3rd sem nmims june 2020 assignments sample

NMIMS
Consumer behavior
Internal Assignment for June 2020 Examination
1. GSK Horlicks is an iconic health drink for kids. Over the years, the brand has
introduced several variants of Horlicks. What is segmentation and targeting? Identify
the type of segmentation done for each of the following:
1. Horlicks Chocolate for fussy children who like fun flavors
2. Mother’s Horlicks for pregnant women and lactating mothers
3. Junior Horlicks for newborns and infants
4. Horlicks Lite for calorie-conscious adults
Answer: Segmentation
Market segmentation allows a marketer to take a heterogeneous market, heterogeneous is a
market consisting of customers with diverse characteristics, needs, wants, and behaviour, and
divides it up into one or more homogeneous markets which are made up of individuals or
organisations with similar needs, wants, and behavioural tendencies. In order to capture this
heterogeneous market for any product, you need to divide or disintegrate the market into a
number of sub-markets or segments and this process is known as market segmentation.
Segmentation is more likely to be successful if a step-by-step approach is used. Segmentation
strategy is not a simple process. It is the result of applying a systematic and analytical process
to the crucial decisions about product market entry.
● Step 1: Forming market segments: This is the beginning of the market segmentation
process. The marketing manager follows two approaches for identifying market
segments. They are called build-up and breakdown approach. While the former
approach is more appropriate for business-to-business markets or industrial buyers,
the latter is used in the context of business-to-consumer or individual market
segments.
● Step 2: Profile segments: After market segments have been formed, the marketing
manager analyses the segments to understand the profile of customer in each segment.
A profile is built for each segment by searching for relationships among segmentation
basis variables and descriptive characteristic variables. Although a segmentation basis
should clearly classify
2. What are the steps in the consumer decision-making journey? Describe your
decision-making journey for the following products:
a. Sugar
b. Men’s aftershave lotion
c. Smartphone
Answer: a) Stages in Consumer Decision journey (Sugar)
● Need Recognition: Purchase decision-making process begins when a buyer becomes
aware of an unsatisfied need or a problem. Problem recognition is a critical stage in
consumer decision-making process because without it, there is no deliberate search
for information. If the consumer does not perceive any discrepancy between her/his
current state and the desired state, the current state for the concerned consumer is
apparently quite satisfactory and does not need decision-making. Sugar is widely used

in every households as there are so many uses of sugar such as in making tea, coffee,
sweets etc. Here our need is
3. a. Explain the different adopter categories in the Innovation adoption process, taking
the example of any innovative product of your choice.
3. b. What are membership groups and symbolic groups? Discuss 1 membership group
and 1 symbolic group from your life.
Answer: a) Innovation adoption process
Innovators: They constitute, on an average the first 2.5 percent of all those consumers who
adopt the new product and are technology enthusiasts. Their venturesome attitude is reflected
in their risk taking willingness and eagerness bordering obsession to try new products and
ideas. Innovators tend to be younger, better educated, have higher incomes, are cosmopolitan,
and more active outside of their community than non-innovators. Here I am mentioning about
the wearables product which are very famous these days. Initially, few individuals used these
products as an experiment and knew they will be hit in the market.
Early adopters: They represent, on an average, the next 13.5 percent who adopt the new
product. They admire a
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NMIMS
Corporate Finance

1. Alpha Ltd is expecting an annual earnings before interest and tax of ₹ 1.5 Lakhs. The
company has 10% debentures of ₹ 4 lakhs and cost of Equity capital is 12%. Calculate
the total value of the firm and the overall cost of capital of the firm according to Net
Income Approach. Also comment what will happen to the value of the firm and the
overall cost of capital if debt is increased in the capital structure.
Answer: Value of the Equity of the firm
PARTICULARS If debt is 400000 If debt is 500000
Current operating income 150000 150000
Less: Interest on debt (10%) 40000 50000
Earnings for shareholders 110000 100000
Equity capitalisation rate 0.12 0.12
Value of equity 916667 833333
(Value of equity
If debt is
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2. The Capital structure of ABC Ltd, is as under:
Equity share capital ₹ 100 Lacs
10% Debentures ₹ 50 Lacs
● The sales for the year 2019 are 1.5 Lac units@ ₹ 40per unit
● Also, the variable cost per unit is 20 % of sales revenue
● ₹ 12 Lacs is the fixed operating cost.
● Assume Income tax rate as 40 %
Calculate Operating, Financial and Combined Leverage of the firm and interpret the
result.
Answer:
S.no Particulars ABC Ltd
3. Neha would retire 30 years from today and she would need ₹ 6,00,000 per year after
her retirement, with the first retirement funds withdrawn one year from the day she
retires. Assume a return of 7% per annum on her retirement funds and if her planning
is for 25 years after retirement, Calculate:
a. How much lumpsum she should deposit in her account today so that she has enough
funds for retirement?
b. How much she should deposit each year so that she has enough funds for retirement?
Answer: a) Cash PV annuity factor = (1 – (1/(1+r)^n))/r
= (1 – (1/(1+0.07)^25))/0.07
= (1 – (1/(1.07)^25)/0.07
= (1 – (1/5.427)/0.
NMIMS
International Business
1. In the US-China Trade war, what are the trade control measures taken by both the
countries. How are the US & Chinese companies getting affected?
Answer: The basic legal environment for conducting business is governed by state law,
domestic law or municipal law, and international law. This environment covers a wide
variety of topics, for instance, laws regulating business on production and sale of goods,
consumer and labour laws, tax and financial laws, settlement of disputes at the national and
international level and rules of business ethics. It is important to have knowledge and
understanding of the domestic legal environment and the international legal framework. With
the increasing globalization, business organizations operate at an international level and need
to comply with legal rules from different sources and legal systems in different jurisdictions.
It is useful to know the international legal framework and systems pertaining to world trade
law for ensuring

2. Discuss the effects of regional integration in terms of trade creation and trade
diversion. Prepare a list of Regional Trade Agreements of India
Answer: Regional economic integration has been justified both economically and legally.
Regional economic integration, it is argued, increases economic welfare of the nations in the
region through the liberalization of trade and capital movement. Further, increased national
incomes mean countries will boost their levels of import. Thus, regional economic integration
also enhances global economic welfare. On the other hand, another viewpoint goes thus:
member states increasingly import goods and attract investments from fellow member states
rather than from outside countries due to lowered intra-regional barriers. Therefore, regional
economic integration may have harmful impacts on countries outside the region and may
diminish global economic welfare. The logic goes as investment-diversion effects, and then
regional economic integration can be justified in purely economic terms.
The pattern of growth of RTAs does not lead to any concrete deductions. While on one hand,
this phenomenal extent of trading within the regional agreements could never have been
imagined by the founders
3. Read the passage and answer the questions mentioned below the passage.
Coronavirus has put a spotlight on the economic decoupling of China and some
developed countries. With factories shuttered and consumption stalled, multinational
companies have been forced to shift production elsewhere. Apple has warned investors
that its revenues will take a hit as a result of the outbreak. A gradual decoupling of
global economies has been under way for a few years. The South Korean electronics
group Samsung, for example, has been closing Chinese plants and opening others in
Vietnam. Mexico has benefited from some US corporations moving their supply chains
closer to home. But decoupling will undoubtedly speed up as Beijing’s opacity in
handling the coronavirus epidemic highlights the risks of doing business in China.
There are marked similarities between the virus and decoupling itself. There is what
you see on the surface (masks and panic or supply chain shifts and profit warnings) and
then there is what you can’t know: how many victims the outbreak will claim or what
the world will look like economically and politically in five to 10 years, as globalization
dissolves and divides deepen. Still, it is the job of a columnist to go out on a limb, so let
me make a few predictions about what may lurk around the corner if the decoupling
continues. An increased risk of violence in Taiwan, the inability of Europe to defend its
own liberal democratic values, and a world in which smart devices can no longer speak
to each other across borders are distinct possibilities. And all of these things could
fundamentally reshape the global economy and geopolitics. The most pressing issue in
the short term is Taiwan, whose firms make most of the world’s semiconductors. The
majority are produced by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, a contract
chipmaker that supplies US companies, including Apple, and a number of Chinese
firms. Semiconductors are a key area in which the Chinese are not yet technologically
self-sufficient. In hardware (from routers to switches to handsets), areas of software and
high-tech services, the Chinese have already largely decoupled from the US. Consider
the success of homegrown firms such as the smartphone maker Xiaomi. Or the telecoms
group Huawei’s efforts to build bespoke Chinese operating systems. Or the fact that
many of the most innovative new mobile apps are developed in China. But
semiconductors require huge amounts of capital investment and research effort. It
could be a decade before China can fully develop its own industry. In the meantime, it

