Recent Question/Assignment

Assessment
Assessment scheme
Description Mark
out of Wtg
(%) Due date Notes
On-line test (see study desk) 20 10 21 August 2015 1
Individual Case study 1 (2000 – 2400 words) 100 45 18 September 2015
Individual Case study 2 (2400 – 3000 words) 100 45 23 October 2015
NOTES:
1. On-Line Test (Available from Monday, 17 August 2015 and closes Friday, 21 August 2015 for completion by 11.55pm AEST)
Assignment guidelines
Three assignments have been set to test your competence in understanding and applying the significant concepts and material presented in this course. The purpose of the three assessment pieces is to enable you to:
? demonstrate your understanding of the material presented in the course
? relate the material to a context that is relevant and of interest to you
? support your career development by enhancing your competence at change management.
The assessment is aligned with the objectives of the course. These objectives are detailed within the course specifications. You can access the course specifications on the USQStudyDesk. Each assessment item is based on a range of tasks that attempt to relate the material in both theoretical and practical terms.
On-line quiz – 10%
Individual case study 1 – 45%
Individual case study 2 – 45%
The assessment for this course will involve an online quiz worth 10% and two case studies each worth 45%. Students must obtain a passing mark from the three assessments to pass the course.
Assignment assistance for business students
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Style Guide for all Referencing
Please see the Style Guide for all referencing used in your Case Studies
Assignment 1
Description Marks out
of Wtg(%) Due date
On-line quiz 20 10 21 August 2015 (11.55pm AEST).
This assignment deals with the material covered in your text. Please see Guidelines to Online Test on the Study Desk.
On-line quiz
Please note, the online test relates to 20 multiple choice questions based on Chapters 1, 2, 3, 4 and 6 of the set text, Hayes (2014). You must acquire a copy of the text (either an e-copy from the publisher or a hard copy from the USQ bookshop). Please see the study desk in week 1 under the heading ‘ON-LINE TEST’. A ‘Guidelines for the Online Test’ to be completed in week 5 of the course will be posted in this section. This guideline will outline when the test must be undertaken. It will also outline the time to complete the test once you log on to the test link. A computerised model will assess results. Please note: your test results will be available after the ‘close-off’ date for completing the test.
Assignment 2
Description Marks out of Wtg % Due date
Individual case study 1 (write between 2000
– 2400 words)
Note: Please see Style Guide in this
Assessment File for all referencing) 100 45 18 September 2015 (11.55pm AEST).
You should write the case study in such a way that you start your answers from line 1. That is, there is no need for large introductions that we see in essays. You should apply the principles you have learned from lecture material/tutorials/readings that are specific to the case study. Case study 1 answers should be written in narrative form (i.e. sentences not bullet points), and should be between 2000-2400 words long, single spaced. You should provide a list of references at the end of the case. More marks are gained by the quality of research applied in practice and the overall quality of the answer. Please Note: Overall word count does not include Tables and Figures which you are free to use if required. You should include in your case study:
1. A cover sheet with your Name, ID, Course Name, Lecturer, Semester and Date of Submission;
2. There is no need to use turn-it-in with your case study;
3. Please quote from relevant texts and readings to support your answers. Answers in the narrative section of your case answers unsupported by readings will be regarded as guesswork and generalisations and will not pass the case assessment;
4. If you feel a need to attach some other interesting report or facts not required in the main body of your case answer, please add this as an appendix. Then in your text close to where you discuss this, you should add in brackets (please seen Appendix 1). Please see the Style Guide below for how to use references in your case studies. Task/Questions for the case can be found at the conclusion of the case.
Individual Case Study 1
Problem Statement:
You need to consider how you will identify the range of issues and problems in the following problem statement.
Bessington Trading & Sons (BTS) ©
Please Note: This problem statement is fictional. Any resemblance to actual names and places is purely coincidental. The case problem is for the advanced study of MBA and Masters Student’s studying Change Management or Leading Organisation Change.
