CASE NUMBER ONE:  Pasta Perfect

 

Saturday, 1/29/2000

 

Students:  Scroll down and read ALL OF THIS MESSAGE!

 

Your first WRITTEN case assignment will be due NEXT THURSDAY, Feb. 3rd., as the class schedule indicates.   As the syllabus says, page 10, you'll be required to hand in:

 

1.  a cover page memo that summarizes your discoveries (see pages 30, 31 for instructions on how to do this.)

 

2.  a 2-page (MAXIMUM) analysis of the case.  Appendices MAY be included, should you wish me to refer to some analysis that you conducted, or to other peripheral data that you found on the company, and/or its industry.

 

Of course, everything must be typed, so you may find that you'll take 6 pages of hand written notes, while the final product will only be 2 pages in length.

 

Feel free to use tables, graphs, charts, etc. if this is your preference.

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Here are a few questions to get you started on the pasta perfect case analysis:

 

1.  Take a look at Table 4, on page C-9 in the "Introductions:  Preparing an effective case analysis" chapter of your case book.  How do these environmental factors influence the situation that Pasta perfect is in now?  (You may wish to create a two-column table or chart in MS Word, and simply list each factor that is relevant in one column, and state HOW or WHY it is relevant in the other column.)

 

2.  What has Pasta Perfect done WELL to date? 

    a.  That is, what have been the key success factors behind their current level of success?  (Hint:  How do CONSUMERS view their products?  And, how has Pasta Perfect designed its delivery systems in light of these views?)

    b.  What are the company's "core competencies?"  That is, discuss the  Resources (tangible and intangible) and capabilities that give the firm a competitive advantage. 

 

3.  What has Pasta Perfect done WRONG? 

    a.  You may wish to prepare graphs of the company's profit ratios (return on total assets, return on equity, operating profit margin), and/or examine their liquidity ratio's (current ratio, quick ratio) over time to assess the firm's financial condition.  The ambitious at heart may also wish to compute leverage ratio's (debt/assets, debt/equity, long-term debt/equity) and/or activity ratios (inventory turnover, fixed assets turnover, total assets turnover).  The WEAK at heart should at least examine sales and debt trends over time.  Bottom line:  Do SOMETHING with the financial data to show me that you learned what you need to know in this class from finance.  The more you do, the better.  And, very successful analyses will earn extra credit.

    b.  You may also wish to take a stab at a quick "SWOT" analysis:  Strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats.  This too could be nicely prepared in a two-column table.

 

4.  WHICH of the alternatives listed in the case do you think that Pasta Perfect should pursue?