Overview: Economic Practices for Managers

This course addresses the fundamental economic principles of decision making, including opportunity costs, factors of production, and competitive and comparative advantage.

Risk and uncertainty are also analyzed. In addition, students would apply sustainable business principles in a rapidly changing economic and social environment. The course approaches these topics from the perspective of a practicing manager.

Module Readings

Complete the following readings early in the module:

Module overview

From your course textbook, Managerial economics: Economic tools for today's decision makers, read the following chapters:

Introduction

The Firm and Its Goals

Supply and Demand

Demand Elasticity

Assigned Reading:

From the Argosy University online library resources, read:

Cascio, W. F. (2006). The economic impact of employee behaviors on organizational performance. California Management Review, 48(4), 41-59. (EBSCO AN: 22004552)

Lawler, E. E., III, & Toole, E. (Eds.). America at work: Choices and challenges. Gordonsville, VA: Palgrave Macmillan. Retrieved from

Module In Brief: introduces the basic economic theories and principles that drive a company's day-to-day business decisions. You will also be familiarized with the basic economic problem of a business.

This module also describes the concepts of demand, supply, and elasticity and how their relationship helps predict market outcomes. You will learn how demand and supply determine the prices of all the goods and services in a market-driven economy.

Module Overview:

Consider the last major sporting event that you watched on television. What did you give up to watch this show-the option of dining out with your friends or spending time with your family?

Let us extend this example to other stakeholders. Think of how competing teams would have traveled to the event. Probably, they chartered a flight. What was their gain? How did the airline decide whether or not to accept the charter?

We all make economic decisions every day of our lives. Economics is the science of making effective choices or decisions by examining the available alternatives

This module introduces the basic concepts of economics that will help you analyze and evaluate various alternatives and make effective day-to-day business decisions. To begin with, you will learn about the basic economic problem that a society faces. You will then apply this knowledge to analyze the problem and make decisions in the context of your business.

Basic Economic Problem

The basic economic problem in any society is how to allocate resources among individuals to meet their demands for what they want to consume. While the individuals' needs are unlimited, the resources available to a society are limited.

To address this problem, societies take into account the production, the sale, and the consumption of goods and services, and compare alternative ways of using the limited resources. Each society, therefore, must find answers to these three basic questions to satisfactorily run the economy:

What goods and services to produce?

How to produce them?

For whom to produce them?

In the context of your business, these questions will help you analyze the operations within your company from an economic perspective and make decisions on how to make the best use of your company's scarce resources.

It will help you decide what goods and services should be produced and which ones you must forgo, which needs should be satisfied, and how much of the limited resources will be used to satisfy those needs.

Assignment: Discussion-Differences between Value and Returns

Evaluating the benefit an opportunity can provide is complex. When measuring an economic benefit, you must look at the real return, the nominal return, and the overall value. In many cases, a project might generate a negative return in the short term but may be of value in the long term.

You may take on a project for its business, knowing that the project is a losing proposition but will compensate for this loss by bringing in a new project later that will generate a positive return, or future value. This assignment will illustrate this concept. Firms need to distinguish between value creation and the returns they obtain from their investments.

Tasks:

Locate an article from the Internet or the Argosy University online library resources that deals with firms distinguishing between value creation and the returns they obtain from their investments. You can consult sources such as the Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, Bloomberg Markets, the Economist, US News and World Report, and other publications for conducting this research.

On the basis of the selected article, address the following questions:

What are some of the strategies that firms engage in to create value?

What is the difference between adding value in the value chain and creating returns for shareholders?

Why does adding value to the firm and creating returns for shareholders in the short run and long run matter?

Submission Details:

In a minimum of 500 words, post your responses to this Discussion Area. Cite the sources used to formulate your opinion. While responding, think about the activities performed by a firm that would generate value and how this value can be used to generate returns for the firm.

Write your initial response in 300-500 words. turned-in on time, Grading criteria followed All assignment qualifications addressed correctly, Grading Criteria followed, Include Question followed by the answer Reference Page Included Cover page Included, Paragraphs Indented, Running-head included, main heading should be centered; all new paragraphs should be indented; paper should be right ragged, not right justified; references, should always go on a standalone page. abstracts are not usually indented; acronyms should be spelled out when using them for the first time, for example HR. references as listed are APA standard. When you submit your papers through turnitin.com, your overall similarity index score should not be exceedingly high, with ten to fifteen per

cent being the maximum, Please make sure your APA formatting of citations.

Your response should be thorough and address all components of the discussion question in detail, include citations of all sources, where needed, according to the APA Style, and demonstrate accurate spelling, grammar, and punctuation.

Do the following when responding:

Read your answers.

Provide substantive comments by

contributing new, relevant information from course readings, Web sites, or other sources;

building on the remarks or questions; or

sharing practical examples of key concepts from your professional or personal experiences

Respond to feedback on your posting and provide feedback to ideas.

Make sure your writing

is clear, concise, and organized;

demonstrates ethical scholarship in accurate representation and attribution of sources; and

displays accurate spelling, grammar, and punctuation.