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Structuring a Business It has always been your dream to have your own business. You and your childhood friend Ravi have developed a product called Sunburst that could be used by the growing solar energy industry Tanya, a friend you met through an alumni group, has experience in marketing. The three of you agreed to form the startup team for Sunburst and you gather together one weekday morning to discuss the legal form and organizational structure your business should take. We're going to need additional investors and expertise to get this business off the ground, Ravi says. We should develop a business plan that will be attractive to potential investors and partners. They're going to have concerns about joining a new startup, Tanya says. We should work to address these from the start. Ravi looks to you. Can you prepare a PowerPoint presentation for potential investors? Let them know what legal form the business is going to take and explain why it works for our company. You should include your analysis on personal liability, taxes, interests of contributing parties, and management of the business. We want them to know we've done our homework. Tanya interrupts, the other thing is we have to decide what organization structure would best serve our goals. That's right, Ravi says. We've already identified innovation and timely customer service as our top priorities for Sunburst. We know we need staff to handle product development, production, finance and accounting, and marketing and sales. We're definitely going to need human resources functions, Tanya says. Outsourcing is one option we should look into. We need to do some research before we make a decision. Ravi looks to you again. I think we need to develop a clear mission statement and an organization chart and explain the rationale for our decisions in a short paper. You're the most detail-oriented. You think you can handle it? Creating Sunburst: Legal and Organizational ConsiderationsRavi, who has a degree from State University in mechanical engineering, was previously employed by a start-up firm in New York City. He worked long hours for little pay, but when the business sold, his stock options paid off. As a result, he now has some time and $100,000 to invest in Sunburst. More importantly, Ravi has the knowledge and know-how to setup and manage production. Tanya, a friend you met through your alumni association, has a degree in marketing and has a few years of experience working in marketing roles. The three of you agree to form the start-up team for Sunburst.The team estimates that it will take approximately two years to develop Sunburst into a marketable product, but that once the product is on the market, there is excellent growth potential. You know that you will need additional investors and expertise to get the business off the ground. You need to develop a plan for a business form that will be attractive to potential investors and partners, and will address their concerns.Finance and politics are not your strong suits, and you aren't very interested in the day-to-day business operations of Sunburst—you'd rather spend most of your time inventing new products. The start-up team believes that the business will need someone with finance skills. You also need a visionary CEO. Ideally, this person should have connections and experience in the solar industry. You have asked Elon Helios, a forward-thinking figure in the solar energy field, who is known for being a rainmaker. Helios has expressed some interest, but it will take significant incentives to get him on board.Although Tanya has little money to invest, she has excellent networking skills, and she has found a potential investor, Carmen Santiago, who thinks that the product may have potential. Santiago does not want to be involved in running the business. Ravi has identified a good candidate with finance experience. This individual does not want to invest in the company, but he would expect a good salary and benefits.The team has created a tentative business plan, which has two target stages: The first stage involves local (geographical region) manufacturing with a focus on local solar energy providers; the second stage will begin five years from start-up, at which point the business will expand nationally (or possibly internationally) targeting the market of all potential solar energy customers. The potential investors and participants want to know what legal form the business will take before they agree to participate. Your task is to prepare a presentation for the potential investors. PLEASE SEE BELOW AND NEXT 2 PAGES FOR QUESTIONS AND INSTRUCTIONS PERTAINING TO THIS CASE, POWERPOINT, AND SHORT PAPER REQUIREMENTSUsing the information you gathered from the case, prepare a PowerPoint presentation. Because you will not deliver this presentation in person, it should follow the form of asynchronous presentations. Be sure to meet the following requirements:Include a narration script in the notes section of PowerPointInclude a title slide, with your name on it, introducing the presentation.On the presentation slides, include only the major bullet points for each issue.Include no more than 15 slides (not counting title page or references list)Cover all the elements of your plan as outlined in the caseUse your narration to provide the supporting rationale for each major bullet point The final slide must present a clear summary of your major conclusions and any recommendationsInclude a reference page in APA format citing any sources you used to develop your presentationTitle your files using this protocol: yourlastname_Business Form_dateWhen your presentation is complete, continue to the next step, in which you will gather information about the potential organization structure for your business.Determine Your Organization's Structure: Gather and Analyze InformationNow that you have decided on a legal organization form for your business, which currently has a single location, you need to decide on an organization structure. Organization structure determines such things as what departments the organization will need, who will report to whom, how many levels you will have in your organization's hierarchy, and how many individuals will report to each manager (span of control). An effective structure should promote communication and coordination of efforts across the entire organization. You begin your research by formulating a number of questions, the answers to which will be reflected in a short paper that includes your mission statement, organization chart, and your rationale for these recommendations. Sunburst's primary goals are innovation and customer responsiveness. How should your mission statement articulate these goals? How can this statement be drafted so that it is clear, concise, and meaningful to organization stakeholders?What key tasks must be accomplished in order to meet the organization's goals? What individuals or groups will have responsibility for delivering these processes or items?Will individuals have titles and, if so, which individuals? What will those titles be?To whom will individuals report? Why?What are the possible impacts of outsourcing the HR function? What are the pros and cons of doing so? Make a recommendation in your paper. If you decide to keep HR in house, make sure its place in your business structure is reflected in your organization chart.Consider all other relevant factors (for example, will your business structure be functional, centralized, or decentralized, etc.).When you have formulated your preliminary thoughts and questions, begin your research. The resources below are a good start, but you should also conduct your own research to enhance your knowledge and the final product.When your research is complete, continue to the next step, in which you will write your short paper, which will include a mission statement, organization chart, and summary of the rationale behind your decisions.You've formulated your key questions; you've done your research; you've analyzed and refined your information and thoughts. Now it's time to put it all together and start drafting your deliverable.Assemble a short paper that contains the following: your mission statement of no more than one paragraphyour organization chartyour rationale, no more than five pages (12 point type, double-spaced), for your chosen mission statement and organization structure as displayed in your chartBe sure to attribute any sources you use in the creation of any of the documents you submit.Include a reference page in APA format citing any sources you used in your short paper.Use the following file naming protocol: yourlastname_organization _dateBefore you submit your assignment, review the competencies below, which your instructor will use to evaluate your work. A good practice would be to use each competency as a self-check to confirm you have incorporated all of them in your work.1.7: Create neat and professional looking documents appropriate for the project or presentation.1.8: Create clear oral messages.2.5: Develop well-reasoned ideas, conclusions or decisions, checking them against relevant criteria and benchmarks.7.1: Analyze the legal forms of business organization and make recommendations to support business decisions.9.1: Design organizational structure, systems and processes that support the strategic goals of the organization.10.4: Make strategic managerial decisions for obtaining capital required for achieving organizational goals.13.2: Create and implement new initiative or enterprise.13.3: Create and manage a new enterprise.
Solution: Structuring a Business PowerPoint Presentation and Structing a Business Short Paper