Case 15–1 Rocky Plains Brewing Ltd. On April 21, Mike Pearson, packaging materials manager for Rocky Plains Brewery Ltd. (Rocky Plains), in Billings, Montana, received a call from Gerald Gilpin, owner and president of Gilpin Printing Inc (Gilpin), a local label supplier. Two days earlier Mike had notified Gerald that Rocky Plains was terminating the label contract with Gilpin as of May 30 and expected payment of a contractual rebate of $690,000. Gerald told Mike he refused to pay the rebate and demanded a $4.4 million wire transfer the next day in order to continue supply. 474 ROCKY PLAINS BREWING LTD. Rocky Plains was more than 100 years old and was one of the most recognized beer brands in the United States. The company had a reputation for producing products of exceptional quality, supported by high standards for raw materials, proven brewing methods, and rigorous production processes. After operating for more than 80 years as a family business, the company was presently owned by a large multinational brewery. The Billings facility brewed three to four million barrels of beer per year and employed approximately 500 people.* GILPIN PRINTING Gilpin was a family-owned business and its president, Gerald Gilpin, was the son of the company’s founder. Gilpin had been Rocky Plains primary label supplier for approximately 15 years, and Mike considered Gilpin’s performance in the areas of quality and service to be good. Mike estimated that sales to Rocky Plains represented 45 percent to 50 percent of Gilpin’s total annual revenues. Gilpin provided Rocky Plains with three-day service—typically orders for labels were placed on Thursday for delivery on Monday morning. As a result, Gilpin carried substantial raw material safety stock, and Rocky Plains carried minimal inventories for its labels. Rocky Plains used “cut and stack” labels exclusively for its products, of which approximately 80 percent were metallised labels and the balance were paper labels. The majority of high-volume labels supplied by Gilpin were produced through a rotogravure printing process, which used a printing plate to stamp the ink on to the paper. Rotogravure printing required the label design to be etched onto a copper cylinder, which typically required a four-week lead time to create. Litho-offset printing was the second method used for Rocky Plains labels, typically for speciality and low-volume brands. In contrast to rotogravure printing, litho-offset used etched rubber cylinders. CONTRACT REVIEW Rocky Plains’ supply contract with Gilpin was to expire on May 30 and, after consultation with Mike’s boss, Brian Evans, director of purchasing, the decision had been made in November to test the market. Mike’s intention was to probe the market for better pricing, materials, and print methods. A major concern for Mike and Brian was ongoing financial problems at Gilpin (see Exhibit 1 for a summary of Gilpin’s financial statements). Gilpin had been unsuccessful in efforts to stem its f ...

1. Case 15–1
Rocky Plains Brewing Ltd.
On April 21, Mike Pearson, packaging materials manager for
Rocky Plains Brewery Ltd. (Rocky Plains), in Billings,
Montana, received a call from Gerald Gilpin, owner and
president of Gilpin Printing Inc (Gilpin), a local label supplier.
Two days earlier Mike had notified Gerald that Rocky Plains
was terminating the label contract with Gilpin as of May 30 and
expected payment of a contractual rebate of $690,000. Gerald
told Mike he refused to pay the rebate and demanded a $4.4
million wire transfer the next day in order to continue supply.
474
ROCKY PLAINS BREWING LTD.
Rocky Plains was more than 100 years old and was one of the
most recognized beer brands in the United States. The company
had a reputation for producing products of exceptional quality,
supported by high standards for raw materials, proven brewing
methods, and rigorous production processes. After operating for
more than 80 years as a family business, the company was
presently owned by a large multinational brewery. The Billings
facility brewed three to four million barrels of beer per year and
employed approximately 500 people.*
GILPIN PRINTING
Gilpin was a family-owned business and its president, Gerald
Gilpin, was the son of the company’s founder. Gilpin had been
Rocky Plains primary label supplier for approximately 15 years,
and Mike considered Gilpin’s performance in the areas of
quality and service to be good. Mike estimated that sales to
Rocky Plains represented 45 percent to 50 percent of Gilpin’s
total annual revenues.
Gilpin provided Rocky Plains with three-day service—typically
orders for labels were placed on Thursday for delivery on
Monday morning. As a result, Gilpin carried substantial raw
material safety stock, and Rocky Plains carried minimal

