Fashion Management

Order Description Module : Fashion Management Please do CW1 Individual management report ONLY. The Company i Choose is Mulberry. M002 Assessment 1 Coventry University – London Campus M002LON Sustainable Strategy Assessment Brief [NOTE: It is important that you read and re-read this document throughout this term of study] INTRODUCTION The purpose of assessment (assignments, examinations, debates, reports and other methods) is to assess your level of knowledge and understanding of a particular subject area. Additionally, it assess, amongst others things, your cognitive skill sets. This briefing document provides: 1. The details of the assessment for M002 Sustainable Strategy. 2. Advice and guidance for undertaking this assessment. This advice and guidance is the culmination of many years’ experience of teaching and assessing at postgraduate level. As stated both here and in other documents (indicated within this document) it is in your best interest to actively engage with your studies and prepare for the assessment. This document must be read in conjunction with the guide How to Succeed on M002: A Student Guide in order to maximise your opportunity for success. NOTE: It is your responsibility to follow the directions as set out within this document. Noncompliance cannot be grounds for an appeal against the mark awarded (Please read the appropriate Programme Regulations). For some of you this may be the first time that you have been required to tackle an assignment/management report. In your previous studies you may have undertaken short essays and/or examinations. If this is your first time in tackling a much larger assignment/management report then it is vital that you commence your planning early (See later note – Creating a Planning Schedule). Leaving either of Summative assignments to the ‘last minute’ is a very high-risk strategy. M002 Assessment CW1 and CW2 As stated in the guide How to Succeed on M002 and in the module’s Learning Outcomes you must be able to explore the subject area, critically evaluate, synthesise reliable and validated sources and provide evidence to support conclusions and recommendations. The assessment for this module is divided into two components, both Summative. CW1 - Environmental Audit - Group Presentation and Individual Management report (1500 words). This carries 40% of the marks (20% Group Presentation and 20% Individual Management Report) CW2 – Strategic Review Individual Management Report (3500 words – this includes 1500 words from CW1). This carries 60% of the marks. For both assignments you will analyse a company that you will select from the list provided. M002 Assessment 2 You will receive marks and written feedback on both submissions. CW1 feedback allows you to (a) re-shape this material for inclusion in within the CW2 submission. However, it is your responsibility to engage with the feedback and seek to enhance your CW2 submission. Please Note: You must achieve a minimum of 40% to pass this module. Work submitted late will not be marked and you will be required to resit the assessment next term where your mark will be capped at a maximum of 40%. Unless appropriate evidence is provided a non-submission will mean that you have failed the module and you may be required to withdraw from the programme. Please refer to the programme regulations for the specific details. Creating a Planning Schedule It is vital that you plan your time in order to conduct the research and prepare drafts prior to your submissions. It is suggested that you create a plan with specific dates, for example a Gantt chart. Do not leave the research and writing until just before submission as this is a high risk strategy and can significantly reduce your potential for success. Our advice is to start planning both elements of CW1 as soon as you finish reading this briefing document. [A useful resource is Stella Cottrell’s book The Study Skills Handbook, published by Palgrave Macmillan. There are copies in the Library.] Assessment Learning Outcomes You will see from both the Module Guide (On the M002 Moodle site) and various other guides that this module has a set of overall Learning Outcomes. A sub-set of these is a set of Assessment Outcomes which link to the Rubric. The ability to respond to the Assessment Brief with a clear and coherent structure. The introduction must state the aim and explicitly identify the relevant arguments and areas to be addressed. The areas, once identified, must be followed up logically, in the main body of the analysis. There must be a firm conclusion of the areas discussed that follows on from the analysis. ? Critical analyse of the organisation's strategic position, clearly identifying which theoretical models have valid applications in different contexts and making practical use of mainstream strategy concepts to assess the organization's strategic position. ? Critical analyse of the organisation’s strategic direction, determining which theoretical models have valid applications in different environmental contexts and making practical use of mainstream strategy concepts to assess the organisation strategic direction. ? Account for and critically evaluate the organisation's strategic decisions within the context of its external and internal environment, using SWOT/TOWS frameworks to support your analysis. ? Synthesise your understanding and knowledge of critical aspects of the organisation's strategy and the strategic process in your Conclusions and Recommendations. M002 Assessment 3 ? Demonstrate an ability to independently research, present, analyse and critically evaluate relevant data and appropriate academic literature to support your analysis, conclusions and recommendations. Demonstrate effective communications skills to enable a clear presentation of key findings, results and recommendations. These include: 1. Clarity of written communication, including accurate spelling and grammar. 