STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT [M115LON]

Assignment Brief
JANAPR2021
Contents
Introduction ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Page 1
The Companies ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Page 3
Course Work Brief/Instructions -----------------------------------------------------------------------------Page 4
Measuring the Quality of your Assignment Submissions ---------------------------------------------Page 7
 M115LON Strategic Management

Assignment 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
assesses amongst others things your cognitive skill sets.

This briefing document provides:

1. The details of the assessment for M115LON Strategic Management.

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 Module Handbook in order to maximise
your opportunity for success.

NOTE: It is your responsibility to follow the directions as set out within this document. Non- compliance
cannot be grounds for an appeal against the mark awarded (Please read the appropriate Course
Handbook).

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) and seek relevant support from Coventry University London’s Spotlight Scheme. Leaving
Summative assignments to the ‘last minute’ is a very high-risk strategy.

M115LON End of Module Assessment (Strategy Report)

As stated in the guide ‘How to Succeed on M115LON' 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 a Strategy Report based on an organization you would select as case study. The Strategy Report will
constitute 100% of the assessment weighting for this Module.

1
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. Please refer to the module and course handbook 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 your
Strategy Report 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 the Module Handbook (on the M115LON aula site), a sub-set of these is a set of
Assessment Outcomes which link to the Rubric as stated below:

• Critical analysis 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.
• 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 the required Referencing System. [NOTE: There
is a guide on aula. It is advised that you download this for future reference.]

2
 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 1. Be able to review the organisational strategic aims and objectives
organisational strategy
plans and performance 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

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, the type of
company that you might want to work for in the future and/or the course you are enrolled on. 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 industries are:

Name of Corporate Website Business

Company Sector
1 Disney https://www.disney.co.uk/ Entertainment
2 Marriott https://www.marriott.co.uk/default.mi Hospitality
3 ASOS https://www.asos.com/ Fashion
4 Proctar and Gamble https://www.pg.co.uk/ Manufacturing
5 BMW Group https://www.bmwgroup.com/ Automobile
6 Lloyds Bank https://www.lloydsbank.com/ Finance
7 Sainsbury https://www.sainsburys.co.uk/ Retail
8 Lukoil https://lukoil.com/ Energy

3
COURSE WORK BRIEF/INSTRUCTIONS

For the Strategy Report, you are required to carry out a critical analysis of the Business Environment
of the organization you’ve selected as case study as well as evaluate the strategies implemented by
the organization.
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 assessment will entail engaging with the business models and frameworks typically employed to
undertake an environmental audit and effectively evaluate strategic options available to organizations
in terms of appropriateness, feasibility and sustainability. 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 subheading to delineate the points that you wish to make.

Structure of the Strategy Report

 Anonymous cover sheet: This must contain the module title and code, assignment title, your
ID number, name of your specific seminar tutor, submission date and word count
 Executive summary: This should present a ‘snapshot’ of the report – What did you find out?
What conclusions have you drawn? [This will help you to start formulating the Executive
Summary for your Summative.]
 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.
 An analysis of the organisation's external business environment – macro factors (PESTEL
framework).
 An analysis of the sector/industry through Porter’s Five Forces model.
 Analysis of the organisation’s strategic position in its industry- by using relevant business KPIs in
comparing the performance of the organization with that of its main competitors
 An analysis of the organisation's internal business environment – specifically the capabilities
of the organisation. This will include the use of the VRIO framework.
 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.
 Formulation and critical evaluation of strategic measures for the organisation based on an
assessment of the organisation's internal and external business environment using the
appropriate frameworks – SWOT/TOWS
 Critical evaluation of the strategic measures formulated: This is in terms of its
suitability, acceptability and feasibility (SAF Framework).
 Conclusions: What conclusions have you drawn from analysing this organisation?
 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:
• Are your recommendations rational?
• What evidence can you provide in support of these recommendations?
4
 • How would the various stakeholders react? How would you react if you were
a shareholder?
• Is it logical that the company would or need to take these specific actions?
• Do they make sense?
• Would you be prepared to discuss them at a Board meeting?
• References: These must be in the APA Referencing Format. There must be appropriate
in-text citations throughout your submission. [NOTE: You must seek out credible and
validated sources of information for your assignments – Please refer to comments
elsewhere in this document and other guides on the M115LON aula 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.

Conducting and applying research is crucial to this module. Additionally there is a mark awarded for the
level of research demonstrated. 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.

Please note that marks will be deducted for the use of such sources as (though not exclusive to):
‘Wikipedia’, ‘Business balls’ ‘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.

Please refer to the guides on the M115LON aula 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 Strategy Report

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.

5
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.

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.

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: ‘cut- throat’
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: 4000 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: As shown in the Assessment section of the M115LON aula page via Turnitin. This
means that it must be registered on the university server before 5.00pm. Any submission with a time
stamp of 5:00pm 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 aula

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.

6
Feedback on Strategy Report

You will receive written individual and generic feedback in about two weeks from the submission
deadline. It is your responsibility to reflect upon the written feedback provided and feed that
forward to your subsequent assessments you’ll be embarking on as you progress in your studies.
General questions on the assessment are addressed either via email and/or within the seminar sessions.

MEASURING THE QUALITY OF YOUR ASSIGNMENT SUBMISSIONS

The table below is meant to serve as a basic yardstick with which you could use in determining the
quality of your course work submissions. It is advised you also go through the marking rubric for each
assignment for more details.
Basic Submission Fair Submission Good Submission
Assignment submission is Assignment submission is well Assignment submission is very
reasonably structured. There structured. There are evidence well structured. There are
are some evidence of of compliance with the evidence of thorough
compliance with the instructions detailed in the compliance with the instructions
instructions detailed in the Assignment brief. There is fair detailed in the Assignment brief.
Assignment brief. There is level of conformance to the There is complete and consistent
limited in-text citation which Coventry University Harvard conformance to the Coventry
generally conforms to the Citation/Referencing Format. University Harvard
Harvard format. Reasonably Well presented with fair Citation/Referencing Format.
well presented with some evidence of research which Very well presented with good
evidence of research which formed basis of the evidence of research and
formed basis of the discussions discussions and criticality which formed basis of
and recommendations recommendations provided. the discussions and
provided. There may be some There may be a few recommendations provided.
grammatical /spelling errors. grammatical/spelling errors. There are no
grammatical/spelling errors.

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.]

7
Rubric
When preparing both of your assessments 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. You are strongly advised to cross
reference this document with:
 M115LON Assessment Rubric
 How to Succeed on M115LON: A Student Guide

Both are listed on the M115LON aula site. Good

luck with your assignments!

M115LON Module Leader: Nnaemeka Madumere