Topical Paper Assignment

 

Choose one of the following topics. Prepare a 2-3 page paper, with complete references, on the topic chosen. Analyze and explain the issues involved, benefits, disadvantages and any recommendations you would offer to a financial manager when considering this subject.

 

Cash

 

1. Defining the Right Amount of Cash to Have on Hand
2. Cash Management Models
3. The Baumol Cash Requirements Model
4. The Stone Cash Management Model
5. The Miller-Orr Cash Management Model
6. What to Do with Cash on Hand
7. The Range of Cash Management Services Offered by Banks
8. Advantages and Disadvantages of Repurchase Certificates
9. Appropriate Short Term Investment Securities
10. Efficient Management of Cash Balances
11. Compensating Balances

 

Marketable Securities

 

1.

1. Commercial Paper
2. Bankers’ Acceptances
3. Repurchase Certificates
4. Treasury Bills
5. Short-Term vs. Long-Term
6. Forecasting Maturity Requirements

 

Accounts Receivable

 

1. Selling Via Major Credit Cards
2. Practices, Procedures
3. Benefits and Disadvantages
4. Lockbox Operations and Practices
5. Evolution of Lockbox Technology
6. Wholesale and Retail Lockboxes
7. Processing of Payments Using Lockboxes
8. Using Accounts Receivable as Collateral
9. Electronic Payments – Sending, Receiving, Processing
10. From the Payment Perspective
11. Individual Consumer
12. Corporate or Business Customer
13. From the Commercial Receipt Perspective
14. Reserves for Bad Debts – Rules and Regulations
15. Bad Debt Recognition
16. Choosing Appropriate Credit Terms
17. Enforcing Credit Terms
18. Collecting Accounts Receivable on Time
19. Factoring
20. Assessing the Creditworthiness of Customers
21. Reporting Credit Information
22. Reporting Consumer Credit
23. Reporting Commercial Credit
24. Credit Reporting Agencies
25. Consumer Credit Reporting Agencies
26. Commercial Credit Reporting Agencies

Topical Paper Assignment (continued)

 

Inventory

 

1. Inventory Control Procedures
2. Radio Frequency Identification (RFID)
3. Wal-Mart’s Retail Link System
4. Wal-Mart’s Cross-Docking System
5. Benefits and Disadvantages of Safety Stocks
6. Consignment Inventories
7. Managing Non-Traditional Inventories
8. Service Businesses
9. Professional Services
10. Consumer Services

iii.         Case Study: Be Our Guest

1. Transportation
2. Airlines
3. Trucking Companies
4. Other – Must Be Approved by Professor Sherman
5. Hotels
6. Restaurants

vii.        Theaters

viii.       Other – Must Be Approved by Professor Sherman

1. Educational Institutions
2. Cycle Counting Practices – Benefits and Issues
3. Do We Need an Annual Physical Inventory Count?
4. Integration of Inventory Processing
5. Field Warehousing

 

Accounts Payable

 

1. Processing Accounts Payable
2. Managing Vendor Relations
3. Negotiating Purchase Terms
4. Electronic Payments

 

Notes Payable

 

1. Short-Term Term Loans
2. Revolving Lines of Credit
3. Contrasting Term Loans and Revolving Lines of Credit
4. Using Short-Term Debt for Long-Term Needs
5. Collateralizing Notes Payable – Which Assets Are Appropriate and Why?
6. Alternate Sources of Financing

 

Other Topics

 

1. Letters of Credit
2. Purchase Order Financing

 

Entrepreneurial Funding and Financing List

 

1. Bootstrapping
2. Personal Credit Card Financing
3. Friends and Family
4. Crowdfunding
5. Angel Financing