2. Consistency and appropriateness of writing style. 3. Appropriate use of standard Management Report template. 4. Correct and consistent use of Harvard Referencing System. [NOTE: There is a guide on Moodle. It is advised that you download this for future reference.] The Companies You have to select one of the following companies to investigate and analyse for your assessment. Choose your company carefully. Your selection could be based upon areas of interest and/or the type of company that you might want to work for in the future. We suggest that you briefly review each of the organisations prior to making your final choice. The choice has to be yours alone and not your tutors. Each company has a corporate website from which you can extract the company’s Annual Report and Accounts, in addition to other reports (usually indicated under the ‘Investors’ tag). We suggest that this is your starting point for your research. The companies and their sectors are: Name of Company Corporate Website Business Sector 1 Apple Apple.com Technology 2 Mulberry Mulberry.com Fashion Retailer 3 Toyota Toyota-global.com Car Company 4 Marks and Spencer Marksandspencer.com Multi-channel Retailer 5 British Petroleum Bp.com Energy 6 HSBC Bank Hsbc.co.uk Finance M002 Assessment 4 Chartered Management Institute (CMI) Learning Outcomes The following learning outcomes need to be clearly met in your coursework to ensure that you meet the criteria for the double accreditation which includes a Level 7 certificate in Strategic Management and Leadership. 7006V1 Reviewing organisational strategy plans and performance 1. Be able to review the organisational strategic aims and objectives 2. Be able to analyse progress towards organisational strategic aims and objectives 3. Be able to evaluate strategic options to support a revised strategic position CW1 For CW1 you are required to deliver a group presentation of no more than 15 minutes, critically examining both the micro and macro environments of your chosen company. Groups will be formed of between 4 and 6 students. In addition you will submit a 1500 word Management Report. All group members must submit the group presentation slides in addition to their individual Management Report. This means: ? Examining and evaluating the macro environment, stating specific examples of how these factors influence/impact upon the business operations of your chosen organisation. ? Stating and examining the capabilities (resources and competences) of the organisation. ? Examining and evaluating the strengths and weaknesses of the organisation. ? Examining and evaluating the opportunities and threats within the market place (this links directly to the macro environmental factors). ? Examining and evaluating the industry through Porter’s Five Forces model. Please note that we want you to have the mind-set that you are submitting this Management Report to the Board of Directors for their consideration and understanding. Therefore it must be professional both in content (depth of research and analysis) and presentation (layout and writing style). This assignment requires you to engage with the business models and frameworks typically employed to undertake an environmental audit. When presenting the frameworks do not simply recreate the diagrams. Your role is to apply the frameworks. It is perfectly acceptable to use a series of subheading to delineate the points that you wish to make. Structure of the Management Report ? Title page: This must contain the module title and code, assignment title, your name and ID number, name of your specific seminar tutor, submission date and word count (see later notes on word limits). ? Executive summary: This should present a ‘snapshot’ of the report – What did you find out? What conclusions have you drawn? ? Table of Content M002 Assessment 5 ? Introduction: An introduction that places the organisation within context – its financial status, operations (what it does), its proposed strategy and their key competitors. ? An analysis of the organisation's external business environment – macro factors (PESTEL framework). ? An analysis of the organisation's internal business environment – specifically the capabilities of the organisation. This will include the use of the Value Chain, Capabilities Analysis and VRIO framework. ? An analysis of the sector/industry through Porter’s Five Forces model. ? A critical evaluation of the chosen company's strategic position, based on an assessment of the organisation's internal and external business environment using the appropriate frameworks – SWOT and TOWS ? Conclusions – [What conclusions do you draw from undertaking the various examinations of the above topics/issues? This will help you to start formulating some of your conclusions for CW2 ? References: These must be in the CULC Harvard Format. Additionally there must be appropriate in-text citations throughout your work.