McGuigan Chapter 1—Introduction and Goals of the Firm
Only for this spring quarter 2013, quiz purposes
MULTIPLE CHOICE
1. The form of economics most relevant to managerial decision-making within the firm is:
a.|macroeconomics|
b.|welfare economics|
c.|free-enterprise economics|
d.|microeconomics|
e.|none of the above|
2. If one defines incremental cost as the change in total cost resulting from a decision, and incremental revenue as the change in total revenue resulting from a decision, any business decision is profitable if:
a.|it increases revenue more than costs or reduces costs more than revenue|
b.|it decreases some costs more than it increases others (assuming revenues remain constant)|
c.|it increases some
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Agency problems and costs are incurred whenever the owners of a firm delegate decision-making authority to management.
a.|true|
b.|false|
10. Income tax payments are an example of ____.
a.|implicit costs|
b.|explicit costs|
c.|normal return on investment|
d.|shareholder wealth|
e.|none of the above|
11. The common factors that give rise to all principal-agent problems include the
a.|unobservability of some manager-agent action|
b.|presence of random disturbances in team production|
c.|the greater number of agents relative to the number of principals|
d.|a and b only|
e.|none of the above|
12. The Saturn Corporation (once a division of GM) was permanently closed in 2009. What went wrong with Saturn?
a. Saturn’s cars sold at prices higher than rivals Honda or Toyota, so they could not sell many cars.
b. Saturn sold cars below the prices of Honda or Toyota, earning a low 3% rate of return.
c. Saturn found that young buyers of Saturn automobiles were very loyal to Saturn and GM.
d. Saturn implemented a change management view that helped make first time Saturn purchasers trade up to Buick or Cadillac.
e. all of the above
13. Which of the following will increase (V0), the shareholder wealth maximization model of the firm: V0∙(shares
The United States has spent so much money on the military that they have not taken much consideration into much else. This could put the United States into debt.
For a firm to shut down in the short run, the average variable cost can avoid paying by shutting down exceed the price it would get for selling the good (Colander, pg. 328). At a certain point to continue producing and selling goods would get higher than the fixed costs of not producing the goods or service. As the text mentions, automakers will continue to produce at a loss because the labor is a fixed cost due to union agreements. These agreements state that the workers will get paid if they are working or not working. In this instance the automaker cannot afford to shut down even for the short run. In recent times, several automakers have decided to shut down for the short run due to manufacturing defects to their products. Toyota has
* From the scenario for Katrina’s Candies, assuming the absence of quantitative data, determine the qualitative forecasting techniques that could be used within this scenario.
There are several factors that affect our economy, gross domestic product (GDP), real GDP, nominal GDP, unemployment rate, inflation rate, and interest rates. All of these factors have influences over how we purchase groceries, weather there will be massive layoffs of employees, and decrease in taxes.
Week 2 has been quite overwhelming. I did not have enough time to do my reading assignments over the weekend. I normally utilize Saturday and Sunday to do my research work and reading. Unfortunately, on Saturday morning, I attended a meeting that took half of the day, when I returned home my husband informed that he had invited our friends over for dinner as they will be leaving for Melbourne the following day. My house was a mess as it hadn't been cleaned the previous weekend when we were away. Thus, my whole Saturday was wasted on doing the trivial aspects of life. I missed church on Sunday so that I can catch up on my work and everything went well thereafter. I managed to complete my tasks. I found that a lot of students were divided when it came answering the forum discussion assignment on what would happen to bond prices if terrorism ended and countries adopted free trade. What's you take on this one?
My clinical site utilizes an electronic medical record. This system is integrated with the nearby hospital system. Information is placed directly into the patients’ electronic medical record (EMR). Details related to the history and physical are entered as information is obtained during each visit. Behavior and psychosocial details get recorded in a standardized template such as a SOAP note.
For example, If you are selling a product that is a normal good with a high rate of competition in the market, raising the price could have negative effects on overall profits because users will simply find another substitute somewhere. Charles stated that market separation may come into play when firms realize there are differing elasticity curves for different consumers of the same product. Firms can maximize profits by evaluating consumer segments within a single market. If the firm notices different demand elasticity for different segments it may opt to engage in price discrimination to maximize profits. Charles gave Microsoft Office as an example; the same software is offered to students, casual users and business users at different price
According to the Week 2 Case Study, my company uses Internet Explorer, Firefox, and Chrome as it primary browser. I am charged with setting a policy on how to secure these browsers as much as possible.
Over the past two weeks I have researched various scholarly journal entries and various articles. I was able to find ways for SHLD to increase their bargaining power. This includes introducing additional private labeled products. SHLD already provides private label products, but allowing additional private labeled products can yield higher profit margins. Furthermore, I researched both the importance of an accurate mission statement and the benefits of surveying clientele. After researching how effective a mission statement can be towards an organization, I began to focus on how to modify SHLD’s mission statement. The modification will keep SHLD on a path to success
18. Why did Ford, GM and Chrysler undergo a harsh downturn relative to other car makers?
General Motors is one of the world's most dominant automakers from 1931. After 1980s economic recession the main goal for automobile companies was cost reduction. Customers became more price-sensitive. Also Japanese competitors came into market with the new effective system of production. So market was highly competitive and directed toward price reduction. The case states that in 1991 GM suffered $ 4.5 billion losses and most part of the costs of manufacturing was due to purchased components. GM NA hired Lopez in order to find the way from "extraordinary" situation and reduce costs.
Creation, acceleration and emotion are the key components for any automobile industry to deliver its goods to the expected standards. General Motors, popularly known as GM has been a pioneer in the global autoindustry for more than 100 years. Developing from horseless carriages to the latest sports cars, innovations have always excelled at putting the world on wheels. In fact, there are a lot of exciting things to share about the company. GM’s corporation started in 1892 by R.E. Olds, with a solid financial foundation, which enabled him to produce great vehicles for customers and build a bright future for employees, partners and shareholders. GM slowly initiated its staff of experts in the factories which are located in different parts of the globe and acquired the brands like Chevrolet, Pointiac, GMC, Buick, Cadillac(General Motors Corporation, 2015). Leading the way is their tailored leadership team who set high standards for the company so that they can produce the best cars and trucks. This means that GM is committed to deliver vehicles with compelling designs, flawless quality and reliability, leading safety, fuel economy and commercial features. All are intended to create that special bond that can only happen between a driver and a vehicle. General Motors is a customer driven company and aims at earning customers
In addition, the collapse of the company also directly and indirectly affects interest on consumers. The ownerships of GM cars remained unchanged due to their bankruptcy, however, their warranties will still be honoured, and the potential customer lost their famous auto brands like Pontiac, Saturn, Hummer and Saab. They can never buy the USA owned Pontiac, Saturn, Hummer and Saab any more. The value of the brand perceive by the consumers is depreciated, which indicate the loss from consumers who earned the cars.
Agency costs are inevitable within an organization whenever shareholders are not completely in charge; the cost can usually be best spent on providing proper material incentives and moral incentives for agents to properly execute their duties, thereby aligning the interests of shareholders (owners) and agents.