Recent Question/Assignment
School of Science, Information Technology and Engineering
ITECH3214/6214 – EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES IN BUSINESS
Team Assignment – Report & Presentation
Team Report & Presentation: Focus on Emerging Technologies in one industry
Release Date: Week 3
Report Due Date: Refer Unit Description
Presentation to class: Week 11 in lecture/tutorial
Team Report – 15 marks Team Presentation – 25 marks
Description of Assignment:
The lectures in this course review a number of relevant emerging technologies that can assist organisations in all sectors of the business world. Focusing on several technologies and examining how those technologies operate within an industry as well as the impact on those organisations within that industry addresses several of the course objectives.
The purpose of this assignment is to enable students in teams to critically evaluate one specific emerging technology each (per team member) to form a collective project. These collective emerging technologies will then be discussed through a report as well as an interactive presentation. In order to discuss and present these technologies, each team will choose an industry or an area of business (such as non-profit organisations) in which to position their technologies. The technologies are chosen based on the needs of the chosen industry. Teams will be comprised of two (2) or three (3) students per team.
The report:
The report will take the form of a well-researched academic report of approximately 12-15 single spaced pages (exclusive of references and diagrams). The point of the exercise is to produce a collective discussion that is well supported with references from respected sources. You should include academic journals, books, theses, trade magazines and well-respected sources of related Internet material that you find relevant. Please note – Wikipedia, although classed as an example of one of our technologies, is NOT considered a reliable source to quote in an academic paper, without backup from other well reputed sources. Your report should present as a collective effort, not a series of submissions by various team members. It is expected to FLOW as one document. Each team member should be identified in the report, with a notation about which technology he/she wrote about. Use the format below to write your report.
The following aspects are required in the report:
1. Introduction
a. Provide a general overview of your industry, including the level of uptake of technology. Provide a general overview of each technology your team is writing about including a definition and description of each technology, to include characteristics, level of adoption and relevance for your industry. Discuss how an organisation within your industry would currently use the technology for advantage. (For example, is the technology used to enhance global reach or to streamline operations?) Please use reliable references to describe the technology, and its relevance for the industry or area of business your team was assigned.
b. Provide a one paragraph overview of what you intend to write about in the rest of your report
2. Business justification for the use of the technology (for each technology)
a. Discuss the impact of each technology on your industry or area in the past five years, including such issues as organisational growth, changes in how the organisation functions, return on investment potential, changes in staffing, ability for global reach, and any other relevant areas
b. Choose one organisation within your industry or area as an example of how each technology can or will operate. Include in this section the two discussions below:
i. Discuss how each technology has, or could have, affected the organisation in a positive way
ii. Address the five organisational advantages discussed in lectures: Return on Investment, Increase Competitive Advantage, Provide Customer Convenience, Meet Demand from Suppliers or Customers, and Streamline Operations with regard to how the technology meets these needs within the industry.
iii. Discuss the challenges of implementing and operating the technology within the organisation.
3. Future prospects for the technology
a. Discuss where you see these technologies moving in the future within this industry or area. Be specific for each technology.
i. Do you believe that these technologies will continue to be used in organisations in their current form, or do you believe that the technologies will progress to other areas or expand in some way?
ii. Do you feel that there are areas within your industry where these technologies are not currently being utilised to their full potential?
iii. Which of the organisational advantages discussed in part two could emerging technologies impact for this industry?
4. Conclusion
a. Summarise and evaluate each technology, its success or failure, cost benefit and other factors within your industry.
b. Summarise your report in one paragraph
5. References
a. List references that you have cited within your report. Be sure to cite (in the text) any references that you have used.
b. Please remember that “cutting and pasting†content from any source (whether referenced or not) is not allowed and will be subject to severe disciplinary action.
The Presentation
For the presentation component of this assessment, your team will choose three technologies from the report to present on. You may present “live†or choose to create a presentation through another medium to show the team. The use of PowerPoint is NOT considered creative enough for this presentation. Each presentation is expected to take between 15 & 20 minutes. You will be stopped after 20 minutes, so please time your presentation accordingly.
