7921IBA: Major Essay Assessment Item Question 1 The Australian car industry operates within a relatively small domestic market and faces increased competition from imports. It is perceived value as a ‘strategic industry’, along with political considerations, has seen successive Australian governments providing financial and other assistance to this industry sector. In 2008, for example, the Productivity Commission calculated that total assistance — including financial assistance and remaining tariffs — equaled $23,500 for each automotive industry worker per year. While tariffs have since been further reduced, the government has continued to provide new funding for the sector, including a recently curtailed ‘Green Car’ program. While many economists have raised concerns over the efficiency of car industry subsidies, the leader of the federal opposition, Tony Abbott, recently stated that car making was essential to Australia’s status as a ‘'first world economy’. In early 2012 the federal Manufacturing Minister, Kim Carr, also visited the headquarters of General Motors and Ford in Detroit, USA, to try and gain commitments from these firms that they would continue to manufacture motor vehicles in Australia. The Australian Department of Industry, Innovation, Science, Research and Tertiary Education has asked your firm to provide an independent report that critically analyses the above situation and provide conclusions and recommendations regarding the future of the Australian car industry. Critical questions that your report needs to address include: · Should the Australian government continue to use tax payer money to support a local car industry? (Why? Why not?) and · Do you think the retention of a car manufacturing sector is essential to Australia’s status as a ‘first world economy’? (Why? Why not?) Please remember that your conclusions must be supported by your research and analysis. Critical underlying issues for your report/analysis include international trade theories the political economy of international trade and foreign direct investment). Question 2 Cloud computing represents a potential paradigm shift in how organizations access and use information, communication and technology (ICT) services. Put simply, Cloud providers offer firms the ability to source ICT infrastructure and services from external providers via the internet; many such providers are located offshore. Cloud services include: infrastructure as a service (IaaS) – includes shifting an organization’s data into externally based data bases; Platform as a service (PaaS) – provides organizations with underlying hardware, operating systems, storage and network capacity via the internet; Software as a service (SaaS) – includes internet based email systems; and Business processes as a service (BPaS) – outsourcing of former in-house services such as payroll or accounting services to internet based providers. OZ University is a large public Australian university that has tr.

1. 7921IBA: Major Essay Assessment Item
Question 1
The Australian car industry operates within a relatively small
domestic market and faces increased competition from imports.
It is perceived value as a ‘strategic industry’, along with
political considerations, has seen successive Australian
governments providing financial and other assistance to this
industry sector. In 2008, for example, the Productivity
Commission calculated that total assistance — including
financial assistance and remaining tariffs — equaled $23,500
for each automotive industry worker per year. While tariffs
have since been further reduced, the government has continued
to provide new funding for the sector, including a recently
curtailed ‘Green Car’ program. While many economists have
raised concerns over the efficiency of car industry subsidies, the
leader of the federal opposition, Tony Abbott, recently stated
that car making was essential to Australia’s status as a ‘'first
world economy’. In early 2012 the federal Manufacturing
Minister, Kim Carr, also visited the headquarters of General
Motors and Ford in Detroit, USA, to try and gain commitments
from these firms that they would continue to manufacture motor
vehicles in Australia.
The Australian Department of Industry, Innovation, Science,
Research and Tertiary Education has asked your firm to provide
an independent report that critically analyses the above
situation and provide conclusions and recommendations
regarding the future of the Australian car industry. Critical
questions that your report needs to address include:
· Should the Australian government continue to use tax payer
money to support a local car industry? (Why? Why not?) and
· Do you think the retention of a car manufacturing sector is
essential to Australia’s status as a ‘first world economy’?
(Why? Why not?)

2. Please remember that your conclusions must be supported by
your research and analysis. Critical underlying issues for your
report/analysis include international trade theories the political
economy of international trade and foreign direct investment).
Question 2
Cloud computing represents a potential paradigm shift in how
organizations access and use information, communication and
technology (ICT) services. Put simply, Cloud providers offer
firms the ability to source ICT infrastructure and services from
external providers via the internet; many such providers are
located offshore. Cloud services include: infrastructure as a
service (IaaS) – includes shifting an organization’s data into
externally based data bases; Platform as a service (PaaS) –
provides organizations with underlying hardware, operating
systems, storage and network capacity via the internet; Software
as a service (SaaS) – includes internet based email systems; and
Business processes as a service (BPaS) – outsourcing of former
in-house services such as payroll or accounting services to
internet based providers.
OZ University is a large public Australian university that has
traditionally run its own relatively large internal IT section and
associated data bases. It also currently provides and runs its
own email system. However OZ University is currently looking
to cut costs by shifting much of its ICT work and associated
infrastructure and services to externally based Cloud providers.
Please note that as a university its data bases contain large
amounts of confidential information. It has asked your firm to
provide a report that critically analyses its proposed Cloud
computing outsourcing strategies. Your report should include
conclusions and recommendations as to whether you think that
OZ University should go ahead with its proposed Cloud
computing plans? Please note:
i. If you conclude that the firm should go ahead and implement
its Cloud computing strategies then your recommendations
should address the potential challenges associated with this
strategy (i.e. how the university should better address these

