Fall 2014: Professor Jai Goolsarran
Research and Case Analysis No. 1 (10%): Costco Wholesale Corporation
Please be advised that our Research and Case Analysis No. 1 (10%) will be on Costco Wholesale Corporation, the case material for which is to be found at pages 2 to 21 of the prescribed casebook for the course. The case is entitled, “Costco Wholesale in 2012: Mission, Business Model, and Strategy”. I am aware of the fact that the Bookstore has apparently not ordered any copies of the casebook. This being the case, and in recognition of the fact that our case analysis assignments are scheduled to begin next week, I suggest that colleagues access the 2007 version of the case from the Internet, the link to which is:
https://cours.etsmtl.ca/gol470/Lectures/3.%20costco%20strategy%20wareshousing.pdf
Colleagues should also review the article, Decency Means More Than “Always Low Prices”: A Comparison of Costco to Wal-Mart’s Sam’s Club, Academy of Management Review, August 2006, which could accessed from the Internet, the link to which is:
http://www.ou.edu/russell/UGcomp/Cascio.pdf
Additionally, colleagues are required to review the information provided on the corporation’s website about its management and operations and, if not too inconvenient, to visit one of the corporation’s warehouses. And so, too, colleagues are required to review the 2013 Annual Report for the corporation.
Colleagues are expected to view the video of a recent presentation by Jim Sinegal (Costco’s founder and now retired CEO), the link to which is:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nvVdBUXtjuw
Part A of Research and Case Analysis would be done in class in Week No. 3 (September 15 – 19, 2014). Part A questions would be some basic questions on the assigned materials. Part B questions would be distributed in class and would require colleagues to prepare a word document with their responses. The submission date for Part B