will be dependent on Taiwan, which not only supplies US companies, but where support
for democracy is growing. This begs the question of whether, or perhaps when,
Taiwan’s semiconductor industry might become a political hot potato, as both China
and the US try to build their own independent high-tech sectors. It is hard to imagine
that Taiwan will be able to operate in both orbits indefinitely. As one telecoms analyst
put it to me recently, “What’s happened in Hong Kong is fascinating and disturbing in
part because it raises the question, what happens if the same thing occurs in Taiwan?”
Imagine a world in which cross-border banking, online shopping and data sharing
becomes bifurcated between two systems. That is a reality we may be heading towards.
Apple and other tech companies would certainly take a valuation hit in such a future.
But so would many others in industries beyond technology. As with coronavirus, the
effects of decoupling will be both unpredictable and exponential. (accessed from
https://www.ft.com/ on 27th February,2020)
a. Do you think that globalization is under threat? Are transnational firms going to
become extinct? Give your comments with reference to the passage.
b. With your knowledge of International Business, explain how different political
systems across nations may create risks for the conduct of business.
Answer: a) The trend of globalization has gained substantial importance in today’s highly
integrated world. Globalization has become a need rather than a choice. Nowadays,
organizations face a highly dynamic market with huge requirements of R&D and innovations
in order to stay ahead of their competitors. The costs involved in such innovation and R&D
can only be borne by multinational organizations. Thus, companies prefer to opt for global
operations in order to take advantage of the economies of scale and avail various benefits.
Globalization can be defined as the process of international integration that arises due to
increasing human connectivity as well as the interchange of products, ideas and other aspects
of culture. It includes the spread and connectedness of communication, technologies and
production across the world and involves the interlacing of cultural and economic activity.
In coming years, the coronavirus outbreak may be remembered as a milestone moment on the
road toward the end of the first
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NMIMS
Course: Operations management
1. List down briefly the various inventory management techniques prevalent in the
industry. Discuss how some of these techniques would be applicable to a Medical Store
in effective management of their inventories, i.e medical supplies.
Answer: An unused resource of any kind, which has considerable potential in value, is
termed as inventory. Inventory is a list of goods (both finished and semi-finished), work in
progress and raw materials that are held in stock by business organisations. Companies use
inventory in order to meet the future demands in production, repair, maintenance,
construction, etc. Inventory is considered as one of the most important assets of an
organisation. An effective inventory management is vital for both manufacturers and service
organisations, though
2. In the competitive business environment, there is a lot of strategic pressure on
established companies to compete with the cheaper substitutes as well as maintain
quality at the same time. Also there is a recent trend amongst consumers for "first copy/
duplicates" of branded products. Why do you think that these so called "Chinese
manufacturers" are able to make products cheaper than most other products available?
Also how do you think can competing and maintaining quality be achievable for
companies for original branded products like Cadbury, Rayban, etc to tackle the other
duplicate products?
Answer: The present day world is often called as a flat world because of revolution in
transport, communication and technological advancement. The present day environment in
which the business enterprises operate is so dynamic and fast-changing that the business
enterprises are finding it extremely difficult to operate. There are high level of uncertainties,
threats and constraints from different quarters and due to this business corporations are
finding it extremely difficult to survive. In the highly dynamic business environment today,
companies compete with each other for the customer’s attention as well as the market share.
For capturing the necessary market share and retaining its flagship position, each company
has to analyse its own
3. ABC Ltd is a leading corporate in India in FMCG. After an extensive research by
their Marketing department they found out they should diversify into Foods &
Beverages. The top management decided to get in the manufacturing of a coconut
flavoured soft drink and a coconut flavoured milk based drink. Pumping capital in the

venture into the business is not a major concern for the company as they have many
regular investors on hand. The company would like to have a major presence with a
pan India distribution network
a. Do you think the idea of getting into the business of a coconut flavoured drinks a
feasible business/ product on for a FMCG company? Give your views with reasons.
b. Assuming that the business idea would have a very encouraging response, suggest a
suitable plant location to set up the beverage manufacturing. Give reasons for the same.
Answer: a) Entrepreneurs have the power to alter the economy, industries and market
situations. They invent new products and also try to develop the existing products and
product designs. They try to achieve the desired goal within the frame work of
business/cultural ethics. Many innovations have transformed the society and altered its living
pattern. There are many soft drinks available in the market which are quite popular among the
customers. When you enter in a popular market, it is difficult to enter in any new segment. It
is relatively easy for an entrepreneur to enter in already established market to start any
business. This coconut Its half solved sample only
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NMIMS
Organization theory
1. Surya Enterprises is in the business of setting up Solar Power plants, which converts
energy from the sun into electricity using Solar Panels. This is a young company that
has been in existence for 4 years and has a seen rapid growth from being a 25 people
start-up to a 1000 people strong company. The company’s founders have laid a special

emphasis on sustainable and ethical business practices, (including abiding by labour
laws) and due to this, as well as being in green energy space, the company is well
regarded by everyone in the industry. However, this sector is highly cost sensitive and
the company faces stiff competition from other local vendors who operate on lesser
margins by adopting less ethical practices. Another factor affecting margins, is that
70% of the cost of the project is the cost of the Solar Panel itself. These panels are
imported from China and thus the profitability is closely linked to the cost at which the
panels are procured. With the Indian government coming down heavily against
dumping by Chinese companies, as well as a surge in demand for panels in China, the
cost of solar panels has increased. The government is encouraging the spread of solar
energy based plants through special schemes to encourage the generation of clean
energy. However, new plants that are coming up, the system of allocation is through
open bidding and goes to the lowest tariff offered, and the tariff has been going down
steeply. This has further impacted the profitability of these ventures. On the positive
side, technology is changing rapidly and discovery of cheaper and better materials is
making the panels smaller and cheaper. Given the above scenario, the company is now
planning to evaluate whether the business is sustainable or not. Surya enterprises has
hired you to do an organisational analysis using the PESTLE method
Q. Define the elements of PESTLE and using the information given in the case above,
wherever possible list out the various aspects of the PESTLE relevant to the case.
Answer: The environment consists of various forces that affect the company’s ability to
deliver products and services to its customers. The environment can affect a company in
many ways. A company can have the best technologies, employees, and the best of suppliers
but it can fail miserably if any of the factors like exchange rate, policies of the host
government, changing needs of customers, etc. start to act against it. On the other hand, a
mediocre company can be spectacularly successful if the factors in the external environment
start favouring its strategies and policies. It is imperative that companies keep a close watch
on the environment factors that may affect them, and prepare themselves adequately to face
the emerging challenges.
Environmental analysis is the assessment of environmental factors which affect marketing
activities. An examination is made of both positive and negative affect for adjusting
marketing activities in order to survive is known as environmental analysis. Marketing
environmental analysis helps a business understand internal, micro and macro environmental
forces that can affect it. The environment, or external forces, are often factors that a business
cannot control, yet it is important to be aware of environmental concerns when preparing a
marketing plan or introducing a new product to the market. The most common method for
preparing a marketing environmental analysis is to conduct a PESTLE analysis, which covers
most areas affecting
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2. Pradeep Foods was started by Pradeep Panigrahi, to provide wholesome and
reasonably priced food options to young professionals working in business parks. The
primary goal of Pradeep Foods was to deliver piping hot food, prepared with minimal
quantities of oil and spices, using only fresh seasonal produce. The company started its
operations in Mumbai and very quickly moved to all the major cities in India. Initially,
when each branch was being set up, Pradeep would stay there for 2-3 months to start
the office and train the teams. He would personally supervise the menu, and based on
customer feedback tweak the menu to satisfy his customers. The food services were well
appreciated and their customer base grew at an exponential rate. Pradeep bumped into
you in a conference and shared his concern that his organisation is becoming too big to
manage. He is has heard of a functional structure and a divisional style structure and
asks you to recommend which structure is better in his case.
Q. Detail out what a divisional structure and functional structure are, listing out
benefits and disadvantages of each as per the case given above.
Answer: Structure of an organization defines the levels and roles of management in a
hierarchical way. One can also say that an organizational structure spells out the way tasks,
functions and responsibilities are allocated for implementing a policy or strategy.
Organizational structure involves arrangement of activities and assignment of personnel to
these activities in order to achieve the organizational goals in an efficient manner. It is a way
by which various parts of an organization are tied together in a coordinated manner and it
illustrates the various relationships among various levels of hierarchy within the organization
as well as horizontal relationships among various functions of the organizational operations.
A well planned organizational structure results in better utilisation of resources. In general,
“organizational structure” refers to the way individuals and groups are arranged with respect
to the tasks they perform, and ‘organizational design’ refers to the process of coordinating
these structural elements in the most effective manner.
3. Kapoor & Co is a family run business, which has been in existence for many years.
The MD, Mr. Kapoor, knew each and every employee in his company and ran the
company like his extended family. He was personally involved in every performance

