NMIMS Solved Sem 3 and Sem 4 Solution June 2021
NMIMS Solved Sem 3 and Sem 4 Solution June 2021
Prof.Dr.N.Palaniappan.,MBA.,MCom.,MPhil.,PhD.
You can call him on his mobile no. 09025810064 (whatsapp available) or mail
him at [email protected]. He does help/guide for the below question. If
urgent or any query’s, Please feel free to call him on his mobile no. 9025810064
(whatsapp available) or do mail on [email protected]. He does
help/guide for the below question
Contact:
Prof.Dr.N.Palaniappan.,MBA.,MCom.,MPhil.,PhD
2. You are the Head of a Market Research Organisation. Your FMCG client ITC
has recently introduced “NimWash,” a new type of fruits and vegetable wash
owing to Covid- 19 pandemic. The FMCG company wants to understand how
customers are reacting to their recently launched product across India. Draft a
Questionnaire containing not more than 20 questions that would succinctly address
the query posed by the FMCG client.
3. You have been recently appointed as a “New Product Development” Head for
Micromax India. You have been asked to develop a brand-new innovative product
namely 5G enabled affordable smartphone as part of their product portfolio.
a.) Explain the process in detail to arrive at the creation of your new product
b) Is there a need to conduct Test Marketing? If Yes or No, please state your
reasons to support your answer.
1. People centric companies such as Intuit, Aditya Birla, SAP ensure that their
people policies help them retain and engage talent. What are some of the strategies
followed by organizations? Illustrate your points with examples.
2. Aspire ltd has been recently acquired. Shobha , the new HR head wants to
revamp the Performance management system of the company. She would like her
managers to clearly follow the steps involved in the Performance management
system. enumerate the steps that managers should follow. Suggest any 2-modern
methods of performance appraisal that can be adopted at Aspire.
3. Akshat, the Head HR, at Aristocrat Inc is looking at hiring for the executive role.
He believes that using internal sources of talent acquisition is better than external
sources. He also wants to upskill the employees who may be considered for
managerial positions soon
a. Why does Akshat consider internal sources to be more effective? Which internal
sources will he make use of for hiring? (5 Marks)
b. Suggest three on-the-job methods that can be used for upskilling the potential
managers.
International HR Practices
International Marketing
1. You are a South Indian Snacks brand extremely popular in India that sells
varieties of Dosa, Idli, Vadas and Chutney. You wish to expand your operations in
Qatar. What would be the various Societal & Cultural norms your will consider
and why?
2. You are a manufacturer of electric scooters in US. The overall production costs
of the scooters are extremely high when you manufacture and sell in the home
market. This leaves you with very less profit margin. What would be your strategy
to increase your profit margins and why?
3. You are a well-known Turkish brand TURK-NEY (Turkish Honey) that sells
Organic Honey throughout the world. Even though there is stiff competition, you
see India with a huge potential and plan to expand your retail operations in India.
a. List down 3 global pricing policies. Which of the 3 global pricing policies would
you consider and why? Also list down competitors in India in the honey segment
(Name any 5).
b. List down the various marketing and product promotion techniques you will
consider and why?
Marketing Strategy
1. Founded in 2011 and launched in 2013 in St Jose California USA, Zoom Video
communications had made steady progress in the enterprise communications
domain with a structured growth pattern, the company also received regular
funding from venture funds and was listed on the New York Stock exchange in
2019.
It was also the year in which Zoom hit profit territory. In December of 2019 Zoom
had a total user base of 10 million; then, the pandemic struck. The user load of
Zoom zoomed from 10 million to 300 million by April of 2020.The company faced
a severe credibility crisis for its brand and had a tough time managing security,
customer satisfaction and other issues because of the sudden increase of user base
across the world. In hindsight it can be argued that Zoom failed to see the
opportunity that existed in the consumer segment and erred in its strategy to focus
more on enterprise customers.
Assuming the Pandemic had not struck and if you were the CMO of Zoom in
November of 2020, what plans would you make to acquire new customers? What
would be your USP and how would you focus on the core brand strategy to make
the brand more relevant.
