The following appeared in a report presented for discussion at a meeting of the directors of a company that manufactures parts for heavy machinery.
"The falling revenues that the company is experiencing coincide with delays in manufacturing. These delays, in turn, are due in large part to poor planning in purchasing metals. Consider further that the manager of the department that handles purchasing of raw materials has an excellent background in general business, psychology, and sociology, but knows little about the properties of metals. The company should, therefore, move the purchasing manager to the sales department and bring in a scientist from the research division to be manager of the purchasing department."
Discuss how well reasoned... etc.

In response to falling revenues and delays in manufacturing, the report recommends that the current purchasing manager be replaced with a scientist from the research division. There are two reasons for the proposed action. First, delays in manufacturing are traced to poor planning in purchasing metals. Second, current purchase manager has little knowledge regarding properties of metals. Based on these two reasons, the report recommends for the replacement of current purchasing manager with a scientist from the research division and the transfer of current purchase manager to sales department due to his excellent background in business, psychology and sociology. However, the recommendation advanced in the report is questionable for two reasons.

First, it is taken for granted that the falling revenues are caused by delays in manufacturing. Mere coincidence does not justify this belief. Falling revenues may be caused by some other factors which are out of scope of purchasing manager. For example, poor sales, poor demand and increased competition might be responsible for falling revenues. Without ruling out these factors, it is not justifiable to believe that falling revenues are caused by delays in manufacturing. Thus, the decision to transfer the current purchasing manager is not sound.

Second, the author assumes that sound knowledge of properties of metals is necessary to be a purchasing manager. But, no evidence has been provided in the argument to substantiate this assumption. It is possible that purchasing of metals has little to do with knowledge of their properties. Hence, the recommended action is not sound and would not result in intended results.

In sum, the recommendation advanced in the report is not sound and implementing it would not fetch intended results. To fetch more support for the proposed recommendation, the argument must provide sufficient evidence to show that delays in manufacturing are solely responsible for falling revenues. The argument must also provide necessary information to suggest that sound knowledge of properties of metals is mandatory for a purchasing manager.