The Optimization of the Operations of a Simulated Business

The Optimization of the Operations of a Simulated Business
By(Student Name)
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Introduction
Northwell Inc. was founded 25 years ago when a merger between Canadian and US firms. Since both firms had distributed their products in Canada and the US, the merger allowed them to share marketing and distribution services for five years. Despite the challenges, after three years, insiders and outsiders viewed the merger as a success. However, growth and profitability slowed down nine years ago and flattened afterwards. A year ago, sales growth was just 4%, and profitability had reduced to 6% of sales and the return on equity 6.5%, marking a doom for Northwell Inc.'s glorious days. Research done three years ago showed that the company’s clients could receive orders and information over the Internet. For those who were not currently able to do the same, they would soon be enabled. The business had challenges communicating with customers online, lagging behind competitors.
Because of the inability to be competitive, Northwell Inc. engaged the services of Medichek, which primarily provided the design and implementation of websites for leading healthcare organizations. Claudia proposed the development of a virtual medical product and service mall with Medichek. The businesses expected that the change would enable Northwell Inc. to enhance its competitiveness in the online space. However, the project ran into problems. The project was four to five months behind schedule. This frustrated the Board and Senior Management at Northwell Inc., who wanted Claudia to move things. In response to their frustration, the executives at Medicheck were pushing back, considering Claudia’s interventions as hindering progress. The sales and marketing team members were unhappy with the changes, with three resignations recently and the loss of a good distributor from the Mid-west US. With these problems, it is critical to make an appropriate recommendation to address the organization’s challenges and allow it to become a leader in the market once more.
The Education Plan
Education plans are instrumental in providing a structured approach to learning. Such an approach breaks down complex information and structures it in simple chunks that students can understand. Various models and approaches are used in educational planning, like learning contracts, the loop model and organizational learning. Learning contracts entail a collaborative agreement between the tutors and learners (Ismail and Yusof, 2008). The contract has the resources, objectives and other things the learners need to achieve the intended purpose. In the case of Northwell Inc., a learning contract will allow the stakeholders to be involved in the design of the educational process. It will recognize the learning needs of the different participants and allow the teacher to make personalized approaches to meeting those needs. The approach will ensure that the stakeholders have a sense of ownership and will improve their participation.
The loop model is based on the idea of making continuous improvements. It provides a cyclical process of planning, implanting and evaluating the plan to ensure it achieves the required outcome. The approach sees learning as...