Challenger Space Shuttle Disaster AnalysisFor this assignment, .docx

Challenger Space Shuttle Disaster Analysis
For this assignment, you will apply the concepts of the four-
frame approach to management decisions and write a report.
Background Overview:
In many professions, leaders have to confront very complex
challenges and the results can fall well below everyone’s
expectations. The disasters with the Challenger and the
Columbia Space Shuttles portray situations where bad decision
making led to disasters that changed the history of space
exploration. In your professional life, you may be subjected to
many complex problems. A critical assessment of the four
frames can make the difference between success and failure.
To prepare for this assignment, read the following article (and
any other ones related to these accidents) in order to construct
the “big picture” that will allow you to conduct your analysis:
· Garrett, T. M. (Dec 2004). Whither Challenger, wither
Columbia: Management decision making and the knowledge
analytic. American Review of Public Administration, 34(4),
389–402.
https://login.libproxy.edmc.edu/login?url=http://search.proquest
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Directions:
1. Identify the frame(s) used by the leaders in the Challenger
and Columbia situations (i.e., Structure, HR, Political, and
Symbolic).
2. Review the choice of frames made by the management in
those situations. Explain if the situation with the space shuttles
occurred due to management choosing the wrong frame, an
incorrect application of a given frame, or for other reasons.
3. If you were the person in charge of the Challenger and
Columbia, recommend what other frame(s) you would have
considered in the decision-making process. For your
recommendations, take into account the constraints faced at the

time of the events. Justify your answer using the characteristics
of each frame from your readings.
4. Based on your recommendation made in the previous
question, explain how you would address the Challenger and
Columbia situations using a different frame or a combination of
them.
Write a 2–3-page report in Word format. Utilize at least two
scholarly sources in your research. Your paper should be
written in a clear, concise, and organized manner; demonstrate
ethical scholarship in accurate representation and attribution of
sources; and display accurate spelling, grammar, and
punctuation.
Table
of contents
Executive summary
Introduction
Vision and Mission Statement for Xerox Company
Xerox overall strategy
Key problems faced by Xerox
Strategic alternatives for Xerox
Processes to address tasks of strategic management
Roles played by management to direct the process
The role of the Board of Directors in running the company
Corporate governance issues for Xerox

Company analysis
SWOT analysis
Financial Strategy and Analysis
Summary
Recommendation for future action
Conclusion
References
A Helping Hand
Executive summary
The purpose of this research project is to inform the reader of
how Xerox
Company can be a good investment opportunity. Extensive
research has portrayed
Xerox as a company that has established a firm control in the
services and
technology industry through its marketable products like for
instance copiers
and digital printers. The company has in its growth, continued
to partner with
other firms like for example Fujifilm and Flextronics in order to
increase its
average return and its size. It is through the new leadership that
the company
has been able to place great emphasis on the employee voice

and customer
service through the Management by Objective and other
relevant ethically
focused processes. Xerox Company has had higher standards of
business
operations because of its repeated investment in the company
and not only has
it developed Information Technology based systems which have
enhanced its ability
to save money, but it has also been able to implement its
products as well.
This has enabled the company to save 120 million dollars last
year. Xerox
decided to reestablish its authority in the supply of office
equipment after
being faced with setbacks arising from legal issues. However,
Xerox remains an
excellent organization that any stakeholder can have advantage
in investing in.
A financial analysis of Xerox Corporation
Introduction
Xerox Corporation is a company based in the United States of
America that
develops and markets a variety of document equipments and
services. It also
offers digital systems like publishing and printing systems,
digital copiers,
fax machines, basic and advanced multi functional devices and
digital presses.
In addition to this, the company deals in workflow and software

