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BUSM3200Strategic Management Assignment marking criteria Semester 2 2013 SIM

Student Name: Student ID:

1

Report Element

High Distinction
80-100

Distinction
70-80

Credit
60-69

Pass
50-59

Fail
0-49

The background
information of the
company (firm) or

SBU (10%)

Provides a good context of the business
strategy analysis for the company/SBU
through an in-depth synthesis of
background information from relevant
sources representing various points of
view/approaches.

Presents information from relevant
sources representing various points of
view/approaches with some synthesis in
order to provide the context of the
business strategy analysis for the
company /SBU.

Presents relevant background
information from relevant sources
representing various points of
view/approaches.

Presents information from some relevant
sources representing limited points of
view/approaches.

Presents irrelevant information from
irrelevant sources in an unstructured
manner.

Macro-

environment

analysis (15%)

Demonstrates the ability to conduct a
comprehensive and in-depth analysis on
macro-environment of the
company/SBU with evidence of all
relevant contextual factors by applying an
appropriate analytical framework. The
purpose of the analysis, the
interconnectedness of the factors, and
the conclusion of the analysis are clearly
and logically stated and are thoroughly
justified.

Demonstrates the ability to conduct a
comprehensive analysis on macro-
environment of the company/SBU with
evidence of most relevant contextual
factors by applying an appropriate
analytical framework. The purpose of the
analysis, the interconnectedness of the
factors, and the conclusion of the analysis
are clearly and logically stated.

Demonstrates the ability to construct an
analysis on macro-environment of the
company/SBU with evidence of some
relevant contextual factors by applying an
appropriate analytical framework, but the
analysis is superficial and/or is too
narrowly focused. The purpose and the
conclusion of the analysis are stated.

Demonstrates basic ability to construct an
analysis on macro-environment of the
company/SBU with evidence of a few
relevant contextual factors by applying an
appropriate analytical framework, but the
analysis is superficial and/or is too
narrowly focused. The purpose and the
conclusion of the analysis are not clearly
stated.

Is unable to identify important contextual
factors and/or conduct an analysis on
macro-environment of the
company/SBU by applying an
appropriate analytical framework. The
purpose and the conclusion of the
analysis are poorly presented.

Industry analysis
(15%)

Demonstrates the ability to conduct a
comprehensive and in-depth industry
analysis with evidence of all relevant
contextual factors by applying an
appropriate analytical framework. The
purpose of the analysis, the
interconnectedness of the factors, and
the conclusion of the analysis are clearly
and logically stated and are thoroughly
justified.

Demonstrates the ability to construct a
comprehensive industry analysis with
evidence of most relevant contextual
factors by applying an appropriate
analytical framework. The purpose of the
analysis, the interconnectedness of the
factors, and the conclusion of the analysis
are clearly and logically stated.

Demonstrates the ability to construct an
industry analysis with evidence of some
relevant contextual factors by applying an
appropriate analytical framework, but the
analysis is superficial and/or is too
narrowly focused. The purpose and the
conclusion of the analysis are stated.

Demonstrates basic ability to construct an
industry analysis with evidence of a few
relevant contextual factors by applying an
appropriate analytical framework, but the
analysis is superficial and/or is too
narrowly focused. The purpose and the
conclusion of the analysis are not clearly
stated.

Is unable to identify important contextual
factors and/or conduct an industry
analysis by applying an appropriate
analytical framework. The purpose and
the conclusion of the analysis are poorly
presented.

Internal Strategic
Capabilities

analysis (15%)

Demonstrates an excellent understanding
of the concept of strategic capabilities,
and the ability to identify and justify the
strategic capabitilies for the company
/SBU by researching, organising and
synthesising a wide range of appropriate
information sources. The purpose of the
analysis, the interconnectedness of the
factors, and the conclusion of the analysis
are clearly and logically stated and are
thoroughly justified.

Demonstrates a good understanding of
the concept of strategic capabilities, and
the ability to identify the strategic
capabitilies for the company /SBU by
using a range of appropriate information
sources. The purpose of the analysis, the
interconnectedness of the factors, and
the conclusion of the analysis are clearly
and logically stated.

Demonstrates the understanding of the
concept of strategic capabilities, and
ability to identify the strategic capabitilies
for the company /SBU by using some
relevant information, but the variety of
the information is limited and not all
sources are appropriate. The purpose
and the conclusion of the analysis are
stated.

Demonstrates a basic understanding of
the concept of strategic capabilities and is
able to use some relevant information
sources to identify the strategic capabitilies
for the company /SBU, but is not always
appropriate , nor sufficient to support the
analysis. The purpose and the conclusion
of the analysis are not clearly stated.

