2023 SLC FBLA COLLEGIATE


ECONOMIC ANALYSIS & DECISION MAKING


CASE STUDY


PARTICIPANT INSTRUCTIONS


  1. You are receiving this case study the evening before your scheduled presentation.  You have from now until the time of your scheduled presentation to review the case and determine your solution.


  1. Presentation time is seven minutes. At six minutes the timekeeper will stand and hold up a colored card indicating one minute is left and at seven minutes the timekeeper will stand and hold up a colored card indicating time is up.


  1. You may use prepared notes during your presentation.


  1. Presentation materials (i.e., posters, flip charts, electronic presentations, etc.) are allowed.  However, no items may be left with the judges.


  1. Cover all the points described in the case and be prepared to answer questions posed by the judges.


  1. If competing as part of a team, all team members must participate in the presentation as well as answer questions.



Background Information

The competitor(s) are consultants for a large, international corporation specializing in working with US based companies who are expanding into the international markets.  The competitor(s) job is to demonstrate characteristics for the laissez-faire free market capitalism, regulated markets, mixed economies, socialism, and Marxism economic systems. The clients (judges) are the executive board members of a large, US based manufacturing corporation that is in the process of expanding their business model to include more exporting of their goods but also to start directly importing raw materials from the suppliers. During the interactions, the competitor(s) should give examples of countries that have communism, socialism, and capitalism economics. The goal is to use basic economic concepts (supply and demand, production, distribution, and consumption; labor, wages, and capital; inflation and deflation; market economy and command economy) to compare and contrast local, regional, and national economics across time and at the present time.


Scenario

The context of competitor(s) find themselves in is recognizing alternatives to the free market system and discussing how decisions in these economies rely on mechanisms other than the choices of the members of the societies. The challenge involves including some basic economic calculations that can be demonstrated to the clients to communicate how the different leadership, political, and economic systems can impact the same types of businesses in different ways. These calculations will need to be created by the competitor(s) using any scenario they deem relevant. The performance needs to list and define the basic types of economic systems and the impact on the US economy of international trade and global products. The work will be judged by the competitor(s) professionalism, explanations, accuracy of information shared, and the effectiveness of the solutions and calculations.

Objectives of Case Study

The competitor(s) must address the following during the role play:

  • Use basic economic concepts (e.g., supply and demand; production, distribution, and consumption; labor, wages, and capital; inflation and deflation; market economy and command economy) to compare and contrast local, regional, and national economics across time and at the present time.

  • Describe and explain the role of money, banking, and savings in everyday life.

  • Discuss fundamental economic models, their assumptions, and their applications.

  • Explain the impact on the U.S. economy of international trade and global products.

  • List and define the basic types of economic systems.

  • Describe the characteristics for the Laissez faire free market capitalism, regulated markets, mixed economies, socialism, and Marxism economic systems.

  • Discuss the difference between capitalism and socialism.

  • Give examples of countries that have communism, socialism, and capitalism economies.

  • Recognize alternatives to the free market system and discuss how decisions in these economies rely on mechanisms other than the choices of the members of these societies.