solutions that
include personalized documents, route and scan digital
information and print
books. Xerox conducts its operations through 3 reportable
segments which are
production, office and other. Xerox Company has its presence
which is felt in
one hundred and sixty (160) countries worldwide. Xerox, as a
corporation, was
established in 1906 and it currently has its headquarters based
in Connecticut.
The company has over the years created relevant technologies in
the printing
equipment and therefore this has enabled it to become a market
leader in the
United States of America. Xerox Company has been able to give
its clients
products that have industry standards through their innovative
solutions and
that its name XEROX is sometimes substituted to mean
photocopy. Moreover, Xerox
Company has got product lines which suit different market
segments like for
instance Developing Markets Operations, Office and other
equipments like
facilities for lease. The Company’s products therefore include
Photo
copiers, LCD monitors, multifunction printers, workflow
software known as FreeFlow, large digital printers and Xerox
phaser printers. Xerox Company has established a new
corporate strategy that has allowed it to become a major market
leader in color
printing and as such, the company has heavily invested in
distribution networks
and technology in order to make the company retain its position
as a market

leader in medium and small offices by acquisition of the GIS
(Global Imaging
systems), inc. further, Xerox Company is striving to be a major
supplier for
big corporations. Xerox mission and Vision Statement
Xerox mission statement is based on their strategic intent of
helping people in
finding better ways of doing great work through leading in
products, document
technologies and services that enhance their customers’
business results
and work processes. Xerox company therefore operates on six
core values of
succeeding through satisfied customers, delivering excellence
and quality in
everything they do, requiring premium return on their assets,
, using technology to develop market leadership, valuing their
employees
and behaving responsibly as corporate citizens. Xerox Overall
strategy
Xerox Corporation aims at establishing digital solutions in
order to attain its
full benefits for the business and corporate reeducation is
therefore a major
step forward in helping Xerox Corporation to attain computer
revolution. Old
methods of selling office equipments and later enjoy annuity
income obtained
from the sales of toner, paper and service have quickly receded.
One of the

examples of inroads digital technology is the ease through
which PC printing is
easier in an office. Not only has Xerox Corporation recognized
the need for
overhauling its electromechanical machines but it has also
pursued an ambitious
plan aimed at digitizing the corporate paperwork of the world
by attempting to
capture a large part of the printing and photocopying business.
Xerox is
therefore calling itself as “The Document Company” to signal
the
shift that it is not only a mere copy machine producing company
and this is
reflected in its new logo which has an a single X that is partly
printed
through digital style squares. This strategy started in 1990 when
the company
introduced mammoth machines known as Docutechs which
cost to around 300, 000 US dollars each. These documents could
easily scan the
paper documents and later convert them into digital codes of 1’s
and
0’s. The coded pictures or texts which are in digital form can
then be
easily modified, printed, sent over computer networks and be
stored. These
machines have therefore proved to be a big success for Xerox
through increased
sales which are expected to hit 1.5 billion US dollars this year.
However,
despite of acquiring these Docutechs, Xerox still
relies on its traditional stand alone copiers which account for 80
per cent of
the company’s major non-financial service revenues of greater
than 14

billion dollars. By the year 2005, digital products had already
accounted for
the major sales of its business. Key problems faced by Xerox
Xerox Company experienced various problems experencied
by other companies in the 1980’s in a hanging economy which
had declining
profits and declining market shares. The Xerox company
therefore coped with its problems through mananing
change which altered the way leadership viewed business and
leadership styles
which addressed business issues and problems. This application
of these
processes therefore led to a more successful business
ooperation.
Other organizations have also used similar strategies in shaping
management for
leadership structures which were more committed to achieving
quality than
responding to other crises. Such efforts included reducing the
workforce which
was applied by around 500 Fortune companies. This processs
comprised a shift from the corporate culture through various
ways through
consequence and sometimes through deliberation. Xerox
company
faced a decline in profits despite having been the market leader
in plain paper
copiers and it was not even ready for the influx of competition
that came from
Japan. The company therefore resorted to a survival strategy
that comprised
improvement of quality both as a process for internal change
and as a marketing

