Assignment Instructions

This assignment is a take-home essay assignment of four questions for which you are expected to develop a 2-page essay for each question that fully responds to the question being posed. The second question may only take a page or page and half.

You must use the attached template or there can be a reduction in points.

Essay 1: The basic equation for risk is defined as R = ƒ(C*V*T) where R is the level of risk, C is the consequences (public health, our economy, government action, public confidence in our institutions) of an attack, V is an assessment of the vulnerability of a potential target (how hard or easy it would be for it to be hit by terrorists) and T is the threat or the likelihood that a specific target will suffer an attack or disaster from a specific weapon. The Department of Homeland Security has stated that it will apply risk management principles to homeland security operations and has stated that “Ultimately, homeland security is about effectively managing risks to the Nation’s security” (DHS, 2010, p. 2). Drawing upon your class readings and additional research examine how risk management is used by the homeland security enterprise and how that use benefits such aspects as resource allocation, strategic planning, grant award, or any of the multitudes of other homeland security issues or operations.

Essay 2: In your readings, you have been provided a variety of definitions for the term homeland security. Additionally, the national strategies and readings have talked to the difference between homeland security and homeland defense. Drawing upon your readings and other class materials, craft two columns; one labeled Homeland Security and the other Homeland Defense. Under the headers of each column list those missions, tasks, duties, responsibilities, operations, etc. which are identified from the national policies, strategies, and readings. Some tasks may be listed under both columns. Where this occurs, be sure to identify if there is an element of that item that is specific to either homeland security or homeland defense. Lastly, drawing upon the list you developed, provide a definition of homeland security.

Essay 3: Critical infrastructure is defined in the National Infrastructure Protection Plan as “Systems and assets, whether physical or virtual, so vital that the incapacity or destruction of such may have a debilitating impact on the security, economy, public health or safety, environment, or any combination of these matters, across any Federal, State, regional, territorial, or local jurisdiction” (DHS, 2009, p. 109). From this definition, one can reasonably presume that protection of these assets is vital to the well-being of the United States and as such, is an essential element of homeland security. Drawing upon the readings provides your assessment of the capability of the nation’s infrastructure protection program to ensure the survivability of its critical infrastructure.

Essay 4: Provide an examination of the various elements that comprise the intelligence community from local law enforcement to national agencies and how each of those entities contributes to the development of homeland security intelligence. In crafting your response, it would be good to remember the lessons learned from the 9/11 Commission on intelligence sharing and analyze how those lessons/recommendations are being addressed. Lastly, your examination of the question should include the issue of domestic versus foreign intelligence.

Technical Requirements:

Length: A minimum of 2 full pages per question (except question two), double spaced, 1″ margins, 12 pitch type in Times New Roman font left-justified format. Be sure to include a cover page and reference page. Please use the attached template.

Sources: All sources for this assignment must come from the assigned reading within the course or from relevant external and verified credible sources. You are not limited to the pages assigned from each document but are limited to those documents to defend and support your arguments/claims.

Citations/References: You must use APA style for this assignment. Include all references at the end of the document, not after each question.

Submission: All work is to be submitted as an attachment to the assignment link by 11:55 PM on the due date. All work should be prepared in Microsoft Word format and submitted as an attachment.

Grading: All assignments will be graded using the attached rubric.

Please answer the following discussion questions:

Question 1 – McDonald’s

1. Conduct a value chain analysis for McDonald’s. What are its primary activities? What are its support activities? Identify the activities that add the most value for the customer. Why? Which activities help McDonald’s to contain cost? Why?
2. In the last few years, McDonald’s has made a lot of changes to its menu, adding more healthy choices and more higher-priced items, such as those offered in McCafé (e.g., premium roast coffee, frappé, and fruit smoothies), and has also enhanced its in-restaurant services (e.g., free, unlimited Wi-Fi, newer interiors). Did McDonald’s new priorities—in terms of a broader, healthier menu and an improved in-restaurant experience—require changes to its traditional value chain activities? If so, how? Try to be as specific as possible in comparing the McDonald’s from the recent past (focusing on low-cost burgers) to the McDonald’s today.

Question 2 – The Resource-based view

The resource-based view of the firm identifies four criteria that managers can use to evaluate whether particular resources and capabilities are core competencies and can, therefore, provide a basis for sustainable competitive advantage. Are these measures independent or interdependent? Explain. If (some of) the measures are interdependent, what implications does that fact have for managers wanting to create and sustain a competitive advantage?

Please answer the following ethical/social issues question:

Question 3 – Loss of key personnel

The chapter mentions that one type of resource flow is the loss of key personnel who move to another firm. Assume that the human resources department of your firm has started running ads and billboards for open positions near the office of your top competitor. Your firm is also running Google ads on a keyword search for this same competitor. Is there anything unethical about this activity? Would your view change if this key competitor had just announced a major layoff?

– please use very simple words to complete this, because I am an international student!

– This is a business writing, please avoid using “I”, “WE”…

Thanks!

CHAPTER 10 Content Discussion

Step 1: Answer the following question in paragraph format, using at least 300 words.

What characterizes the early development of social orientation and social understanding?

Please avoid “text messaging” language in your response!

In 400 – 500 words, and using the Jamsa textbook as your ONLY source:

List and Define FOUR (4) advantages AND Two (2) disadvantages of cloud-based data storage and then, IN YOUR OWN words, describe how three of the four advantages could benefit a small start-up business.