BTS is a 60 year old company founded by George Bessington in the early 1950s following the independence of Indonesia. With its principal business in manufacturing and selling wholesale cotton and wool fabric products to local retailers and buyers (including designers) in Indonesia, George had established a highly successful local company that was also well respected. Before migrating to Indonesia, George was a successful cotton grower from Moree in New South Wales and saw the opportunity to manufacture very high quality garments principally sourced from Australia by building on his grower connections. The belief and vision to create a high quality garment manufacturing business but with low cost meant that George quickly earned the respect of local Indonesian retailers and designers. While being able to take advantage of Indonesian’s relative low cost wages, Bessington paid all his staff better than local wage regulations. The local West Java workers loved working for George as he created many reward systems that were ahead of his time such as sick leave and holiday pay, rostered days off from the factory and child minding facilities for his workers who were mainly from the working poor and common local families. Tradition and tales about the company were perpetuated over the years to the extent that Bessington became larger-than-life and everyone knew about those early beginnings. Newspaper clippings were common. The BTS factory in West Java had a workforce up until the time of George’s death in 1970 of over 1000 workers which in recent years had been reduced substantially yet remained at around 700 workers. Also, Bessington had trained his son Modjo in all aspects of the business such that it was commonly known that Modjo was a protégé of his Father. It was not surprising that Modjo since the 1970s employed the same business practices and like Bessington senior, had the total respect of the industry and his workers. Overall, the common business characteristics that defined the first two generation of Bessington’s was built on high quality manufactured fabrics, unique fabric processes in manufacturing, imported high quality cotton grades from Australia, local industry sales to local retailer and designers, employee and customer loyalty and relatively slow but consistent growth. However, in recent times this had been challenged by increasing low-cost suppliers in other countries, low-cost imports into Indonesia, perceptions of quality, manufacturing safety and employee standards across the industry generally.
More recently, Modjo’s son Tommy and sister Khadija had joined the business. While both siblings had been educated in Jakarta, Modjo insisted they both complete an MBA in Australia. Khadija had also followed this up with an undergraduate degree in fashion design. Tommy in recent times had been more vocal for change and Khadija had supported a move to increase the value-added component of design, customer reach and product depth from essentially large-batch production of cloth to making designer clothing for larger offshore markets. This meant forward integration by not only manufacturing the textile cloth but also moving to a new manufacturing stage of making and supplying retail firms. Tommy had introduced to the Board the idea of exporting to Malaysia, China and Japan the large-batch production output while simultaneously supplying designer and retail outlets across the world. This conflicted somewhat with the view that cheap imports would hold sway and that customers wanted low-cost products from China and Bangladesh with the Board often pointing to low-cost retailers such as Cotton-On in Australia and JC Penny in the U.S. Tommy and his sister nonetheless saw an opportunity from Manufacturer to customer via the web and business to business (B2B) opportunities with quality-seeking buyers.
Khadija had also pointed to the increasing need for more visibility at Indonesian Fashion week attracting up to 100,000 customers. Increasingly, Tommy had identified problems with manufacturing safety and control in countries like Bangladesh with major brands such as Benetton, H&M from Sweden, Nike, JC Penny and Wal Mart in the US, David Jones and Myers in Australia seeking alternative suppliers. According to Tommy, BTS could take advantage of their name by building new relationships with retailers and designers since many were looking for long-term relationships and the reliability that comes with large volume garment production. Basically, Tommy and his sister’s drive for growth led to disagreement and contradictions in the Board. At stake was BTS traditional approach to manufacturing positioned around large-batch production in cotton and wool textiles to making designer and retail fabrics. This prompted many Board members to comment privately that Tommy and Khadija were trying to be too smart to soon and the company would not cope. Similarly, product and manufacturing change needed to be supported by dramatic staff decreases and management restructuring to streamline cost and efficiency, two-way product stretches between the old and the new production while tackling competition from other suppliers. While Modjo was immensely proud of his son and daughter, in a short time they had created mayhem in the management ranks prompting local analysts to downgrade the value of company stock and medium to long-term outlook. © Peter A. Murray, USQ Business School Additional References
www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/12/retailers-bangladesh-factory_n_3262515.html http://www.indonesia-investments.com/news/todays-headlines/item26 www.indonesia-investments.com/
http://www.kpmg.com/Ca/en/External%20Documents/investing-in-indonesia-2013.pdf http://www.huffingtonpost.com/shannon-whitehead/5-truths-the-fast-fashion_b_5690575.html
Task required: Based on less than perfect information supplied about the BTS problem statement, you are required to act as an external change consultant to assist the Board to address the issues and challenges:
1. Develop at least six (6) realistic assumptions that you can add to the issues and problems expressed. These might typically be related to management, change processes, managerial information systems, technology, competitors, Customers and so on. Use at least two (2) sentences to describe each assumption (150-200 words).