and increment discussion and would take the final decision for each employee. The
employees were quite happy in this set-up. After a few decades, Mr. Kapoor decided to
retire from the company and put in place a professional management team to run the
company. The new management team has been hired from other companies and has
been given a free hand to run the company. The first step they took was to put in place a
structured performance appraisal process, to assess and evaluate the employees. The
employees became very agitated at the introduction of the new process and the feedback
reached Mr. Kapoor. You are the CEO of this company and Mr. Kapoor wants to meet
you to understand what is happening. You see that this is a classic case of the company
following Greiner’s Life Cycle model.
a. Describe the 5 stages of Greiner’s Life Cycle model giving the context from the case
b. Describe the need for change management as well as the approach you intend to
follow using Lewins 3 step model
Answer: a) An organization’s ability to adapt itself to the changes in the environment
indicates its growth. In accordance, the two significant factors that need to be considered are
capacity and capability for arranging the necessary resources for the organization’s
utilization. It is to be noted that the capacity and capability change according to the
circumstances while participating in the process of resource mobilization to attain the goals
of the organization. According to L. Greiner, the growth of an organisation takes place in five
different phases. These phases begin with evolution and end with revolution/crisis.
Greiner’s life cycle model
Phase 1: A novel organisation focuses on selling its products in the market. There is absence
of any formal system in such organisation, which can lead to problems at all levels.
Consequently, managerial problems may arise because of the absence of sound leadership.
Therefore, an organisation needs a more structured form of management. In our case, Kapoor
& Co is a family run business, and
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NMIMS
Taxation- direct and indirect
1. Ms. Ankita completed her MBA from DAVV, Indore. She joined an enterprise as an
Accounts Manager at a CTC of Rs 650000. She invested Rs 150000 in PPF and paid
mediclaim for herself Rs 15000 using cash as a mode of payment. Discuss and compute
her tax liability assuming she is residential individual for the Assessment year 2019-20
Answer: Tax liability of Ms. Ankita for the assessment year 2019-20
Calculation of taxable income
Particulars Amount (Rs.) Amount (Rs.)
Income from salary 650000
Deductions
Less: u/s 80 D (PPF) 150000
Less: Standard deduction 40000 190000
Taxable income 460000
Calculation of tax liability
Particulars Amount (Rs.)
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2. Ms. Urrjja is running successfully the business of supplying &selling woolens on the
digital platform. She is keen to understand how business expenses are allowed under the
Indian Income Tax Act 1961. However, these days she is more concerned about whether
there is any provision under the Act which allows claiming deductions in relation to
residuary expenses. As a knowledgeable person in taxation, how will you address the
worry of Ms. Urrjja. Is there any provision under the IT Act which allows to claim
deductions of residual expenses? If yes, how can she avail the benefit of the said
provision for her business?
Answer: Section 37(1) says that any expenditure (not being expenditure of the nature
described in sections 30 to 36 and not being in the nature of capital expenditure or personal
expenses of the assessee), laid out or expended wholly and exclusively for the purposes of the
business or profession shall be allowed in computing the income chargeable under the head,
“Profits and Gains of Business or Profession”. Therefore, Ms. Urrjja should follow the
following rules and regulations:
Condi
3. Mr. Mohan, aged 65 years, derives Rs 7.5 lacs as salary from Amiir PanWala &
Company for the year ended 31.03.2019. He supplies the following information to the
accounts department of the employer. (Applicable Assessment year 2019-20)
Particulars Amount
Loss from one of the Self - occupied
property
Rs 200000
Loss from let out house property Rs 360000
Interest from Flexi Fixed Deposits Rs 150000
a. Explain and examine the applicability of TDS provision
b. Compute total tax liability and monthly deduction for TDS
Answer: a) Persons responsible for paying any income chargeable to tax are required to
compute the tax liability in respect of such income and deduct tax at source at the time of
payment. Persons who have deducted tax at source are responsible for:
(i) issuing a certificate to the person from whom income tax was deducted at source;
(ii) depositing the tax with the treasury within the given time period; and

(iii) filing a return of the tax deducted at source.
The following are some
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Capital Market and Portfolio Management
1. Calculate the standard deviation and return of portfolio consisting of 60% of Security
A and 40% of Security B.
TABLE BELOW
Year Security A return (%) Security B return (%)
2015 10 18
2016 12 15
2017 9 11
2018 10 9
2019 5 7
Answer: We have Expected return of portfolio (Ep) = W1E1 + W3E3 + ………….WnEn

Year Security A return (%) Security B return (%)
2015 10 18
2016 12 15
2017 9 11
2018 10 9
2019 5 7
46 60
Expected
2. Calculate the return as per CAPM for each of the company’s stock, identify whether
they are underpriced, overpriced or correctly priced and advise accordingly. Returns of
T- Bill is 9%.
Stock Expected Return Beta
Titan 24% 1.8
Nestle 30% 1.5
Eicher Motors 12% 1.2
HDFC 25.9% 1.3
Sensex 22%
Answer: Calculation of CAPM
CAPM = Rf + β(Rm – Rf)
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Where,
Rf = Risk free rate
β = Beta
Rm = Market rate of return
Titan
3. An investor was tracking SBI and HDFC mutual funds whose return and beta are as
given below:
Observed Return Beta
Portfolio SBI 18% 0.75
Portfolio HDFC 25% 1.25
Return on the market portfolio is 11%, while the risk-free return is 8%. Assume
standard Deviation of the market to be 7%.
a. Compute the Jensen index for each of the funds and comment which one is better.
b. Compute the Treynor index for each of the funds and comment which one is better.
Answer: Jensen’s Alpha
Jensen’s Alpha = Portfolio return – Risk free rate - [Beta of the portfolio * (Expected
market return – Risk free rate)]
Portfolio SBI Portfolio HDFC
= 18 – 8 – [0.75(11-8)]
= 10 – [0.75(3)]
= 10 – 2.25
= 25 – 8 – [1.25(11-8)]
= 17 – [1.25(3)]
= 17 – 3.75
= 7.75 = 13.25
Conclusion: A positive alpha means the fund has outperformed its benchmark index.
NMIMS
Cost and management accounting
1. Given the slowdown in the auto sector, Fast Automobile company, a car
manufacturing company wants to go in for an overhaul of its operations. The
Management wants to review the cost of all its product lines i.e. types of cars it has in
various segments and the way they value their closing stock given the inventory pile up,
to take some strategic decisions. The Management accountant is asked to prepare a

