Pls rate First Argument EssayASAP - Exam in a week's time...

zagcollins

The following appeared in a memorandum from the business department of the Apogee Company:
“When the Apogee Company had all its operations in one location, it was more profitable than it is today. Therefore,the Apogee Company should close down its field offices and conduct all its operations from a single location. Such centralization would improve profitability by cutting costs and helping the company maintain better supervision of all employees.”
Discuss how well reasoned . . . etc.

My response:

In this argument, the author concludes that the Apogee Company was much more profitable than it is today. The author believes that decentralization is the chief cause behind the decline in profits. He suggests that closing down field offices and reverting to centralization will help improve profitability. The reasoning behind this argument is hackneyed and fails to convince me for several implausible reasons.

First and foremost, the argument fails to pinpoint the exact reason behind the decline in profitability. The author creates a logical fallacy by stating that decentralization is the main reason behind the decline in profits. Is this is the sole cause of declining profits? There could be other causes such as employee inefficiency, lack of customer satisfaction, change in company goals and policies etc.The author needs to provide facts and figures that would complement his claims. He commits an error of causation whereby he assumes that declining profits is the outcome of decentralization.

Second, the author assumes that the removal of field offices will help improve profits. The author fails to take into account the fact that removing field offices will involve extensive traveling for sales executives. This could result in time wastage, increased traveling costs and lead to employee inefficiency. A thorough cost benefit analysis is required to prove the assumption that decentralization will improve profits as opposed to centralization that leads to decrease in profits.

The nature of the argument is weak. To strengthen this argument, the author must provide a thorough cost benefit analysis and rule out other factors that could affect profits of the
company adversely.

VP_Jim · Posted: Thu Jul 24, 2008 7:02 pm Post subject:

Hi zagcollins,

Great job on the essay! My only recommendation is to lengthen your essay a little; the conclusion in particular seems a bit short, and I'd like to see a third body paragraph pointing out another assumption the author made in his argument. This will really strengthen your essay and help you support your points.

I'd give this a 5. Good luck, and hope I gave feedback in time for your actual exam!

zagcollins · Posted: Thu Jul 24, 2008 10:45 pm Post subject:

thanks jim...yes, your feedback is on TIME and totally priceless! Very Happy

thanks mate....cheers!