BUS 600 Foundation of Business Management Assignment Chap 2&3 ideas

Making ethical choices is sometimes the hardest thing, especially when the choices decide either your business toward success or fail.
There are two major topics in the ethic curriculum:relativism and stakeholder analysis.
Relativism proposes that ethics are relative to the personal, social, and cultural circumstances.
1. Naive relativism--Business practices like sourcing of materials. For example, take company's stationary to home and use it.
2. Role relativism--distinguishes between our private selves and our public roles. For instance, tobacco industry knows smoking is harmful, however, they still sale products to make profit.
3. Social relativism--Labor related issues like gender discrimination at workplace, employee harassment,working conditions and child labor,forcing labor to work at below average salary.
4. Cultural relativism--In some countries, bribing powerful officials in order to get bids and tenders accepted and bribing competitor employees to get informational leaks is a serious ethical issue in business. In fact, it is a crime that is legally punishable in most countries today.
Stakeholder analysis ought to determine each of the affected parties' rights and responsibilities, evaluation of all the harms and benefits. The relationships among the many and varied stakeholders that have roles in business situations. These stakeholders include the market and non-market entities that affect a business. Ethical issues must be addressed by individuals, groups, corporations, and even nations in very different ways, and the consequences differ with each person or group involved.

Accounting
The purpose of accounting is to record all the activities will have impact the organization financially. To know a company, we need to understand three major financial statements:
1. Balance Sheet: The balance sheet basically record yearly assets, liabilities,and equity. It gives an idea of the financing structure of the company. It is the statement to look for company's assets.
2. Income statement: to see a company makes profit or not. it shows the flow of activity and transactions over a specific period. it maybe a month, a quarter or a year.
3. Cash Flow: to see a company's cash move to avoid liquidity problems. For instance, if a company has a lot of cash, then its liquidity is strong.
Accounting is to analysis yearly financial status in order to help board of directors to make decisions for investment and tax purpose.

BUS 600 Foundation of Business Management Assignment 2----What are my competitors doing?

I have chosen two of Chocolate Lounge Competitors. One is "French Broad Chocolates", another is "Anna Shea Chocolates".
*French Broad Chocolates Lounge's marketing material includes:
1. Today's special-At the Chocolate Lounge, we feature daily specials on fine wines, local craft beers, cheesecakes and more.
2. Music and Events-we have events calendar for customers to check for any coming events in every month. For instance, Art+Chocolate event. Also, we have Cupcakes for a Cure. French Broad Chocolates was proud to take party in Cupcakes for a Cure at the Grove Park Inn.
3. Website--http://frenchbroadchocolates.com/chocolate-lounge/
4. Email-- info@frenchbroadchocolates.com
5. Press--"Will Obama visit the lounge?" http://frenchbroadchocolates.com/press/
*Anna Shea Chocolates Lounge's marketing material includes:
1. Upcoming Events--This month special drinks, offer 10% coupon.
2. Service--fall and Halloween confections. For instance, provide chocolate to restaurants,hotels,catering companies and wholesale markets.
3. Website--http://www.annasheachocolates.com/ourlounge.php
4. Contact,Blog and Customer service
5. Press--"Chocolate to Charity"
After knowing my competitors marketing activities, i think my competitors have many good ideas to promote their Lounge and products, so people will have the interests to get to know more about my competitors lounge. Furthermore, i like the idea of helping others which is part of margin goes to charity.

BUS 600 Foundation of Business Management ---Chapter 1 ideas

Talking about business, marketing coordinates all the works and activities of a business. For example, come up new ideas of the product or program, find out customers needs, how many competitors, best price to sale, getting appropriate value in return, advertising and promotion of the product, public relations and customer service and satisfaction.
In Chapter one, there are seven marketing strategy process which are very useful and practical for my Chocolate Lounge "Le Cafe de Chocolate"
1. Consumer Analysis--
a. we introduce a new idea "Chocolate Lounge" to the service industry and mainly all the products are made by chocolate.
b. The uniqueness of our chocolate lounge is that we will have a transforming nature between the day and the night.
c. In the day our target market is that we mainly serve students and business people conduct a meeting in calm atmosphere. In the night, Our lounge turn into high profile pub, we have live music and bring adults for social networking.
2. Marketing Analysis--
a. create unique chocolate based products,so the remarkable taste will be in people's mind.
b. to integrate chocolate into customers daily life.
c. establish an addictive product, so customers will always come back for the atmosphere and product.
3. SWOT competition analysis--
a. Strengths-new idea to the market, successful experience in other countries,high quality products with reasonable price, diversity customers.
b. Weakness-too many competitors, limitation of target customers,possibility of failure in chocolate lounge business,extra cost on employees.
c. Opportunities-expansion the unique chocolate lounge worldwide, growing entertainment market.
d. Threats--bad economic situation,bad first impression,competitors copying the idea.
4. Distribution Channels--
a. Supplier to the company-choose the finest and high quality of supplier, organic products, and homemade chocolate desserts.
b. Company to Customers-provide reservation service, build good relationship with customers, invite customers for upcoming events and promotions.
5. Marketing Mix (4P's)--
a. Products-hot and cold chocolate drinks, desserts, la fondue, world collection drinks.
b. Price-in the day, we offer high quality with reasonable price menu. In the night, our target customers are mainly middle to high class people, so the menu is different and the price is higher.
c. Place-our chocolate lounge is located at the luxury shopping center and busiest street. With comfortable couches, table and divided into sections.
d. Promotions-friends referral, "word of mouth", advertising, lady's night special.
6. Economic of my plan and revise--
a. calculate the costs, break even,and how long is the payback of my investment.
b. ask self questions and revise the plan.
A marketing plan helps to keep my business prepared and be realistic.