Please cover the following areas in your presentation in whatever creative form you choose. Remember that for this course, it is not the quantity of the material in your presentation; it is the quality and creativity that you present. Check the marking guide below for the presentation – two major areas you are marked on are the use of technologies from this course to prepare your presentation, and the creativity of your presentation. Please be sure to balance the creativity of your presentation with the required information about your industry.
You will provide a brief (one page) plan of your presentation to your lecturer by week-10 Thursday. This is required, but does not carry marks. This should include details of how you will present, what technologies and formats you will be using, and who is doing which parts of the presentation. In addition, any web sites you used, or any place that you uploaded information must be indicated on this report. All team members must contribute equally to the presentation, and each team member's contribution must be clearly indicated in the presentation plan that is submitted to the lecturer.
?? Please introduce your presentation by giving details of your team members, the technologies addressed by each team member, and the industry you were assigned. Finish your introduction by telling the class which three technologies your team has decided to focus the presentation on, which organisation you are using as an example and what format and technologies will be used in the presentation.
?? Communicate to the class what you feel the benefits of your three technologies are for the industry you focused on. Communicate this through whatever means you choose.
?? Demonstrate the capabilities of your technologies for the organisation you chose within your industry. Do this in any way that works best and is the most creative. You can prepare this in advance or demonstrate at the time. You must attend the presentation, however, no matter which method you choose to present with.
? Conclude your presentation by summing up and giving time for questions.
Plagiarism
It is important to learn from the work of others and you are encouraged to explore the library, World Wide Web resources and have discussions with other students. However, work for assessment must be entirely the student's own work.
Plagiarism is the presentation of the expressed thought or work of another person as though it is one's own without properly acknowledging that person.
You must not allow other students to copy your work and must take care to safeguard against this happening. In cases of copying, normally all students involved will be penalised equally; an exception will be if you can demonstrate the work is your own and you took reasonable care to safeguard against copying.
Plagiarism is a serious offence. As set out in the University Regulation 6.1.1, students who are caught plagiarising will, for a first offence, be given a zero mark for that task. A second offence will result in a failing grade for the Unit(s) involved and any subsequent offence will be referred to the Student Discipline Committee.
University Referencing/Citation Style Guide:
The University has published a style guide to help students correctly reference and cite information they use in assignments. A copy of the University’s citation guides can be found on the university’s web site. It is imperative that students correctly cite all sources of information.
Marking Guides for Bachelor’s Students
Marking Guide (Report):
Section Topic Marks
1. Introduction 10
2. Business Justification 30
3. Future Prospects 25
4. Conclusion 15
5. References (correct format, matching with citations) 5
Style (Spelling, grammar, citations, length, originality)
(Points will be deducted for exceedingly long ( 11 pages) or short ( 7 pages) reports
5
TOTAL 90
Total will be divided by 6 to get marks for the report for Bachelor
Marking Guide (Presentation):
Section Topic Marks
1. Introduction and Conclusion 10
2. Communication of the benefits of each technology for industry 10
3. Demonstration of technology use for chosen organisation 25
4. Incorporation of technologies in unit 30
5. Creativity of presentation 25
TOTAL 100
Total will be divided by 4 to get marks for the presentation
Marking Guides for Master’s Students
Marking Guide (Report):
Section Topic Marks
1. Introduction 10
2. Business Justification 25
3. Future Prospects 25
4. Benefits to the community 10
5. Conclusion 10
6. References (correct format, matching with citations) 5
Style (Spelling, grammar, citations, length, originality)
(Points will be deducted for exceedingly long ( 11 pages) or short ( 7 pages) reports
5
TOTAL 90
Total will be divided by 6 to get marks for the report
Marking Guide (Presentation):
Section Topic Marks
1. Introduction and Conclusion 10
2. Communication of the benefits of each technology for industry 10
3. Demonstration of technology use for chosen organisation 20
4. Incorporation of technologies in unit 25
5. Future of the chosen technology (say after 5 years or 10 years) 15
6. Creativity of presentation 20
TOTAL 100
Total will be divided by 4 to get marks for the presentation