the FV of $1000 due in 3 years at 6% compounded quarterly.

C. Calculate the FVA of $300 due at the end of each of the next 5 years at 4%.

D. Calculate the PVA of $300 due at the end of each of the next 5 years at 4%.

Problem 5:

Compute the EAR of 10% compounded daily.

Problem 6:

A bond was issued 3 years ago at a coupon rate of 6%. Since then, interest rates have declined to 4%. The bond matures 20 years from today. Compute the current market value of this bond.

Problem 7:

A bond was issued 2 years ago. It’s original maturity was 20 years. The coupon rate is 4% and the current YTM is 6%. Compute its intrinsic value.

Review the SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats) analyses for all six cases here. Pick one of the six cases and read the complete business plan. Then, create a professional presentation in Kaltura suggesting how IT could be used to enhance the company’s strengths, lessen the company’s weaknesses, take advantage of the company’s opportunities, and / or mitigate the company’s threats. The same IT solution(s) might accomplish more than one objective in the business plan.

In your presentation, please copy the SWOT analysis from the case and paste that on one of the slides. The presentation should include 2-4 slides to explain the case including an analysis of the characteristics of the institution in the case study. Please explain specifically how IT solves a problem and / or enables new options for the company. The total presentation should be about 8-10 slides, not including the title and reference slides. The reference slide should be in APA format. Internet references, as well as peer-reviewed journal articles, are fine. The references should include examples of other companies that have done something similar to support your recommendations. In-text citations are not required for this presentation. Your presentation should include a voice-over to explain your slides. Please submit your Kaltura video via the assignment link and also include a link to it on the discussion board. The rubric for this assignment can be viewed when clicking on the assignment link.

Use the resources below to help you with this week’s assignment.

Read the following chapters in the textbook:

• Chapter 9 – “Effective and Efficient Business Functions” Chapter 9 – Effective and Efficient Business Functions.pptx – This chapter explains how IT can be used to automate individual business functions.

• Chapter 10 – “Strategic Technology and Enterprise Systems” Chapter 10 – Strategic Technology and Enterprise Systems.pptx – This chapter explains how IT can be used to integrate the functions in the value chain within a company. The chapter emphasizes systems that are used across the entire enterprise.

• Chapter 11 – “Data Visualization and Geographic Information Systems” Chapter 11 – Data Visualization and Geographic Information Systems.pptx – This chapter focuses on data visualization to help in making better decisions.

Additional resources:

• Video: What Is a SWOT Analysis? explains about analyzing an organization’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT). A SWOT analysis is often used in strategic planning.
• Article: Ultimate Guide to Conducting a SWOT Analysis.pdf explains how to do a SWOT analysis.
• Video: How NOT to Use PowerPoint gives humorous examples of what not to do in presentations.
• Blackboard tutorial: Narrating a PowerPoint with the Kaltura Screen Recorder explains how to add narration to your Kaltura presentation.
• Blackboard tutorial: Using Kaltura to Submit Assignment explains how to submit your Kaltura presentation using the assignment link above.

In developing your presentation for this week, you may find it helpful to refer to the resources from previous weeks. A list of all the videos and other resources can be found under the Strategy Resources link on the main menu in this Blackboard course.

It has been argued that courts are the least political branch of government. Yet their regulation-related decisions have had significant political impacts. Accordingly, students are assigned alphabetically (according the first letter of their last name) the following court case to analyze:

• Shelby County v. Holder, 570 U.S. ___ (2013) (Students with last names beginning with the letters A-L)

Each student paper should include the following elements:

1. A brief description of the case- no more than one page
2. Identify the regulatory action and or/regulatory agency involved in this case and the action it has taken that has triggered this lawsuit.
3. Identify the key regulatory question before the court arising from this regulation.
4. Who won the case? (Describe the winning party)
5. What was the court’s reasoning behind its decision: why did the court rule against the agency or the regulation?
6. What precedent was set by this case: How has the regulatory environment been changed?
7. Key section of the paper: Conduct a political analysis of what the decision by the court has done in terms of the ability for this issue to be regulated, the discretion remaining for an agency regulate in this area, and the reason why Congress has not taken further action in this area to address the issues raised in the court case?