[NOTE: You must seek out reliable and validated sources of information for your assignments – Please refer to comments elsewhere in this document and other guides on the M002 Moodle pages.] ? Appendices: No more than four pages in total. The analysis should be supported by data gathered from your case study company and your independent research. It should also be presented using a range of theoretical frameworks and methods covered in the module (Topics 1 – 5 only). You are expected to use (as an absolute minimum) the core text, the company’s most recent Annual Report, two business news items (from reliable sources) and one journal article. You should also check your work against the rubric (see later note). Presentation of CW1 Group Presentation Format: Groups will consist of 4-6 students each. Each group has to produce PowerPoint slides to assist the presentation and all group members have to present. The group presentation should be no longer than 15 minutes. The presentation slides should be submitted by each individual group member by the submission deadline. The Management Report must be professionally presented and appropriately referenced. As stated above we want you to develop the mind-set that this is for the Board of Directors of your chosen company. Even though you are submitting this electronically we want you to follow the format stated below. Assignments must be presented in the following format: • Word-processed in Arial font, 12 pitch and double-spaced. • Margins must be as follows: Top; 1.0 inch (2.5cm), Bottom; 1.0 inch (2.5 M002 Assessment 6 cm), Left; 1.25 inches (3.2 cm), Right; 1.25 inches (3.2 cm). • All pages must be numbered in the top right-hand corner. • Use only a plain white background – no coloured/designed backgrounds (including company logos) as this impedes readability. Please also remember that a report can be enhanced or damaged through layout, for example placing all tables and diagrams in Appendices can hamper the flow of discussion (see later comments on the use of tables). Decisions therefore need to be made about the most appropriate place to use tables [please see various notes on what should not be in a tabular format] and so on to support your case. Written English Review both your sentence and paragraph structuring prior to submission. Your written English must be of a professional standard. This includes avoiding ‘journalistic’ words and phrases such as: ‘cutthroat’ competition. A good text to help you enhance your writing skills is: Peck, J. and Coyle, M. (2005) The Student’s Guide to Writing: Grammar, Punctuation and Spelling. (2nd Ed). Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. There are also other resources that you can use in the library. Word Limit: 1500 words using the standard format described above. Please Note: The specified word count refers to the main body of the report and does not include: title page, executive summary, tables, graphs, references or appendices (however no more than four pages of appendices). You are allowed an upper margin of 10%. In cases where the formative submission exceeds this 10% upper limited, the sections beyond the 10% limit will not be read. Submission Date: is as stated on Moodle via Turnitin, both elements e.g. presentation slides and Management Report. This means that it must be registered on the university server before 05.00pm. Any submission with a time stamp of 05:00pm or later will automatically be considered late and awarded zero marks. It is your responsibility to check the submission date – As shown on the submission link on Moodle It is therefore strongly advised that you submit at least one day beforehand. It is your responsibility to upload the correct document onto the university system prior to the deadline. Feedback on CW1 You will receive written individual and generic feedback. It is your responsibility to reflect upon the written feedback provided and feed that forward to your CW2 submission. General questions on the assessment are addressed either via email and/or within the seminar sessions. M002 Assessment 7 CW2 ASSIGNMENT This assignment represents the culmination of all your work on this module. This is also where you incorporate your revised/enhanced material from your CW1 assignment. You have studied the strategic options available to the business. You are now required to independently evaluate the existing strategy of the business and make recommendations to the Board of Directors as to the future development of the business' strategy. Your evaluation and recommendations should be presented as a Management Report. Submission Date: is as stated on Moodle via Turnitin. This means that it must be registered on the university server before 05.00pm. Any submission with a time stamp of 05:00pm or later will automatically be considered late and awarded zero marks. It is your responsibility to check the submission date – As shown on the submission link on Moodle. It is highly advised that you plan to submit your assignment by the previous Friday to avoid any last minute difficulties submitting your work to the server.] Your management report should include: Title Page: This must contain the following: Module title and code Assignment title Your name and ID number Name of your seminar tutor Word Count (see later note on word limit): This needs to be in two parts (a) the total number of words in the document and (b) the word count minus the title page, contents page, executive summary, tables/charts, reference list and any appendices. Submission date ? Executive Summary: This should be no more than one page in length and should present a ‘snapshot’ of the report including your findings from the environmental audit and the strategic direction of the organisation. You should also include an overview of your recommendations with a brief rationale. [Note: This is not counted in the word limit.] ? Table of contents: This should be no more than one page in length. [NOTE: This is not counted within the word limit.] ? Introduction: An introduction