Business Commons^™

Burgerville: Sustainability And Sourcing In A Qsr Supply Chain, Darrell Brown, Phil Berko, Patrick Dedrick, Brie Hilliard, Joshua Pfleeger

Business Faculty Publications and Presentations

Jack Graves is considering buying chicken. More precisely, Jack is considering where to buy chicken. He needs to make a recommendation to the purchasing team soon, and the decision is complicated. Jack is a long-time employee of the Burgerville restaurant chain, a quick-serve restaurant chain in the Northwest USA. Burgerville prides itself in being true to its long-held values while maintaining profitability and growth. Graves’ primary job at Burgerville is to assure that the company’s values are embedded in all its actions, including its relationships to its supply chain. His current concern is the dilemma of which values to promote. …

Tropical Salvage: From Recession To Expansion, Scott Marshall, Lisa Peifer, Erin Ferrigno

Business Faculty Publications and Presentations

Tim O’Brien, founder of Tropical Salvage, was preparing for another warehouse clearance sale of his unique, handcrafted hardwood furniture. It had been an enormously challenging year and it was important to reduce inventory before the next container arrived from Indonesia. The market for fine furniture had begun to decline steadily in early 2008 following the stock market crash of the prior September. The company survived a difficult period, but not without suffering a decline in sales. O’Brien had spent ten years building a sustainable business model based on environmental stewardship, worker empowerment and unique, high quality product. As the economy …

Altis: A Microfinance Startup In Nepal, Jacen Greene, Scott Marshall

Business Faculty Publications and Presentations

In Sanjay Karki’s role as Deputy Director for the Nepal office of Mercy Corps, he had worked on a number of poverty reduction programs. But his current initiative presents the most daunting challenges he has yet faced. One of the most promising innovations in poverty alleviation was the concept of microfinance, the provision of small-scale loans and other financial services to poor entrepreneurs. And although the government of Nepal strongly supported microfinance models, a decade-long civil war ending in 2006 had severely disrupted government services and worsened poverty. In the terai, or plains, of Nepal, government and non-profit microfinance institutions …

Sustainability Amidst Uncertainty: Columbia Forest Products’ Pursuit Of Sustainability In A Changing Market, Scott Marshall, Zachary Anderson, Matthew Flax, Daniel Gambetta, Jacen Greene, Madeleine E. Pullman

Business Faculty Publications and Presentations

Upon reading the latest report from the Department of Housing and Urban Affairs, Harry Demorest found his concerns confirmed – the construction of new homes had fallen yet again across the United States. Over the past month, new home starts had declined over 14% in December; this marked the end of 2007 during which housing starts were down 25% compared to the previous year and hit a low not experienced since 1993. The question was no longer “will there be a recession?” but rather “how long will the recession last?”

The fate of Columbia Forest Products, the company that Harry …

Open Innovation And Strategy, Henry W. Chesbrough, Melissa M. Appleyard

Business Faculty Publications and Presentations

The article discusses a process of business innovation known as open innovation and its relation to traditional business strategy. The competitive strategy developed by Michael Porter emphasized rivalry, buyer power, and barriers to entry as forces that could enhance a producer's surplus. The authors discuss the impact of the Porterian value chain, the processes of production through to the consumer, on subsequent business practices. However, this theory does not account for external sources of value to a company, such as innovation communities, volunteer contributors and surrounding networks, including social networking web sites, open source software and the Wiki model of …

Using Reconstructability Analysis For Input Variable Reduction: A Business Example, Stephen Shervais, Martin Zwick

Systems Science Faculty Publications and Presentations

We demonstrate the use of reconstructability analysis (RA) on the UCI Australian Credit dataset to reduce the number of input variables for two different analysis tools. Using 14 variables, an artificial neural net (NN) is able to predict whether or not credit was granted, with a 79.1% success rate. RA preprocessing allows us to reduce the number of independent variables from 14 to two different sets of three, which have success rates of 77.2% and 76.9% respectively. The difference between these rates and that of the 14-variable NN is not statistically significant. The three-variable rulesets given by RA achieve success …

Global Sourcing And Logistics, Martin Christopher, Fu Jia, Omera Khan, Carlos Mena, Erik Sandberg

Business Faculty Publications and Presentations

The sourcing of products from across the global marketplace is an increasing trend associated with economic development. This trend is the result of many independent decisions taken by firms around the world looking for new sources of competitive advantage. However, these decisions can also have unintended consequences, exposing the firms to hidden costs and risks, creating congestion at different points in the global transport infrastructure and increasing emissions of pollutants and greenhouse gases.

