Fluent Essays

I need a decision memo for a merger to the employees. I am providing the facts of the merger and some of my thoughts below. Financial Report Eugene Soto, the Chief Financial Officer, meets with you to review the financial considerations of the upcoming merger. Though Binary Frontiers Entertainment presents the strongest offer in terms of pure numbers, I must admit the two offers are closer than I initially thought, he says. Lets go over what we know. BFE is a larger company and their offer of cash, stock, and royalties on our existing products is more generous than Kaijusofts. The Board will no doubt be happier to see us merge with an established brand, but I believe they would accept a recommendation of either offer, in the end. We know that BFEs business model relies on extensive focus testing, establishing long-running franchises, and lengthy development cycles. Its a stable approach, but rather inflexible and not always as popular with todays customers. Kaijusoft, on the other hand, is an up-and-coming company. Their smaller size means their offer is weaker, but theyll have more room for our employees. Furthermore, they have more agility in their business model, though their love of innovation is a high-risk strategy. If we accept their offer, well be able to grow alongside them and reap the benefits-the deal would be closer to a true partnership. In BFE, we would be only a smaller part of a large organization, more valued for our assets and intellectual properties than for our employees and leadership team. However, if Kaijusofts growth doesnt pan out, our investors will suffer. Sales and Marketing Report Renee Cavanaugh, the VP of Sales and Marketing, enters the conference room with a carefully-prepared presentation on the merits and weaknesses of Kaijusoft and BFEs marketing strategies. Both companies use a marketing style different from our own. Lets start with BFE, she says, projecting a series of graphs and charts as she reviews the past weeks findings. BFEs business model involves focus-tested, big-budget products. Their games are a source of solid, dependable profits, but theyre not remarkable. In movie terms, they make summer blockbusters, not Oscar-winners. In terms of marketing, BFE takes a questionable approach. They pay money to social media personalities for positive coverage, but their endorsements arent always marked as such. Those methods could lead to trouble, though so far theyve avoided legal repercussions. BFE is also making a push to put their customers private data to use in marketing. Some would claim theyre violating their customers expectation of privacy; others would call it an effective supplement to their strategy. Kaijusofts marketing approach presents its own risks. The gifts they provide to critics and media representatives verge on bribery, though theyve so far avoided consequences. Compared to BFE, their business model is less predictable, less stable, but they make well-received games. How much of their positive press is truly earned and how much is the result of their close relationships with reviewers is anyones guess. Finally, Kaijusofts privacy policy matches our own, so we can be confident they wont misuse our database of customer information. As to which company Id recommend merging with, well.... She hesitates, clearly unwilling to commit to either company outright. I think BFE has an edge insofar as theyve been in business longer. Theyve proven themselves. But Kaijusoft is a rising star. Merging with them could pay off big. Human Resources Report Jill Kennedy, the VP of Human Resources, meets with you to review the impact the merger will have on Evolution Games employees. I dont have a clear recommendation, she says up front. Neither of our two suitors is a perfect company, and the merger is going to create upheaval and turmoil in the team no matter which offer we accept. If we merge with Kaijusoft, more of our current structure would remain intact. Many of our employees would stay on, because Kaijusoft has expressed an interest not only in our technology and intellectual properties but also in our programmers and creative talent. Theyre prepared to offer employment guarantees for our current leadership for a certain time, as well. However, weve learned of Kaijusofts reputation for mass layoffs during the ends of development cycles. Their organization maintains a loyal ‘inner circle of long-term employees-everyone outside that circle is expendable. Kaijusoft might keep the majority of our staff, but I cant say how many will enter the inner circle before the next cycle of layoffs. If we choose Binary Frontiers Entertainment, the worst damage will happen up front. BFE wont be interested in retaining most of our current staff-even our upper management wont be guaranteed a position in the reorganized company. However, theyre offering a nice compensation package for our leadership, so the blow will certainly be softened. Anyone on our staff who survives the initial wave of layoffs will have a secure career for some time-BFE has a great reputation for loyalty. That job security will come at a price, though, as weve learned that the demands on employees can be extremely high during crunch time. As I said, neither company is an obvious