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Read the instructions for Assignment 1 and choose your overseas country(Germany) from the list providedState the target overseas country you have chosen(Germany) and explain why this country interests youBriefly describe the product or service provided by your organization (or an organization that is of interest) that you will analyze in this courseUsing any of the G, U, or I indicators, select two indicators and explain how these relate to your chosen target countrys economic health jwi515_wk2_lecture_1202.pdf jwi_515_assignment_1_1202.pdf jwi515_guides_worksheet_2012.docx Unformatted Attachment Preview JWI 515: Managerial Economics Week 2 Lecture Notes Economic Indicators What It Means In this lecture, you will learn about economic indicators and gain an understanding of the benefits they offer you as a business leader. Economic indicators are data items that help you follow business trends and predict upcoming business opportunities and challenges. You can examine a wide range of economic indicators, since they are published regularly on government agency websites and other sources. The available data includes indicators for your industry, your state, the national economy, and for many other countries. At certain times, the business environment changes in a significant way that impacts your company and your industry. You will learn how economic indicators can help you identify when these changes in the business environment are taking place. In addition, by tracking economic data over time and identifying trends, you can predict certain changes in the marketplace ahead of time. By learning how to “read” the data in this way, the best leaders make use of economic indicators as a tool to guide their business decisions and plans. Why It Matters • Economic indicators provide evidence of changes in the business environment • A wide range of historical and current economic data is freely available online • Leaders who identify and predict business trends make more well-informed and effective business decisions “Economics can be used to understand and predict the decisions people and other economic entities (e.g., businesses, governments) make.” Frakt & Piper © Strayer University. All Rights Reserved. This document contains Strayer University confidential and proprietary information and may not be copied, further distributed, or otherwise disclosed, in whole or in part, without the expressed written permission of Strayer University. JWI 515 – Week 2 Lecture Notes (1202) Page 1 of 5 JWI 515: Managerial Economics Week 2 Lecture Notes ECONOMIC INDICATORS What are Economic Indicators? An economic indicator is a piece of data that helps you interpret or predict business and investment opportunities. It is a gauge of the current or future health of the economy and, most importantly, it can be tracked over time. By observing how various economic indicators change over time, business leaders can identify how many aspects of the economy are changing. By understanding those changes, and how they affect you, your business, and your nation, you can take advantage of upcoming changes to position yourself and your business concerns to grow and prosper. Understanding economic indicators is the key to making good, strategic decisions for your business before or during a change in the economy. A wide range of economic indicators are collected and published by government agencies and other bodies and these indicators can be viewed free of charge by members of the public. In the United States, the Department of Commerce and the Department of Labor are two government agencies that track and publish key indicators, such as Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and unemployment rates, at both the federal and state level. Some international indicators can be found on government websites, but a larger collection of international data is available on Trading Economics, a privately run website that collects international business data from respected sources and aggregates it in one place. Why Follow Economic Indicators? Why are economic indicators important for you and your business? Why should a leader in business care about them? To understand this, let’s look at a real-world example. Imagine you need a business loan for your small business. If you drove to your bank to speak to a representative about that loan, and there was a sign at the bank that announced, Interest rates will fall next month, what would you do? Any savvy business owner would probably consider waiting until next month to get the more favorable rate. That would be the most beneficial decision for your business. © Strayer University. All Rights Reserved. This document contains Strayer University confidential and proprietary information and may not be copied, further distributed, or otherwise disclosed, in whole or in part, without the expressed written permission of Strayer University. JWI 515 – Week 2 Lecture Notes (1202) Page 2 of 5 JWI 515: Managerial Economics Week 2 Lecture Notes Of course, banks do not post signs about their plans for future interest rates but, if you understand how the economy works, you are better able to anticipate significant turning points in the economic situation for your industry. An understanding of where the economy is going can help you position yourself and your company to launch successful new initiatives, make smart capital investments, and compete effectively in your business sector. As an informed leader, you need to know how to follow key economic indicators and take note of their upward and downward trends over time. By learning to interpret these signs, you can identify the best way forward in a fast-changing economy. Critical decisions are made at times called inflection points. An inflection point in mathematics is the point on a curve at which a change in the direction of curvature occurs. In the world of business, an inflection point is the turning point in an economic situation. If you, as a manager and leader, can learn to anticipate inflection points, you can make decisions that benefit your team and your company. This is true in the operation of your business and it is also true at the national level, as governments decide how to address countrywide economic issues. Who Uses Economic Indicators? Economic indicators were first published for government leaders who needed a better understanding of the country’s current economic condition. However, economic data can be useful in a wide variety of professions and for multiple purposes. Here are some examples of people who follow economic indicators, with an explanation in each case of how they use the information obtained from them: • Investors use economic indicators to fine-tune their investment