Assignment Brief Academic Year 2023-24

Module code FY021 Introduction to Business Module leader: Uswa Zahra

and title: Studies

Assignment CW1,2 & 3 Assessment 100%

No. and type: weighting:

Submission Friday 16 August 2024 Target feedback Friday 6th September2024

time and date: time and date:

Assignment task

There are 3 elements to this assignment which are all detailed in the assignment task below. The
assessment will include:
 A 10 min Group PowerPoint Presentation. This will relate to the internal and external factors which
impact on business (Learning outcomes 2 and 3)
 A poster. This will relate to one part of the Marketing Mix, either Promotion, Price, Place or
Product. This is an individual element. (Learning outcome 1)
 A report – 1500 words. This is an individual piece of work on The Body Shop. (Learning outcome
1, 2 and 4)

This assignment has been designed to provide you with an opportunity to demonstrate your
achievement of the following module learning outcomes:

LO 1 Describe the role of HR, Marketing and finance functions within organisations.

LO 2 Develop an understanding of collaborative working practices

LO 3 Demonstrate an understanding of the main factors, both internal and external, which impact
businesses

LO 4 Demonstrate knowledge of the role of financial management and reporting within the organisation

Task requirements

This assignment is a Portfolio assignment where you will work on 3 pieces of work throughout the module.
The assessments will include: - A 10 min Group PowerPoint Presentation, a poster and a report.

These will be completed throughout the module, and although a mark will not be awarded until the end of
the module, detailed formative feedback will be provided together with the opportunity for the student to

Internal approval: Sara Eaglesfield, September 2023

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resubmit work until the final deadline providing formative developmental opportunities. Please see the
module scheme for details of when formative feedback opportunities will be provided.

TASK 1. 10-minute Group Presentation

Note: this contributes to 33% of the weighting of the portfolio. Total =100 marks

Instructions:
Choose an organisation (preferably an SME) and discuss how ONE internal and ONE external
environmental factor affect/impact that chosen organisation.

You are required to form groups to carry out this assessment. Please confirm your groups with your
module tutor.

Choose one organisation (preferably an SME) to carry out this and discuss how both internal and external
environmental factors affect/impact that chosen organisation.
The presentation should include: -
a) Introduction of your group and chosen business organisation
b) Discussion on how one internal and one external environmental factor affect your chosen
organisation. Use a Swot analysis to aid discussions.
c) Narrative/written script for each slide (include a slide with sources - author/contributor)
d) Conclusion

TASK 2: A Marketing Poster

This will relate to ONE part of the Marketing Mix, Promotion, Price, Place or Product. This is an individual
element. (Note: this contributes to 33% of the weighting)
You are required to choose an organisation of your choice and design a poster addressing one element of
the Marketing mix (product, price, promotion, place). On the first page is the poster, the second page is
your argument/write up about 1-2 paragraphs.

Instructions:
Choose a business or an organisation and select one product that the business provides. Produce a
poster to demonstrate one of the 4 P's that make up the marketing mix (These are Product, Price, Place
and Promotion). Don't forget, you are assessing only one from the four. E.g. Price: Is the pricing strategy
effective? What problems might the business face if they get the pricing strategy wrong?

What to include:
Main body: This section should address all relevant issues relating to the title. You will have to use
headings, pictures, graphs and charts in this section. (1st page)
The main argument discussed in a paragraph below the poster (2nd page)
References: using Harvard referencing format, providing academic/industry references in support of your
content.

Task 3. Report – The Body Shop 1500 words

This is an individual piece of work. (Note: this contributes to 33% of the weightage to the portfolio)

Instructions:
Analyse the strengths and weaknesses of the Human Resources (HR) and financial management
strategies within The Body Shop. Which of these do you feel contributes most significantly to the
business success?

To complete this task, you will need to include the following in your report: -
Introduction

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Information on the Human Resources (HR) strategies of the organisation. Consider their recruitment
strategy, training and development reward. You will need to identify evidence to support this section.
Information on the Financial management strategies of the organisation. Review their Profit & Loss and
Balance sheet and analyse their strategies through research.

Evaluation/Conclusion – which of these strategies do you believe contributes most significantly to their
success?

Assignment parameters – Harvard referencing, writing style, word count, layout etc.

