Tailoring a Book Program for Managers: Why and How 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 Tailoring a Book Program for Managers: Why and How case study

At Oak Spring University, we provide corporate level professional Net Present Value (NPV) case study solution. Tailoring a Book Program for Managers: Why and How case study is a Harvard Business School (HBR) case study written by Betsy Gelb, Rob Austin McKee. The Tailoring a Book Program for Managers: Why and How (referred as “Book Read” from here on) case study provides evaluation & decision scenario in field of Leadership & Managing People. It also touches upon business topics such as - Value proposition, .

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 Tailoring a Book Program for Managers: Why and How Case Study

Offering testimonials from a range of sources, we assert that managers' book programs benefit participants and their organizations. Managers gain sophistication through such programs, and by sharing what they learn via one-page summaries, they can more easily apply that sophistication. Other advantages for the organization include showing visible interest in developing managers' capabilities and also cost savings if a book program reduces the need for seminar attendance. An additional benefit is the likelihood that reading becomes enjoyable and leads to further reading if the program is voluntary and the book list is carefully chosen. To demonstrate how a book program tailored for an organization might work, we initiated a prototype among working master of business administration students, each of whom read one book as well as another book read by all. Each participant summarized his/her unique book, and as a group, all participants analyzed the one book read by everyone and selected its most and least useful suggestions. Thus, critical thinking became a component of the undertaking as well as familiarity with a variety of authors' ideas on a range of topics pertinent to managers.

Case Authors : Betsy Gelb, Rob Austin McKee

Topic : Leadership & Managing People

Related Areas :

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Calculating Net Present Value (NPV) at 6% for Tailoring a Book Program for Managers: Why and How Case Study

Years	Cash Flow	Net Cash Flow	Cumulative     Cash Flow	Discount Rate @ 6 %	Discounted Cash Flows
Year 0	(10010604)	-10010604	-	-
Year 1	3462268	-6548336	3462268	0.9434	3266291
Year 2	3955544	-2592792	7417812	0.89	3520420
Year 3	3937695	1344903	11355507	0.8396	3306165
Year 4	3251570	4596473	14607077	0.7921	2575548
TOTAL			14607077		12668423

The Net Present Value at 6% discount rate is 2657819

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

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 Book Read 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. Book Read 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 Tailoring a Book Program for Managers: Why and How

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 Leadership & Managing People 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 Book Read 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 Book Read 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	(10010604)	-10010604	-	-
Year 1	3462268	-6548336	3462268	0.8696	3010668
Year 2	3955544	-2592792	7417812	0.7561	2990960
Year 3	3937695	1344903	11355507	0.6575	2589098
Year 4	3251570	4596473	14607077	0.5718	1859096
TOTAL					10449821

The Net NPV after 4 years is 439217

(10449821 - 10010604 )

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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	(10010604)	-10010604	-	-
Year 1	3462268	-6548336	3462268	0.8333	2885223
Year 2	3955544	-2592792	7417812	0.6944	2746906
Year 3	3937695	1344903	11355507	0.5787	2278759
Year 4	3251570	4596473	14607077	0.4823	1568080
TOTAL					9478967

The Net NPV after 4 years is -531637

At 20% discount rate the NPV is negative (9478967 - 10010604 ) so ideally we can't select the project if macro and micro factors don't allow financial managers of Book Read 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 Book Read has a NPV value higher than Zero then finance managers at Book Read 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 Book Read, then the stock price of the Book Read 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 Book Read 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.

Understanding of risks involved in the project.

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.

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

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

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 Tailoring a Book Program for Managers: Why and How

References & Further Readings

Betsy Gelb, Rob Austin McKee (2018), "Tailoring a Book Program for Managers: Why and How Harvard Business Review Case Study. Published by HBR Publications.