2. You are the marketing director of ISL, The Indian Super league which is India’s
premiere soccer league. ISL viewership has grown 16% in 2020-21 season over
2019-20 season, but the league compares poorly with the 400 billion viewers
delivered by the IPL in 2020. What would you attribute this lag in viewership
despite soccer being the world’s most popular sport? Do a comparison using the
4P’s of marketing between the IPL and ISL leagues and create a marketing strategy
for the league such that it can increase viewership as well as fan engagement.
3. You are the marketing director for super events a successful event organization
working with top movie stars and organizing one of the marquee events in the
annual entertainment calendar. The business was doing well, but the pandemic has
thrown your organization in turmoil.
a. As the marketing director what strategies would you evolve in ensuring your
organization remains relevant in the post pandemic world. Create two new product
ideas for the company.
b. How would you reposition your company’s brand in the future? Create a
marketing plan for the two new product ideas that you have created in the previous
question.
Consumer Behaviour
a. Classical Conditioning
b. Instrumental Conditioning
Brand Management
1. Steve Forbes, editor in chief of Forbes Magazine has said that brand is the single
most important investment one can make in their business and creating strong
brands should be the ultimate aim of any business. There are many companies that
have been successful in creating strong iconic brands. Colgate, Maggie, Starbucks,
Dettol, and Royal Enfield Bullet are strong brands in their respective product
categories. Study the above brands and identify the common points these brands
have adopted to grow into strong brands.
2. Pro Kabaddi League (PKL) has revolutionized the indigenous sport of kabaddi
and positioned it as an aspirational sport for both players and fans. PKL is a
trailblazing initiative by Mashal Sports Private Limited and Star India Private
Limited. They have jointly worked towards elevating the sport of kabaddi to an
international standard and have infused new life into the sport by bringing it to the
major metropolitan cities of India. The bid prices for players have increased
tenfold and sponsors are queuing up to sponsor the league. The league has
witnessed tremendous growth since its inception in 2014. PKL has grown to
become the second most watched league in India on television. PKL is backed by
the Amateur Kabaddi Federation of India (AKFI), and supported by participating
members of the International Kabaddi Federation (IKF) and the Asian Kabaddi
Federation (AKF). What are the branding and marketing challenges PKL has
successfully cracked to galvanize the resurgence of Kabaddi into an aspirational,
world class brand with a remarkable fan following? Critically evaluate the role of
brand marketing programs in the success of PKL.
3.a. Walter Landor is a renowned brand designer and founder of brand consulting
firm Landor. He says, “Products are made in a factory but brands are created in the
mind”. Explain his statement with examples from service and pharma’s sector in
India.
3.b. VIVO is back as Indian Premier League (IPL) title sponsor for 2021 season.
Choose a popular event and identify its sponsor. How the sponsor/sponsors are
building brand equity with their sponsorship? Is the sponsorship integrated with
other marketing communications?
2. Retention of customers not only develops business but also the profitability of a
company. You have joined as a relationship manager at ICICI Bank. The bank has
number of products such as consumer banking, home loans, car loans, mortgage,
life insurance, general insurance, etc. You have been provided with the database
and account details of the high net worth individual (HNI) customers. How are you
going to enhance the total spending of a customer with regard to a particular
product or services of the bank?
International Finance
2. A US based IT firm required GBP 100000 in 180 days. The company feels that
exchange rates are expected to fluctuate in the next 6 months. Their near accurate
estimate based on a good quality research were as below:
Call premium USD 0.02 (strike price of USD 1.50 for 180 days) Interest Rates in
London for deposits – 4.5% and for loans – 5.1% Interest Rates in New York for
deposits – 4.5% and for loans – 5.1%
A fair estimate of exchange rate after 180 days is expected to be USD 1.44 with a
probability of 20%, USD 1.46 with a probability of 60% and USD 1.53 with a
probability of 20%.
a. What do you understand by Real GDP? What is the Real GDP Growth Rate of
India and China in 2019? What is the estimated real GDP growth rate of India and
China in 2020? What is the projected real GDP growth rate of India and China in
2021 and 2022?
b. What is the estimated 2022 GDP Loss (in percentage) in comparison to pre-
covid levels (January 2020 forecast) in China and Other Emerging Economies in
Asia other than China?
