Use the lettering system indicated below in your memo. Your answers should be li

Use the lettering system indicated below in your memo. Your answers should be listed in sections labeled “A” through “D.”
CASE SCENARIO – PAUL’S DISCOUNT TIRES & REPAIRS BUSINESS STRATEGIC PLAN
It’s a Friday at 4:00, and you are looking at the clock – it’s been a tough week at Paul’s Discount Tires & Repairs business, and the week is not over! The global COVID Pandemic has hit the business hard, and you saw several people working there laid off this week. You feel lucky to be still working as their business consultant!
The business is family-owned and has been in business for over 21 years. The founder of the company, Paul Wilford, started the company as a small tire shop then expanded into service repairs. Now Paul’s grandson, Steve Wilford, runs the company, which has grown to several million in annual revenues over the past couple of years. Steve Wilford stops by your cubicle. He looks worried and worn out from the long workday. Despite that, he greets you warmly.
“You are taking a course in Strategic Management right now, aren’t you?” Steve asks you.
You reply yes.
“Well, that is great timing,” says Steve, “because I just published a 10-year strategy for our business! If I get you a copy, would you mind looking it over during the weekend and giving me your thoughts?”
You tell Steve that you’d be happy to give your input. Within 5 minutes, a one-page document is on your desk. At the top of the page is written “Paul’s Discount Tires & Repairs Strategic Plan.” You start to read it in your remote work office at home.
The basics of the plan are highlighted with the following three (3) bullet points:
Paul’s Discount Tires & Repairs core business will continue providing tires and minor vehicle repair services to our retail customers over the next ten years.
Paul’s Discount Tires & Repairs will beat its competitors by providing the lowest price discount tires, vehicle repairs, exceptional customer service, and quality work.
Paul’s Discount Tires & Repairs culture is rooted in its 21-year history. Paul’s will overcome the setbacks caused by the COVID Pandemic by sticking to its core values and cutting costs wherever necessary. Our people will help get us through these tough times.
You look at the bottom of the page and see a post-it note with questions posed to you by Steve.
What is wrong with this strategy?
What is right about this strategy?
We are the market leader in discount tires and repairs in our city, indicating that we currently have a competitive advantage. Will we sustain it with this strategy?
What is one thing we could do to improve on this strategy?
Directions for Initial Posting:
Write a memo to Steve answering these four questions. Your memo should outline all four questions, and the answers to all four questions should be supported by course materials.
Other Writing Guidelines for this Discussion:
Use the grading rubric while completing the project to ensure all requirements are met to lead to the highest possible grade. This is a business memo to Steve Wilford, who runs Paul’s Discount Tires & Repairs. Ensure your memo answers all 4 questions and that your writing is concise. There is a balance between providing a robust answer and writing succinctly and to the point.
Third-person writing is required. The third person means no words such as “I, me, my, we, or us” (first-person writing).
Contractions are not often used in business writing, so do not use them here. Paraphrase – do not use direct quotation marks. This means that you will put the ideas of an author or article into your own words rather than lift them directly from a source document. You may not use more than four consecutive words from a source document (including the case scenario) or change words in a passage as doing so would require direct quotation marks. Use a passage from a source document by putting it into your own words (paraphrase) and attribute the passage to the source document. Changing words from a passage does not exclude the passage from having to have quotation marks. If direct quotes are presented, they will not be included in the grading.
Use in-text citations and provide a reference list that contains a reference associated with each in-text citation. Provide the page or paragraph number in every in-text citation presented. Refer to this link for more guidance on how to do this:
In-Text Citations – Including Page or Paragraph Numbers
Make sure that you post your substantive initial posting no later than Saturday this week, and be sure to use outside support for your posting. This should be from reliable sources (other than the text book), and you need to reference the sources using proper APA Version 7 formatting. In addition to your initial posting, you need to respond to at least three classmates’ initial posts to provide comments, insights, or questions that further the discussion. Your responses need to be substantive, and should move the discussions forward. Keep in mind that you cannot submit discussion posts for credit after the week ends and you will be assessed a late penalty for any initial posts that are submitted after Saturday. You will not be able to see other posts until you have posted yours, and you should not edit your initial posting after you have posted.