BUS 600 Foundation of Business Management Week 1 Assignment --My Business Vision

I would like to open a unique cafe lounge and it is called "Le Cafe de Chocolate". This cafe lounge is about 600~800 square feet and decorated with my oil painting art pieces on the wall, roses from my backyard on each table, cozy sofa, pleasant music from different countries, many books on the bookshelf and my collections brought from different countries.
This cafe lounge is located on the 2nd Floor of the building at Santana Row, San Jose. There is a great view of trees,blue sky and streets through windows. Enjoy the sunshine and the most delicious hand made organic Chocolate drinks,desserts and la fondue.
This Cafe lounge is partnership with two of my best friends. I am in charge with the sales and preparation of the supplies and decoration of the lounge. The other two friends are in charge of making the most delicious Chocolate desserts.
This unique cafe lounge is the place for customers to have fun, relax, chat, meet new friends and build network connections.

BUS 528 Project Management-----Chap 11 ideas

The most effective way of communication in the project is through meeting. Project team members need to know their responsibilities of the project with clear direction, coordination between team members in order to work together efficiently, keep up the status of the project, and know the decisions made by stakeholders. To make the project more productive and toward success, there are many meetings going on time to time. For instance, the kickoff meeting--bring all the stakeholders together and get to know each other and communicate for the project. The sponsor leads the meeting and introduce the customers, manager and team members. Then, the sponsor talks about the project's purpose and goal. Next, the project status meetings--regularly scheduled meetings which keep a project on track, present with facts, share information, identify problems,share solutions and make decisions. Moreover, status meetings usually are the only time the entire team gets together.
In a project, there might have some decisions do not need stakeholders approvals, so the project manager needs to separate changes into different catergories. For example, change thresholds--the lowest threshold does not affect cost and schedule, so the project team can approve. The second threshold affect cost, schedule or functionality, so it requries more formal approval. the last threshold will need higher level executives to decide because the changes are threaten the business care for the project. the configuration management prevents disasters happen and limiting the changes. Closeout reporting helps the whole team's reflections on the improvment and better communication for next time.
A project manager needs strong communication skills, coordination skills and people skills in order to make the project work smoothly, successfully and happily.

BUS 528 Project Management ----Chap 10 ideas

How to build a high-performance project team? This project team needs positive team environment and collaborative problem solving. A positive team environment is productive,respectful and honest. Also, it requires some elements which are the team's value--expectation of team memebers behavior, commitment to a goal--sponsor's support and devotion from team members, be able to listen--team members exchange ideas, and willing to listen and accept others suggestions and thoughts, manage meetings--held an effective meeting toward the goals. Collaborative problem solving project team is that team members need to learn how to work together to solve problems. therefore, it requires some abilities which are agree upon the problem-solving--team members have their specialties and they accept this process of problem solving, team memebers understand decision modes--decisions have been made by either project leaders or entire team, so team members should be able to adjust and follow through the decision, resolve conflict skills--accept and deal with conflicts in order to achieve the best decisions in the strong team relationship, improve performance through continuous learning--improve skills and performance by learning from both success and failure.
A project manager helps the team build a positive working environment daily and have team members work together to face problems and solve problems in order to make the project successful.

BUS 520 Organizational Behavior Reflection-Strengthen Others powerless,weak,insignificant

In 2002, I came to America with tour visa and tried to find a job here. Luckily, i found my current job in two month. I did the volunteer work for six months and then i became official employee. At the first two years, i was working very hard because i had no experience in this field. My lead teacher did not want to guide me or teach me. Moreover, she told me "you are on your own." I was so scared and did not know what to do. I told myself that i could not lose this job and there is no way out. At that time i felt so powerless and weak. Thanks to my boss, she noticed that i could not handle the classroom by myself and she hired an experienced teacher to support me. This experienced teacher was very resourceful and i learned many teaching techniques and conduct the classroom from her.

Another time i felt very powerless and weak moment was when the boss was doing the annual review with me. I told my boss if i could transfer to another position with less responsibilities. My boss told me "If you want that less responsible position, why should i hire you?" I was so down and speechless. Since then, i started to work harder and contributed my time in extend learning and prove myself that i can do better and meet my boss expectations. Now, i am a senior teacher and i think my boss is happy and appreciate my work.