Operation of a Business Organisation

This assessment is based on the FTSE listed firm Watches of Switzerland.  The scenario is that you are a graduate working in the Business Planning and Intelligence unit and you have been asked to provide a  briefing note, template provided, for the CEO to discuss the macro-environmental factors that they and the  board of directors will need to consider over the next 12 -24 months.

 

This assignment has been designed to provide you with an opportunity to demonstrate your achievement of the following module learning outcomes: 
LO1: Obtain and interpret information relevant to an analysis of a firm’s business environment. 
LO2: Assess the impact of government on the structure and operation of a business organisation. 
LO3: Demonstrate an understanding of the impact of changes in the business environment on business organisation and activity. 
 
This assessment is based on the FTSE listed firm Watches of Switzerland.  The scenario is that you are a graduate working in the Business Planning and Intelligence unit and you have been asked to provide a  briefing note, template provided, for the CEO to discuss the macro-environmental factors that they and the board of directors will need to consider over the next 12 -24 months.  
 Inflation 
 Global economic growth (GDP) 
 Major currency exchange rates 
 Supply & Demand 
 Elasticity of demand 
 Share price, dividend performance, Price earnings ratio, market capitalization, cash on hand and reserves 
 Firm performance benchmarking 
It is vital that you demonstrate wider reading around the subject area, using contemporary journals to support your assignment. However, we do not expect to see any Wikipedia, Investopedia, Slide Share,  ‘Essay Mill’, Term Papers or other spurious non-academic non-reputable sources within your work or in the reference list.            
The briefing note will need to include the following: 
 Contextual Background – You should identify the recent changes in the luxury watch market and firm performance.  Feel free to use charts, graphs and tables to aid your work, these are not  included in the 500-word count.  
 Key Issues – List the 3 key issues and rank them according to the metric options provided on the briefing template.  
 Global Macro-Environmental Factors Critical Discussion Points – This is the major part of the work that should comprise approximately 50-60% of the word count.  Here you must critically discuss  what each of the 3 critical factors means to the firm and what the directors be aware of going forward?  Note you are not required to make recommendations within this briefing note.  
 Resources and References Used – List the sources of evidence used to build your evidence-based argument in Harvard format.  The reference list is not included in the word count. Relevant theoretical approaches, case studies and models should be used throughout the assignment.  

The readership for the report will be internal management & directors so the report should be written in the 3rd person and spell-checked and proof-read before submission.  You can assume the reader will understand the business workings and will not require any theoretical models explaining to them.  

The work must follow the structure of the briefing paper template provided.  The template is already populated with much of the basic content that is required.  Add your name and ID in the sections highlighted in yellow.Note the briefing paper should focus on the key issues only and not cover everything you have discovered from your secondary research.  You have 1 page at the end of the briefing note to populate with any completed models you used.        
1. Contextual background – 100 words (+ tables, charts and graphs) 
2. Key Issues List – Not included in word count 
3. Global Macro-Environmental Factors Critical Discussion Points – 400 words  

 
4. Resources and References Used – Not included in word count 
Please ensure you use relevant academic sources in the form of models, theories, and cases to support your report. Your report should follow the Harvard Business Referencing format. 10% of your overall mark will be based upon style, presentation and referencing.  
 
How your work will be assessed Your work will be assessed against the assessment criteria which have been provided at the end of this brief. These criteria have been designed specifically for this assignment and are intended to measure the extent to which you have demonstrated your achievement of its associated learning outcomes (see above). They have been aligned with the institutional grade descriptor appropriate for your level.  
 
The assessment criteria provide a basis for fair and consistent marking and indicate what is expected of you in this assignment. It is strongly recommended that you engage with them while you are working on  the assignment and use them in combination with any feedback you receive once your work has been marked to help you plan for future learning and development.  
 
Submission details 
 
 This assignment should be submitted electronically. Please use the relevant Turnitin submission point in the Submit your work area in your VLE 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 and PDF. