Discussion Assignment

Please answer each bullet with ONLY 4 sentences.

1. Discuss the best way to leverage a breakeven analysis when defining a business strategy.

2. Analyze the 12 financial ratios mentioned in the textbook and determine which is the most useful to the greatest number of small businesses. Explain your rationale.

3. Analyze the steps involved in preparing a cash budget and determine which steps presents the greatest number of obstacles to the greatest number of small businesses. Explain your rationale.

4. Analyze the steps involved in avoiding a cash crunch and make at least one additional recommendation for doing so. Provide specific examples to support your response.

5. Use the internet to research a company with which you regularly do business or are a regular customer. Focus on how that company relates to their customers. Assess your satisfaction with the company you researched and make recommendations about how that company could modify its business-level strategy to both increase your overall level of satisfaction and to attract new customers. (Use Walmart)

6. Analyze the five business-level strategies to determine which strategy the company you researched most likely applies. Determine how your experience with that company might change if it switched to one of the other four strategies (your choice). Explain your rationale.
   1. Cost Leadership
   2. Differentiation
   3. Focus Cost Leadership
   4. Focus Differentiation
   5. Integrated Cost Leadership Differentiation

7. Use the Internet to research Apple’s strategy for competing against other technology companies. Determine how market commonality and resource similarity impact Apple’s competitive standing in terms of its main rivals. Provide specific examples to support your response.

8. Determine what additional steps Apple’s competitors are likely to take and how Apple will most likely respond.

2 pages