In March 2014, Sony signed a deal to sell its old Tokyo headquarters and a nearby building for $156 million. This building served as Sony’s headquarters from 1990 to 2007 and is thought of as the birthplace of the company, where Sony founders worked on the Walkman and Trinitron TV. This building sale follows the […]
Continue readingWould R.S. Owens, the manufacturer of Oscar statues, use job costing or process costing?
The Academy Awards is an annual American awards ceremony honoring achievements in the film industry. Winners receive a statue officially named the “Academy Award of Merit.” However, these statues are much better known by the nickname of “Oscars.” Each Oscar statue weighs 8.5 pounds and takes three to four weeks to manufacture. The statues have […]
Continue readingHow does the renegotiated labor contract impact the standard cost of cars for GM?
A few years ago, Chrysler renegotiated its labor contract with the United Auto Workers (UAW) union. New hires were to be paid $14 per hour, down from the $28 per hour veteran workers received. That cut resulted in an average combined wage and benefit rate per hour in 2011 of $49, compared to $76 per […]
Continue readingWhat is the NPV of Applebee’s investment in tableside tablets for its restaurants?
At Applebee’s, Presto tablets by E la Carte are being installed at every table. In total, Applebee’s will be purchasing 100,000 tablets. Customers will be able to pay their food bill and order appetizers and desserts using the tablets. The tablets are not replacing wait staff; wait staff will still take the orders for entrees. […]
Continue readingShould the original cost of the leftover 10 million pounds of Mighty Wings matter to McDonald’s decision makers?
In the first half of 2013, McDonald’s bought and stockpiled about 50 million frozen chicken wings for a promotion it was planning for fall 2013. In the fall 2013, McDonald’s debuted Mighty Wings, a menu item that would be available only through the end of November 2013. When Mighty Wings came out, McDonald’s did not […]
Continue readingShould the town of Allentown, PA, outsource its pension check-writing?
For years, the City of Allentown, PA, has had its payroll clerk write the pension checks to its retirees every two weeks. The pension check-writing system is based in an older accounting system that was installed in 1983. The only person who has been trained to use the older accounting system to write the pension […]
Continue readingHow should Amazon Web Services price its services to Zappos?
Amazon.com has some of the biggest data centers in the world, where it runs cloud-based hosting services. Amazon Web Services, Inc. (AWS), is the division of Amazon.com that provides compute, storage, and database services to a wide variety of companies, including GE, Netflix, Pfizer, Pinterest, and others. Amazon’s divisions also use its cloud-based hosting services. […]
Continue readingShould you rent a cable modem from Time Warner Cable or buy one?
When you have internet service from Time Warner Cable, you will need a cable modem. Time Warner will rent you a modem for $5.99 per month. Alternatively, you could purchase your own cable modem. For example, you could purchase the Motorola Surfboard SB6121 cable modem from Amazon for $79.99. Questions What is the payback period […]
Continue readingShould Apple Country Orchards sell Granny Smith apples or make cider from those apples?
Apple Country Orchards in Idalou, Texas, has 6,000 apple trees and offers 30 varieties of apples. The orchard is 29 years old and allows customers to pick their own apples or to purchase pre-picked apples. In addition to apples and apple picking, the orchard offers hayrides, lunch, pumpkins, and a variety of other items. Apple […]
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March 24, 2014 