goal which eventually helped the company to revitalize its
approach towards
human resource management, operations and marketing all over
the world. This
method is known as leadership through quality and it
corresponded to another
management style called total management quality. Strategic
alternatives open
to Xerox
Indeed, a majority of companies are today struggling with
looking for new ways
in dealing with issues of human resource management just like
Xerox did and
innovation has been encouraged as the ultimate solution towards
such problems.
When faced with disasters, majority of companies will tend to
be more
innovative because that will be the only option or lest they die.
The use of
innovation by Xerox Company therefore helps it in solving
problems through the use
of incentives, relation of teams which are responsible forgetting
specific innovations, the establishment of innovative strategies
and increasing
emphasis on development and research. Introduction of team
techniques like for
instance like total quality management and management cycles
are also solutions
towards coping with a company’s problems. The challenge that
Xerox
Company and the management faces is challenging, complex
and not unique at all.
Xerox company has always been depending on the its

highly trained sales employees to get a profit on their current
products and
they had not even focused on new products until they developed
the e-book. It
was this revolutionary product that provided the company with
new opportunities
because the product yielded costs by allowing a publishing
company to produce a
large booklet at low costs, something that could not have earlier
on been
achieved. The innovation of this product therefore resulted in a
significant
decrease in costs incurred for publishing because this covered
20 per cent
inclusive of the paper and binding all together. The possibility
of creating an
increased profit margin arose. The Book-in-Time solution also
provided Xerox
Company with efficient solutions for publishing organizations
running on demand
short books. Printing or publishing companies which were
incapable of achieving
large economies large economies of scale using large print turns
were
threatened by this innovation which was capable of providing a
cost effective
and low print run books. Social and Ethical Responsibility of
the Company
In its Annual Report in 2007, the Company highlighted its
strategy in meeting
both social and environmental obligations as a way of doing
business and
strives to maintain highest standards in order to preserve and

protect their
environment and enhance the safety and health of their
employees and the
communities in general. Xerox Company therefore has clear cut
guidelines for
safety governance and environment health that are readily
available on its
website, www.xerox.com . The policies of Xerox Company
are created in such a manner as to ensure that the company’s
business
processes and practices which include manufacture, design
maintenance,
distribution, recycling or reuse, procurement, marketing
distribution and other
related services are of help to the environment and does not
endanger or damage
it. The company has therefore positioned itself well in the
market to be a
supplier and manufacturer of eco-friendly printing solutions for
many
organizations. In the year 2007, Xerox company spent US$148
million to sustain
re-engineering as compared to US$161 million that was spend
in the year 2006 to
meet environmental compliance. Tons of papers are each year
used for printing
and when they are destroyed, they have adverse effects on the
environment.
Xerox Company has therefore developed ne solutions aimed at
cartridge free
printing and even went ahead in implementing other programs
that include the
collection of related used equipments after the end of use
period. The waste
free packaging procedure allows clients to be able to return the
materials used

in packaging and therefore this technological innovations helps
in the creation
of an erasable paper which copiers are capable of cutting down
sharply the
harmful effects that the paper causes on the environment.
Financial overview of
Xerox Company
According to Appendix 1, Xerox Company posted strong
financial yet again in the
year 2007because of the technological innovations which the
company has over
the years continued to offer to its clients through both software
and products
which allow companies to enhance their operations and
therefore cutting down on
cost. In the year 2006, Xerox Company’s sales increased from
9.75 per
cent to US$8192m as compared to 400m got in the year 2005
and US$4,803m
obtained in 2006. The administrative and general expenses
alongside the selling
have increased by 7.58% to 312 million US dollars after
showing a decrease of
-2.48% in 2006. Xerox Company has posted a substantial
growth of 77.97 per cent
from its income which arose from continuing operations that
currently stand at
US$ 1,438 million as compared to 808 and 830 million US
Dollars that was gained
from the year 2005 and 2006 respectively which emerged
because of the
readjustments in income tax during the earlier years’ payments.
In 2007