summary of costs to enable the top team to decide which product to manufacture,
discontinue some segments etc. What are the various types of ways the Management
accountant can classify the costs by Management decisions. Describe any 5. Also,
discuss the different ways in which the company can value its closing stock?
Answer: Cost is the amount of resources given up in exchange of some goods and services.
The resources are expressed in money or money’s equivalent. CIMA defines the term cost as
“the amount of expenditure (actual or notional) incurred on or attributable to a given thing”.
The given thing may be taken as a product, service or any other activity. While the actual
expenditure refers to the amount spent, the notional expenditure does not involve in any cash
outlay. It does not reflect itself in the accounting records. But, it is important for the purpose
of comparison of cost and in decision making.
2. Traditional Managerial accounting was all about managing costs whereas
Management accounting has undergone a sea change, given the change in the overall
Global environment. Discuss and describe in relation to the following -
● Growth of E-Commerce and e-business. Share atleast 2 practical examples.
● Focus on cross-functional Groups
● Total Quality management concept
How these impacted global management accounting practices
Answer: The term ‘management accounting’ refers to accounting for the management, i.e.,
accounting which provides necessary information to the management for discharging its
functions. The functions of the management are planning, organizing, directing and
controlling. Thus, management accounting provides information to the management so that
planning, organizing, directing and controlling of business operations can be done in an
orderly and effective manner. The basic function of management accounting is to assist the
management in performing its functions effectively. The functions of the management are
planning, organizing, Its half solved sample only
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3. Fancy Bag company purchases Ladies Bags from a wholesaler @ Rs 1100/- per piece.
They add accessories and packaging and sell each bag for Rs 1800/- per piece. They
incur certain fixed expenses. The company wants to understand how many pieces they
must sell in order to be profitable. They seek the help of a Management accountant to:
a. Ascertain Contribution per piece and as a % of Sales Price
Answer: Purchase cost = Rs. 1100
Selling price = Rs. 1100
Contribution per piece = 1800 – 1100*
= 700
*Note: In the absence
NMIMS
Marketing of financial services
1. Explain the concept of Online Marketing of financial services. How is it changing the
way financial products and services are sold in India?
Answer: The financial services industry has witnessed a positive growth in recent times.
Earlier, the key players in the Indian financial services industry were mainly banks. The main
role of the bank was to keep a person’s money safe and secure in the savings account. People
could also open a fixed deposit or a recurring deposit with a branch. However, earlier most
people were reluctant to take loans from banks. This view has changed and a large number of
people are opting for loans from banks for buying houses, cars or for funding higher
education. The financial system of any country is one of most important institutions and a
necessary factor for the
2. One week ago you bought a ULIP policy from a private Life Insurance company. On
receiving the policy copy, you realize that the Life Insurance policy was mis-sold. Would
it be possible for you to return the policy? What strategy would you follow to settle the
matter with the insurance company?
Answer: Life insurance is one of the most important and expensive purchases you may ever
make. When persons purchase a life-insurance policy, they enter into a contract with the life
insurance company. Under the terms of the policy, the insurance company promises to pay a
sum of money in the event of the policyholder’s death to the beneficiaries of the policy holder

or to the policy holders themselves at the end of the policy period. The insurance company
makes this promise in return for the insured’s agreement to pay it a sum of money i.e., the
premium periodically.
Life insurance proceeds may be used for the following purposes:
● Repaying a home
JUNE 2020,
1 hour.
Contact no is +91 87-55555-879.
3. You are a Financial Planner. Your client Ashwin Aswani aged 37 years, married with
1 child requires your help to make few financial decisions. (You can make any
assumptions to further build up your case.)
a. Ashwin wants to buy a Pure Risk Life Insurance cover. He is confused whether he
should buy a ULIP or a Term Plan. Recommend the product best suited for him giving
valid reasons.
b. Ashwin wants to purchase a holiday home by liquidating his retirement savings and
taking a home loan for the next 10 to 15 years. Ashwin wants your opinion whether this
is an appropriate strategy for a Retirement Plan.
Answer: a) Life Insurance is an agreement providing for payment of a sum of money to the
person secured. You require life insurance only if someone relies on you for help and
support. Your life insurance premium depends on the type of insurance you take, the amount
you pay for it and your chance of death while the policy is in effect.
There are different types of life insurance schemes in India. These include:

Term life insurance: Under a Term life contract, the insurance company pays a specific
amount to the designated receiver in case of the death of the insured. These policies are
usually for 5, 10, 15, 20 or
NMIMS
Strategic Cost Management
1. A company has a contribution/sales ratio of 50%. It maintains a MOS of 25%. If its
annual fixed cost is Rs. 50 lakhs, calculate:
BE sales, MOS, Total Sales, Total Variable Cost and Profit
Answer: Break even sales = Fixed cost/P/v Ratio
= 5000000/50%
= 10000000
Total sales = Break even sales + Marin of safety
Margin of Safety = Actual Sales – Break-Even Sales
2. The following information is available from the records of Alpha Ltd. For the year
2019:
You are required to prepare a master budget.
Rs.
Sales of product A 25.0 Lakhs
Sales of product B 75.0 Lakhs
Material cost 55% of sales
Direct wages 50,000 per month per worker
Factory Overheads:
Indirect Labour:
Works Manager 10,000.0 per month
Foreman 5,000.0 per month
Stores and spares 5.0% of sales
Depreciation of machinery 1,50,000.0
Light and power 1,00,000.0
Repairs and maintenance 1,50,000.0
Other expenses 15% of direct wages
Administration expenses 2,00,000.0 per annum
Answer: Masterbudget for the year ending……..
Sales (as per sales budget)
Sales of product A 2500000
Sales of product B 7500000
10000000
Less: cost of production
Direct material 5500000
Direct wages 600000

Prime
JUNE 2020,
1 hour.
Contact no is +91 87-55555-879.
3. You are a consultant hired to advise ABC Limited on ROI and help with decision
making for additional order. The company has provided you following information:
The amount of division investment is Rs. 15,00,000 and the target rate of return on
investment is 20%
Particulars Amount (Rs.)
Sales (2,00,000 units at Rs. 20) 4,000,000
Less: Variable costs @ Rs. 15 per unit 3,000,000
Contribution Margin 1,000,000
Less: Fixed costs 750,000
Division Profit 250,000
Factory Overheads:
a. Based on the information provided calculate ROI and Residual income of ABC
Limited
b. Assume that division has offer to sell 50,000 units at Rs. 25 per unit. If additional
order is accepted, the variable cost per unit will remain the same. However, fixed costs
would increase by Rs. 250,000. A further additional investment of Rs. 10,00,000 would
also be required. Analyze the impact on residual income.
Answer: a) ROI = 250000 *100
1500000
= 16.7%

NMIMS
Compensation and benefits
1. WONDERWORLD Enterprises is a leading automobile company in India
manufacturing two wheelers. Company has expanded its operations in Asia by setting
up a unit in Indonesia. A team of 50 employees is sent on deputation to handle the
Indonesian project. You are an HR Manager of WONDERWORLD and you are
entrusted with the responsibility of designing the compensation for these 50 employees.
Which approach to compensation management will you adopt?
Answer: Compensation in its simplest form is the payment that one gets for the work done by
him either on full time or on part time basis. The issue of compensation has always been a
critical issue for both the employer and the employee. Money is a crucial incentive and can
be directly or indirectly stated as a medium of fulfilling human needs. On one hand,
employees need it to meet their primary needs. On the other hand, the employers provide
compensation to meet their firm’s objectives of manpower requirement. Employers also
provide compensation to engage, motivate and incentivise employees and not only to meet
manpower requirement.
Compensation includes all the rewards that an employee receives during the course of his or
her job–for his or her contributions to the organisation. The idea of a good compensation
philosophy is to attract, retain and motivate high-quality people. Compensation encompasses
base salary, incentives, bonus and benefits, and is based on job evaluation. Compensation
systems though are similar
2. REGENCY Group is a leading business conglomerate in India. The group is planning
to diversify into construction sector and as an HR Manager you are asked to conduct a
compensation survey in construction sector in India so that important compensation
decisions can be made. Suggest a step by step process for conducting this compensation
survey.
Answer: Compensation system plays an integral role in retention of employees as a poor
compensation is indeed one of the strong factors of employees leaving the organisation. A
compensation system in an organisation can be linked to employees’ behaviour and attitude.
An ineffective compensation strategy can result in poor job satisfaction and organisational
identification which may further affect employee behaviours towards each other and the
organisation. Compensation Management is more than just the means to attract and retain
talented employees. In today’s competitive labour market, organizations need to fully
leverage their
3. You are hired as an HR consultant by ABC Ltd, a newly set up IT Company, to
design a new compensation system. In this background, answer the following:
a. It is important to identify all the stakeholders before designing a new compensation
system. Identify the stakeholders of compensation for ABC Ltd.
b. Discuss the types of compensation that will be a part of compensation system of ABC
Ltd.

Answer: a) Stakeholders of compensation
Organization: First and prime stakeholder of compensation management is organization as it
pays to all the employees for their hard work and also motivate them continuously so that
they can improve their productivity level. Without proper compensation, employees will not
be motivated to perform to their best, which will adversely affect organizational efficiency
and effectiveness.
Managers: Next we have managers as other important stakeholders who play a key role in
supervising and guiding employee efforts and outcomes. They motivate and appraise
performance of employees regularly and recommend compensation increases to employees.
Managers ensure that all the departmental activities are carried out as per the timeline framed
at the beginning of the year. It Its half solved sample only
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NMIMS
Industrial relations
1. Bali has joined Martek Metals in personnel department. His primary KRA is
employee engagement, so he wants to start some sustainable initiatives rather than only
celebratory events like birthday parties or picnics. He wants to suggest some activities
towards workers’ participation in the next management meetings and wants to make
presentations with specifics. Let us list down and elaborate on various forms of
workers’ participation for Bali.

