Spir-it, Inc. (B): Managing People Net Present Value (NPV) / MBA Resources

Introduction to Net Present Value (NPV) - What is Net Present Value (NPV) ? How it impacts financial decisions regarding project management?

NPV solution for Spir-it, Inc. (B): Managing People case study

At Oak Spring University, we provide corporate level professional Net Present Value (NPV) case study solution. Spir-it, Inc. (B): Managing People case study is a Harvard Business School (HBR) case study written by Steven J. Spear. The Spir-it, Inc. (B): Managing People (referred as “Spir Oedel” from here on) case study provides evaluation & decision scenario in field of Technology & Operations. It also touches upon business topics such as - Value proposition, Diversity, Growth strategy, Human resource management, Manufacturing.

The net present value (NPV) of an investment proposal is the present value of the proposal’s net cash flows less the proposal’s initial cash outflow. If a project’s NPV is greater than or equal to zero, the project should be accepted.

NPV = Present Value of Future Cash Flows LESS Project’s Initial Investment

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Case Description of Spir-it, Inc. (B): Managing People Case Study

When Jack Sindler founded Spir-it, Inc. in 1934, he was the company's sole employee. By 1999, Sindler's firm more than survived its first 55 years. Employment was up to nearly 200, with facilities in two states and work done in three shifts. The product line--which had grown to 20,000 items grouped into 800 distinct product families--supported annual sales of $12.4 million. Richard Oedel, Spir-it's manager and then its owner in the 1980s and the 1990s, faced a number of challenges. These challenges extended beyond managing a product line that had grown increasingly varied, a customer base that had become increasingly diverse and dispersed, and a technological base that had grown to include a greater number of manufacturing processes. Spir-it's workforce had become increasingly international. Most employees spoke English as a second language, so supervisors had to be multilingual to be successful. Orders between the two locations were sometimes garbled, vacation policies were different, and health care and other benefit plans were subject to three different state laws, as were workers compensation and other state-specific programs. Oedel had to develop a human resources policy that effectively met the particular needs of his workforce and also effectively addressed the idiosyncratic situations that arose unexpectedly each day.

Case Authors : Steven J. Spear

Topic : Technology & Operations

Related Areas : Diversity, Growth strategy, Human resource management, Manufacturing

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Calculating Net Present Value (NPV) at 6% for Spir-it, Inc. (B): Managing People Case Study

Years	Cash Flow	Net Cash Flow	Cumulative     Cash Flow	Discount Rate @ 6 %	Discounted Cash Flows
Year 0	(10010684)	-10010684	-	-
Year 1	3446416	-6564268	3446416	0.9434	3251336
Year 2	3956964	-2607304	7403380	0.89	3521684
Year 3	3936627	1329323	11340007	0.8396	3305268
Year 4	3235657	4564980	14575664	0.7921	2562943
TOTAL			14575664		12641231

The Net Present Value at 6% discount rate is 2630547

In isolation the NPV number doesn't mean much but put in right context then it is one of the best method to evaluate project returns. In this article we will cover -

Different methods of capital budgeting

What is NPV & Formula of NPV,
How it is calculated,
How to use NPV number for project evaluation, and
Scenario Planning given risks and management priorities.

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Capital Budgeting Approaches

Methods of Capital Budgeting

There are four types of capital budgeting techniques that are widely used in the corporate world –

1. Payback Period
2. Profitability Index
3. Net Present Value
4. Internal Rate of Return

Apart from the Payback period method which is an additive method, rest of the methods are based on Discounted Cash Flow technique. Even though cash flow can be calculated based on the nature of the project, for the simplicity of the article we are assuming that all the expected cash flows are realized at the end of the year.

Discounted Cash Flow approaches provide a more objective basis for evaluating and selecting investment projects. They take into consideration both –

1. Timing of the expected cash flows – stockholders of Spir Oedel have higher preference for cash returns over 4-5 years rather than 10-15 years given the nature of the volatility in the industry.
2. Magnitude of both incoming and outgoing cash flows – Projects can be capital intensive, time intensive, or both. Spir Oedel shareholders have preference for diversified projects investment rather than prospective high income from a single capital intensive project.

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Formula and Steps to Calculate Net Present Value (NPV) of Spir-it, Inc. (B): Managing People

NPV = Net Cash In Flowt1 / (1+r)t1 + Net Cash In Flowt2 / (1+r)t2 + … Net Cash In Flowtn / (1+r)tn
Less Net Cash Out Flowt0 / (1+r)t0

Where t = time period, in this case year 1, year 2 and so on.
r = discount rate or return that could be earned using other safe proposition such as fixed deposit or treasury bond rate. Net Cash In Flow – What the firm will get each year.
Net Cash Out Flow – What the firm needs to invest initially in the project.

