Rmit special consideration impact statement

BUSM3200 Strategic Management

Detailed assignment guide

Semester 3, 2013

Assignment: Strategic Analysis and Strategy Evaluation

Weighting This assignment accounts for 40% of the assessment in this Course.

Due Date/Week Monday Week 9

Due Time By 7pm

Place TBA

Format Report

Length 2500 - 3000 words, double-line spaced, 12 point Times New Roman.

Note: The word count does not include references or appendices

You will work in pairs (a group of two (2)) to conduct a strategic analysis and strategy evaluation, and write a

report on a real-life business. Please note that this report will focus on business-level strategy.

The assessment will be discussed in the Week 1 and Week 2 seminars. You are required to select a real-life

organisation or a strategic business unit (SBU) for this assignment. You are advised to conduct a preliminary

research (e.g., browse organisation websites and annual reports) prior to deciding which organisation (or its

SBU) will be selected for your assignment so as to make an informed choice. You should report the firm for

your assignment to your local lecturer by Week 4.

Write a 2500 - 3000 word report, including 200 words of an executive summary, but excluding references and

appendix. In this report, you are required to perform the following tasks:

1. Describe briefly the background information (strategic context) of the firm (or SBU) you have

selected. This information should be brief and relevant to the discussion of your assignment and thus

may include ownership, history, size, business scope, major products/services, and major markets of

the firm (or SBU) selected.

2. Conduct a macro-environment analysis for the entire industry within which the firm (or SBU)

operates. You should use the analytical framework provided in the textbook. Foci will be placed on the

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understanding of the purpose of this analysis, the identification of key factors and their implications

in terms of key opportunities and threats, and the discussion of their overall impact on the

industry growth in the future. Draw your conclusion based on your macro-environment analysis.

3. Undertake an industry (competitive) analysis using Porter’s 5-forces model. You are required to pay

attention to the purpose of this analysis, the inter-connectedness of different aspects of the competitive

forces, the links between the competitive forces and macro-environment, and their overall impact on

the industry and the organization selected in terms of main driving forces in the competitive

environment. Draw your conclusions based on your five-force analyses.

4. Identify those resources and competences of the firm (or SBU) that are likely to provide sustainable

competitive advantage. Justify why these resources and competences can be regarded as strategic

capabilities using the four criteria covered in the textbook.

5. Identify and discuss the generic type of business strategy the firm (or SBU) implements by examining

its strategy statement and/or its value chain activities.

6. Evaluate the suitability of the firm’s current business strategy based on the outcomes of your analysis

and integration above (e.g., the identification of the firm’s current business strategy and the most

significant factors affecting the firm’s performance, and your understanding of business strategy).

References should be utilised within this Report to validate the information presented, and should be drawn

from academic sources and organisational information such as the website and annual reports. The business

press may be used sparingly to identify relevant issues.

Learning outcome/s and capability development

Completing this assignment can help you develop your capabilities in the following areas:

• Understanding of the key concepts, models, theories, and analytical concepts covered from the relevant

Modules (1-4, 6, 11) in this Course;

• Developing your ability to apply strategic management concepts and theories to the organisation

selected, particularly in analysing its strategic position, and evaluating its suitability;

• Enhancing your capability in critical think through evaluating existing strategic concepts, analytical

frameworks, and theories; and

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• Developing your generic skills for pursuing your professional career in the areas of team work,

communication, and report writing.

Advisory notes for this assignment

• You should conduct an extensive information search on the organisation selected.

• Company websites, annual reports, and media reports are important sources of such information, but

their objectives, and thus credibility, should be carefully analysed and evaluated.

• You should use appropriate concepts and analytical tools in your report.

• The report should be written in prose; however limited use of dot points is acceptable.

• This advice should be read in conjunction with RMIT assessment policy and the course guide.

Guide for assignment presentation

Written assignments must be presented in a professional format. Quality of presentation, especially literacy,

will be considered in the marking criteria. Written communication skills are an essential component of RMIT

University’s courses. In line with RMIT policy, all sources of information must be fully referenced using

standard Harvard referencing systems. You are encouraged to use referencing software such as Endnote for

referencing and formatting. The assignment should be in report format and use Times New Roman font size

12, double line spacing.

Assignment submission

A signed assignment cover sheet must be submitted with each assignment. Any late assignment, unless granted

an extension by the course coordinator (see information on extensions below), will be penalised 10% of the

marks for the piece of assessment for each day after the due date. No assignment will be accepted more than

seven calendar days late without Special Consideration. You are required to submit your assignments online

AND in hard copy. The online submission should be made via the course Blackboard by 7.00PM (Singapore

time) on the due date. The hard copy should be submitted to your local tutor for this course. Only the hard

copy of your assignment will be marked and returned.

Hard copy submission

Details on the date and time assignments are to be submitted is provided in the course information in

myRMIT. A signed assignment cover sheet must be attached to each assignment. Any late assignment, unless

granted an extension by the course coordinator (see below regarding extensions), will be penalised at 10% of

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the assessment weighting for each day after the due date. No assignment will be accepted more than seven

calendar days late without Special Consideration (see below).

Soft copy submission

You must also submit a soft copy of your assignment through the assignment link in myRMIT. The same

deadline applies for the soft copy as for the hard copy.

Extension of time for assignment submission

Extension of up to seven calendar days beyond the due date may be approved by the Course Coordinator in

certain circumstances. To apply for an extension of time you must complete the Application for Extension of

Time form (available at: http://mams.rmit.edu.au/seca86tti4g4z.pdf).

Special Consideration

Extension of time beyond seven calendar days after the original submission due date is available only by prior

approval from the Special Consideration Unit. Further details can be found at:

http://www.rmit.edu.au/students/specialconsideration/online .

Turnitin report

All assignments submitted through the course Blackboard will automatically be sent to Turnitin. The course

coordinator and local lecturers can access the Similarity Reports generated by Turnitin. Please don’t submit

your assignment into Turnitin separately. For group or pair assignment, only ONE student member should

submit the group/pair assignment into the course Blackboard. You are required to attach a copy of the TurnitIn

similarity report to the front of the hardcopy of your assignment.

.Please refer to Assignment Marking Criteria.