to the company’s operations – in other words ‘setting the scene’. This to include an overview of the organisation’s operations, their proposed strategy, its financial situation, general state of the sector/industry (for example, is it in growth or decline) and its key competitors. It is expected that elsewhere in the report you will apply the models/concepts and frameworks to the organisation. This approach should underpin your knowledge and understanding of the organisation and the environment in which it operates. M002 Assessment 8 ? Analysis and critical evaluation of the organisation's environmental audit: This is the material from your CW1 assessment (PESTEL, Internal Analysis (Value Chain/Capabilities analysis/VRIO), Porter’s Five Forces, SWOT/TOWS). However, you need to have taken into account the feedback provided and, where necessary, enhanced your work. ? Analysis of the organisation's strategic direction: This needs to be undertaken with a clear identification of the methods by which the organisation's strategies have been pursued. You must use Ansoff and either BCG or GE McKinsey. ? Critical evaluation of the organisation's strategy: This is in terms of its suitability, acceptability, feasibility and sustainability (SAFS Framework). ? Recommendations: These are what you have derived from examining the organisation. These should link back to the material that you have critically reviewed within the previous sections. There must be a clear rationale for the recommendations. Read your recommendations carefully and ask yourself the following questions: o Are your recommendations rational? o What evidence can you provide in support of these recommendations? o How would the various stakeholders react? How would you react if you were a shareholder? o Is it logical that the company would or need to take these specific actions? o Do they make sense? o Would you be prepared to discuss them at a Board meeting? ? Conclusions: What conclusions have you drawn from analysing this organisation? ? References: These must be in the CULC Harvard Format. There must be appropriate in-text citations throughout your submission. [NOTE: You must seek out reliable and validated sources of information for your assignments – Please refer to comments elsewhere in this document and other guides on the M002 Moodle pages.] The references (both in-text and within the reference list) are not included within the overall word count. ? Appendices: If required and no more than four pages. If there are more than the stipulated four pages those additional pages will not be read. Your response to the brief must show evidence of your ability to research independently relevant data, using appropriate sources and databases, as well as relevant academic literature, to support your arguments. Conducting and applying research is crucial to this module. Additionally there is a mark awarded for the level of research demonstrated (See rubric). You will be expected to read and apply information (as an absolute minimum) from the core text, the company’s most recent Annual Reports & Accounts, two news items (from reliable sources) and four journal articles. The journal articles can include the two used to support the CW1 assignment and those listed in Moodle (however the key is application of the information within those articles.) Please note that marks will be deducted for the use of such sources as (though not exclusive to): ‘Wikipedia’, ‘Businessballs’ ‘essays UK’ (or any site that states the word ‘essay’ in its title or introduction), QuickMBA and ‘tutor2u’. These are not Level 7 reading and should be avoided. If you have any doubts regarding the reliability and validity of sources please ask either your seminar tutor or the module leader. M002 Assessment 9 Please refer to the guides on the M002 Moodle site for further information. It is expected that every student will comply with good academic practice. Any suspicion of a breach of good academic practice will be investigated. When presenting the frameworks do not simply re-create the diagrams. Your role is to apply the frameworks. It is perfectly acceptable to use a series of subheadings to delineate the points that you wish to make. Presentation of CW2 Assignment The Management Report must be professionally presented and appropriately referenced. As stated above we want you to develop the mind-set that this is for the Board of Directors of your chosen company. Even though you are submitting this electronically we want you to follow the format stated below. Assignments must be presented in the following format: • Word-processed in Arial font, 12 pitch and double-spaced. • Margins must be as follows: Top; 1.0 inch (2.5cm), Bottom; 1.0 inch (2.5 cm), Left; 1.25 inches (3.2 cm), Right; 1.25 inches (3.2 cm). • All pages must be numbered in the top right-hand corner. • Use only a plain white background – no coloured/designed backgrounds (including company logos) as this impedes readability. Please also remember that a report can be enhanced or damaged through layout, for example placing all tables and drawings in Appendices can hamper the flow of discussion. Decisions therefore need to be made about the most appropriate place to use tables and so on to support your case. Use of Tables Use tables only where appropriate. Where you do use tables (perhaps to show changes in revenue and profit over a period of time) make sure that there is a clear interpretation of the information within the text. In other words, what are the figures meant to display? Use sub headings to delineate the text and write in a narrative style. This enhances