Week 4 To Acquire or Not to Acquire? To Merge or Not to Merge?

As we think about the goals of the firm, financial management, and overall retail financial strategy we should also think about how mergers and acquisitions play a part in achieving profitability and increasing market share for the firm.  Should a firm merge with another?  Why or Why not?  Should they acquire a firm instead of merge?

If you will recall in my initial announcement this week I listed some of the biggest mergers and acquisitions of our time.  One concept we can discuss this week is the idea of “intellectual capital” and how it allows firms to achieve and surpass financial goals.  We can also discuss how it helps shape retail financial strategy.

Let’s turn our attention to Wal-Mart and Bonobos.  Wal-Mart acquired Bonobos, a menswear company,  2017 for $310 million.  Some analysts discuss this acquisition by Walmart as gaining intellectual capital.  This becomes an interesting topic as Walmart stands to gain not just expanded digital presence but also numerous resources in terms of knowledge from individuals with these companies who have a broader knowledge base of what it takes to be successful and profitable in the e-commerce segment.

Review the following resources within the Reading & Resources area located in the Lessons tab.

1)  Wal-Mart Acquires Bonobos article from New York Times

2)  Video:  Ceri Hughes:  KM Teams can unlock intellectual capital through knowledge and learning systems

3)  Video:  What is intellectual capital?  What does intellectual capital mean?  Intellectual Capital Meaning

Address the following questions in your responses this week.

• What is intellectual data? Do you agree with this or do you have a different definition?

• What type of intellectual capital does Bonobos gain from Walmart, if any?

• Can you give specific examples of other retailers (brick and mortar or e-commerce) which have acquired intellectual capital by buying or partnering with firms?

• How do you believe these acquisitions will allow this, and any other retailer, to achieve financial goals and create financial retail strategy?

• Lastly, do you believe intellectual capital is something that can allow a firm to achieve financial goals?  In other words, do you believe this is impactful to the firm financially?

Week 5 The 5 Principles of Finance

After reading all of the articles and/or chapters for this week please review and respond to the following:

• What are the 5 principles of finance?

• A fundamental principle of investing is that higher risk requires higher rewards or returns. Give two examples of the risk-return relationship.

• What is meant by market prices reflect information?

Feel free to incorporate resources into your discussion this week!  Personal experiences are also great to share in your posts as well.

Week 6 Capital Budgeting

After reading all of the articles and/or chapters for this week please review and respond to the following:

As we discuss capital budgeting we can also have a conversation about some of the computer applications we use to help us better understand various capital budgeting techniques.  Locate a specific capital budgeting software and discuss how it supports the various capital budgeting techniques we discussed this week.  What are some of the pros and cons of the software based on the concepts you learned in the lessons and reading this week as well as the previous content from prior weeks?

As a reminder here are the capital budgeting techniques we discussed this week.

Please make sure you provide the website for the capital budgeting software and compare and contrast the software you chose with that of your peers.  Please be as thorough with your response as possible providing complete details.

Feel free to incorporate resources into your discussion this week!  Personal experiences are also great to share in your posts as well.

Week 7 Financial Forecasting and Planning

After reading all of the articles and/or chapters for this week please review and respond to the following:

This week our discussion is on page 216 of your textbook.  It’s also listed below:

Look at newspapers and periodicals, such as The Wall Street Journal, Business Week, and Fortune.  You are also able to use other resources that I provided during the first week of course or any other industry related resources.  Think about business news from the past few years or even recently.  Can you find examples of companies that lost their strategic focus?  What were the consequences?

Financial planning is about recognizing factors that influence a company’s success and prepare to respond to them as necessary.

As you complete the discussion this week make sure you provide either a PDF or link to the resource you chose for identification of a recent news event.  As you respond to your peers make sure you are comparing and contrasting the company you chose with that of your peers while also using concepts we have learned in the course.  Remember – applying concepts you learned are very important and you must be able to demonstrate this in a meaningful way.

Week 8 Create a Personal Finance Plan

We have come to our final week of class. I hope you all have enjoyed the semester. I know finance can be a tough subject. However, it is essential to have a basic understanding as you move forward in your career and personal life.

 

For this week’s discussion I would like you to answer the following and  create your own personal financial plan for the future using the financial plan document. This will help you make decisions that will affect your future. (There is no need to use personal financial numbers here) Just create a plan using fictitious numbers. You can save a copy for later to create a real financial plan for yourself and your family.

What is the purpose of a financial plan? How can you benefit by creating one?

Respond to 3 students for questions 4 & 5. Must be at least 100 words and include direct questions