Answer: Workers’ participation in management decisions meets the psychological needs of
the workers and bridges the gap between management and the workers. Their participation
enables them to shape industrial relationships. Work committees with equal representation of
employers and employees encourage workers’ participation. Their participation improves
organisational communication, enhances employee commitment, and increases productivity.
One form of workers’ participation is ‘self-management’. Here, the workers manage the
industry through workers’ councils and management boards. Workers’ councils take
decisions regarding investments and achievement of economic goals. The management
boards prepare monthly operative plans and resolve issues related to discipline, wages,
promotions, and welfare schemes.
The participation of employees in organisational decision-making is now being encouraged
by everyone involved in
2. Mr. Natekar is a veteran teacher in Labour legislation. He holds long years of
experience in the field of labour law. He has been invited to deliver a seminar at an
international business school. The class is a mix of Indian and Foreign students hoping
to pursue their careers in ‘Management in Law’. Mr. Natekar decides to cover the topic
of ILO to suit the crowd. He decides to cover the ‘Topics of interest for ILO’. What
points must he include in the information about above topic. Please elaborate your
answer well.
Answer: The term Employee Relations refers to the relations between employers and their
employees. Every country has laws which regulate employee relations. India is a country
which complies with the International Labour Organisation (ILO) standards and has laws
which ensure the welfare of employees. In India the power is distributed between the union
governments and the state governments. Legislations regarding certain issues can be formed
or
amended by both the union government and the state government. Such issues are called
concurrent subjects. Labour is a concurrent subject. So both central and state governments
enforce laws regulating labour. Legislations regulating employee relations play a major role
in the overall progress and economic development of the country. These legislations are
amended from time to time according to the changing circumstances and environment
3. Kamal Kumar is a labour officer with Kamte automobiles. The company is currently
facing a set back due to a strike at one of their manufacturing plants. Kamal Kumar
suggests collective bargaining for resolving the issue. Please answer following questions
in light of this case.
a. The company arranges for a press conference to announce their decision of collective
bargaining and Kamal Kumar needs to educate the press about 5 phases of collective
bargaining. Please elaborate the points for Kamal Kumar
b. Kamal Kumar also meets the union leaders and talks to them about the bargaining
power to boost their energies and gain readiness from them to participate readily. He
mentions three points which would increase the bargaining power of the workers.
Which three points must he have mentioned?

Answer: a) Collective bargaining is a process employed in grievance handling and is
recognised by employers. In collective bargaining, union representatives hold discussions
with the employers and reach an agreement on employee rights and duties. Unions are
popular at collective bargaining. Collective bargaining serves a dual purpose; it provides an
approach to determine the wages and conditions of work for a group of workers covered by
the agreement, through free and voluntary negotiations between the two independent parties
concerned in the organisation. It also facilitates the employers and workers to define by
agreement the rules governing Its half solved sample only
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NMIMS
Manpower planning
1. To estimate the existing workforce, briefly explain any 2 qualitative and quantitative
methods that you use at your workplace.
Answer: Forecasting is an expensive way to help a company plan and prepare for the future
years. Forecasting is not fortune telling; it is but an educated guess of how much manpower
will be required and utilized by a firm or organization. It is a tool used to help in budgeting
and allocating finances or hiring employees as perfectly as possible. One of the important
features of forecasting is the quality of manpower resources (knowledge, skill, values and
competency, capacity etc) as well as the quantity of manpower resources. There is no right
way of forecasting, but there are many different types of forecasting methods. Each one is
specifically planned and designed to help different retail organization and it is up to each of
them to choose the model which is best and most appropriate for them.

Supply
2. Describe the model that analyses an organization’s competitive strengths. Apply it to
any industry of your choice and illustrate with an example.
Answer: The activities that take place within and around an organisation and analyse the
organisation’s competitive strengths can be referred as value chain analysis. The model of the
value chain was developed by Michael E. Porter to pinpoint problem areas in manufacturing
and distribution industries.
In value chain analysis, the organization is viewed as an orderly process of activities aimed at
creating value. This approach helps study the factors or steps that lead to competitive
advantage. The approach is useful for understanding the building blocks of competitive
advantage. Value chain analysis was described in Michael Porter’s book Competitive
Advantage. Value is defined as the amount buyers pay to a firm for their products or services.
It is measured by total revenue which represents the price that the product of a firm
commands and the volumes it can sell. As long as the value received by a firm is more than
the total
3. You are to conduct a training for recently promoted managers who will be managing
teams for the first time in their careers. Managers need to be oriented on performance
management with extreme caution to avoid employee dissatisfaction which may lead to
attrition.
a. What would you suggest the managers do so that the employees realize their
performance level and work on their improvement areas? How will it help the
employees?
b. Explain the 4 methods to encourage good performance of employees.
Answer: a) Employee counselling is a process where a professional counsellor helps
employees sort out problems by themselves. It is an enabling service. Counselling is required
for employees who are stressed out of problems, personal or professional. Smith defines
counselling as “a process in which the counsellor assists the counselee to make
interpretations of facts relating to a choice, plan, or adjustments which he needs to make.”
Pepinsky and Pepinsky states that “counselling is that interaction which occurs between two
individuals called counsellor and client, takes place in a professional setting, and is initiated
and maintained to facilitate changes in behaviour of a client.”
In organisations, the HR department looks after only the employee’s concerns within the
organisation. Sometimes, we can also find that the stress from home or from the routine of
work affects not just the Its half solved sample only
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NMIMS
Organization culture
1. As a Leader of Global Services ltd, Sanjana aspires to create a strong organizational
culture. How can she contribute to culture building of the company? What specific steps
can she take to create a learning culture at global services?
Answer: When new employees join an organisation, they carry their own set of expectations
and desires. They are completely strangers to the people, work place and the work
environment. As a result, it is likely to feel insecure, shy and nervous. In the absence of
information and support, there is likely to be anxiety, apprehensions and fear in their minds.
They may undergo reality shock caused by a gap between their expectations and the real
situation. This can lead to some adverse consequences in the form of employee’s morale
getting lower, high dissatisfaction towards the job, low commitment towards the organisation
and poor interpersonal relationships with other employees or frustration compelling the
employees to quit the organisation.
In a study, researchers discovered the following facts about new employees:
● The initial days on the jobs were the most disturbing and fretful.
● ‘New employee’s initiation’ practices by peers strengthened anxiety.
● Anxiety interfered with the training process.
● Anxieties even lead to employee turnover.
● The new employees were reluctant to discuss their problems with their seniors or
supervisors.
Different ways through which Sanjana can create learning culture in the organization
Stories: New employees are totally unaware about the culture of the organization and needs
to be aware about the culture so that they can work in the organization with full dedication.

After joining, new employees can learn about the culture using some stories which is related
to the company and the Its half solved sample only
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2. The revenues at B R logistics have been dwindling off late. Clients have been
complaining of laxities on the part of the employees. The top management recognizes
the need to bring about a profound culture change to bring in agility and customer
centricity in the company. They want the HR to equip themselves with the right strategy
to meet these needs. Why do companies experience a need for cultural change? What
process of Organizational culture change will HR follow at B R Logistics?
Answer: Organizational culture is said to be a blend of innovation and the ability to take
risks, attention to detail, outcome orientation, people orientation, team orientation,
aggressiveness and stability. It is formed through the values and beliefs which people
accumulate from childhood and are deeply embedded in their minds. If colleagues have
shared values and beliefs, their compatibility level is generally high. Their intolerance
towards different culture or cultural group may be the result of prejudices developed during
their formative years. The role of the managers is to establish common guidelines of
organisational culture.
In today’s dynamic business world, organisations that do not cope with rapid changes in the
environment are left far behind in the race of becoming market leaders. There is no
organisation that can take pride in having a constant or status quo corporate culture. Stability
today is now
3. a. Alex has been chosen to set up the India business for Glenmorgan ltd, a US based
Financial service company. Alex needs to keep in mind the cross-cultural factors that