readability and allows you to add the necessary evidence to support your perspectives. Equally, do not use generic diagrams of the various models and frameworks: (1) We want you to demonstrate knowledge and understanding through their application and (2) images of ‘cows’ and ‘dogs’ as used in some Internet depictions of the BCG matrix are not suitable for a management report for a board of directors. Diagrams Use diagrams sparingly. Remember that this is to be a professional management report, as such any illustrations must be suitable to present to a board of directors. M002 Assessment 10 Written English Language Skills Review both your sentence and paragraph structuring prior to submission. Read and re-read your work to make sure that you are communicating information clearly and effectively. Your written English must be of a professional standard. This includes avoiding ‘journalistic’ words and phrases. Total Word Limit (including your revised CW1 Environmental Audit): 3,500 words using the standard format described above. Please Note: The specified word count refers to the main body of the report and does not include: title page, executive summary, tables, graphs, references or appendices (however no more than four pages of appendices). There is an upper limit of 10% above the word limit. However, exceeding this upper limit will result in the reduction of marks. Retaining Your Working Notes & Source Materials You will need to retain all your working notes. This material will include (but not be limited to): ? Written or typed notes that you have developed from textbooks, journal articles and other sources. ? Rough drafts of your work. ? Any downloads or print outs of journal articles that you have obtained via Locate. ? Material from quality newspapers and business magazines that you have collected together. This material will be required if you are requested to attend a Viva voce in support of your submission. You can be required to attend a Viva voce especially if there is any concern regarding the authenticity of your work. [Please refer to the University’s Regulations on Academic Misconduct.] Submission Date: It is your responsibility to upload the correct document onto the university system prior to the deadline. You are strongly advised not to leave your submission to the very last minute as this is a high-risk strategy. Late submissions are not marked and you will have to undertake a resit the following term. [NOTE: Please refer to the Module Guide and the University’s Regulations on late and nonsubmissions.] Rubric When preparing both of your assignments please review in conjunction with the rubric. Make sure that all the criteria (those on the left hand side) are covered in your work. Once you have drafted your assignments, carefully review them in relation to the rubric. M002 Assessment 11 PARTICIPATION AND ENGAGEMENT As part of your Summative Assessment there is a mark allocated for Participation and Engagement within the Seminars (See Rubric and the Guide to Success on M002). Attendance is governed by a separately regulated process. Simply attending the Knowledgecasts (Lectures) and Seminars does not gain marks. To gain marks in this rubric criterion you must actively engage with the module. This includes (but is not limited to): 1. Watch the flipped classroom videos before all seminars 2. Being on time for the seminar. 3. Not texting or checking personal emails during the seminar (Equally, this should not be undertaken during the Knowledgecast). 4. Preparing in advance for the seminar (reading and preparing notes on the various case studies). 5. Collecting and building a portfolio of ‘breaking news’ stories for discussion in the seminars. 6. Reading sections in the core text in advance of the seminar 7. Taking notes (either on laptops or paper-based) during seminars to build your knowledge base and assist in your understanding of the subject material. 8. Actively participating in the team working sessions, seeking to make worthwhile contributions. The mark gained for participation and engagement could make the ‘difference’ between either a fail or a pass on this module. GENERAL POINTS How is My Work Marked? Both the CW1 and CW2 are marked by your seminar tutor. There is a formal team benchmarking process for the Summative assessment to monitor standards across the cohort and to align with comparable Level 7 standards across the UK higher education sector. A benchmarking report, along with samples, is provided to an External Examiner (an experienced academic from another UK higher education institution) who reports to the Examination Board on standards. What if I Do Not Pass the summative assessments? If you do not achieve the pass mark of 40%, there is normally a resit opportunity available to you. There will be a separate assessment briefing document provided for students who have this resit opportunity. This will be provided once the results have been ratified by the Examination Board and a resit seminar date and time have been announced. Queries If you have any queries, please feel free to discuss them with your tutors or contact me directly either via email or during my Office Hour (details are posted on the M002 Moodle pages). If you email me and I feel that your query has value to all students, then I will post an Announcement in Moodle so that everyone can benefit. M002 Assessment 12 Good luck with your assignments! M002 Module Leader Adaora Nwankwo-Onyiuke You are strongly advised to cross reference this document with: ? M002 Assessment Rubric ? How to Succeed on M002: A Student Guide Both are listed on the M002 Moodle site.