strategies, improve buying and selling decisions, and match asset allocation decisions to the economic cycle. • Business leaders use economic indicators to make better hiring decisions, match inventories to the business cycle, improve business forecasts, and evaluate new business opportunities based on current economic conditions. © Strayer University. All Rights Reserved. This document contains Strayer University confidential and proprietary information and may not be copied, further distributed, or otherwise disclosed, in whole or in part, without the expressed written permission of Strayer University. JWI 515 – Week 2 Lecture Notes (1202) Page 3 of 5 JWI 515: Managerial Economics Week 2 Lecture Notes • Purchasing managers use economic indicators to forecast prices for raw materials and to negotiate longer-term pricing agreements during periods of economic slowdown, when raw material prices tend to be the lowest. • Policy analysts use economic indicators to guide them as they design economically sensitive policy decisions and design regulations for various business sectors and markets. • Small business owners use economic indicators to inform their plans for establishing and growing their business and to help them in their search for investors to support their new ventures. • Business students use economic indicators to develop a thorough understanding of business cycles and their implications for business strategy, so as to become more valuable hires for potential future employers. The Three Types of Economic Indicators There are three types of economic indicators: leading, lagging, and coincidental. By studying a combination of these, you will get a more rounded view of the economic outlook. • Leading indicators signal coming, future economic events. An increase in the money supply can indicate a short-term drop in interest rates, for example, and a possible rise over the long term. • Lagging indicators follow an economic event. A drop in unemployment measures is a lagging indicator of an improving economy, for example. • Coincidental indicators happen at the same time as an economic event. Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is an example of a coincidental indicator. It does not predict anything, but it shows us whether the economy is healthy or unhealthy. © Strayer University. All Rights Reserved. This document contains Strayer University confidential and proprietary information and may not be copied, further distributed, or otherwise disclosed, in whole or in part, without the expressed written permission of Strayer University. JWI 515 – Week 2 Lecture Notes (1202) Page 4 of 5 JWI 515: Managerial Economics Week 2 Lecture Notes Which Economic Indicators Should I Follow? The challenging aspect of using economic indicators is that you need to determine what works for you, your industry, and your business. Every business is unique and thus there is no standard economic indicator “dashboard” that will apply to all companies. There are so many economic indicators that trying to follow them all would be an overwhelming task. Therefore, economists and business leaders typically track just a few indicators, the ones that are most relevant to their professional goals. There are some key indicators that many executives and business leaders use to guide their business decisions and we will learn about those major indicators over the next few weeks. In this JWMI course, we provide a tool – the GUIDES Worksheet – to help you create a collection of economic indicators for your company and your industry. You will submit your completed worksheet as Assignment 1. To interpret the data you have collected, we provide a template to help you make business recommendations based upon your findings in Assignment 2. In this way, step by step, you will “learn the language” of economics and see for yourself how useful the information found in economic indicators can be. Looking Ahead In this lecture, you learned about economic indicators, the data metrics that can be used to understand and predict changes in the economy. You explored how and why this data is valuable to you as a business leader. To complement your reading, this week you have started gaining practical experience by using the GUIDES worksheet to collect economic data related to your company and its industry. Next week, the lecture takes a closer look at some of the key macroeconomic indicators: GDP, Unemployment, Inflation, Interest Rates, and Exchange Rates. In addition, it explores the broader issues of why businesses should make decisions that are based on real-world data and considers how you as a leader can model and encourage a data-driven approach. © Strayer University. All Rights Reserved. This document contains Strayer University confidential and proprietary information and may not be copied, further distributed, or otherwise disclosed, in whole or in part, without the expressed written permission of Strayer University. JWI 515 – Week 2 Lecture Notes (1202) Page 5 of 5 JWI 515: Managerial Economics Academic Submissions and Evaluation Assignment 1: GUIDES Worksheet (Weight: 10\%) Due by Sunday, Midnight of Week 3 Overview In Assignment 1, you will learn how to collect economic data, using Economic Indicators that are readily available to consumers online. Economic Indicators are key statistics or metrics used to study the status of the overall economy, industry segments, and specific companies. To help you learn how Economic Indicators work, JWMI has created a worksheet, called GUIDES, which will take you step by step through the process of collecting the data needed for Assignment 1. You will use the worksheet provided in your course to research key economic information about TWO countries: a target country that you select and your home country. The target country is a potential overseas location for your current company (or a company of interest) to expand its business, either by increasing the size of an existing division located there or by entering into a new market. For most students, your home country is the United States, but for international students, it is your country of residence. Exceptions are possible if you have a unique situation – contact your Professor. Use your current company and its industry for context. If your company is not currently operating globally, imagine that it is considering entry into one of the markets below. It is your task to assess the economic conditions in relation to your company’s unique profile and needs, so as to assess whether expansion into the potential overseas market makes sense for your business. Choose ONE of the following countries as the target country for this assignment: • Bahrain • Mexico • Canada • Russia • Chile • South Africa • Ethiopia • South Korea • Germany • Thailand • Hungary • Turkey • Ireland • United Kingdom • Japan © Strayer University. All Rights Reserved. This document contains Strayer University confidential and proprietary information and may not be copied, further distributed, or otherwise disclosed, in whole or in part, without the expressed written permission of Strayer University. JWI 515 – Assignment 1 (1202) Page 1 of 4 JWI 515: Managerial Economics Course Guide Instructions Download and save your GUIDES worksheet in Week 1. Complete the entries in the six sections of the GUIDES worksheet during Weeks 2 and 3. All the required data can be found on the Trading Economics or Doing Business websites (links below). § Access the Trading Economics website at http://www.tradingeconomics.com § Access the Doing Business website at http://www.doingbusiness.org TIP: To locate Economic Indicators not found on the Trading Economics website main landing page, click the INDICATORS drop-down menu at the top of the page, to see the full list of available Indicators. Week 1: Download and save your GUIDES worksheet: § Review the instructions for Assignment 1 § Download and save your GUIDES worksheet as an MS Word document § Use this format for your filename: LastName_FirstName_JWI515_GUIDES_Worksheet.docx e.g. Doe_John_JWI515_ GUIDES_Worksheet.docx Week 2: Complete the following sections of the GUIDES worksheet: o o o Section G (GDP & Growth) Section U (Unemployment & Utilization) Section I (Inflation & Interest rates) Week 3: Complete the following sections of the GUIDES worksheet: o o o Section D (Debt & Deficits) Section E (External balances & Exchange rates) Section S (Savings & Investment) Submit your completed GUIDES worksheet document (All Sections – G, U, I, D, E, and S) in Week 3. © Strayer University. All Rights Reserved. This document contains Strayer University confidential and proprietary information and may not be copied, further distributed, or otherwise disclosed, in whole or in part, without the expressed written permission of Strayer University. JWI 515 – Assignment 1 (1202) Page 2 of 4 JWI 515: Managerial Economics Course Guide RUBRIC: Assignment 1: GUIDES Worksheet CRITERIA 1. Complete the GUIDES Worksheet: Section G Weight: 15\% 2. Complete the GUIDES Worksheet: Section U Weight: 15\% 3. Complete the GUIDES Worksheet: Section I Weight: 15\% Unsatisfactory Low Pass Pass High Pass Honors Section G is not submitted or the data does not reflect accurate information. The student demonstrates no understanding as to whether or not the Indicators are representative of Economic health. Section G is partially complete and/or the information is not always accurate. The student demonstrates minimal understanding as to whether or not the Indicators are representative of Economic health. Section G is satisfactorily complete. The information is mostly accurate. The trend description is mostly adequate. The student can identify in a majority of cases whether or not the Indicators are representative of Economic health. Section G is complete. The information is accurate. The trend descriptions contain mostly relevant, helpful information. The student is mostly able to accurately determine whether or not the Indicators are representative of Economic health. Section G is exemplarily completed. The information is accurate, complete, and provides concise details that accurately describe the economic trends. The student is always - or almost always - able to accurately determine whether or not the Indicators are representative of Economic health. Section U is not submitted or the data does not reflect accurate information. The student demonstrates no understanding as to whether or not the Indicators are representative of Economic health Section U is partially complete and/or the information is not always accurate. The student demonstrates minimal understanding as to whether or not the Indicators are representative of Economic health Section U is satisfactorily complete. The information is mostly accurate. The trend description is mostly adequate. The student can identify in a majority of cases whether or not the Indicators are representative of Economic health. Section U is complete. The information is accurate. The trend descriptions contain mostly relevant, helpful information. The student is mostly able to accurately determine whether or not the Indicators are representative of Economic health Section U is exemplarily completed. The information is accurate, complete, and provides concise details that accurately describe the economic trends. The student is always - or almost always - able to accurately determine whether or not the Indicators are representative of Economic health Section I is not submitted or the data does not reflect accurate information. The student demonstrates no understanding as to whether or not the Indicators are representative of Economic health. Section I is partially complete and/or the information is not always accurate. The student demonstrates minimal understanding as to whether or not the Indicators are representative of Economic health. Section I is satisfactorily complete. The information is mostly accurate. The trend description is mostly adequate. The student can identify in a majority of cases whether or not the Indicators are representative of Economic health. Section I is complete. The information is accurate. The trend descriptions contain mostly relevant, helpful information. The student is mostly able to accurately determine whether or not the Indicators are representative of Economic health. Section I is exemplarily completed. The information is accurate, complete, and provides concise details that accurately describe the economic trends. The student is almost always able to accurately determine whether or not the Indicators are representative of Economic health. © Strayer University. All Rights Reserved. This document contains Strayer University confidential and proprietary information and may not be copied, further distributed, or otherwise disclosed, in whole or in part, without the expressed written permission of Strayer University. JWI 515 – Assignment 1 (1202) Page 3 of 4 JWI 515: Managerial Economics Course Guide CRITERIA 4. Complete the GUIDES Worksheet: Section D Weight: 20\% 5. Complete the GUIDES Worksheet: Section E Weight: 20\% 6. Complete the GUIDES Worksheet: Section S Weight: 15\% Unsatisfactory Low Pass Pass High Pass Honors Section D is not submitted or the data does not reflect accurate information. The student demonstrates no understanding as to whether or not the Indicators are representative of Economic health. Section D is partially complete and/or the information is not always accurate. The student demonstrates minimal understanding as to whether or not the Indicators are repres ... Purchase answer to see full attachment