can impact the employee management practices in India. Keeping the Hofstede’s Cross-
cultural model in mind, which are the factors that Alex will have to be aware of?
3. b. Start Cruiser, is a dynamic tourism company, aspiring in making their mark in
Space tourism. They want a culture that upholds innovation. What are the ways in
which they can create an innovative culture?
Answer: a) Organization culture is a system where values, norms and principles are shared
largely by all people. Values are the beliefs that guide our behaviour and decisions across a
variety of situations. Values are intensely held in the organization culture and are known as
shared values. Shared values are those values that are practiced in common by all the
employees of the organization. For example, increasing organizational efficiency, increasing
productivity, maintaining the image and good will of the company, etc, if these are followed
and shared by almost all the employees of the company then it is known as shared values.
Thus, organization
NMIMS
Performance management system
1. Rakesh Kumar is working at Jayesh Industries as Manager in the Operations
Department. Akshay Shroff works in Rakesh’s team as ‘’Executive – Operations’’.
Akshay joined the company since 2 years. Though he works hard, he is not effective in
meeting project timelines and often has errors in his work. It is appraisal time and
Rakesh has to give performance feedback to Akshay. He does not want to demotivate
Akshay yet he needs to give him the negative feedback. How should Rakesh handle the
process of negative feedback.
Answer: Performance appraisal is a powerful tool to regulate, improve and reward the
performance of employees. Performance appraisal helps evaluate individual achievements
and their contribution to achieve overall organizational goals. This system works well when
achievements are traced on a quarterly basis. Performance appraisal of an employee must be
carried out not only by the immediate superior but also by fellow employee, customers and
management.
Most employees are very interested in knowing how well they are doing at present and how
they can do better in a future. They want this information to improve their performance in
order to get promotions and merit pay. Proper performance feedback can improve the
employee's future performance. It also gives him satisfaction and motivation. Performance
Appraisal information is used to find out whether an employee requires additional training
and development.
2. Aarti Desai has joined as an HR Manager at Highmart which is a food chain across
cities in India. Aarti has interacted with young employees across the company and all of
them have expressed the need for the company to launch a Mentoring Program. The
company has high attrition and new recruits could benefit from such a program. How
should Aarti go about the process of introducing the Mentoring Program. Do also give
an interesting brand name to the Mentoring program.

Answer: Training offers benefits to both employees and employers. To make the employee
more productive and useful, it is very important to give training. Training is focused towards
the current job. Due to the technological changes and automation, it becomes necessary to
update skills and knowledge. In this dynamic world, training has become an important tool
which is used for continuous improvement in every well run organisation. Training need
assessment is a systematic way
3. Sidharth is the HR Manager at NewZone which is a furniture company. The
company has 2000 employees and is growing rapidly. Sidharth would like to introduce
the 360-degree feedback process.
a. Designa 360 degree form
b. What are the pitfalls in 360-degree feedback that Sidharth should take care to avoid?
Answer: a) 360-degree feedback also known as 'multi-rater feedback' is the most
comprehensive appraisal where the feedback comes from all sources that come in contact
with the employee on the job. In this method, 360 degree performance for employees are
appraised by their peers, managers (i.e., superior), subordinates, team members, customers,
suppliers or vendors. The 360-degree feedback is mainly meant for the development of the
appraisee and is not used for monetary incentives or salary corrections. The main objective of
this method is to identify the Its half solved sample only
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NMIMS
Brand management

1. In a competitive market of commodities, Ali plans to launch Organic milk in a
country where people are new to the concept of organic and heavily rely on
synthetic/chemical products. If Ali wants to launch this product, then how can branding
help him. Define the name for the product & come up with a brand manual including
all brand elements. Also design a marketing plan to push the product.
Answer: Brands are everywhere in our life. A product is anything that can be offered to a
market for attention, use, or consumption that might satisfy a need or want. A product is a
physical good, service, retail store, person, organisation, place, or idea. A brand helps the
customer to distinguish the goods of one producer from another. Let us understand the
conceptual meaning of the term brand. A person is known by a name. Likewise, a product is
known by a brand name, which enables the consumers to distinguish it from other products.
A brand Its half solved sample only
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1 hour.
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2. What is Strategic Brand Management Process that the Ali’s organic milk brand
should follow? Explain the 4 steps.
Answer: The brand is the best tool which helps to attract the consumer’s attention to the
product. It serves to create an image for the product in the market. Branding cannot be
undertaken as a superficial exercise, as brand is the unique signature of the product and is a
symbol of the creative process of product development. While the company makes the
product, the brand is the value of the expectations or service perceived by the consumer, for
which the customer buys the product.
Brand management is nothing but an art of creating and sustaining the brand. It includes
managing the tangible and intangible characteristics of brand. The aim of branding is to

convey brand message vividly, create customer loyalty, persuade the buyer for the product,
and establish an emotional connectivity with the customers.
Strategic Brand Management Process
Identifying and establishing brand positioning: Brand positioning is a delicate task that
needs a thorough and deep knowledge of the market and competitors’ activities. It is done by
the following tools:
3. Mother Dairy Fruits & Vegetables, a company with a billion-dollar (Rs 4,200-crore)
turnover, has been a well-established player in NCR known for products the firm has
been largest seller of milk in NCR , with 65% of the revenue being contributed by milk.
Amul entered Delhi market few years back and in 2011 with in a span on 4years it
defeated mother dairy in terms of market share. Amul procures fresh milk and
packages it. Mother dairy adds powder milk in its products to the tune of 40%. This
spoils the taste of the product. Also Amul is credited with more awareness and
knowledge about its products amongst consumers. Amul is a leader in the ice cream
segment of the country. Their capacity to develop products and gain market leadership
helped them gain substantial share in the NCR region in the milk segment raising
question marks on the brand equity of the company. Mother Dairy has been market
leader in NCR for 35 years. Losing ground to Amul in 2011 in the milk segment is
forcing company to rethink its strategy. They plan to increase their capacity and also
expand procurement of the milk. One of the regions why Consumer shifted to Amul has
been difference in the taste of the milk. Amul milk is fresh where as a portion of Mother
dairy milk is reconstituted. Mother dairy sells through its own outlets and home
delivery is not possible where as Amul used channel and home delivery of the milk is
possible. Mother dairy milk price has been less than the price of Amul milk, still a huge
number of mother dairy loyal customers moved to Amul. Now Mother dairy is
restructuring its strategy and systems to combat Amul.
a. What would you suggest to Mother Dairy for its revitalization plan
b. What more challenges you foresee for the brand?
Answer: a) Brand image is the perception of customers about a particular brand. Image of
any brand tends to develop over time. Brand image is formed in the minds of customers
based upon the experience and interaction of the customers with the brand, interactions can
take place in different ways and not necessarily only the buying or using of the product and
service. Brand repositioning is undertaken in order to increase a brand’s competitive position
and therefore increase sales volume by seizing market share from rival products. When
repositioning companies can change aspects of the product, change the brand’s target market
or both.
When the brand is not working well, company should go for brand repositioning so as to
survive in the market and keep its existing share. As mentioned in the question, Mother dairy
was not performing well for last few years and losing market share to Amul.
Suggestions for revitalization plan
● Observe the current
●

NMIMS
Customer relationship management
1. Outline a communication plan with an aim to translate the relationship policy into
contact moments for customers in your line of business.
Answer: In all businesses, Customer is the king as you cannot survive in the market without
good customer base. It is the duty of all service providing companies to take special care of
their customers as sales is not the only motive but there should be excellent after sales service
as well. Companies must do everything to satisfy their customers as Customer satisfaction is
the best indicator of how likely a customer will make a purchase in the future. Asking
customers to rate their satisfaction on a scale of 1-10 is a good way to see if they will become
repeat customers or even advocates. In a competitive marketplace where businesses compete
for customers; customer
2. The increase in the quantity of data and the decrease in the available analysis time
have led to a growing need for an inductive method which will assist in finding useful
relationships between (selected) data. Elaborate any 2 such methods that you use at
your workplace.
Answer: The increase in the quantity of data and the decrease in the available analysis time
have led to a growing need for an inductive method which will assist in finding useful
relationships between (selected) data. Datamining is just such a method.
Data mining is extracting or collecting hidden predictive information from a large database.
To help companies focus on the
3. You are a call centre manager with a decade of experience. In the last 10 years you
have seen customer relationship management evolve in the call centre industry.
Scenario is more competitive and requires out of the box thinking to sustain and
succeed.
a. Do you prefer working with specialist or generalist call centre agents? What
parameters help you arrive at a decision?
b. As per your understanding and experience, rate the elements of a call centre in order
of importance? Justify your rating with examples
Answer: a) Call centre is an IT enabled service which is essentially a Computer Telephone
Integration (CTI) where calls are answered in Voice mode. The data is captured through
Computers and networks from customers’ end to enable a business process whereby
interaction has taken place thereby effecting a feedback to the caller or customer either
instantly or later. Business processes involved with Customers are enacted and a detailed
report reaches the management on the Its half solved sample only

