Phoenix Guitars is interested in pursuing backward integration to take greater ownership of the extraction of raw materials and production of components used in its signature line of guitars. Although this approach would lower the overall cost of producing a guitar, the costs associated with producing electronic pickups for sound amplification are far greater than those associated with sourcing pickups from a reliable supplier. Which of the following approaches is likely to produce superior results? A) Invest in vertical integration despite the cost of producing pickups.
B) Abandon the idea of vertical integration entirely.
C) Pursue taper integration.
D) Introduce a budget line of guitars to diversify the firm's offeri

You are chairman of the board of a successful technology firm. there is a nominal federal corporate tax rate of 35 percent, yet the effective tax rate of the typical corporation is about 12.6%. your firm has been clever with use of transfer pricing and keeping money abroad and has barely paid any taxes over the last 5 years; during this same time period, profits were $28 billion. one member of the board feels that it is un-american to use various accounting strategies in order to avoid paying taxes. others feel that these are legal loopholes and corporations have a fiduciary responsibility to minimize taxes. one board member quoted what the ceo of exxon once said: “i’m not a u. s. company and i don’t make decisions based on what’s good for the u. s.” what are the alternatives? what are your recommendations? why do you recommend this course of action?

What is the advantage of developing criteria for assessing the effectiveness of business products and processes? a. assessment criteria are answers. b. assessment criteria are inexpensive. c. assessment criteria provide you with a list of relevant things to measure. d. assessment criteria provide you with a list of people to contact to learn more about process mentoring.

Gulliver travel agencies thinks interest rates in europe are low. the firm borrows euros at 5 percent for one year. during this time period the dollar falls 11 percent against the euro. what is the effective interest rate on the loan for one year? (consider the 11 percent fall in the value of the dollar as well as the interest payment.)