Referencing and research requirements

Please reference your work according to the Harvard referencing style as defined in Cite Them Right
Online (http://www.citethemrightonline.com). This information is also available in book form: Pears, R. and
Shields, G. (2016) Cite them right: the essential reference guide. 10th edn. Basingstoke: Palgrave
Macmillan. Copies are available via the university library.

How your work will be assessed

Your work will be assessed on the extent to which it demonstrates your achievement of the stated learning
outcomes for this assignment (see above) and against other key criteria, as defined in the University’s
institutional grading descriptors. If it is appropriate to the format of your assignment and your subject area,
a proportion of your marks will also depend upon your use of academic referencing conventions.

This assignment will be marked according to the grading descriptors for Foundation Level

Submission details

 This assignment should be submitted electronically. Please use the relevant Turnitin submission
point in the Submit your work area in your Blackboard module shell.

 Please ensure that your work has been saved in an appropriate file format. Turnitin will only accept
the following file types: Microsoft Word, Excel or PowerPoint, PostScript, PDF, HTML, RTF,
OpenOffice (ODT), Hangul (HWP), Google Docs, or plain text. Your file must also contain at least
20 words of text, consist of fewer than 400 pages and be less than 40MB in size.

 You can submit your work as many times as you like before the submission date. If you do submit
your work more than once, your earlier submission will be replaced by the most recent version.

 Once you have submitted your work, you will receive a digital receipt as proof of submission, which
will be sent to your forwarded e-mail address (provided you have set this up). Please keep this
receipt for future reference, along with the original electronic copy of your assignment

You are reminded of the University’s regulations on academic misconduct, which can be viewed on the
University website: https://bucks.ac.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0024/9546/Academic-Misconduct-Policy.pdf.
In submitting your assignment, you are acknowledging that you have read and understood these
regulations.

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Submission date and time

This assignment should be submitted before 14:00 UK time on Friday 16 August 2024
Work that is submitted up to 10 working days beyond the submission date will be accepted as a late
submission. Late submissions will be marked, and the actual mark recorded but will be capped at the pass
mark (typically 40%), provided that the work is of a passing standard. Work submitted after this period will
not be marked and will be treated as a non-submission.
Feedback and marks for this assignment will be available by Friday 6th September 2024

Academic integrity

Academic integrity means taking responsibility for your own work.

When you submit an assignment, you are effectively making a declaration that it is your own work and that
you have acknowledged the contribution of others and their ideas in its development (for example, by
referencing them appropriately).
For further information and guidance, please see the University website: https://www.bucks.ac.uk/current-
students/registry-helpdesk-and-academic-advice/academic-integrity-and-misconduct
You are also expected to take responsibility for maintaining and managing confidentiality issues in your
work. You should maintain and respect confidentiality in relation to the protection of personal, technical
and/or commercial information of a sensitive nature in their assessed work, whatever the format.
Confidentiality issues will vary from subject to subject and you are encouraged to seek advice from your
course team if you are unclear about requirements in your context. For further information and guidance,
please see the University website: https://www.bucks.ac.uk/academic-confidentiality

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Assessment Criteria Academic Year 2023-24

0-34 (F) – 35-39 E – 40-49 (D) 50-59 (C) 60-69 (B) 70-79 (A) 80-100 (A+)
Fail Marginal fail Pass Pass Pass Pass Pass
Not successful Below required Satisfactory Good Very Good Excellent Outstanding
standard
Knowledge and There is There is limited Wider reading is Wider reading is Wider reading Application of a Application of a
understanding insufficient or no evidence of relevant using relevant using shows a range of wide range of given wide range of
35% evidence of reading of given given sources but given sources and relevant given reading is largely given reading and
This should include reading of given sources and/or only partially has clearly sources being used evident in the work. beyond is fully
evidence of: sources. reading largely integrated into the enhanced the and applied. evident
 Discusses lacks relevance. work. work. throughout the
knowledge of work
business terms
 Introduction,
Appendix
 Reports
external
‘theory’
sources,
company info
 Meaningful
use of
readings,
resources and
research

0-9 10-13 14-17 18-21 22-24 25-30 31-35

Analysis and An insufficient or A limited ability to A sufficient ability A consistent and A highly proficient A highly An exceptional
criticality 35% no ability to use use ideas and to use ideas and confident ability to ability to use ideas accomplished ability to use
This should include ideas and information to information to use ideas and and information to ability to use ideas ideas and