1. Explain the way Indian Capital Markets is organized. Over the last 3 decades
various reforms have taken place to make the capital markets in India more and
more structured and scam-free. Explain any five such significant reforms
2. Describe how the prevailing interest rates in a country affect its exchange rates
with the currency of its major trading partner
a. A mutual fund manager has INR 450 million of cash, which he needs to park for
a period of less than 180 days, where he will move this to equity
b. An oil refining company wishes to borrow INR 1500 million for a period of 90
days to fund its settlement of invoices
a. How can an ERP address their concern? How will integration help in reducing
the production time?
b. Identify the players and discuss the inter relationship between various functions
by presenting the order fulfilment process.
2. Mr. Bansal was working with reputed tuition classes and having rich experience
in teaching. One-day innovative idea came to his mind to start online classes. This
idea will give Mr. Bansal more students and better geographic reach. Suddenly he
left the job and started his online classes business. He struggles a lot in initial days
of business but later he manages his business in break even. Explain existing
situation of online learning classes with respected to industry life cycle.
3. XYZ Ltd Tourism Company running business from last 10 years and have many
good customer base. Company also operated offices in multiple cities. But due to
COVID 19 company faced a lots of challenges. Because of such pandemic
situation people were not traveling and not using any of company’s service. At the
same time company was not able to generate revenue and not able provide salaries
to employees.
1. We are all concerned with the serious health impacts of the escalating pollution
problem in a country like India where regulation oversight is comparatively lax
and penalties & punishments too few and far? Identify and select any one pollution
reducing/mitigating initiative practiced and embedded in its business by a listed
company that impresses you. Explain this initiative along with the short term &
long term positive impact of the same on the environment & people. (refer to
Sustainability Report and/or Business Responsibility Report of the company)
2. If business ethics is understood under the concept of universal values then most
of the conflict among ethical values, the laws of state and the codes of the
corporate world could be eliminated. Any individual, professional, corporation or
small & medium business can make one or more of these universal values the focal
point of their business; be it trust, integrity, fairness, compassion etc and the rest of
the values will follow. Identify which two universal values influence you OR your
organization/business and discuss how this influence & focus has led to ethical
decision making and a better reputation for you OR your organization (Write about
any ONE - yourself or your organization).
3a. Gender bias is one of the ills of our society and thus impacts our workplace too.
Most progressive businesses are moving towards gender neutral policies for talent
acquisition & talent management. Explain how are businesses doing it?
3b. How has the study of Business Ethics as a subject helped you make ethical
decisions & choices to navigate your professional life better.
Digital Marketing
2. You run a local beauty parlour in Mumbai. Write a Google AdWords Search
Campaign for the same.
1. As per news reports, Samsung's clients were asking the company to develop a
200MP sensor last year. However, technical difficulties with production yield
resulted in the failure of Korean company to deliver the sensor on time. Samsung is
trying hard to overcome those hurdles and is all set to introduce a 200MP camera
for Smartphone this year. As a consultant how are you going to help Samsung to
understand the client’s needs, and further translate them into product features and
quality plan for the new products while keeping the other global competitors’
performance in view?
a. Explain the concept of quality circle. Discuss the composition of quality circle.
b. Discuss the main characteristics of Quality Circles. What are the main objectives
of quality circles? Explain how Quality circles lead to stress free work
environment.
Project Management
1. Provide details for each stages of the “Generic Project Life Cycle Model” for a
hypothetical project of conducting Annual Day in your university. Include specific
actions which are required in this project and give your comment about which will
be the most critical stage for this project.
Procurement Management
1. Explain Procure to Pay cycle with example for an Automobile spare part
industry who is using SAP ERP. Also explain roles and responsibility of
Procurement Manager within same example?
2. You are the buyer in textile industry M/s Weave, your management has given
you responsibility to procure a critical capex. Using Total cost of ownership
analyze your decision. What all cost are involved in the same? Explain in detail
considering all phases and lifecycle of product and how it will affect your
procurement decision.
3. You are buyer in one of the key real estate organisation M/s Brick Developers
Pvt ltd.
a. You have been given to manage Inventory Management is one of the key
activity which requires daily monitoring. Explain how vendor managed inventory
can help your organization? How does it varies compared to stock less buying?
b. Your CPO has asked you to help him to write down requirement to keep in
mind for new supplier registration process? What are parameter you will check
before onboarding the supplier?
1. Compute Discounted Payback Period, Net Present Value and Profitability Index
of a project which costs Rs 50,000, cost of capital is 8% and is expected to
generate following cash inflows:
On the basis of Net Present Value and Profitability Index, suggest if the project is
to be accepted or not.