Step 1 – Understand the nature of the project and calculate cash flow for each year.
Step 2 – Discount those cash flow based on the discount rate.
Step 3 – Add all the discounted cash flow.
Step 4 – Selection of the project

Why Technology & Operations Managers need to know Financial Tools such as Net Present Value (NPV)?

In our daily workplace we often come across people and colleagues who are just focused on their core competency and targets they have to deliver. For example marketing managers at Spir Oedel often design programs whose objective is to drive brand awareness and customer reach. But how that 30 point increase in brand awareness or 10 point increase in customer touch points will result into shareholders’ value is not specified.

To overcome such scenarios managers at Spir Oedel needs to not only know the financial aspect of project management but also needs to have tools to integrate them into part of the project development and monitoring plan.

Calculating Net Present Value (NPV) at 15%

After working through various assumptions we reached a conclusion that risk is far higher than 6%. In a reasonably stable industry with weak competition - 15% discount rate can be a good benchmark.

Years	Cash Flow	Net Cash Flow	Cumulative     Cash Flow	Discount Rate @ 15 %	Discounted Cash Flows
Year 0	(10010684)	-10010684	-	-
Year 1	3446416	-6564268	3446416	0.8696	2996883
Year 2	3956964	-2607304	7403380	0.7561	2992033
Year 3	3936627	1329323	11340007	0.6575	2588396
Year 4	3235657	4564980	14575664	0.5718	1849997
TOTAL					10427310

The Net NPV after 4 years is 416626

(10427310 - 10010684 )

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Calculating Net Present Value (NPV) at 20%

If the risk component is high in the industry then we should go for a higher hurdle rate / discount rate of 20%.

Years	Cash Flow	Net Cash Flow	Cumulative     Cash Flow	Discount Rate @ 20 %	Discounted Cash Flows
Year 0	(10010684)	-10010684	-	-
Year 1	3446416	-6564268	3446416	0.8333	2872013
Year 2	3956964	-2607304	7403380	0.6944	2747892
Year 3	3936627	1329323	11340007	0.5787	2278141
Year 4	3235657	4564980	14575664	0.4823	1560406
TOTAL					9458451

The Net NPV after 4 years is -552233

At 20% discount rate the NPV is negative (9458451 - 10010684 ) so ideally we can't select the project if macro and micro factors don't allow financial managers of Spir Oedel to discount cash flow at lower discount rates such as 15%.

Acceptance Criteria of a Project based on NPV

Simplest Approach – If the investment project of Spir Oedel has a NPV value higher than Zero then finance managers at Spir Oedel can ACCEPT the project, otherwise they can reject the project. This means that project will deliver higher returns over the period of time than any alternate investment strategy.

In theory if the required rate of return or discount rate is chosen correctly by finance managers at Spir Oedel, then the stock price of the Spir Oedel should change by same amount of the NPV. In real world we know that share price also reflects various other factors that can be related to both macro and micro environment.

In the same vein – accepting the project with zero NPV should result in stagnant share price. Finance managers use discount rates as a measure of risk components in the project execution process.

Sensitivity Analysis

Project selection is often a far more complex decision than just choosing it based on the NPV number. Finance managers at Spir Oedel should conduct a sensitivity analysis to better understand not only the inherent risk of the projects but also how those risks can be either factored in or mitigated during the project execution. Sensitivity analysis helps in –

What can impact the cash flow of the project.

What will be a multi year spillover effect of various taxation regulations.

Understanding of risks involved in the project.

What are the key aspects of the projects that need to be monitored, refined, and retuned for continuous delivery of projected cash flows.

What are the uncertainties surrounding the project Initial Cash Outlay (ICO’s). ICO’s often have several different components such as land, machinery, building, and other equipment.

Some of the assumptions while using the Discounted Cash Flow Methods –

Projects are assumed to be Mutually Exclusive – This is seldom the came in modern day giant organizations where projects are often inter-related and rejecting a project solely based on NPV can result in sunk cost from a related project.

Independent projects have independent cash flows – As explained in the marketing project – though the project may look independent but in reality it is not as the brand awareness project can be closely associated with the spending on sales promotions and product specific advertising.

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Negotiation Strategy of Spir-it, Inc. (B): Managing People

References & Further Readings

Steven J. Spear (2018), "Spir-it, Inc. (B): Managing People Harvard Business Review Case Study. Published by HBR Publications.