Principles of Business Projects

Project #4 Snapshot November 28 – December 14, 2016

Rob

Snapshot-Logo-Large

I you choose not to participate in the FBLA competitive events and the FBLA District Leadership Conference, then you will work in teams to complete this and one other project next semester.

Your teams will need to collect information about the community around John F. Kennedy High School.  Decide among your team who will research each part of the Community Profile Worksheet Bring your data to the next class.  Your team should create a project plan that is due on December 2, 2016.

Your team has been hired as consultants by the local Chamber of Commerce.  The Chamber needs informational items to provide prospective business owners who are interested in locating in our area.  You can see examples of materials currently available on http://www.metrodenver.org/

Your team’s mission is to develop a Snapshot of our local community for the Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce.  Read this Snapshot Chamber Memo to see what the Chamber is looking for.  The Chamber is looking for creative, original promotional material but they do not want a Google Slides, PowerPoint or Prezi.  Consider a video, brochure, website or other promotion that can be used to attract new business.

This project will be evaluated using the Project #2 Snapshot Rubric

Your team will present the materials you develop on December 13 & 14, 2016 starting the second half of the period.

Work Schedule

  • November 28 & 29, 2016 Economic Systems (FBLA Event Selection/Snapshot Project Introduction)
  • November 30 & December 1, 2016 Economic Utility
  • December 2, 2016 (FBLA Friday) Project Plan Due
  • December 5 & 6, 2016 Economic Resources
  • December 7 & 8, 2016 Project Work
  • December 9, 2016 Final Review
  • December 12, 2016 Project Work (Period 7 only)
  • December 13 & 14, 2016 Snapshot Project Presentations last 45 minutes of the period.
  • December 15 & 16, 2016  Final Exams

Project #1 Business Biography

Rob

https://i0.wp.com/upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/87/Business_plate.svg/601px-Business_plate.svg.png1693_logo_3

Part 1 Team Activity

This project will introduce students to the different types of businesses (i.e., retail, wholesale, manufacturing, service, and non-profit) in their local community. Students will work in teams for much of the project, with each team becoming experts on one of these five business types.

After developing an understanding of its assigned type of business, each team will select and research a local business that exemplifies that business type. Team members will conduct secondary and, when appropriate, primary research to develop an in-depth business biography that details their group’s selected local business, the business’s background, product/service offerings, successes, struggles, etc.

Each team will present its business bio to the rest of the class.

Check out the Business Bio Rubric  to see how your presentation will be evaluated.

 Part 2 Individual Activity

Finally, each student will work individually to prepare a short one page typed report that describes his/her assigned business type and discusses how it differs from the four other types of business addressed in the project.  Use Google Docs to create your report and use a 1 inch margin, double spaced, 12 pt. Ariel or Times New Roman font.

Timeline

  • November 11 & 10, 2016
  • November 11, 2016
    • Quiz over Government Impact on Business, Global Trade & Relations and Business Ethics & Legal Issues (20 Questions, 2 Attempts)
  • November 14 & 15, 2016
    • Economic Concepts/Utility Briefing
    • Group Work
  • November 16 & 17, 2016
    • Groups Present Business Bio
  • November 18, 2016

    • Test over Business Ownership and Environmental Scanning (1 attempt, 100 points)
    • Individual Reports due

Review the Business Bio Rubric to be sure you are meeting the expectations and to include all of  the components of a Business Biography:

    1. Business Name
    2. Address
    3. Telephone number
    4. Website URL
    5. Business description
      1. Year founded
      2. Struggles and Risks
      3. Successes
      4. Senior Officers/Managers
      5. Form of business ownership
      6. Owner(s)
    6. Human resources utilized (i.e. Employees)
    7. Natural resources utilized
    8. Capital goods utilized
    9. Most current sales figures
    10. Sales trends over 10 years
    11. Products/Services
    12. Brands
    13. Target customers
    14. Stores
    15. Branches
    16. Divisions
    17. Subsidiaries
    18. Affiliates
    19. References

Click here for a sample Biography for Fireworks Catering Co.

Project #2 The Business Environment

Rob

business-environment-1-728

Part 1 Individual Business Environment Journal

In this project, students will acquire an understanding of factors that affect the business environment at the international, national, and local levels.

To become more familiar with the international and national business environments, each student will read business publications such as the Wall Street Journal or Business Week and collect articles that discuss different events, issues, and factors (e.g., new federal regulations, technological advances, etc.) that are currently impacting businesses in each of nine categories. Students will write a brief summary of each article and save the summaries and articles in their individual business environment journals. 

Students should create a bibliography including all of the articles in their journal.

Students should work to stay on schedule or even work ahead to ensure that they have completed all 15 articles by the end of the project.