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NMIMS
International marketing
1. United Kingdom recently marched out of EU after a long fought battle for BREXIT.
Companies have started moving out of UK as it no longer remains the doorway to
Europe. Also it has to fight high inflation, labour shortage and many other issues as an
outcome. It would want to project a new Brand of United Kingdom to the world. You
are a part of the team headed by the Prime Minister of Great Britain, Mr. Boris
Johnson, designed to come up with a long term plan for the same. Can you enlist a few
measures, strategies and hurdles you would face? Use PESTEL Analysis and Global
Marketing Strategies to ascertain the same?
Answer: United Kingdom is no longer the part of European union and this exit has great
impact on the UK economy and the businesses. Many companies are planning to shift their
operations from UK to any other country which is not a good sign if we see the long-term
scenario. Recently, Airbus, considered to move their UK operations to the mainland, putting
thousands of jobs at risk. Sony has already announced the transfer of its European HQ to the
Netherlands to avoid Brexit disruptions. Companies like Vodafone and Visa have strongly
considered relocating offices (and jobs) to mainland Europe. Other companies have delayed
big projects as a direct result of the vote, including Nissan, who planned on investing in their
Sunderland plant, or Siemens,
2. Forever 21 recently shut down many of its operations across the world. It’s a cult
brand that went through massive issues. Critics blame that most of it was to do with
strategies in International Markets outside of USA and labour issues. Its recent filing of

Bankruptcy could have been avoided. If I put you at the helm of affairs a Forever 21,
what strategies would you have suggested or applied in order to make the drowning
brand survive and what hurdles would you have faced for the same? Use help of Global
Market Entry and Global Brand Development Strategies for the same?
Answer: The environment of a multinational firm is significantly different from the
environment of a domestic firm. Generally, a domestic firm operates in a single political,
economic, physical, cultural and legal environment. However, apart from operating
domestically, a multinational firm has to operate in the international financial system. Here
the host countries in which the multinational firm is operating have their own environment
depending upon their politics, their economic and legal systems. In other words, unlike
domestic firms, a multinational firm has to operate in multiple political, economic, physical,
cultural and legal environments.
3. Post its recent launch in London and recent success in other parts of UK, Ola Cabs
plan to enter USA.
a. They require your services to help them to do a formal research for the same?
b. Also they would require your help to understand the Cultural and Social factors
which they need to be aware about?
Answer: a) Steps in International market research process
Problem identification and objectives
The first step in the international marketing research process requires the international
marketing manager and marketing researcher to define the research problem and jointly agree
on the research objectives. Here the research objective is to check the feasibility of Cab
business in USA and how OLA can proceed further.
Developing the international marketing research plan
The international marketing research plan is a blueprint for the study, indicating all the
decisions to be made with regard to information sources, research methods, data collection
instruments, sampling procedures, data collection methods, data analysis and based on these
decisions the projected costs of the research is estimated. Before entering any foreign
country, you should collect the
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1 hour.
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NMIMS
Marketing strategy
1. The Finance Minister, India announced reduction in corporate tax rates in Sep-2019.
Why is it important for companies in Indian Manufacturing sector, and what are 5
ways (with examples of companies) in which leading companies in the sector can benefit
from the development from the point of view of Marketing Strategy?
Answer: The marketing decisions must fit into the overall strategy of the company and the
budget allocated to marketing. So it is important for marketing managers to analyse all the
constituent elements before arriving at marketing decisions or strategies. This analysis helps
to prepare the course for the launch of marketing strategy of the organisation. Such an
analysis which outlines the route map for the marketing strategy is called as “Marketing
Planning”.
Marketing planning is a business level planning and assists the marketing manager in
the following ways –
a. Helps to look internally or inwards into the organisation so as to analyse the organisation’s
strengths and weaknesses and competitive advantages of the product.
b. Aids in
2. Customer buying behaviour plays an important role in Marketing Strategy, and is
affected by four key factors/influences/characteristics. You are working as a Marketing
Strategy Consultant. Help your clients by identifying and explaining the major
influences on buying behaviour with reasons for application in brand communication/
promotion for the following products/companies/places: (1) Statue of Unity, (2) Netflix
India.
Answer: The consumer decision process explains the internal process as well as individual
behaviour for making product or service-based decisions. The consumption process is
influenced by external factors such as cultural, social, personal, and psychological factors.
When the marketing and other stimuli come in contact with buyers, their decision process is
initiated. The marketers have to correctly read buyers’ conscious or unconscious behaviour to
generate positive response. Every person has his/her distinct set of standards of judgment.
The consumers follow a decision process characterised by problem recognition, information
search, alternative evaluation, purchase decision and post-purchase behaviour. The buying
decisions of each customer are unique, as they are based on the set of factors which influence

that customer. So, the speed and rate of adoption of different consumers are different and
they cannot be grouped
3. Ravi, a fifth generation entrepreneur, hails from a family with expertise in food and
beverages industry. Ravi founded ‘XYZ F&B’ in 2020 with a vision to launch and build
the first Indian billion-dollar brand in premium chocolates, and feature among top 3
international brands in the same category by 2030. Ravi has hired you as a consultant.
a. Explain various stages and their characteristics in an industry life cycle, with specific
comments regarding the current stage of premium chocolates industry in India.
b. There are 5 key ways to identify competitive advantages for a brand/ differentiate
from other brands, as a part of differentiation and positioning strategy; explain these
with suggestions in context of ‘XYZ F&B’, and suggest a positioning strategy for ‘XYZ
F&B’.
Answer: a) Industry life cycle
Initial stage: This is the very first stage of an industry where the development and early
marketing of a product is involved. Innovators often create new businesses to enable the
production and proliferation of the new offering. In this phase, there are limited companies in
the industry and demand is also unknown so companies spend lots of time in research and
development. In this stage, participants or companies should not expect profit as they have to
spend lot on developing the
JUNE 2020,
1 hour.
Contact no is +91 87-55555-879.
NMIMS

Sales management
1. The management of ABC & Co. is losing sales due to superior product offerings by
their competitors’ Please help the management of ABC & Co. to change their Product
Policy and Product offerings you may give illustrations for the same.
Answer: A strategy is a plan of action designed to achieve a particular goal. Strategy is
different from tactics. How a battle is fought is a matter of tactics; whether it should be
fought at all is a matter of strategy. In the business context, strategy can be translated as the
plan of action drawn up to meet organizational goals. These goals, in the first instance, would
have been drawn up based on the vision and mission of the organization. As goals pertain to a
time horizon, business strategies are necessarily drawn up for a period of time (long-term,
medium-term) to meet organizational goals which are usually to gain competitive advantage
and meet or exceed stakeholder expectations. Strategy would also spell out the scope
(markets addressed) and context (competitive landscape), besides enumerating the resources
(in terms of assets, finance, skills,
2. Trained Man Power is an important aspect for sales growth, how does a company
recruit the right sales Personnel and trains them to meet their objectives.
Answer: Sales organization development refers to the formal, coordinating process of
communication, authority and responsibility for sales groups and individuals. An effectively
designed sales organization has a framework that enables the organization to serve its
customers. Once the sales people know what their responsibilities are and who they report to,
they can concentrate on doing their expected jobs to the best of their ability. After a company
has determined the type and number of salesmen it needs and the applications for the job
have been received, the management is ready for the selection process. It involves processing
the applicants to select the individuals who best fit the needs of a particular company. The
sales force selection process refers to
3. CASE STUDY - Cipla
Cipla is one of the biggest manufactures of bulk drugs and formulations. The company
has introduced several formulations and active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs). It
commissioned the second phase of its manufacturing operations in Goa and has entered
into a research alliance for biopharmaceutical products with a Bangalore based biotech
company This makes it one of the leading Pharma companies of India Cipla exports a
wide range of APIs and formulations to over 150 countries. Cipla has entered into new
arrangements with leading US generic companies for the supply of a wide range of
finished dosage formulations. They have obtained approvals from USFDA, MHRA of
UK, PIC of Germany and WHO, for most of their drugs. Its overall profitability was
due to the optimisation of resources and implementation of rigorous cost control
measure. Cipla focuses on technological excellence and innovation to improve its
performance both in domestic and international market. The company has already
accepted the growing importance of strategic alliances for research, manufacture and
marketing, in the changing business environment.