This report presents the results of a project conducted in 2006-07, aimed at improving global sourcing practices, with a particular emphasis on the implications for the UK. …

Triple Bottom Line: A Business Metaphor For A Social Construct, Darrell Brown, Jesse F. Dillard, Scott Marshall

Business Faculty Publications and Presentations

The triple bottom line is emerging as a popular conceptualization and reporting vehicle for articulating corporate social, environmental, and economic performance and is receiving significant attention in connection with its efficacy and sufficiency as a means for reporting the extent to which an organization meets its societal responsibilities. By preparing and disseminating triple bottom line statements, an organization conveys an image of concern and sensitivity to the three dimensions of societal responsibility: economic, environmental, and social. However, as currently conceived and operationalized, we question whether the triple bottom line reports actually provide information relevant to accessing corporate responsibility and enforcing …

Acceleration Management: The Semiconductor Industry Confronts The 21st Century, Melissa M. Appleyard, C. N. Berglund, Craig Peterson, Richard W. Smith

Business Faculty Publications and Presentations

In the recent generations of semiconductor devices, the semiconductor industry has been accelerating towards the limits of the physical sciences. As a consequence, technology managers in that industry face seven major challenges, which will threaten progress: process, complexity, performance, power, density, productivity, and quality / reliability. We believe that confronting these challenges requires a new approach to technology management both within organizations and between organizations that form the backbone of the industry. We call this new approach Acceleration Management. Acceleration Management first requires that firms cultivate deep technical knowledge and inspire creative solutions to seemingly insoluble technical problems. The second …

Third Extrusion Project: Project Analysis, Ingrid Suarez

Engineering and Technology Management Student Projects

This paper uses a case study approach to analyze the Third Extrusion Project (TEP) in Cerro Matoso S.A (CMSA). The TEP was chosen to be analyzed because of the importance to the company, the quality of the project management, and the impact in CMSA’s business. The analysis was focused on the managerial and organizational aspects, rather than on technical topics. It was based on the Strategic Project Leadership framework proposed by Dr. Aaron Shedar.

BHP Billiton, the parent organization of CMSA, is one of the world’s premier mining companies. Its project management office aims to ensure that the project management …

Simulation As A Tool For Evaluating Strategic Policies For Flexible Supply Chain Systems, Janice L. Forrester, Wayne W. Wakeland

Systems Science Faculty Publications and Presentations

The emergence of flexible supply chain systems (FSC) has sparked increased interest in real-time planning, scheduling, and logistics--with particular consideration for strategic implications and overall cost control. Important aspects of an FSC include forecasting, production, materials handling, transportation, and distribution center inventory. There exists a variety of software applications for addressing tactical issues, such as adaptive scheduling, and short term forecasting. However, these programs typically do not permit the user to assess the strategic implications of different policies for flexing capacity and making alternative commitments to manufacturing plants. Recently there has been increased interest in the use of simulation models …

Freightliner Llc Manufacturing Optimization, Jerry Compton, Ryan Jefferis, Hasnah Mat-Amin, Felix Ngoussou

Engineering and Technology Management Student Projects

Freightliner LLC has been producing innovative products since 1942 for the trucking industry. Following a 1981 acquisition by Daimler-Benz AG, Freightliner has steadily gained market share through acquisition and fleet sales. Following record production in 1999 at maximum yield levels, year 2000 hit the heavy truck market especially hard. High diesel fuel prices, low used truck values, and a slowing economy were just a few reasons for reduced truck sales.

Through Ql of 2001, heavy vehicle production was down 54% compared to 2000 in attempts of lowering inventory amounts. In this new market, capacity is no longer the overall manufacturing …

Role Playing And Cooperative Learning In The Ais Course, Dennis F. Togo, Kristi Jane Yuthas

Business Faculty Publications and Presentations

The accounting information systems course is often viewed as difficult to teach because it contains topics that are less quantifiable and structured in comparison to courses in financial or managerial!cost accounting. Yet, many AIS instructors have developed successful teaching techniques that are suited to the AIS course. A creative teaching approach for the AIS course is that of role-playing organizations and their operations, especially for transaction cycles. In addition, cooperative learning can be nicely coupled with role playing because of their common emphases on social interdependence and shared learning. The benefits and guidelines for cooperative learning and role playing are …

The Evolving Role Of Semiconductor Consortia In The United States And Japan, Rose Marie Ham, Greg Linden, Melissa M. Appleyard

Business Faculty Publications and Presentations

This article examines the interactions between public and private actors as cooperation in the semiconductor industry becomes increasingly international. The latest manifestations of multilateral collaboration are two consortia: I300I based in the United States and Selete based in Japan. Through an analysis of their structures and their origins, this article provides a deeper understanding of the complexities facing industry-wide consortia, the role of the government in promoting or inhibiting cooperation, and the lingering rivalries that impede truly global cooperation in a dynamic, high-technology industry.

