Term Paper: A final paper that focuses on the course content, applied in the setting of your current or past employer, will be due in Module 7. In this paper you will focus on the following:
1. Provide a description of the company that you work for. As part of your description include a discussion of the type of organizational structure.
2. Describe an agency problem within the firm and discuss what you think is causing the problem and how the problem might be better controlled.
3. Describe the job dimensions of the firm and discuss whether or not you believe the current design is appropriate for the firm. Discuss any suggestions you might have for improving the job design. Grouped by function or by product or geography or a matrix organization? Provide a diagram if helpful to illustrate. Is this organization effective?
4. Describe the compensation package for executives and employees within the firm. Discuss whether or not you believe that the compensation package is effective and any suggestions that you might have for improving the compensation package.
While these questions focus on the latter half of the course, you should remain mindful of the economic concepts that were developed in the beginning of the course. An "A" paper will demonstrate a thorough understanding of the relevant topics, completely discuss each of the four points of the paper, use terminology appropriate to the topic, and use word choice, spelling, and sentence structure appropriate for graduate-level work.
Specific Formatting Instructions
1. All assignments must be completed as Word documents. If you do not have Word you can use Microsoft WordPad and use the rich text format (.rtf extension).
2. All assignments must be prepared in the APA format, including references.
3. Cover page. Use a single cover page that contains:
a. the title of the assignment
b. your name
4. Margins. All page margins should be the default margins for your word processing program. Use only the LEFT margin justification setting.
5. Page numbering. Please use page numbering for all pages except the cover page.
6. Spacing/Font. All papers should be single-spaced only (this includes spacing between paragraphs) and a 12 point font.
7. Direct quotes/ paraphrasing. Direct quotes and paraphrasing MUST be referenced and cited using APA guidelines. Although there is no limit on how many citations are in the paper, I will use limits of 15% for quotations and 25% for unoriginal wording for this course. When more than one quarter of a paper seems to be unoriginal, it usually indicates a problem. Even if sources are properly cited and some of the words are changed, it raises the question of how much original thinking went into the paper. There is a big difference between starting with a blank page and writing your own thoughts, and building the paper around quotes,
paraphrased sources, and the altered wording of another author. You are encouraged to use textbook concepts as you attempt to explain in your own words the answers to the assignments rather than relying heavily on quoted material. Try to think about how you would explain your answer to someone who has not taken a managerial economics class. High scores on the originality report in Turnitin are not just a result of plagiarism; they can also result from an incorrect quotation/citation methodology or from using words that have been rearranged from your sources. If you use someone else's work you must cite and reference it appropriately.
8. References. You must include a separate References page in APA format with each paper. Any source that is used to develop your paper must be included in this section.