MEMOries

I thought I would preserve some of my papers here since computers can be temperamental and thumb drives can be misplaced.
I got the highest grade in the class for the first one and post the second for sentimental reasons.

TO: Dr. Catherine P. Slade, Ph.D.

FROM: Gordon Jackson, MBA Student

DATE: March 16, 2011

SUBJECT: Group 4 – The Master’s Table Project

The Master’s Table is an organization dedicated to feeding the homeless and has been operating in the Augusta area for almost thirty years. They have opened a new facility on Fenwick Street and plan to host events such as weddings and large meetings. The task before them is to inform the community that the facilities are available for use.

Event Planning Project Cancelled

Group 4 met with Jason Lutes, the Founder and Director of “B3” and contractor for The Master’s Table, on March 7^th and proposed either hosting an introductory event for The Master’s Table or exploring other advertising options. Mr. Lutes was enthusiastic about the idea of an event and hoped it could be coordinated to coincide with Master’s Week. However, subsequent discussion revealed this goal to be untenable due to the short notice and scheduling conflicts invitees would have during Master’s Week. So, by the end of the meeting we had agreed to create a “Starter Kit” for prospective clients. During the meeting the target audience was identified as consisting of the following:

· Second marriages

· Socially conscious individuals, groups and businesses

· Donors and their heirs

The target audience is to be informed that use of the facility is tax-deductable. The main competition is determined to be Enterprise Mill, which also has a complete catering kitchen, so supporters are to be encouraged to use a “venue with a social conscience.”

Starter Kit Project -New

Mr. Lutes sent Group 4 a brochure on March 9^th to give the group ideas for the project. A conference call was held on March 14^thand the project was discussed in greater detail. Mr. Lutes appears to be highly receptive to this project because he has Starter Kits for his other business concerns and this will an asset that can be used well into the future. The Starter Kit will contain the following information:

· Why the Master’s Table should be chosen by client

· Rules and regulations

· List of approved vendors and procedure for approving new vendors

· Detailed information about the facilities and how to use the kitchen etc.

This will be collected and put in the form of a brochure and perhaps, a CD. It is to contain photos of the facility and is intended to be a permanent part of the Master’s Table’s rental operation – an advertisement and a selling point that is professional enough to convince the target audience that the facilities and staff are competitive. This is our group’s planned outcome.

Follow-up

A meeting has been scheduled for 9:00 p.m. on March 16^thin Allgood Hall with Mr. Lutes. After the conference call an e-mail was sent to Mr. Lutes detailing the information the group will need to get started.

Personal Efforts and Observations

I have participated in each meeting and was the main enthusiast for the Event idea since my role would have been to travel the area and meet new people. During the physical meeting with Mr. Lutes it is my opinion that I was the most vocal socially and drilled down on the target audience, the competition and asked, “Why the Master’s Table?” – which I think is the most important question. Others were more detailed oriented from that point on in the meeting, mainly Ms. Thomas-McKie. The conference call was held in the office of Ms. Thomas-McKie and she did almost of all of the talking due to her proximity to the phone. Afterwards, a group member who had been late to meetings or silent came up with the body of the e-mail’s talking points, which was impressive.

My greatest challenge will be to find a new role in the project. I will propose at the next meeting that I write the main body of the brochure and proofread it. Also, I find my strength to be building rapport and grasping the “big picture” and whittling it down to a few succinct points. However, as an introvert I probably over estimate my social skills and I may not be as detailed oriented (idea wise) as others due to laziness. I have always had a fondness for the “big picture” and tend to let details “take care of themselves”. In a group setting, of course, this means letting others do it for me. I will say that my background in sales prompted me to ask the all important questions of “why would someone rent here, who is our target audience, and who is our main competition”?

In conclusion, my goal for the next meeting(s) will be finding a role in the new project and becoming more detail oriented in conception.

This second was for a proposal for an extracurricular paper.

Augusta State University

Memo

To:        Dr. Catherine P. Slade, Ph.D.

From:   Gordon Jackson; Krutiben Zemse

Date:    10/27/2011

Re:       Faculty Sponsor Request

Janice Sherman, CEO of the Neighborhood Improvement Project, has requested that we conduct a research study on the impact of community health centers on the utilization of ER visits by the uninsured and underinsured. Previous research has been done for the Spring Creek Health Cooperative (SCHC), a multi-county partnership in Southwest Georgia, and we hope to replicate this study. The study is a Return-on-Investment analysis based on hospital admissions, medication assistance, medical home referrals and medical supplies. The study was conducted between June of 2007 and June of 2008 using 780 patients enrolled in SCHC. The study determined that by avoiding ER visits, reducing hospital admissions, and by providing medication assistance to the uninsured and underinsured the SCHC was able to save community hospitals over $3,000,000 with a minimum of investment.

We intend to identify a representative sample of Belle-Terrance Health Center’s new patients since 2007 from the Greater Augusta Health Network’s (GHAN) database. We will examine the patients use of the ER prior to their becoming a patient at the center. ER visits will be classified as urgent, emergent or non-urgent. With the data collected and categorized we will determine the economic impact, if any, of the Belle-Terrace Health Center on community hospitals.

We kindly request that you advise and assist us as our Faculty Sponsor for the duration of the project. Please, let us know if you require further information.