winner to me. Normally, Id prefer a company like Kaijusoft since merging with them would keep more of our staff employed, but with their reputation, Kaijusoft isnt necessarily a better choice. Compliance Report Janice Denton, the Chief Compliance Officer, discusses the issues surrounding the two companies offering to merge with yours. The choice wont be easy, she says. I confess Im not thrilled with either option, but the Board will expect a proposal for one company or the other. I see a number of compliance concerns from both companies. The most prominent issue is within Kaijusoft. Kaijusoft fosters a culture of harassment toward women, a work environment that has led to complaints and at least one lawsuit. Patrick, their CEO, has taken some steps to correct the problem by firing the Chief Compliance Officer and VP of Human Resources. However, considering the worst complaints came from the marketing team, Im not so sure Patrick fired the correct people. He may have some blind spots where certain members of the team are concerned. Kaijusoft also produces games with strong similarities to other companies work-a copyright lawsuit could be forthcoming if they arent careful. Binary Frontiers Entertainment has a diverse leadership and a fairly positive work environment, but they produce violent games that they proceed to bully through the ratings board. I dont like their products, but they certainly have a right to make them. What troubles me is the strings they pull to sell their mature-rated games to teens. Between their manipulation of the ratings board, their questionable use of private data, and their extreme demands on employees, BFE could face a lawsuit from a number of angles. I had a strong preference for Kaijusoft initially, but I confess that choice is due to my personal bias. BFE produces the sort of ‘entertainment that creates misogyny, aggression, and intolerance in our youth. And yet, as a woman, I cant say Im eager to join Kaijusofts workplace. I only hope that whichever company you choose to merge with, you aim to change the culture for the better. Technology Report Martin Nguyen, the Chief Technology Officer, meets with you for a final recap of the pros and cons of both offers. I gotta say, Ill be glad when this mess is over, he says. I dont even think I care too much who we merge with, so long as its just done, you know? Anyway, heres what weve got. If we merge with BFE, were gonna get chopped up into parts. Theyll take our tech, grab what they want from our databases, crank out some sequels to our games, and so forth. Most of us wont be around to see it happen and, hey, theyre offering enough money that I wouldnt lose too much sleep. BFEs non-compete agreement means anyone on our leadership team who they dont have room for wont work in the business for a while, but well have a solid severance. BFEs privacy policy-or lack of one-means that were going to upset a lot of our customers when they find out their info is being used for advertising and sold to marketers. But that becomes BFEs problem, not ours, because Evolution Games as we know it wont exist. So maybe thats no big deal. Kaijusofts more interested in our creative talent: our artists, writers, and so forth-so they wont just strip us for parts like BFE will. Well have a bigger presence on the team-I think well even have a new name for the company after the merger. Kaijusoft will keep our programmers and animators on for a while, but we know how their layoff cycles work-most of those guys will be out of work after the next big release. Kaijusoft has also been in hot water for creating games that are a bit too similar to other companies work. Well have to work with them to avoid making rip-offs in the future. But, hey, thats why they need more creative talent, right?  Merger Madness Michelle Freeman Purdue University Global GB590M4 Professor, Pricilla Aaltonen August 2, 2021 Fellow Employees, Question 1: Which company, Binary Frontiers Entertainment or Kaijusoft, did you select most often and why? I selected Kaijusoft most often over Binary Frontiers Entertainment for the following reasons. I felt that Kaijusoft values and beliefs were more in line with my company’s which made them a better fit. Although Kaijusoft did have some issues with sexual harassment and they did not address it appropriately, I feel that they were the best match for my current employees. They seemed to be the more appropriate match because they cared about and respected their employees more than BFE. Question 2: Would the company you chose in this exercise be your final choice? Why or why not? With my choices being Kaijusoft or BFE, I would choose Kaijusoft as my final choice for the merger. Both companies have equal amounts of negative attributes such as sexual harassment and copying of games. However, the fact that most of our current staff would immediately be laid off if merged with BFE was a major deciding factor to merge with Kaijusoft. I believe our market share would increase which would boost our organic growth. Most importantly I believe it would be less of a culture change for our existing employees which creates a culture of greater empowerment. I believe that this is an underestimated task and since our corporate culture is similar, we