Your journal should be created in a shared Google Docs file, include 10 sections and you should identify, read and summarize 3 current articles in each topic below:

  1. Business Trends
  2. Cultural & Social Issues
  3. Global Trade & Global Relations
  4. Government Impact on Business
  5. Ethical & Legal Issues in Business

Timeline                                                     Due Date

  1. Business Trends                              October 13 & 17, 2016
  2. Business Environmental Scan      October 18 & 19, 2016 
  3. Quiz 3A                                              October 21, 2016  Group Contract & Plan Due
  4. Cultural & Social Issues                October 20 & 24, 2016  
  5. Global Trade & Relationships      October 25 & 26, 2016
  6. Government Impact                      October 31 & November 1, 2016 
  7. Ethical Issues & Legal Issues       November  2 & 3, 2016
  8.  Team Presentations                      November 7 & 8, 2016 
  9.  Individual Conclusions & Quiz 3B  November 11, 2016
  10.  Test over all of the above           November 18, 2015 

 Part 2 Team Environmental Scan Focused on a Local Business

Period 2 Teams   Period 4 Teams   Period 7 Teams

Group contract and Project Plan.  Both of these will be due on October 21, 2016

Students will also work in teams to conduct an environmental scan focused on a local business of their choice. Each team will conduct primary and secondary research to determine what specific factors are affecting its selected business, as well as how that business is responding to those factors.

After conducting this research, each team will develop two items:

  1. Two page written report detailing its findings The paper should be double spaced with 1 inch margins using 12pt font.
  2. Digital presentation of your team’s choosing to share your team’s findings with the class. Your team’s Environmental scan should answer the questions:
  • What factors are impacting the business’ current external environment? (Use what you learn from the articles you are reading.)
  • How do these factors impact the business? Give specific examples.
  • Prioritize the factors from most urgent and important to least urgent and unimportant.
  • What are your recommendations for the business to address the highest priority factors?
  • What are your recommendations for the business to address the lowest priority factors?
  • What is the impact of current environmental trends on the business?
  • What are your recommendations for adopting these trends or ignoring them?

Finally, after all of the teams have shared their presentations, each student will return to her/his business environment journal to add his/her conclusions regarding the impact of each event, issue, or factor on the local business community.

Business Environment Presentation Rubric

Your Team Environmental Scan presentation will be the second part of the period on November 7  & 8, 2016

Project #1 Business to the Rescue

Rob

business-superheros-winter-snow-rescue-concept-60800051

September 13 to October 12, 2016

Part 1 Teamwork  Superheros of Business

Working in teams, students will develop business “superheroes” representing seven different Business activities:

  1. Human Resources
  2. Marketing
  3. Accounting and Finance
  4. Operations and Production
  5. Information Management
  6. Purchasing
  7. Management

Each superhero will embody one of these seven activities. His/Her powers, garb, and equipment will reflect the corresponding business activity’s role and responsibilities within the organization.

Each team will choose how to represent their superheroes, each team will be presented with a “what-if” business scenario. Students will collaborate with their teammates to envision and illustrate (in a comic book, skit, story, etc.) how the seven superheroes would react and/or adjust when faced with this change.  Teams will present on October 11 & 12, 2016

Period 2 Teams        Period 4 Teams      Period 7 Teams

Create a Group Contract and Project Plan Due September 20 & 21, 2016

Sample Superhero Poster    Sample Voki

Tools:

Create your own super hero website

              Create your own Comic

              Voki Create an Avatar

              Heroized

              Hero Factory

             Superhero Name Generator

Business to the Rescue Rubrics

Part 2 Individual Business Activity Journals

In addition to the work done by their teams, students will also maintain individual business activity journals in which they discuss their  teams’ decisions regarding the different superheroes and tie these decisions to what goes on in that function in the business world.   We will have a series of guest speaker videos who will discuss each of the seven activities and allow students to ask questions about them.

Business Activity                                 Video Speaker             Journal Due

  1. Group Contract & Plan                  9/13 & 14/2016         9/20 & 21/2016
  2. Human Resources                          9/15 & 19/2016         9/20 & 21/2016        
  3. FBLA Friday   & Teamwork           9/16/2016
  4. Marketing                                        9/20 & 21/2016         9/22 & 26/2016        
  5. Operations and/or Production   9/22 & 26/2016         9/27 & 28/2016             
  6. FBLA Friday   & Teamwork           9/23/2016 Quiz over Human Resources & Marketing
  7. Information Management          9/27 & 28/2016          9/29 & 10/03/2016 
  8.  Finance                                           9/29 & 10/03/2016    10/04 & 05/2016      
  9. FBLA Friday & Teamwork             9/30/2016  Quiz over Operations & Information Mgmt.
  10. Purchasing  What If Scenario      10/04 & 05/20           10/06 & 10/2016 
  11. Management                                  10/06 & 10/2016       10/11 & 12/2016
  12. FBLA Friday & Teamwork             10/07/2016 Quiz over Finance & Purchasing
  13. Team Work  & Presentations      10/11 & 12/2016

Your journal for each of these activities will be due the class following each Video presentation.