however, the provision of income tax has been 400 million US
dollars which
implies an increase o 238.89 per cent compared to last year.
Because of selling
of the non-profitable assets for the company in the year 2005,
income obtained
from discounting operations was US$ 53 million. However,
Xerox Company has
showed a decline in its net income because of the provision for
income tax that
has been credited to the income of last year and the debit entry
that was made
to this provision in 2007. Ratio analysis
The Xerox Company’s financial statement analysis during the
2005-2006 is
contained in Appendix II and this analysis has been divided into
3 different
areas of analysis namely, solvency, profitability and liquidity.
Liquidity
ratios are meant to evaluate a company’s ability in paying its
liabilities for short obligations. The current ration for Xerox
Company has
remained stable for values ranging from 2.00 in 2005 and in
2007, a value of
2.10. Any current ratio that is above 1 is a clear indicator that
Xerox’s
current assets are higher than its current liabilities and therefore
the
company will have no problems in settling its current liabilities
in any case
they decline. A more focused quick ration which indicates a
lover value in
20007 of 1.77 will still imply that the value will be higher than

one and thus
enhancing the outcome of the current ratio. This therefore
implies that Xerox
Company shall have no problems regarding liquidity. A
company having higher
current assets implies that it may also encounter problems with
its high
inventory and receivables which may eventually cause problems
for an
organization in future. This is confirmed by the low receivable
turnover ratio
which was calculated to stand at 3.33 in the year 2007. This is
clearly
represented by the high value of receivables that Xerox
Company has in its
annual report which stand at, 2,457 and 037 million dollars in
2007 and 2006
respectively. The average collection period is approximated to
about 100 days
and this seems to be extra ordinarily high for a company dealing
with the
production of software and office equipment. Similar results are
also obtained
from low inventory turnover that stands at 4.26 indicating an
improvement from
4.06 and 4.01 in the years 2006 and 2004 and therefore
portraying that Xerox
Company may be holding onto large quantities of finished
products. This may
prove difficult for the company to sell such products. The
average age of Xerox
Company’s inventory is about eighty five days which has
reduced from the
89 and 91 days in the years 2006 and 2005 respectively. This is
also a clear
indicator that Xerox Company may still be holding on large

quantities of
inventory and therefore experiencing difficulties in
transforming its completed
sales. The solvency ratios for the company give a good
evaluation for Xerox
Company’s capability in generating enough funds to use in
paying off its
debts. A high total assets or total debt is an indicator that the
company has
got high liabilities of between 17, 228 million dollars in the
year 2007 and
this represents a ratio of 73.18 per cent as compared to 32.91
and 33.15 per
cent in the years 2006 and 2005 respectively. Xerox Company is
however making
sufficient net income which it uses to pay interest payments
which indicate
times interest ratio standing at 1.96, 2.22 and 1.76 in the years
2007, 2006
and 2005 respectively. The profitability ratio for Xerox
Company implies that
the pricing strategy means that there is a high profit margin for
the
company’s sales with a GPM (Gross Profit Margin) ratio
standing at 40.30
per cent in the year 2007. The net profit margin obtained by
Xerox Company of
6.59 per cent in the year 2007 indicates that the organization is
incurring a
higher selling, administrative and general expenses. However,
the asset
turnover for the company remains healthy at about 73 per cent
in the year 2006
and 2007 and the return on assets shows a slight decrease of
4.82 and 5.57 per
cent in the years 200 and 2007 respectively. Company analysis

Xerox, as company has got its own internal strengths and
weaknesses and the
environmental opportunities and threats that the company faces.
Through the
SWOT analysis, Xerox managers can quickly and effectively
create an overview of
the company’s strategic situation. This is because an effective
strategy
is obtained from a good fit between the company’s internal
resources and
its external situation. Xerox Company, known as a supplier for
printers,
photocopiers and other document systems provides one of the
broadest document
industry’s portfolio of offerings. Strengths,
Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats for Xerox Company
Location of factor |
Type of factor |
| Favorable | Unfavorable |
Internal | Strengths -Strong R and D capability-strong brand
image.-wide
product portfolio. | Weaknesses-Litigations.-Weak Financial
performance.-High dependence on third parties.-High
Dependence on mature
markets.| External | Opportunities-Color peripherals market.-
Expansion in
midsized and small business markets.-Acquiring of XMPie
and Amici. | Threats -EU WEEE
directive.-International Business risk. -Intense competition.|