2. inventories for its labels.
Rocky Plains used “cut and stack” labels exclusively for its
products, of which approximately 80 percent were metallised
labels and the balance were paper labels. The majority of high-
volume labels supplied by Gilpin were produced through a
rotogravure printing process, which used a printing plate to
stamp the ink on to the paper. Rotogravure printing required the
label design to be etched onto a copper cylinder, which
typically required a four-week lead time to create. Litho-offset
printing was the second method used for Rocky Plains labels,
typically for speciality and low-volume brands. In contrast to
rotogravure printing, litho-offset used etched rubber cylinders.
CONTRACT REVIEW
Rocky Plains’ supply contract with Gilpin was to expire on May
30 and, after consultation with Mike’s boss, Brian Evans,
director of purchasing, the decision had been made in November
to test the market. Mike’s intention was to probe the market for
better pricing, materials, and print methods. A major concern
for Mike and Brian was ongoing financial problems at Gilpin
(see Exhibit 1 for a summary of Gilpin’s financial statements).
Gilpin had been unsuccessful in efforts to stem its financial
losses during the past two years, and Mike had heard rumors
that Gerald Gilpin was attempting to sell the business.
EXHIBIT 1 Summary Financial Information for Gilpin Printing
Inc. (in thousands of dollars)
Sales
$34,296
Profit before tax
(1,014)
Write-downs
13,715
Net profit (loss)
(14,729)
Current assets

3. 9,222
Noncurrent assets
9,953
Current liabilities
12,239
Long term debt
21,471
Shareholders equity (deficit)
(14,535)
Requests for proposals (RFP) for a three-year contract were sent
to eight potential suppliers, including Gilpin, and five responses
were submitted prior to the December deadline. Mike’s analysis
of the proposals included financial stability of the supplier,
protection for raw materials price increases, currency and
foreign exchange exposure, freight costs, print run sizes, and
label cutting options. Mike narrowed the field to two suppliers
in February: Gilpin and Stiles Printing. Stiles was a large
printer located in Billings with a solid reputation.
Gilpin offered a continuation of its current pricing for a three-
year period, which included continuation of an annual rebate
payable July 31 each year. The rebate was based on total
purchases for the 12-month period between June and the
following May each year, and ranged from a minimum of 3
percent to a maximum of 5 percent. Mike estimated that the
rebate for the current year would be approximately 4.4 percent
of total purchases from Gilpin.
The proposal from Stiles identified a variety of cost reduction
opportunities through initiatives to use white paper with
metallised ink, elimination of trim outs/square cut labels, size
optimization, and freight saving opportunities. Stiles also
committed that it would not increase prices in the second year
of the contract, and price increases for the third year would be
capped at 3 percent. In addition, the company indicated that any
475
future reductions in cost drivers, including raw material costs,
would be passed directly to Rocky Plains. Mike estimated that

4. the Stiles proposal represented savings of approximately $2.5
million in the following year compared to the proposal
submitted by Gilpin.
NEGOTIATIONS WITH GILPIN
Due to the long-standing relationship with Gilpin and concerns
that losing the contract could push the company into
bankruptcy, Mike allowed the company to submit a second
proposal. In his meeting with Gerald Gilpin on February 19,
Mike indicated: “If you want to keep the business, we need a
solid proposal with specific recommendations that will reduce
our costs substantially.”
Gilpin’s second proposal, received on March 25, provided an
overall annual price reduction of $2.0 million and did not
include specific information regarding measures to support the
lower pricing. During the meeting between Mike and Gerald
Gilpin when the second proposal was presented, Gerald
confirmed that he intended to sell the business, although a buyer
had not yet been identified.
THE DECISION
Under the existing circumstances, Mike felt compelled to
recommend awarding the label supply contract to Stiles. He
based his decision on the better pricing offered by Stiles and
concerns regarding the financial stability of Gilpin. Mike toured
the Stiles facility in Billings the first week of April and a
procurement audit had been completed the following week.
Brian Evans concurred with Mike’s recommendation, and in a
meeting on April 19, Gerald Gilpin was notified that his
company’s label supply contract would expire on May 30 and it
would not be renewed.
Meantime, Mike had been working with Pat Schofield, project
manager at Stiles, to create a transition plan. The major tasks
were:
• Create rotogravure print cylinders for high-volume brands
(total of 285 cylinders)—completion date May 15.
• Production trials and qualifications of labels at Stiles—to be
completed May 22.

