Develop a three- to five-page analysis (excluding the title and reference pages) on the projected return on investment for your college education and projected future employment. This analysis will consist of two parts.

Part 1: Describe how and why you made the decision to pursue an MBA. In the description, include calculations of expenses and opportunity costs related to that decision.

Part 2: Analyze your desired occupation. Determine how much compensation (return) you expect to earn and how long will it take to pay back the return on this investment. Use the financial formulas, Net Present Value (NPV), Internal Rate of Return (IRR), and Payback, provided in Chapters 3 and 4 of your text.

The analysis should be comprehensive and reference specific examples from a minimum of two scholarly sources, in addition to your text. The paper must be formatted according to APA.

Carefully review the Grading Rubric (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. for the criteria that will be used to evaluate your assignment.

Matthew Yachts, Inc.

Matthew Yachts, located in Montauk, Long Island, manufactured sailing yachts of all descriptions. The company had begun by building custom-designed yachts for a largely New York-based clientele. Custom-designed yachts still accounted for three-fifths of Matthew’s unit sales and four-fifths of its dollar sales and earnings. Over the years, as Matthew Yachts’ reputation for quality design and workmanship spread, sales broadened to cover all of the eastern seaboard.

In an effort to capitalize on this increased recognition and to secure a piece of the fastest growing market in sailing, Matthew Yachts began manufacturing a new standard, fixed-design craft. Matthew attacked only the high end of this market, as the boat measured 37 feet long. Nevertheless, even this end of the market was more price-sensitive and less conscious of performance than Matthew Yacht’s custom-design customers were.

All of the company’s yachts were manufactured at the Montauk plant and shared the same equipment and skilled labor force. Custom designs were given priority in scheduling, and the new boat was rotated into the schedule only when demand slackened. As sales of the fixed-design boat increased, however, scheduling the new boat on a regular basis became necessary.

Matthew Yachts were built basically from the bottom up. Fabricating hulls was the first step. Increasingly, fiberglass hulls were demanded for their speed and easy maintenance. Afterward came the below-deck woodworking, followed by the fiberglass and woodworking on the deck itself. The masts were turned and drilled separately. Masts and hull were then joined and the finish work completed.

Over the past year, as the fixed-design craft continued its steady increase in sales, costs and deliveries began to slide precipitously, especially on the fixed-design yachts. During this period, when push came to shove, construction of the fixed-design craft always yielded time and resources to the higher-profit-margin custom designs. As a result, many fixed-design yachts were strewn around the yard in various stages of construction. Moreover, space in the existing shipyard was becoming scarce, and a plant expansion of one sort or another appeared inevitable.

Discussion Question

1. Should Matthew Yachts, Inc. stay in the business of building standard, fixed-design yachts?

2. If Matthew Yachts does so, how should it continue?

The report should be a formal report with a Title Page, Summary of Case Study, Answer to Questions, and Appendixes. Appendixes are used to include the computer outputs. Reports will be typed in a standard 12 point font and will be double-spaced on standard 8.5×11 papers with one inch margins on all four sides.

About Your Signature Assignment

This signature assignment is designed to align with specific program student learning outcome(s) in your program. Program Student Learning Outcomes are broad statements that describe what students should know and be able to do upon completion of their degree. The signature assignments may be graded with an automated rubric that allows the University to collect data that can be aggregated across a location or college/school and used for program improvements.

Purpose of Assignment

The purpose of this assignment is for students to demonstrate mastery of operations management concepts and tools.

Assignment Steps

Develop a 700- to 1,050-word memo to a prospective employer outlining your credentials, including: taking this class, all of the projects you have done for this class individually and with your team, and their impact on the businesses you have engaged with so a senior manager reading it would want to hire you as either an operations consultant or permanent employee.

Summarize the business case for each project.

Outline what you specifically accomplished, assuming these projects were implemented, and their estimated impacts on the business.

Utilize the learnings from Week 6 to highlight your skills in global sourcing, procurement, and outsourcing which can also be of benefit to your target firm.

Format your assignment as if you would be giving a presentation to senior management.

Winsome Manufacturing Company produces plastic storage containers and sells them to the home consumer through home sales events. At the company’s quarterly meeting, the head of marketing described a new product to be introduced in the first quarter of the next fiscal year, approximately 9 months from now. The product will be a room-sized plastic storage unit suitable to the outside of the home; it is similar to a competitor’s product but will have significantly more features. This product will open new markets for the sales channel, lay the foundation for add-on products, and generate new revenues. Management has only seen preliminary sketches of the potential product but are very excited by the new product.

The project will require participation from the design, production, purchasing, shipping, sales, and marketing departments. Winsome Manufacturing owns a line of suitable injection molds, so all manufacturing will be done in-house. The project manager for this project has not yet been selected, but that decision is expected to be made in the next week.

A preliminary project initiation meeting will result in the identification of the project sponsor, selection of a project manager, and creation of the project charter. A manager in the production department who knows you are taking a college project management course asks you to prepare a brief report to help him prepare for the meeting by answering the following questions:

• Who are the project stakeholders? How will they be involved in the project?
• Who should be the project sponsor? Why?
• From which department should the project manager come? Why?
• What skills and experience are likely needed by the project manager for each phase in the project life cycle, and how do they differ between the various phases?
• What type of communication plan will likely be needed during the project?
  • What information should be shared with the project stakeholders?
  • What is the mechanism that could be used for each type of information?
  • What is the frequency with which information should be shared?
  • What should be done if project communications are not proving to be effective?
  • What technology could be used for project communications?
  • At what point could communication about the project become an ethical or legal issue?
• What information should be included in the following elements of the project charter:
  • What is the problem the project proposes to address?
  • What business opportunity might project completion create?
  • What is the business case for undertaking the project?
  • What is the financial impact of the project?
  • What are the expected results of the project?
  • What value will the project add?
  • What are risks that might be involved with undertaking the project?
  • What is the potential impact to the company if the project is not undertaken?

Present your findings as a Word document of 4–5 pages (not including title and reference pages) formatted in APA style.