3. challenges?);
ii. If you conclude that the university should not go ahead and
implement its Cloud computing strategies then your
recommendations should include ways to address some of the
challenges associated with not using lower cost Cloud providers
(e.g. how the University can remain competitive if other
universities begin implementing Cloud computing strategies?).
Critical underlying issues for your report/analysis include
outsourcing/offshoring (make/buy) decisions and strategies.
Question 3
Securency is an Australian firm that specializes in polymer bank
note technology. It is half owned by the Reserve Bank of
Australia (RBA); Australia’s central bank. Polymer notes are
more durable than conventional bank notes and are difficult to
counterfeit. The export of polymer bank notes has therefore
become an increasingly lucrative business for Securency.
However, recently the firm has been at the center of allegations
that some of its employees engaged in bribery and kickbacks in
overseas countries where it has been awarded contracts. In 2011
six Australian businessmen linked to Securency were arrested
and charged for allegedly paying bribes worth millions of
dollars to officials in Vietnam, Malaysia, and Indonesia. These
arrests have been extremely embarrassing for the RBA.
The RBA has asked your firm to provide a report that critically
analyses the above situation and provides conclusions and
recommendations that may assist the RBA and its subsidiaries
in preventing similar problems in the future. Your report should
further consider whether paying bribes is just a cost of doing
business in these countries? (Why? Why not?). Critical
underlying issues for your report/analysis include international
business ethics.
7921IBA: Major Essay Assessment Item
Question 1

4. The Australian car industry operates within a relatively small
domestic market and faces
increase
d competition from imports. It is
perceived value as a ‘strategic industry’, along with
political considerations, has seen successive Australian
governments pro
viding financial and
other assistance to this industry sector. In 2008, for example,
the Productivity Commission
calculated that total assistance
—
including financial assistance and remaining tariffs
—
equaled
$23,500 for each automotive industry worker
per year. While tariffs have since been further
reduced, the government has continued to provide new funding
for the sector, including a
recently curtailed ‘Green Car’ program. While many economists
have raised concerns over the
efficiency of car industry
subsidies, the leader of the federal opposition, Tony Abbott,
recently
stated that car making was essential to Australia’s status as a
‘'first world economy’. In early
2012 the federal Manufacturing Minister, Kim Carr, also visited
the headquarters of Gene
ral
Motors and Ford in Detroit, USA, to try and gain commitments
from these firms that they would

5. continue to manufacture motor vehicles in Australia.
The Australian Department of Industry, Innovation, Science,
Research and Tertiary Education
has asked your firm to provide an independent report that
critically analyses the above situation
and provide conclusions and recommendations regarding the
future o
f the Australian car
industry. Critical questions that your report needs to address
include:
·
Should the Australian government continue to use tax payer
money to support a local car
industry? (Why? Why not?) and
·
Do you think the retention of a car man
ufacturing sector is essential to Australia’s status
as a ‘first world economy’? (Why? Why not?)
Please remember that your conclusions must be supported by
your research and analysis.
Critical underlying issues for your report/analysis include
internatio
nal trade theories the
political economy of international trade and foreign direct
investment).
Question 2
Cloud computing represents a potential paradigm shift in how

6. organizations
access and use
information, communication and technology (ICT) serv
ices. Put simply, Cloud providers offer
7921IBA: Major Essay Assessment Item
Question 1
The Australian car industry operates within a relatively small
domestic market and faces
increased competition from imports. It is perceived value as a
‘strategic industry’, along with
political considerations, has seen successive Australian
governments providing financial and
other assistance to this industry sector. In 2008, for example,
the Productivity Commission
calculated that total assistance — including financial assistance
and remaining tariffs — equaled
$23,500 for each automotive industry worker per year. While
tariffs have since been further
reduced, the government has continued to provide new funding
for the sector, including a
recently curtailed ‘Green Car’ program. While many economists
have raised concerns over the
efficiency of car industry subsidies, the leader of the federal
opposition, Tony Abbott, recently
stated that car making was essential to Australia’s status as a
‘'first world economy’. In early
2012 the federal Manufacturing Minister, Kim Carr, also visited
the headquarters of General
Motors and Ford in Detroit, USA, to try and gain commitments
from these firms that they would
continue to manufacture motor vehicles in Australia.
The Australian Department of Industry, Innovation, Science,
Research and Tertiary Education
has asked your firm to provide an independent report that
critically analyses the above situation

7. and provide conclusions and recommendations regarding the
future of the Australian car
industry. Critical questions that your report needs to address
include:
money to support a local car
industry? (Why? Why not?) and
essential to Australia’s status
as a ‘first world economy’? (Why? Why not?)
Please remember that your conclusions must be supported by
your research and analysis.
Critical underlying issues for your report/analysis include
international trade theories the
political economy of international trade and foreign direct
investment).
Question 2
Cloud computing represents a potential paradigm shift in how
organizations access and use
information, communication and technology (ICT) services. Put
simply, Cloud providers offer