5. • Production line trials with high-volume brand labels at Rocky
Plains (led by Rocky Plains Brewery Support Group)—
completion June 15.
• Implement Stiles pricing in Rocky Plains ERP system—
completion June 1.
RESPONSE FROM GILPIN
On the morning of Friday, April 21, Mike Pearson received a
call from Gerald Gilpin informing Mike that Gilpin was
refusing to pay the contractual rebate due on July 1 and
demanding $4.4 million for printed stock inventory, pending
orders, and outstanding invoices. Gerald indicated that he
expected a wire transfer in their account before the end of the
next business day; otherwise he would cut off supply
immediately.
Mike checked the computer system to see where Rocky Plains
stood with Gilpin immediately after Gerald Gilpin’s call. He
estimated that Gilpin would owe Rocky Plains approximately
$690,000 for its annual rebate in July, accounts payable to
Gilpin were $442,398, pending orders were $583,165 and total
label inventories at Rocky Plains were $846,835. A major
concern, however, was potential production problems caused by
label shortages, and Mike expected that production interruptions
could start as early as Tuesday, April 25. Recognizing the
significance of the problem, Mike knew he needed to come up
with a plan quickly.
Week 2 - Assignment
Aspects of Social Understanding
[WLOs: 3] [CLOs: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5]
Prior to beginning work on this assignment, review the Week 1
and Week 2 textbook readings: Chapters 1 through 4 and
Chapter 12, perform your own research, and watch the
following videos:
· How do we know what is true? (Links to an external site.)
· How do we know what we know? Audi (Links to an external

6. site.)
· How do we know what we know? Sullivan (Links to an
external site.)
· Knowledge vs thinking - Neil deGrasse Tyson (Links to an
external site.)
An important aspect of public sociology is gaining an
understanding of our social world and coming to informed
conclusions based on what we know. Social problems can often
occur due to a clash of difference in social understanding, and
so sociologists can gain considerable value in understanding the
nuances of different perspectives. These perspectives can also
change over time as society evolves and individuals develop.
The importance of this assignment is to acknowledge that there
are varied forms of knowing that form our perspectives in
society and presenting how these varied forms of knowing have
impacts and value. This assignment is a “thought-piece” that
requires you to academically support your ideas, as a
presentation of your own developing and evolving social
understanding.
In your paper, include the following components:
Elements of Social Understanding (1-2 pages)
· Explain the concept of “epistemology” or “how we know what
we know.”
· Discuss the following elements of social understanding:
evidence, theory, value, and beliefs.
Acquisition of Social Understanding (1-2 pages)
· Explain the concept of “reflexivity” in social understanding.
· Discuss how humans can gain each element of social
understanding or how elements are formed.
· Defend the importance each element of social understanding
has on human knowledge.
Value to Society (1-2 pages)
· Summarize how the elements of social understanding work
together.
· Justify the potential impact if citizens in society do or do not
embrace all elements of social understanding.

7. The Aspects of Social Understanding Research paper
· Must be a minimum of four double-spaced pages in length (not
including title and references pages) and formatted according to
APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center (Links to
an external site.)’s APA Style (Links to an external site.)
· Must include a separate title page with the following:
· Title of paper
· Student’s name
· Course name and number
· Instructor’s name
· Date submitted
For further assistance with the formatting and the title page,
refer to APA Formatting for Word 2013 (Links to an external
site.).
· Must utilize academic voice. See the Academic Voice (Links
to an external site.) resource for additional guidance.
· Must include an introduction and conclusion paragraph. Your
introduction paragraph needs to end with a clear thesis
statement that indicates the purpose of your paper.
· For assistance on writing Introductions & Conclusions (Links
to an external site.) as well as Writing a Thesis
Statement (Links to an external site.), refer to the Ashford
Writing Center resources.
· Must use at least three scholarly sources in addition to the
course text.
· The Scholarly, Peer Reviewed, and Other Credible
Sources (Links to an external site.) table offers additional
guidance on appropriate source types. If you have questions
about whether a specific source is appropriate for this
assignment, please contact your instructor. Your instructor has
the final say about the appropriateness of a specific source for a
particular assignment.
· Must document any information used from sources in APA
style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center’s Citing Within
Your Paper (Links to an external site.)
Must include a separate references page that is formatted

