Independent gasoline stations have been having a difficult time, nevertheless, Anna Li has been thinking about starting her own independent gasoline station. Anna’s problem is to decide how large her station should be. The annual returns will depend on both the size of her station and a number of marketing factors related to the oil industry and demand for gasoline.

After a careful analysis, Anna developed the following table of the profit (or loss) realized for each size station based on market conditions (This table is attached as an attachment)

Deliverables:

Using Excel, design a decision table for this decision.

What is the maximin decision?

What is the maximax decision?

What is the Laplace decision?

What is the Hurwicz Criterion decision?

Highlight your answers, and remember to show all calculations in order to get full credit for your answers.

Although this is a working paper it is also a research paper; therefore, it should be developed, organized and presented using APA formatting guidelines – including the use of a title page, citations, headings, tables, figures, references and appendices (if applicable); be sure to cite at least three scholarly researched sources.

Any calculations and graphs may be done in Excel, and then transferred to a Word document. All calculations should be clearly explained as to your assumptions and how you arrived at your answers.

The submitted assignment MUST BE a Word Document.

Topic: When law enforcement becomes involved, the need may arise to freeze systems as part of the evidence. There is also the likelihood that the incident will become known publicly. Do you think these issues play a significant part in the decision to involve law enforcement? Why or why not? Can you name some situations in which you believe that large organizations have decided not to involve law enforcement?

Assignment should follow all APA rules and include a min. of (1) citation/reference and should be 3 pages

Mental Models – Discussion

Senge et al. (1994) described Mental Models as “images, assumptions, and stories which we carry in our minds of ourselves, other people, institutions, and every aspect of the world” (p. 235). They limit the growth of individuals and organizations. This happens because “new insights fail to get put into practice because they conflict with deeply held internal images of how the world works, images that limit us to familiar ways of thinking and acting” (Senge, p. 163). They determine how people make sense of the world and how they take action (Senge, 2006) because they affect what they “see”, which is why “two people with different mental models…observe the same event and describe it differently” (Senge, p. 164). Effectively, people will focus on different details and make different interpretations from the same event. The discussion then becomes how do people change, or learn new, Mental Models in a learning organization so that new ideas are shared and considered freely.

1) Read the journal, “Changing Mental Models: Business Simulation Exercise” by Scherpereel (2005) and answer the question below.

• Can Mental Models within a team or organization be altered through simulation practice? If so, do you believe that after the practice most team members’ decisions will be similar within a work context?
• Have you witnessed team simulations which have altered Mental Models in the past? If so, were they effective?

2) From Scherpereel’s (2005) research, we learned that organizational change is possible using business simulations that induce change in participants’ Mental Models. The Mental Model principle, the Ladder of Inference, maps the steps our thinking process follows to go from an observable experience to an action (Senge et al., 1994). After watching the TED-Ed video called “Rethinking Thinking”, found in the reference list, answer the following question.

• You’ve decided to use the Ladder of Inference in a simulation with your team. What organizational experience would you use to show them how individual or group actions are affected by their beliefs?

The Trolley Problem is a classical ethical dilemma designed to ask students to consider the issue of moral or ethical culpability. It is often dismissed as being overly reductionist, but it brings up the interesting question of how a person determines proper action. Below are a few links related to the Trolley Problem. Watch the videos, and in your discussion board posts, answer the following questions:

1) Is the Trolley Problem the same as the Organ Donor Problem?

2) How do you solve the Trolley Problem?

3) Based on your answer, which ethical school that you’ve read about best describes your thinking?

In your response posts (you are required to do at least a minimum of two), state whether you agree or disagree with your classmates’ assessments of the Trolley Problem, the ethically right thing to do, or the ethical school they are coming from.

The initial post must be a minimum of 250 words and demonstrate the student’s original thought based upon Holmes’ text and course lecture. Students will then respond to at least 2 other student’s posts. These responses should be no less than 100 words, and should not merely reflect and compliment the student’s post, but rather engage the topics brought up in the post and further the conversation.

Links:

Watch Video The Good Place – The Trolley Problem Duration: 2:06 User: n/a – Added: 12/12/17 YouTube URL: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vfIdNV22LQMWatch Video The Trolley Problem Duration: 1:38 User: n/a – Added: 11/18/14

Watch Video A two-year-old’s solution to the trolley problem Duration: 0:27 User: n/a – Added: 8/31/16