Essays on Big Oil

a) Antitrust authorities at the Federal Trade Commission are reviewing your company’s recent merger with a rival firm. The FTC is concerned that the merger of two rival firms in the same market will increase market power. A hearing is scheduled for your company to present arguments that your firm has not increased its market power through this merger. Can you do this? How? What evidence might you bring to the hearing? In order to prove to the Federal Trade Commission(FTC) that the recent merger between two companies will not increase the market power, we will be ...

Introduction

Under a merger, two business entities come together and become a new business with a new name. On many cases, the mergers bring together firms, which are equal in size and stature. On the other hand, an acquisition involves a larger and more powerful company buying another business; a smaller business. The purchased business may be fully absorbed by the parent company or in some occasions, may be operated as a subsidiary. The use of mergers and acquisitions may take place during any economic environment meaning that it may take place when the companies involved are both performing well, ...

Managing a diverse workforce

Companies operating in Middle Eastern countries or dealing with Arabic organizations often face cultural clashes when serving clients. These countries have cultural values that differ greatly from Western values. Managing diversity in such a set up can be a particularly challenging task. The ethical dilemma faced by Julie’s manager is possibly one of the more common issues that arise when organizations deal with particularly orthodox and culturally different clients. In this case, the client does not want Julie to be a part of the team catering to them because she is a woman. In order to effectively tackle this situation, it is ...