8. according to APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing
Center. See the Formatting Your References List (Links to an
external site.) resource in the Ashford Writing Center for
specifications.
Carefully review the Grading Rubric (Links to an external
site.) for the criteria that will be used to evaluate your
assignment.
2
WEEK 2-ASSIGNMENT
Aspects of Social Understanding
SOC 5110 Sociological Theory
Mary Ware
Instructor: Dr. Tiffenia Archie
Nov 20, 2019
Understanding others is an essential part of life and as a human
being in general. Social understanding is to believe to have
started in as early as toddlerhood, as well as the early school
years. Some children’s awareness of others’ thoughts and
feeling are sometimes not parallel to many others their age and

9. this can go well into adulthood and affect the now adult’s social
understanding of others around them (Hughes, 2011).
In this paper I will, explain the concept of “epistemology” or
“how we know what we know. Then I will discuss the following
elements of social understanding: evidence, theory, value, and
beliefs. Next, I will explain the concept of “reflexivity” in
social understanding. As well as discuss how humans can gain
each element of social understanding or how elements are
formed. Also, I will defend the importance each element of
social understanding has on human knowledge. Then I
summarize how the elements of social understanding work
together. Then finally, I will try and justify the potential impact
if citizens in society do or do not embrace all elements of social
understanding.
Explain the concept of “epistemology” or “how we know what
we know.”
Epistemology, or the theory of knowledge is a philosophical
theory that has been examined throughout many centuries past
by some the greatest minds and intellectuals alike. Scholars
like Descartes, Durkheim, Bernard, Aristotle, and Plato.
Although Plato was the one who believed and then classified
knowledge as the being of three concepts: truth, belief, and
evidence, and gave a definition of truth as “ that what reflects
reality (Vejar, 2019).”
Discuss the following elements of social understanding:
evidence, theory, value, and beliefs.
The concept of evidence is vital to epistemology and the
philosophy of science. In epistemology, evidence is frequently
taken to be applicable to justified belief, the latter, sequentially,
is characteristically believed to be essential for knowledge.
Perhaps, then, an understanding of evidence is significant and
designed for appreciating the two leading matters of
epistemological concern, i.e., knowledge and justified belief
(Fieser & Dowden, 1998).
In the philosophy of science, evidence is a staunch belief that

10. what confirms or counters scientific theories, and thus
establishes grounds for realistically determining amid
contending pictures of the biosphere. Evidence, in terms of
philosophy, has been reserved to comprise of such effects as,
“experiences, propositions, observation-reports, mental states,
states of affairs, and even physiological procedures, such as the
stimulation of one's sensory surfaces (Fieser & Dowden,
1998).”
Theories allows us to see and make logic of social formulae in
society. Theories, consequently, are apparatuses for
understanding individuals’ lives and just how society works. A
theory in essence, is formed by a single or a small sum of
sociologists working collectively; it tries to explicate a specific
facet of the social structure or a form of social communication
amongst individuals. Theoretical perspectives frame the social
world for sociologists. They bring awareness to some portions
of human behavior and distort others. Countless sociologists use
the lenses of many theoretical perspectives to recompense for
the theoretical lapses of each perspective (Korgen & Atkinson,
2019).
Belief happens once individuals/person grants validity toward
such a fact, and evidence is a person's capacity to defend such a
statement. For example, if you are crossing a highway, one must
determine how safe it is to cross the highway. To determine that
, you must use the knowledge and your ability to reason to make
that determination. From looking at the highway, you may
determine that it is safe to cross, because there is no traffic,
therefore there is a belief that it is safe to cross the highway. If
there is someone who has already made it safely on the other
side then, one would determine that the belief that it is safe to
cross the highway is true (Vejar, 2019).
Values are a culture’s standard for deciding what is moral and
fair in society. Values are very rooted and critical for conveying
and educating a culture’s beliefs. Beliefs are the views or
principles that people embrace to be true. One can believe in
anything but without evidence that doesn’t make that true

