Discussion Questions 15-1. This chapter discusses four important issues
that will shape compensation professionals?
work for years to come. Which one of these
issues stands to create the greatest uncertainty
for compensation professionals? Explain
your answer.

Employee engagement is considered a key workplace attitude that can us to understand how an organization is doing. engaged employees can be described as those that "give their all" at work. this activity is important because it will you recognize some of the factors that contribute to, and some of the outcomes of, employee engagement. as a manager, this knowledge will you to foster a work environment where your employees are more engaged. the goal of this exercise is for you to demonstrate your understanding of the factors and outcomes of employee engagement. for each factor listed below, decide whether it is a factor that increases employee engagement, a factor that decreases employee engagement, or an outcome of employee engagement.

Chipotle mexican grill, the american mexican food chain restaurant, opened its first restaurant in the united states in 1993. in 2010, chipotle opened its first restaurant in the united kingdom in london on charing cross. by late may 2013, the company had 6 restaurants in london, but they have not been doing well even though the british have taken a liking to mexican food (boyle, 2013). why has this successful u. s. chain not seen the same success overseas? if you were chipotle's ceo, how would you fix this situation? what is an alternative means of venturing outside of its domestic markets that may allow for a competitive advantage? then, pick a company that has not yet expanded overseas, or if it has expanded, suggest a different strategy for entrance into an overseas market that you feel would be more strategic for the company. research its rivals in the global marketplace and market conditions in the overseas market you are targeting. justify your recommended entry strategy based on these industry and market conditions.

Verizon communications, inc., provides the following footnote relating to its leasing activities in its 10-k report. the aggregate minimum rental commitments under noncancelable leases for the periods shown at december 31, 2010, are as follows: years (dollars in millions) capital leases operatingleases 2011 $97 $1,898 2012 74 1,720 2013 70 1,471 2014 54 1,255 2015 42 1,012 thereafter 81 5,277 total minimum 418 $ 12,633 rental commitments less interest and (86) executory costs present value of 332 minimum lease payments less current (75) installments long-term obligation $257 at december 31, 2010 (a) confirm that verizon capitalized its capital leases using a rate of 7.4 %. (b) compute the present value of verizon's operating leases, assuming an 7.4% discount rate and rounding the remaining lease term to 3 decimal places. (use a financial calculator or excel to compute. do not round until your final answers. round each answer to the nearest whole number.)