2. Crown Ltd has the following book value capital structure. Equity capital (shares
of Rs 10 par value each) Rs 15 crore, 12% Preference capital (Rs 100 par value
each) Rs 1 crore. Retained earnings Rs 20 crore, 11.5% Debentures (Rs 100 par
value each) 10 crore and 11% Term loan Rs 12.5 crore. The next year expected
dividend on equity is Rs 3.6 per share and has an expected growth rate of 7%. The
market value is Rs 40/share. Preference stock, redeemable after 10 years is
currently trading at Rs 75 per share. Debentures, trading at Rs 80 are redeemable
after 6 years. Corporate tax rate is 40%. Calculate the WACC as per book value
weights. Comment on the relevance of calculation of WACC.
3. Walter and Gordon model analyse the impact of distribution of dividends on the
valuation of the firm but the formula used in both the cases are different. Company
ABC Ltd wanted to evaluate the price of the share in both cases. The company
earns ₹ 50 per share and expects the same for the next year. The cost of capital to
the firm is 11%. The company earns return on investment of 15% and the firm is
planning dividend payout ratio of 60%. Calculate:
a. Price of the share using Walter Model. Comment on the relationship between
return on investment and cost of capital in the case above and decision of the firm
whether dividend is to be declared or not.
b. Price of the share using Gordon model. Comment on the relationship between
return on investment and cost of capital in the case above and decision of the firm
whether dividend is to be declared or not.
Sales Management
1. Astus Auto, is a new start up dealing with CNG two wheelers. They have hired
you as a sales consultant. Can you guide them with the Sales process with regards
to their product?
2. You are hired as the HR Manager for Sales Force Mumbai, a company dealing
with managing contract sales for various apparel brands in Western India. Can you
guide your team about the best strategies to recruit, select and train best sales
employees?
3. A newly set up Sales start up, dealing in sales and distribution of different types
of soles for shoes to various shoe manufacturers has hired you as their consultant.
b. Also, can you guide them about the various types of Sales Organizational
structures they could choose from for their organization?
Strategic HRM
2. Explain Primary and Secondary activites in Porter’s Model w.r.t MBA Chai
wala. Students are expected to research the case of MBA chaiwala as a brand apply
Explain Primary and Secondary activites in Porter’s Model mentioned in the
concept to explain it.
3. Covid-19 hit the entire globe. Sumeet was a seasoned offline trainer as he liked
to introduce himself. Who till the pandemic hit never shifted to online
methodology and never considered Virtual training as a beneficial tool. He saw
virtual training as a very inhuman and tech-based chore rather than personalized
and effective offline training. Being virtual was suddenly a necessity rather than a
luxury during this difficult phase.
a. Could you as an HR manager brief Sumeet of the characteristics of a virtual
training via a power point format.
b. Give Sumeet tips and tricks to make such virtual sessions as interesting as
the offline one.
Research Methodology
1. Last Week When Suryadev Menon went to the Byculla market for purchasing
Fruits, he has observed that most of the vendors are using WhatsApp. He has
observed that these traditional vendors have started using WhatsApp for their
business-related communications. One question came to Suryadev’s mind that
“How WhatsApp can be useful to these WhatsApp-users who are running their
fruit shops in Byculla, Mumbai?”. He wanted to survey this. During the literature
review process, Suryadev found TAM (Technology Acceptance Model) as a
suitable framework. Help him to design a questionnaire accordingly. Also, cite the
material (if any) being used for gaining insights for the formulation of questions.
Data link: Company Master Data of Maharashtra upto 28th February 2019 | Open
Government Data (OGD) Platform India
Services Marketing
2. Super JET a private chartered flight company wants to use your help in
designing their flower of Service. Can you guide them on the same?
3. XYZ Ltd. is a company which deals with rendering Intellectual Property Rights
services to various corporate houses in Mumbai
a. They are losing out to competitors as they are not able to understand customer
expectations. Can you guide them on the factors influencing customer expectations
and the components of customer expectations?
b. Also, can you guide them that how can they improve the customers service
encounter with the help of the servuction system?
Contact:
Prof.Dr.N.Palaniappan.,MBA.,MCom.,MPhil.,PhD