11. (Giddens, Duneier & Applebaum,1991).
Author & Philosopher Jonathan Leicester; proposes that belief
has the resolve of guiding action rather than being indicative of
truth. In epistemology, the term "belief" is used by
philosophers in reference to personal attitudes connected with
true or false thoughts and ideas. Nevertheless, "belief" does not
necessitate active self-examination and watchfulness (Pasnau,
2013).
Those in a society have particular beliefs, but they also have
shared collective values. Values help form a society by
signifying what is moral and immoral, attractive and
unattractive, wanted or evaded. Values often advise how people
ought to behave, but they don’t truthfully replicate how people
do behave (Giddens, Duneier & Applebaum,1991).
Explain the concept of “reflexivity” in social understanding.
Reflexivity has been used by a diverse group of theorists in
reference to different phenomena consistent with what mutually
the entity and topic of reflection is known to be. This practice
of this term was further established by Author Anthony
Giddens, who contends that one of the key characteristics of
late modernism is a keen importance of reflexivity in this logic,
at the individual and the societal level mutually. It has been
argued by Giddens, that most facets of social activity are
answerable to constant adjustment in the light of new evidence
or knowledge but sociology itself is a key foundation of such
reflexivity at the level of the society (science.jrank.org, 2019.)
Reflexive theories offer an alternate viewpoint on sociological
intervention and an construal of existing social circumstances
that expose new opportunities for the theoretical professional
and societal recentering of sociological preparation to what is
generally called the "sociology of practice." From a reflexive
perspective point of view, sociological data and commonplace
knowledge are correlated through a method of shared
transformation in customs that foster a merging of theoretical
and applied topics, redraw the limitations amid sociological,

12. and the added sociological activities, and entail innovative
methods of lay-expert meeting in which lay knowledge plays an
impractical role, upon that engagement reflexive criteria will be
met. The sociology of practice is recentered as a functional
form of knowledge applicable pertaining to the labor of all
sociologists and vital for enriching social problems
(science.jrank.org, 2019.).
Discuss how humans can gain each element of social
understanding or how elements are formed.
(2019)Reflexivity: Reflexivity In Sociology. Retrieved by:
https://science.jrank.org/pages/11000/Reflexivity-Reflexivity-
in-Sociology.html
Fieser, J., & Dowden, B. (1998). The Internet Encyclopedia of
Philosophy (IEP). URL: http://www. Philosophy pages.

13. com/dy/e9. htm# eth (accessed: February 25, 2011).
Giddens, A., Duneier, M., Appelbaum, R. P., & Carr, D. S.
(1991). Introduction to sociology. New York: Norton.
Hughes, C. (2011). Social understanding and social lives: From
toddlerhood through to the transition to school. Psychology
Press.
Korgen, K. O., & Atkinson M. P. (2019) Sociology in action
(1st ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications, Inc.
Pasnau, R. (2013). Epistemology Idealized. Mind, 122(488),
987-1021. Retrieved from www.jstor.org/stable/24489588
Vejar, C. (2019). Epistemology. Salem Press Encyclopedia.
Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com.proxy-
library.ashford.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ers&AN=89164
199&site=eds-live&scope=site
MGT 533 Individual Project
100 Points
Individual Case Study Assignment –
Case Study 15-1 Rocky Plains Brewing Ltd.
1) Read Case Study 15-1, Rocky Plains Brewing Ltd at the end
of Chapter 15 in the textbook.
2) Discuss the answers to the below questions under
“Assignment”.
3) Ensure that you consider the concerns listed below.
4) APA format is required.
5) A minimum of 3 pages of writing should be submitted.
Concerns to consider:
1. While Gilpin’s ultimatum may be unprofessional and perhaps
illegal, Mike Pearson must shoulder some responsibility for not
managing his company’s risk exposure during the transition and
anticipating an aggressive response from Gerald Gilpin.

14. 2. The timing and transition plan developed by Mike Pearson
and Pat Schofield puts production in jeopardy.
3. The ethical problem, which could also be described as a
corporate social responsibility issue, of managing relationships
with a supplier when your company represents a significant
portion of their annual revenues (and presumably profits). The
purchaser cannot ignore responsibility associated with such a
relationship.
4. Consider the financial aspect of the situation as well.
Assignment:
· The issue we want to address with this case study is the “Legal
and Ethics” aspect of business decisions and subsequent actions.
Sometimes “legal and ethics” will drive different behavior for
the long run benefit.
1. What could Mike Pearson have done to prevent this crisis?
2. What options does Mike Pearson have now?
3. Which option do you choose and why?
Individual Case Study Rubric:
Content: Elaborate and detailed information relative to the
topic.
Critical thinking evident in the complexity of the answers.
Discussion is articulated in a clear manner.
Well organized and can be easily understood.
60
Writing / Grammar: There should be no spelling, grammar or
sentence structure errors.
The structure of the paper should have clear paragraphs for each
question.
Three-page minimum, double spaced, 12-point font, 1-inch
margins. (Papers will be marked down if they are too short)

15. 40
Total:
100