have an opportunity to have a greater influence. Question 3: Did you find yourself drawn more often to the rationales of a particular lens? How much do you think that affected your final decision? Although my preferred ethical lens is the Results Lens, where I am listening to my intuition. In this exercise, I found myself more drawn to the relationship and responsibility lens. I was concerned about the bottom line, but my main concern was relative to how the merger would affect the employees. My reasoning was if we merged with Kaijusoft a great deal of our existing employees would be retained versus BFE who would immediately lay them off. I felt that retention of existing talent could be a valuable integration of skills, competencies and experience. This also give the existing employees the opportunity to show Kaijusoft how valuable they are to the long-term success of the company. Overall BFE did not seem interested in our values nor the retention of our employees. Question 4: How might the skills you have learned within the last four Ethics Exercises help you make ethical decisions in the future? I believe that the skills I have learned with these ethics exercises provides me with the frameworks for making good ethical decisions for the future. Especially when I open my own business. As a leader I will need to consider all perspectives when analyzing and making decisions in a variety of ethical situations. I think that the exercises challenged me to think outside of what I thought was the norm by choosing answers based on ethical lenses other than my own. GB590M4 Checklist Rubric and CLA and Grade Chart All competency criteria must be met to earn a B grade and pass this Course Outcome. A predefined number of mastery criteria must be met to earn an A grade, indicating mastery of the Course Outcome. See the CLA and Grade Criteria Chart below. *If work submitted for this Competency Assessment does not meet the minimum submission requirements, it will be returned without being scored. MET NOT YET MET CATEGORY 1 Dragged to the Dance Competency Identified the values in tension within a specific ethical dilemma. (Questions 1-5) Differentiated between an ethical issue and technical issues or business decisions within the context of a specific ethical dilemma. (Questions 6- 8) Distinguished facts, inferences, and assumptions within the context of a specific ethical dilemma. (Questions 9-12) Correlated the ethical perspectives of decision makers to statements evaluating the context of a specific ethical dilemma. (Questions 13-16) CATEGORY 2 Sizing Up Partners Competency Identified the ethical task assigned to each ethical lens to help discern a path of action. (Questions 1-4) Identified the characteristics of the primary ethical theories within the context of a specific ethical dilemma. (Questions 5-7) Applied the foundational values of each ethical perspective to the problem and course of action. (Questions 8-13) Correctly analyzed the choices against the key phrase for each lens. (Questions 14-16) CATEGORY 3 Mastering the Jive Competency Determined a path of action based on the secondary ethical values assigned to each ethical lens. (Questions 1-3) Considered definition of an ethical act from the perspective of each lens. (Questions 10-13) Identified ethical vices with each lens. (Questions 14-16) CATEGORY 4 The Last Dance Competency Determined a path of action based on the checklist for action assigned to each ethical lens. (Questions 1-6) Chose an action that meets the definition of an ethical act. (Questions 7- 10) Analyzed the choices against the blind spots for each lens. (Questions 11-16) CATEGORY 5 Fusion Memo Competency Formulated a final decision based on the use of the core questions for the fourth step of the Baird Decision Model — Being Responsible — together with the information gained from the previous four exercises. Appropriately communicated to colleagues in a memo/content. Mastery Provided the ethical problem. Clearly presented the values in conflict in the problem. Clearly and concisely stated the reason for the decision of choice. Clearly provided the ethical framework or ethical principles used to make the decision. Clearly used intellectual empathy (ability to entertain opposing views). Clearly used intellectual autonomy (ability and willingness to be an independent thinker). CATEGORY 6 Competency Correctly synthesized a forward-thinking conclusion. Mastery Provided context in which to build relationships with other team members and constituents. Correctly summarized what the decision means to others. CATEGORY 7 Competency Appropriate use of tone in the memo to communication to colleagues. Total Competency Criteria: 18 Total Mastery Criteria: 8 CLA and Grade Criteria Chart CRITERIA CLA Score Grade Points Meets all competency criteria and four to eight of mastery criteria 5 A 1000 Meets all competency criteria and zero to three of mastery criteria 4 B 850 Meets 13 - 17 of competency criteria 3 Not Yet Competent* 0 Meets 9 – 12 of competency criteria 2 Not Yet Competent* 0 Meets 1 - 8 of competency criteria 1 Not Yet Competent* 0 Meets 0 competency criteria 0 Not Yet Competent* 0 No submission NA Not Yet Competent* 0 *Not Yet Competent grades convert to an F at term end