2. In reference to the classic article by Larry Greiner (Reading 10), explain what is happening between growth and change in BTS. Compare this with what Malhotra and Hinings indicate about continuity and change (Reading 9) (500-600 words).
3. How does the problem statement for BTS resemble what Gersick indicates about a systems deep structure (Reading 6; see also Chapter 3 Hayes)? What consistencies exist between the facts in BTS and the descriptions of deep structure by Gersick (500-600 words)?
4. In reference to the article by Dailey and Browning (Reading 4; see also Module 1), explain how and why narratives and storytelling was useful to the company (300 words).
5. Refer to Chapter 6 of Hayes (2014) under the heading ‘Collaborative Modes of Intervening’. Discuss which modes might change agents in BTS use and why? Who are the change agents in BTS if change occurs? (300 words)
6. Given the Typology of Organisational Change (see Hayes, Chapter 3), which typology may best describe the approach that BTS might adopt and why? (300-400 words).
Please Note: Use a minimum of 12 references (including the one’s listed above) to support your answers
Assignment 2 - Case study 1 Marking criteria sheet
Extensive ………………….. Minor evidence
Possible Mark Criteria 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Your Mark
1 10 Quality of assumptions linked at different levels
2 20 Interplay between growth and change
3 20 Systems deep structure
4 15 Narratives & Storytelling
5 15 Modes of intervening
6 15 Typology of change
Communication aspects of your presentation
7 2 Referencing (if applicable)
8 2 Writing clarity
9 1 Tertiary standard: does your analysis reach a high standard of research?
100 TOTAL FOR ASSIGNMENT
Assignment 3
Description Marks out of Wtg % Due date
Individual case study 2 (write between 2400 – 3000 words)
Note: Please see Style Guide in this Assessment File for all referencing) 100 45 23 October 2015
(11.55pm AEST)
You should write the case study in such a way that you start your answers from line 1. That is, there is no need for large introductions that we see in essays. You should apply the principles you have learned from lecture material/tutorials/readings that are specific to the case study. Case study 2 answers should be written in narrative form (i.e. sentences not bullet points), and should be between 2400-3000 words long, single spaced. You should provide a list of references at the end of the case. More marks are gained by the quality of research applied in practice and the overall quality of the answer. Please Note: Overall word count does not include Tables and Figures which you are free to use if required. You should include in your case study:
1. A cover sheet with your Name, ID, Course Name, Lecturer, Semester and Date of Submission;
2. There is no need to use turn-it-in with your case study;
3. Please quote from relevant texts and readings to support your answers. Answers in the narrative section of your case answers unsupported by readings will be regarded as guesswork and generalisations and will not pass the case assessment;
4. If you feel a need to attach some other interesting report or facts not required in the main body of your case answer, please add this as an appendix. Then in your text close to where you discuss this, you should add in brackets (please seen Appendix 1). Please see the Style Guide below for how to use references in your case studies. Task/Questions for the case can be found at the conclusion of the case.
Individual Case Study 2
Use the BTS case information from Case Study 1.
Task required: Based on your analysis of BTS in Case Study 1, you are now required to continue your external change advice to the Board. Case study 2 requires you to apply change intervention ideas to solve the company’s range of change issues. Use the same list of issues and assumptions from Case Study 1. However, if needed, add additional relationship and behavioural assumptions based on less than perfect information as follows:
1. Based on Readings McFillen et al (Reading 11), Rafferty et al (Reading 12) and Barratt-Pugh et al (Reading 13) what is the relationship between change readiness and change agents? Please use examples to support your answer. Use Hayes (Chapter 13) as a reference point as well (600750 words).
2. Based on your analysis of BTS, now adapt and redraw Figure 15.7 and 15.8 in Hayes Chapter 15. Explain the reason why you placed an ‘X’ where you did and use facts from the case to support your answers (400-500 words).
