Diversification Strategy of Walt Disney Company
Overview
Business leaders are often faced with situations that require swift but responsible decisions. You’ve learned how critical thinking is more than simply evaluating the pros and cons of a situation. It is a method that engages broad thinking abilities that include brainstorming, data analysis, creativity, collaboration, and reflection. The ability to adapt to ever-changing conditions through critical thinking and decision making is key to capitalizing on market upturns and staying afloat during economic declines.
As part of this course, you will complete a series of assignments.
Prompt
For this assignment, analyze the diversification strategy of either Disney or Kimberly-Clark using the documents linked within your Soomo webtext. Explain how critical thinking applies to decision making based on your review of a real-world scenario. Specifically, you must address the following rubric criteria:
Application: Explain how critical thinking for decision making is applicable to the scenario. Use evidence to support your explanations.
What makes critical thinking crucial for decision making?
Analysis: Explain how information (such as facts, opinions, and published reports) is used to determine or establish the context. Use evidence to support your explanations.
Why do you think the company reached the decision to diversify?
What steps do you believe were taken? Explain your response using sources found during the research of your selected company.
Conclusion and related outcomes: Describe the role of logic, evidence, and arguments in the company’s decision-making process.
Was the decision to expand products, services, or value chain successful? Why or why not?
To begin, choose one of the following to focus on for this assignment and review the corresponding document provided in the Soomo webtext.
Kimberly-Clark
Disney
Guidelines for Submission
Complete the Critical Thinking for Business Decisions worksheet in your Soomo webtext, download your completed work, and submit it in Brightspace for instructor feedback. You should write using a professional voice, and any sources should be cited according to APA style. Your assignment must be between 400 and 800 words in length.
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Assignment two
Overview
Company leaders need to keep a watchful eye on the economy and how micro- and macro-environments affect their business. Successful leaders are always a step ahead. They stay there by leading with data-driven decisions that allow their companies to anticipate and respond to challenges. In this module, you’ve learned how information is key in making decisions and solving problems; however, research and analytical skills are also needed to extract value from data. Information-gathering should align with research objectives. Qualitative and quantitative data alongside relevant and credible primary and secondary sources are fundamental ingredients for informing good judgement.
Prompt
In a report by the U.S. Department of Commerce, the U.S. economy contracted at an annual rate of 4.8% in the first quarter of this year. For this assignment, you will take on the role of an HR manager at an air transportation supply company. The company is currently struggling with a significant loss of revenue and considering operational costs. You have been asked to analyze employee performance over the last year and make sense of the data.
Using a summary (provided below) of the company’s employee salaries, bonuses, and performance data, address the following rubric criteria:
Interpretation: Discuss your interpretation of the data.
What questions emerge from your analysis of the data?
What story can they tell about the company’s employees?
Analysis: Explain how the provided data helps you understand your employees and how the company is using its financial resources. Identify potential gaps or issues in the data.
What is the quantitative and qualitative data telling you? Are there any underlying issues or perspectives?
What is the data not telling you?
What additional primary and secondary sources would help the company make a decision?
Conclusion and related outcomes: Describe how you have used data to determine a strategy. Use evidence to support your explanations.
What would your strategy be if you were asked to recommend a 10% reduction in the budget?
How would you synthesize and defend your decision process?
This resource will assist you as you complete your paper.
Air Transportation Supplier HR Performance Data Spreadsheet. This summary table of your company’s HR performance data will inform your work on this assignment.
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Module One Assignment
Christopher Fuentes
Southern New Hampshire University
BUS 225: Critical Business Skills for Success
Harold Graham
March 14, 2023
Module One Assignment
Application
Critical thinking entails methodically collecting, analyzing, and evaluating the information available to solve a problem or make decisions. Engaging in critical thinking is critical because it enables business leaders to consider the different options available before making a major decision (Hester, 2021). Business leaders can weigh the pros and cons of the various options before picking the most viable one. Such decisions tend to be sound, since they are based on evidence, enabling organizations to decide on complex issues and high-stake situations where the result of the decision can have a major impact on the organization and society. In Disney, critical thinking is critical for the success of the diversification plan. Engaging in critical thinking will allow the stakeholders to evaluate the various aspects of the diversification plan and establish the potential benefits, resources required, benefits, and possible drawbacks. An evidence-based decision is more likely to ensure the business achieves its intended diversification goals.
Analysis
Disney, also known as the Walt Disney Company is an American multinational, mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered in California. It was founded on October 16, 1923, by brothers Walt and Roy O. Disney. The company’s mission is entertaining, informing, and inspiring individuals globally through storytelling and innovative technologies (The Walt Disney Company, 2023). The company’s history is based on animation but has since expanded to include theme parks, film, and TV production. Disney uses a decentralized cooperative multidivisional organizational structure. The structure allows Disney to run different business types since it has a wide breadth of operations.
The company’s diversification strategy entails venturing into sectors beyond the traditional entertainment and media businesses. Currently, Disney has diversified into four business segments: Media Networks, Studio Entertainment, Direct-to-Consumer, and International; and Parks, Experiences, and Consumer Products (The Walt Disney Company, 2023). The diversification plan seeks to leverage the company’s recognition and innovation to expand to new markets and generate m...