Demonstrates a poor or incorrect
understanding of the concept of strategic
capabilities and is unable to use relevant
information to identify the strategic
capacities for the company/SBU. The
purpose and the conclusion of the
analysis are poorly presented.

Identification of
current business
strategy (15%)

Demonstrates an excellent understanding
of concept of business strategy and
insightfully discusses the general type of
business strategy that the company/SBU
implements by examining its strategy
statement and its value chain activities.

Demonstrates a good understanding of
the concept of business strategy; by
examining its strategy statement and its
value chain activities, general type of
business strategy that the company/SBU
implements is clearly identified and

Demonstrates the understanding of the
concept of business strategy by
examining its strategy statement and its
value chain activities, general type of
business strategy that the company/SBU
implements is identified and discussed;

Demonstrates a basic understanding of
the concept of business strategy; is able to
identify the general type of the
company/SBU’s strategy by using some
relevant information sources and theories.

Demonstrates a poor or incorrect
understanding of the concept of business
strategy; unable to use relevant
information to identify the general type
of business strategy for the company
/SBU; the discussion is poorly presented.

BUSM3200 Strategic Management Assignment marking criteria Semester 2 2013 SIM

Student Name: Student ID:

2

Marker: Signature: Date:

A wide range of relevant information
sources and theories are critically analysed
and synthesised to support the discussion

logically discussed; a range of relevant
information sources and theories are
critical analysed and synthesised to
support the discussion.

some relevant information sources and
theories are used to support the
discussion.

Evaluation of the
suitability of the
current business
strategy (15%)

Presents excellent critical analysis and
synthesis of complex ideas into a
coherent, logical and convincing
evaluation for the current business
strategy of the company/SBU based on
the outcomes of previous analysis.

Presents good critical analyses and
synthesis of complex ideas into a
coherent, logical and convincing
evaluation for the current business
strategy of the company/SBU based on
the outcomes of previous analysis.

Presents some critical analyses and
synthesis of complex ideas into a logical
evaluation for the current business
strategy of the company/SBU based on
the outcomes of previous analysis.

Is able to use the outcomes of previous
analysis to evaluate the suitability for the
current business strategy of the
company/SBU.

Is unable to evaluate the current business
strategy of the company/SBU by
analysing and synthesising the outcomes
of previous analysis.

The overall
presentation of the
report (including

executive
summary) and

referencing (15%)

The report is well organised and
professionally presented, with a well
written executive summary.

Students use correctly all of the following
information use strategies (use of
citations and references; choice of
paraphrasing, summary, or quoting; using
information in ways that are true to
original context; distinguishing between
common knowledge and ideas requiring
attribution) and demonstrate a full
understanding of the ethical and legal
restrictions on the use of published,
confidential, and/or proprietary
information.

The report is well organised and
professionally formatted, with a well
written executive summary.

Students use correctly three of the
following information use strategies (use
of citations and references; choice of
paraphrasing, summary, or quoting; using
information in ways that are true to
original context; distinguishing between
common knowledge and ideas requiring
attribution) and demonstrates a full
understanding of the ethical and legal
restrictions on the use of published,
confidential, and/or proprietary
information.

The report is logically structured with an
executive summary.

Students use correctly two of the
following information use strategies (use
of citations and references; choice of
paraphrasing, summary, or quoting; using
information in ways that are true to
original context; distinguishing between
common knowledge and ideas requiring
attribution) and demonstrates a full
understanding of the ethical and legal
restrictions on the use of published,
confidential, and/or proprietary
information.

The report is correctly formatted with an
executive summary.

Students use correctly one of the
following information use strategies (use
of citations and references; choice of
paraphrasing, summary, or quoting; using
information in ways that are true to
original context; distinguishing between
common knowledge and ideas requiring
attribution) and demonstrates a full
understanding of the ethical and legal
restrictions on the use of published,
confidential, and/or proprietary
information.

The report is incorrectly structured with a
poorly-written executive summary (or
executive summary is missed).

Students fail to use correctly one of the
following information use strategies (use
of citations and references; choice of
paraphrasing, summary, or quoting; using
information in ways that are true to
original context; distinguishing between
common knowledge and ideas requiring
attribution) and demonstrates a full
understanding of the ethical and legal
restrictions on the use of published,
confidential, and/or proprietary
information.

General
Comments:

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

.

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

(
3
)

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

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.

.Please refer to Assignment Marking Criteria.