3. Use an open systems diagram similar to Figure 3.1.2 (Module 3) at the organisation level to outline the inputs, processes, outputs of BTS. Populate each box with at least 3 numbered points and a brief description of the points. Then below the Table, describe in more detail each point (500-600 words).
4. Using Kotter’s Integrative model of organisational dynamics (Hayes, Chapter 7), redraw and adapt the Figure to suit your analysis of BTS. Now using facts from the problem statement plus your own assumptions from Case Study 1, explain your analysis using the short, medium and long term as described in Chapter 7 (500-600 words).
5. Using implementation examples from the Norwegian Civil Aviation Industry (Reading 16), what can the BTS Board learn from these failures? What parallels exist between BTS and Avinor? (400-550 words).
Please Note: Use a minimum of 15 references (including the one’s listed above) to support your answer

Assignment 3 – Case study 2 Marking Criteria Sheet
Extensive ---- Minor level of evidence
Possible Mark Criteria 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Your Mark
1 25 Change readiness & change agents
2 15 Implementation readiness
3 20 Open systems diagram
4 20 Kotter’s integrative model
5 15 Implementation
Communication aspects of your presentation
6 2 Referencing (if applicable)
7 2 Writing clarity
8 1 Tertiary standard: does your analysis reach a high standard of research?
100 Total for assignment
Style guide references
References References to other publications must be in Harvard style and carefully checked for completeness, accuracy and consistency. This is very important in an electronic environment because it enables your readers to exploit the Reference Linking facility on the database and link back to the works you have cited through CrossRef.
You should cite publications in the text: (Adams, 2006) using the first named author's name or (Adams and Brown, 2006) citing both names of two, or (Adams et al., 2006), when there are three or more authors. At the end of the paper a reference list in alphabetical order should be supplied:
For books Surname, Initials (year), Title of Book, Publisher, Place of publication.
e.g. Harrow, R. (2005), No Place to Hide, Simon & Schuster, New York, NY.
For book chapters Surname, Initials (year), -Chapter title-, Editor's Surname, Initials, Title of Book, Publisher, Place of publication, pages.
e.g. Calabrese, F.A. (2005), -The early pathways: theory to practice – a continuum-, in Stankosky, M. (Ed.), Creating the Discipline of Knowledge Management, Elsevier, New York, NY, pp. 15-20.
For journals Surname, Initials (year), -Title of article-, Journal Name, volume, number, pages.
e.g. Capizzi, M.T. and Ferguson, R. (2005), -Loyalty trends for the twenty-first century-, Journal of Consumer Marketing, Vol. 22 No. 2, pp. 72-80.
For published conference proceedings Surname, Initials (year of publication), -Title of paper-, in Surname, Initials (Ed.), Title of published proceeding which may include place and date(s) held, Publisher, Place of publication, Page numbers.
e.g. Jakkilinki, R., Georgievski, M. and Sharda, N. (2007), -Connecting destinations with an ontology-based e-tourism planner-, in Information and communication technologies in tourism 2007 proceedings of the international conference in Ljubljana,
Slovenia, 2007, Springer-Verlag, Vienna, pp. 12-32.
For unpublished conference proceedings Surname, Initials (year), -Title of paper-, paper presented at Name of Conference, date of conference, place of conference, available at: URL if freely available on the internet (accessed date).
e.g. Aumueller, D. (2005), -Semantic authoring and retrieval within a wiki-, paper presented at the European Semantic Web Conference (ESWC), 29 May-1 June, Heraklion, Crete, available at: http://dbs.uni-leipzig.de/file/aumueller05wiksar.pdf (accessed 20 February 2007).
Guidelines for late Assignments
Due to fairness and equity for all other students who submit their assignments on time, if a student submits an assignment after the due date without (prior) approval of the examiner then a penalty of 5% of the total marks gained by the student for the assignment may apply for each working day late up to ten working days at which time a mark of zero may be recorded.
If you require an extension for a legitimate reason (e.g. ill health, personal circumstances not including work commitments, or for some other critical reason), please seek an extension on or before the due date by writing to the course examiner/course team member listed earlier.

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