5
Assessment Criteria Academic Year 2023-24

0-34 (F) – 35-39 E – 40-49 (D) 50-59 (C) 60-69 (B) 70-79 (A) 80-100 (A+)
Fail Marginal fail Pass Pass Pass Pass Pass
Not successful Below required Satisfactory Good Very Good Excellent Outstanding
standard
evidence of: information to devise and sustain devise and sustain information to devise and sustain and information to information to
 Logic and devise and sustain arguments arguments devise and sustain arguments devise and sustain devise and
argument arguments arguments arguments sustain
 Clear arguments
explanations
 Use models of
analysis to
form and
sustain points
(ie SWOT,
PEST etc.)

0-9 10-13 14-17 18-21 22-24 25-30 31-35

Transferable skills Insufficient or no A limited ability to A sufficient ability A consistent and A highly proficient Work demonstrates Work
(written ability to use use digital literacy to use digital confident ability to ability to use a highly demonstrates an
communication) digital literacy and and written literacy and use digital literacy digital literacy and accomplished exceptional
30% written communication written and written written ability to use digital ability to use
This should include communication skills, applicable to communication communication communication literacy and written digital literacy
evidence of: skills, applicable to academic and skills, applicable to skills, applicable to skills, applicable to communication and written
 Accurate academic and professional academic and academic and academic and skills, applicable to communication
spelling, professional contexts professional professional professional academic and skills, applicable
punctuation contexts contexts contexts contexts professional to academic and
and grammar contexts professional
 Language use contexts
appropriate to

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Assessment Criteria Academic Year 2023-24

0-34 (F) – 35-39 E – 40-49 (D) 50-59 (C) 60-69 (B) 70-79 (A) 80-100 (A+)
Fail Marginal fail Pass Pass Pass Pass Pass
Not successful Below required Satisfactory Good Very Good Excellent Outstanding
standard
purpose and
context
 Appropriate
structure for
the format
 Referencing
0-8 9-12 13-15 16-18 19-21 22-26 27-30
Transferable skills There is There is a limited There is a There is a There is a highly There is a highly There is an
(for presentations insufficient or no ability to sufficient ability to: consistent and proficient ability accomplished exceptional
only) 30% evidence of an -present confident ability to: ability to: ability to:
-present
This should include ability to: cohesively to meet
cohesively to meet to: -present -present -present cohesively -present
evidence of: -present obligations to cohesively to meet cohesively to meet to meet obligations cohesively to
obligations to
 Teamwork and cohesively to meet others in a team
others in a team obligations to obligations to to others in a team meet obligations
presentation obligations to effort others in a team others in a team effort to others in a
effort
skills others in a team -contribute and effort effort team effort
-contribute and
 Structures effort -contribute and manage their -contribute and -contribute and -contribute and
manage their
presentation - contribute and manage their learning and work manage their manage their manage their
learning and work
 Structures manage their learning and work under direction or learning and work learning and work learning and work
under direction or
slide/time learning and work under direction or supervision under direction or under direction or under direction or
supervision
usage under direction or supervision supervision supervision supervision
-use Initiative to
 Uses supervision -use Initiative to
-use Initiative to take responsibility -use Initiative to -use Initiative to -use Initiative to
appropriate take responsibility
-use Initiative to take responsibility for initiating and take responsibility take responsibility take
language style take responsibility for initiating and
for initiating and completing tasks for initiating and for initiating and responsibility for
and mechanics for initiating and completing tasks
completing tasks and procedures for completing tasks completing tasks initiating and
 Cites sources and procedures for
completing tasks and procedures for and procedures for and procedures for completing tasks

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Assessment Criteria Academic Year 2023-24

0-34 (F) – 35-39 E – 40-49 (D) 50-59 (C) 60-69 (B) 70-79 (A) 80-100 (A+)
Fail Marginal fail Pass Pass Pass Pass Pass
Not successful Below required Satisfactory Good Very Good Excellent Outstanding
standard
in some form and procedures for presentation presentation presentation presentation presentation and procedures
presentation for presentation

0-8 9-12 13-15 16-18 19-21 22-26 27-30