Assignment 1
Description Due date
Assignment 1 – Essay 19 December 2014
Words count: 2000 approximately
TOPIC: Critical analysis of a project business case
Reminder:
• Assignments should be attached to the specific electronic mark sheet for this assignment.
• All assignments are to be submitted through EASE (Electronic Assignment Submission Environment).
• Check the file types and maximum file sizes that can be submitted through the EASE website.
• Assignment 1 submissions that do not include an Originality Report generated by Turnitin will not be marked (refer previous instructions).
Word length
Assignment 1 should be 2000 words approximately, exclusive of tables, figures, appendices, etc.
Software requirement to complete assignment
There are no specific software requirements for this assignment, apart from word processing. You may wish to use software to create diagrams where they are of value.
Assignment requirements
Refer to the Assignment Guidelines for assistance in completing this assignment. Remember to integrate academic theory into your assignment to support your arguments and proposals.
Guidelines for preparation of assignments are provided on the StudyDesk for the course. These are in the form of short videos which explain how to carry out critical analysis of your selected project in relation to the topics for each assignment. You are strongly advised to watch these videos multiple times during the semester to ensure you have an understanding of the expectations of the course examiner.
Provide the following:
Assignment 1 mark sheet : Download the MGT8022 electronic submission mark sheet from the StudyDesk Course Content under Assessment. Electronic assignments should follow the correct file-naming guidelines and use the electronic submission mark sheet.
Title page: Ensure that your essay includes a normal cover sheet or title page that would be expected of a professional document to provide details of essay title, author, date, student number, etc. (this is in addition to the electronic mark sheet discussed above). This assignment is a professional academic paper so should be presented as one.
(Note: No executive summary is required for this assignment as it essay style).
(Note: No table of contents is required as it is essay style).
Critical analysis of a project business case chosen by you (around 2000 words)
Consider the following statement:
It has been suggested that a project business case provides ‘justification for undertaking a project, in terms of evaluating the benefit, cost and risk of alternative options and the rationale for the preferred solution. Its purpose is to obtain management commitment and approval for investment in the project. The business case is owned by the (project) sponsor’.
(Source: Association for Project Management 2006, Body of Knowledge, 5th edn, APM, UK, p. 129) (Note: bolding has been added.)
Think about your chosen project for analysis in assignment 1 and/or 2. Write a critical analysis of the chosen project business case in the form of an essay about the issues that you think are important in the context of the business case for your chosen project. Your responses will differ depending on whether your project is completed, is under way or is yet to start. The focus of this essay is the ‘business case’. Make sure you clearly understand what a business case is before you try to complete this assignment.
Important note
THIS IS A CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF THE PROJECT BUSINESS CASE AND NOT OF THE PROJECT ITSELF.
Refer to your Communication skills handbook to understand how to structure and write an essay. It is expected that you would provide an introduction, the body of your essay, a conclusion and recommendations, and a list of references. You may use headings for sections if you wish.
This assignment is deliberately open-ended to give you an opportunity to do some research about project-related business cases in the context of project management. There are no right or wrong answers. This assignment will allow you to explore the text books, journal articles and other sources on the importance or otherwise of business cases in project management. There is not a lot of information about this topic so it will require you to access the e-Books and e-Journals in the USQ Library website and develop some research skills. Seehttp://library.usq.edu.au/ .
• As part of your analysis, ensure that you make reference to the relevant theory (or theories) covered in the study materials, text, selected readings and other relevant sources. Make sure you use figures and tables to clearly and concisely illustrate and support your analysis where this is appropriate.
List of references – (using the Harvard AGPS system): Provide a complete list of references providing full details of all citations used in the body of the essay. For a postgraduate assignment, if you have done sufficient research, there should be at least 15 references, many of which will be cited more than once. Remember to use the e-Journals and e-Books available from the Library website to research the literature on the topic (especially Books 24×7 and eBrary). Contact the Library staff if you need assistance to find these databases.
Appendices: If you have any appendices, they should be attached to the essay after the list of references. They should be numbered sequentially, e.g. Appendix 1, Appendix 2, etc.
Turnitin Originality Report: Remember to submit a shortened version of your assignment (without the mark sheet and appendices) to Turnitin for checking and to submit a copy of the Turnitin Originality Report with your assignment through EASE. See ‘Course assessment’ above for more detailed instructions.
Marking criteria for assignment 1
Marking criteria is included in the electronic mark sheet. Use only the MGT8022 mark sheet provided for assignment 1 for this course.