The final project provides you with an opportunity to use work from previous papers and discussion forums in formulating your paper, but it will also require additional research regarding a specific business. You are required to adhere to APA (American Psychological Association) style guidelines and to cite your sources. Do not copy tables or material and present it as your own. A feature of good academic writing is building on the work of others in presenting a new approach to a business issue.

A major firm in the United States is contemplating rolling out a new product to aid its ailing business and has come to you for help. The CEO isn’t sure if the investment is justified by sound economic principles or the degree to which she would support the introduction of the new product, its successful launch, and its subsequent growth. As part of her due diligence, she has come to you and asked you to prepare a report on the degree to which the new product is based on solid economic principles.

Please choose a company and a new product for the company to launch. The new product could be a car or truck, a household product such as shampoo or toothpaste, a brand of yogurt, and so forth. Use Websites such as www.yahoofinance.com, databases such as EBSCOhost and ProQuest (available through the myEdison portal in the My Resources block), and online journals from the New Jersey State Library to conduct your research. (In order to access resources from the New Jersey State Library, you must first sign up for a free library card.)

The CEO has provided you with the outline below for the report.

Introduction: Provide a brief focus statement about the company and the product you have chosen. Include family of products, if applicable, and any other data about the company that you think will be helpful in providing context for your report.

Interaction of resources between households, business, and government: Provide a brief synopsis of how the product will address perceived [household] needs, present business climate and performance, and government regulations, if any.

Scarcity, market mechanisms, price elasticity, gross domestic product (GDP), and foreign exchange: How do scarcity, market mechanisms, price elasticity, GDP, and foreign exchange affect the launch and subsequent growth of this product?

Trade and productivity: What is the effect of your new product or product line on productivity, trade, and economic growth?

Unemployment, inflation, and the business cycle: How does unemployment, inflation, and the business cycle influence the potential for success of your new product or product line?

Classical and Keynesian economics and aggregate supply and demand: How do classical and Keynesian economics, as well as aggregate supply, influence the introduction of your new product or product line?

Conclusions and outcomes: Summarize the main points of your paper and provide your conclusions to the CEO based on your research.

GUIDELINES

For this final project, thoroughly discuss the topics described above and, when possible, provide specific examples or recommendations.

Your paper should:

Be 14 to 20 double-spaced pages in length.

Include a cover sheet and a table of contents.

Follow academic research approaches and APA citation format, including in-text citations and a References list.

Have at least 10 references from academic books, journal articles, and/or credible online sources.

Be well-developed and convey your understanding of the readings and concepts.

Be organized, coherent, and unified.

Be free of spelling, structure, and grammatical errors.

WRITING RESOURCES

The following links provide online writing aids to help you with your paper assignments.

OWL (Online Writing Lab) at Purdue University

Writer’s Handbook, the Writing Center at the University of Wisconsin–Madison

APA Guidelines

Thomas Edison State University’s Writing Style Guides