Purpose:
World War II brought a significant increase of employment to manufacturing in the United States. Once the war ended, the economy slowly returned to one with more jobs in the service industry. Employment in the service industry began to accelerate in the 1960 and although employment in the manufacturing industry peaked in the 1970’s the recession of 1980 saw manufacturing flat line with little recovery. Employment in the service industries continue to rise.
There has been a movement to bring manufacturing back to the United States. The ‘Made in America’ movement is currently underway and is a critical initiative in the business world and one that has received attention by President Donald Trump.
In this project, you will learn about the ‘Made in America’ label, what it means for businesses, consumers and the economies of the United States and other countries.
Skill Building:
You are also completing this project to help you develop the skills of research, writing and developing a memo. Writing is critical because in business it is important to convey information clearly and concisely and to develop a personal brand. Developing a personal brand is important because it is the ongoing process of establishing an image or impression in the minds of others especially those in positions above you. Having a strong personal brand can lead to opportunities that include promotions.
Skills: Research, Writing, Writing a Memo, Developing a Personal Brand.
Outcomes Met With This Project:
- discuss the financial, economic, regulatory, sociopolitical, and technological factors as they relate to a dynamic business environment
- identify the critical business functions and how they interact in order to position the organization to be effective in the current business environment
This project is the first of two projects. You will read a case scenario related to ‘Made in America.’ This project requires you to research ‘Made in America’ and using the research and the course material, write a memorandum (memo) addressing the required elements of the project. A memo is an internal written communication.
Read the following:
Leanne Marshall is the owner of Nouveau Fashions, a small apparel manufacturing business. As of late, Marshall has been watching ABC World News Tonight with David Muir and just this morning read, Remarks at a “Made in America” Roundtable Discussion.
Marshall called you into her office for a meeting and during the meeting, she shared a statement that President Trump made during the Roundtable Discussion – “Made in America” is more than a label or a product. The ‘Made in America’ movement intrigues Marshall. She wants to know more. Marshall admits to not knowing very much about the label. However, she believes Nouveau Fashions is eligible to use the label because the majority of the fabric used in Nouveau Fashions’ products are made in-house. What is not made in-house comes from the Massachusetts Cloth Roads Cooperative for of the company is a member.
Marshall asked you to research the standards and requirements of ‘Made in America’ and to provide answers to the elements below. Marshall wants you to send her a memo with your findings. Marshall has provided you with the following articles about ‘Made in America’ so you can become familiar with the movement. You will review these articles as well as do additional research on ‘Made in America.’ Marshall has stressed that she wants you to thoroughly research the topic and provide her with a complete explanation of each element so she can make the best decision for the company.
Instructions:
Step 1: Research
Read the scenario and articles provided above to gain an understanding of ‘Made in America.’ Then, start your research at the UMUC library. You may use the Internet but it is important to use caution in ensuring you obtain valid information.
Research thoroughly so that you can completely address all requiredelements. For example, there is more than one requirement to sell products with a ‘Made in America’ label.
Step 2: Write an Introduction
Write an introduction that is between 3 and 5 sentences that thoroughly explains in a clear and direct manner the purpose of the memo as it relates to ‘Made in America.”
Step 3: Elements to Address
Answer whether ‘Made in America’ is more than a label or a product by thoroughly responding to required items below. You must use research, the course material and the case scenario facts to support the reasoning for what is presented. If you do not understand how to support what you write, then go to Content in the classroom and read the module, Learn How to Support What You Write. The support provided is a key element to the memo.
- Identify and discuss the requirements for Nouveau Fashions to sell its products with a ‘Made in America’ label;
- Discuss the implications for Nouveau Fashions if it sells its products with the ‘Made in America’ label.
- Discuss the implications for current customers if Nouveau Fashions moves to this label;
- Explain why manufacturing is important for the U.S. economy.
- Discuss the implications of ‘Made in America’ on the economy of other countries.
Step 4: Set Up the Memorandum
Create a Word or Rich Text Format (RTF) document (no pdf files allowed) using 12-point font. A memo is left-justified with no indentations of paragraphs. A memo is single-spaced with a double space between paragraphs to make the memo easy to read.
The memo will be no longer than one and a half (1.5) pages in length excluding the title page and reference page. In business, writing must be concise, easy to read and free of writing and grammatical errors.
You are required to use in-text citations with an associated reference list. (on a separate page).
Use headings for each element. It is suggested that you set up the memo with all of the required headings and then fill in each section of the memo.
Use a memo format:
To:
From:
Date:
Subject:
Remember, you are sending this memo to your boss so proof the memo carefully for typos, grammatical errors and ensure the memo conveys the points you have been asked to address. Why? Because your work products is a reflection of who you are – it is your brand! A good brand can lead to future opportunities in an organization such as a promotion.
Make sure the memo is audience appropriate, concise, coherent, readable, uses appropriate terminology, is professional, provides a factual tone (no opinion and no recommendations), and is visually appealing.
Step 5: Write the Memo
When writing the memo, it is important to:
- organize the document clearly in a manner that promotes understanding and meets the requirements of the assignment. Use headings.
- develop coherent paragraphs or points so that each is unified with good transitions so that each function as part of the whole document.
- tailor the communication to the audience.
- use sentence structure appropriate to the task, message and audience.
- follow conventions of Standard Written English. Therefore, how the memo is written is a critical part of this project. This memo is informational so there should be no recommendations made and no opinion offered. Also, avoid posing questions and following the format for a memo is a must!
The expectation is that you provide a robust use of the course readings and research to support the ideas, reasoning and conclusions presented. This means that you will present an idea or provide reasoning, and then use your research or the course material to explain the idea, reasoning or conclusion made. Stringing one sentence after another using the course readings or research does not meet the requirement and does not demonstrate critical thinking. Critical thinking is demonstrated when the “why and how” and the “who and what” are thoroughly explained.
Step 6: Review the Memo
You are going to send this memo to Leanne Marshall (your boss) Read the memo to ensure all required elements are present. Make sure not to talk about Marshall but inform Marshall. You also need to use facts from the case scenario in writing the memo.
It is highly encouraged that you use the Effective Writing Center (EWC), which can be found by clicking on Resources on the Main Navigation Bar on Resources.
The following items are required in writing the memo. Check off to ensure compliance to the following requirements.
- Use the grading rubric while completing the project to ensure all requirements are met that will lead to the highest possible grade.
- Third person writing is required. Third person means that there are no words such as “I, me, my, we, or us” (first person writing), nor is there use of “you or your” (second person writing).
- Contractions are not used in business writing, so do not use them.
- Students will not use direct quotation marks but will instead paraphrase. What this means is that you will put the ideas of an author or article into your own words rather than lifting directly from a source document. You may not use more than four consecutive words from a source document (including the case scenario) or change words in a passage as doing so would require direct quotation marks. Use a passage from a source document by putting into your own words (paraphrase) and attribute the passage to the source document. Changing words from a passage does not exclude the passage from having to have quotation marks.
- Use in-text citations and provide a reference list that contain a reference associated with each in-text citation.
- Provide the page or paragraph number in every in-text citation presented.
- You may not use books other than the e-book provided in the classroom. You will depend on the course material, the article provided above and research. Research is necessary to do well on this project.