Xerox company therefore has numerous strengths ranging from :
the company has a
strong corporate brand that is synonymous with its items i.e.
Printers, fax
machines and copiers through which it provides a variety of
software solutions,
document equipment and services and it also gives its clients a
100 per cent of
recycled paper. Xerox Company also develops efficient
solutions for organizations
in the world through provision of environmental initiatives and
technical
support and thus helping companies achieve their environmental
targets. Xerox
Company has got a robust environmental focus through which it
has developed
into its own strategies of operations that are focused on
initiatives that have
saved it from a lot of funds. Xerox Company is known for its
reputation for
high quality management and innovation and it heavily invests
in development
and research in order to update itself with market requirements
for ever
changing products that have both technological and
environmental features and
benefits. The benefits arising from recycling of copiers, toners,
papers and
other equipment through the company’s internal policy ensures
that these
environmental solutions are passed to its customers. Some of
Xerox
Company’s weaknesses is that it carries out its operations in a

fast
paced, ever changing dynamic which places a high pressure on
the development of
products that focus on the innovative feature design and they as
a group,
invest only 1-2 per cent on Development and Research budget
on their product
line dealing with environmental developments and therefore
opting to focus on
the major driver of the market that is an advancement feature.
Some of the
opportunities that the company could seize is that it
can achieve a competitive edge in the market place by focusing
on research and
development aimed at environmental features of products which
will help the
company to meets its higher environmental product grades.
Since the company
already gives support to organizations in order to meet their
environmental
needs, these could be included as a benefit package for
organizations to
enhance their environmental stratagem. However, the growing
pressure on
organizations to be carbon neutral and have tangible and
efficient strategies
in their operations has an effect on each level of the demand
and supply chain
in each and every business. This is a threat to the company.
This may result in
Xerox Company investing more funds in research and
development of products and
components which are environmentally focused which may
provide them and
eventually determine a greater competitive edge to attract the
future client.

Because of the harsh economic conditions that companies are
facing, most of
them have opted to realign, reassess and streamline their
operations through
reducing their operational costs of their practices and this leads
to a
reduction of budgets across the board. This eventually leads to
having adverse
impacts on office equipment, technical support and office
solutions. Together
with environmental commitments, organizations may opt to
recycle and reuse
instead of renewing the current products. Because of the
downturn in sales
because of financial constraints, new businesses may restrict
budgets and put
pressure on design and development alongside innovation of
environmental
research and development and new product features which are
crucial for
today’s retail and corporate consumer. This is because emphasis
is placed
on all products ready for market on the capacity and technical
features which
enable them to be reused and recycled. Conclusion
Xerox Company should consider reviewing its receivables
collection, credit
terms and inventory management policies. Failing to hold the
company’s
inventory into sales could land Xerox Company into problems
because its heavy
reliance on external financing facilities could result into higher
interest

payments for the company. The company is however performing
well because it has
been capable of transforming positive cash flows from its
operating activities
and the company is further operating at high profit margins
despite of the
heavy competition it faces at the market. However, Xerox
remains a valuable
company that one can invest in because it has a commanding
lead in the field of
office technology and it has exhibited an effective marketing
strategy through
provision of ground breaking items through a continuous
expansion of the
customer base. The company’s stock is quickly and frequently
making
returns for its investment for the company’s shareholders.
Through
dedicated leadership and strategic management, the company
has been able to
restructure its priorities by placing employee culture and
customer service
before and everything else. Xerox as a company, also
appreciates the importance
of its workers as being a valuable line of communication for
customer
satisfaction and the general public image. Xerox has apart from
investing
highly in development and research also created a strong public
image in order
to create innovative new products that suit the customers. It is
through these
information technology based products that Xerox has been able
to streamline
its business operations and therefore helping the company to

save substantial
amounts of money.

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