a. Outline the Strengths of Cipla in having a competitive edge in the International
market
b. Do its arrangements with US companies help in Product development?
Answer: a) International marketing activities begin from the home market. Upon saturation,
companies plan to explore the markets across the national boundaries for further growth
opportunities. In the highly competitive global market place of today, the pressure on
organizations to find new ways to create and deliver value to customers is intense. Proximity
to the market lowers the cost of logistics and distribution of goods and services and helps in
better management of investments in international markets. Each market is different in terms
of consumer needs, competitive preferences and value perceptions. The customer needs to be
understood by the international business organizations by analysing market segments in a bid
to identify the similarities and differences thereof across countries. International business
houses generally cluster the countries by common attributes, such as political systems, social
structures, economic development and accessibili
JUNE 2020,
1 hour.
Contact no is +91 87-55555-879.
Cloud computing
Internal Assignment Applicable for June 2020 Examination
1. Acme University has set up a committee to decide whether it should use cloud
solution for the automation of Training & Placement function. You are invited as a
subject matter expert on this committee. You are expected to specifically provide the

recommendations for the most appropriate cloud deployment model and cloud service
model. Your recommendation must be supported by proper justification.
Answer: The name cloud computing was inspired by the cloud symbol that's often used to
represent the Internet in flowcharts and diagrams. A cloud service has three distinct
characteristics that differentiate it from traditional hosting. It is sold on demand, “typically by
the minute or the hour; it is elastic -- a user can have as much or as little of a service as they
want at any given time;” and the service is fully managed by the provider (the consumer
needs nothing but a personal computer and an Internet access). Significant innovations in
virtualization and distributed computing, as well as improved access to high-speed Internet
and a weak economy, have accelerated interest in cloud computing.
The Cloud in terms of
2. Though all other partners of Acme Legal Associates seemed to be happy with the
heavy discount proposed by the IT vendor for its SaaS solution, its one partner got
concerned about signing up five-year agreement to get this discount. Not only the
agreement is long term but is devoid of any SLAs. She has invited you to talk to all
partners together about pros and cons of signing such long-term contract with a SaaS
solution without much due diligence. What would you say in your formal presentation
to them?
Answer: The viability and capabilities of small and start-up cloud vendors could be a concern
for long term continuity of service. Enterprises that are using proprietary vendor technology
may incur heavy costs if they have to move to another cloud platform. This situation is called
vendor lock in. When you think integration, you generally think of combining various
hardware and software components together to create something. The same idea applies in
the cloud. One example of integration: easily integrating your data with Software as a Service
application. This is an
.
3. “More than anything else, I would be worried about the data security”, Mr Kausik
started articulating his concerns after hearing the presentation of BetaTech. “I
understand this is not our customer data as we will be collecting information from
general public. But they will be sharing their personal details because they are sharing
it with us. Our brand stands for trust and unless we are 100% sure that this data will
not be seen or used by anyone other than us, we can’t go ahead with this solution.” Mr
Kausik ended his statement while reaching out for a glass of water. Mr Kausik was
listening to the BetaTech’s proposal to organize an online competition on personal
finance awareness. The proposal described how BetaTech will not only develop the IT
solution but will entirely host the solution on cloud and will be made available to Mr
Kausik’s company as a SaaS. It deliberated cost savings but refrained from describing
how data will be handled and secured in the SaaS solution.
a. What kind of issues Mr Kausik would see through the proposal presented by
BetaTech?
b. How BetaTech can address the concerns raised by Mr Kausik?

Answer: a) To understand the cloud computing technology, think of cloud so that it will have
layers inside divided into two parts: back end and front end. Front end layer consists of
everything visible to a normal human who is using the technology and also gets an
opportunity to interact with it. Back end consists of both hardware and software required to
make the front -end interface functioning properly.
The set of computers in the cloud computing technology are put together so that any
applications can take any resource it wishes to take and also use up the complete power as it
usually does if it functions on one single machine. Cloud computing also provides scope for
flexibility that is the number of resources being consumed can vary depending on the task at
hand, which means that the resources can either decrease or increase according to the job.
Issues in cloud adoption
Privacy: One of the main issues while adopting cloud is privacy, which may not be there all
the time. The user data can be accessed by the host company with or without permission. The
service provider may access the
JUNE 2020,
1 hour.
Contact no is +91 87-55555-879.
E-business
Read the below carefully and then answer all questions.
After the success saga of E-business ventures like Amazon, Walmart and Alibaba,
Reliance retail has also contemplated to join the bandwagon and has decided to start
with B2C market segments for all its brand under Reliance Retail. But at the same time,

they are well aware of the failure stories and risk associated with moving from Brick
and Mortar to E-Business. You are hired as a consultant. Please prepare detailed
reports for the following.
1. Identify the risks associated with moving to E-Business. Do the SWOT analysis.
Suggest E-Business strategies for Reliance retail.
Answer: The term e-business refers to the amalgamation of tools built on information and
communication technologies (by and large known as business software), in the organization,
to enhance their performance. This builds value for the company, its customers and its
affiliates. E-business spans much further than e-commerce or purchase and sale across the
Web and delves into the procedures and background of a business venture. E-business is a
powerful business setting that is formed when one connects critical business systems directly
with consumers, workforce, traders, and business associates using intranet, extranet, e-
commerce technologies, two-way applications and the Web. It is more than a smart Web
presence or a slick, flash-driven shopping cart. This is a critical surfacing of business across
the world, with a number of technologies getting into the enterprise computing ecosystem. E-
business provides a powerful mechanism for companies to enhance productivity and bring
down costs. Nevertheless, in order to utilize these substantial benefits, organizations must
make sure that
2. Suggest technology infrastructure required for E-Business. Keep in mind that the
infrastructure should be scalable when Reliance retail plans to become an international
player after few years. While designing framework for tech infrastructure, also assess
the security threats and ways to mitigate those risks.
Answer: Technology infrastructure for E-Business
TCP/IP Reference Model: The builder of the TCP/IP protocol group created their own
architectural model to help describe its components and functions. This model goes by
different
names, including the TCP/IP model, the DARPA model (after the agency that was largely
responsible for developing TCP/IP) and the DOD model (after the United States Department
of Defense, the “D” in “DARPA”). In spite of the model you use to represent the function of
a network—and regardless of what you call that model—the functions that the model
represents are pretty much the same. This means that the TCP/IP and the OSI models are
relatively same in nature even if they do not carve up the network functionality pie in
precisely the same way. There is a
3. a. Plan strategies for implementation of e-CRM along with the metrics to measure the
success of those strategies.
3. b. Do you suggest to implement e-SCM or to continue with the traditional SCM for
Reliance retail? Mention supportive arguments for your suggestions.
Answer: a) The basic idea of e-CRM comes from e-commerce. Essentially, e-CRM differs
from CRM in terms of the technology and the syntactical nature of interface with customers.
Typically; an e-CRM would provide customers with a self-service browser-based window on
which they may have greater autonomy to surf different schemes and offers. Additionally, an
e-CRM will also be able to generate a history of purchases, e-mails where they will get

updates and such like. e-CRM is the effective use of the internet as well as various touch-
points as well
other means of using telecommunications to better manage and initiate ties with existing and
potential customers. Today, several e-CRM programs are executed and managed.
The strategy for e-CRM
JUNE 2020,
1 hour.
Contact no is +91 87-55555-879.
Emerging technologies
1. Urban performance currently depends not only on a city's endowment of hard
infrastructure (physical capital), but also, and increasingly so, on the availability and
quality of knowledge communication and social infrastructure (human and social
capital). The latter form of capital is decisive for urban competitiveness. Against this
background, the concept of the “smart city” has recently been introduced as a strategic
device to encompass modern urban production factors in a common framework and, in
particular, to highlight the importance of Information and Communication
Technologies (ICTs) in the last 20 years for enhancing the competitive profile of a city.
The demand for smart cities has increased in recent years. In order to meet the demand
of a smart city project in a country like India, with the help of any smart city project in
India explain what are some of the key elements for such smart cities and also mention
their importance.
Source: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/10630732.2011.601117

3rd sem nmims june 2020 assignments sample

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