The Role Of Skill Upgrading In Manufacturing Performance, Melissa M. Appleyard

Business Faculty Publications and Presentations

This section examines the industry-wide trend of upgrading the skills of production workers in the semiconductor industry. This analysis discusses the industry characteristics driving this trend, the human resource policies that support skill upgrades, and the payoffs associated with such upgrades. To provide a deeper understanding of the process of skill upgrading, two fabs from our sample are analyzed in detail. One fab is located in Japan (pseudonym Jfab) and the other fab is located in the U.S. (pseudonym USfab).

As a central part of their manufacturing strategy, these fabs have emphasized the upskilling of operators particularly for equipment maintenance …

A Structural Model And Test Of The Antecedents And Outcomes Of Organizational And Professional Commitment, Mary Ann Evans

Dissertations and Theses

The major purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between commitment to one's profession and commitment to one's employer and the role this relationship plays in predicting satisfaction, performance and turnover. In order to accomplish this purpose the antecedents and outcomes of the commitments were modeled and tested using covariance structural modeling techniques. The data source was the 1990 Kaiser Permanente, Northwest Region Employee Survey. The study included a wide range of occupations. The literature is ambiguous about the definition and measurement of professional and organizational commitment. Professional commitment is characterized either as a unidimensional or multidimensional construct …

Systems Integration Analysis And Alternatives Identification For Facilities Planning Branch, Bpa: Task 1: Background Analysis And Data Gathering, Kenneth Dueker, Ric Vrana

Center for Urban Studies Publications and Reports

Portland State University has been engaged by the Facilities Planning Branch, Division of Engineering, Bonneville Power Administration, to collect background information, analyze current activities, and provide recommendations for greater Branch efficiencies, and the most timely service to its customers, based on current and projected resources and financial responsibilities. This information is to extend and compliment the efforts of an in-house systems integration team which initially addressed these issues. This study is intended to assist Branch management in its effort to identify Branch strengths and increase productivity.

The Facilities Planning Branch is one of three Branches in the Division of Facilities …

Comparisons Of Current Practices Of Computer Use And Training By Industry Type Of Small Businesses In The Portland Area, Don Gregory Langenhorst

Dissertations and Theses

The problem was to determine what are the current computer uses, and training practices for small businesses in the Portland area. Comparisons were made by industry type.

The Effect Of Administrative Mandate On Social Workers' Clinical Decision Making, Richard Arthur Anderson

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this study is to explore the extent to which Social Workers' clinical judgement is altered by administrative needs in a population of Veterans Administration social workers.

The importance of this study to research is to find out whether administrative mandates do, in fact, influence social workers' clinical judgement, hence altering treatment to some significant degree. Administrators will be interested in seeing whether there is acceptance or resistance to their directives and what factors are involved in this dimension.

Office Simulation Survey With Plan Of Implementation, Arlene B. Krause

Dissertations and Theses

The problem involved in this study was to ascertain the current methods and materials used by office simulation teachers in the secondary schools of the State of Oregon and to suggest a plan to implement a simulated office program in the Reynolds School District.

A Survey And Critical Analysis Of Current Literature On The Post Audit Of Capital Expenditure, Gene Albert Katke

Dissertations and Theses

Several writers in the field of capital budgeting have charged that present day literature on the subject fails to adequately address the post audit phase of capital expenditure programs. This study is essentially a survey of current literature designed to determine the validity of this charge. To accomplish this task, the study compares each author’s published views on selected post audit factors with other responses from the literature and analyzes collective agreements and differences. Armed with this information, an attempt is made to provide answers to three pertinent questions:

l. Does general agreement exist among writers on what constitutes the …

Automated Information Retrieval Systems For Legal Research, Robert G. Baylor

Dissertations and Theses

Purpose. This study of automated information retrieval systems was undertaken to attempt to ascertain the extent and development of a total legal information system.

Overview. Historically, lawyers have searched the statutes and case law in the traditionally manual method. Given consistent high standards of editing, not too complex materials, and a collection of manageable size, this manual method will work to reasonable satisfaction, so long as a document never changes in meaning or significance. Lawyers point out that the present manual system is inadequate because with 30,000 new judicial decisions and 15,000 new statutes being promulgated each year …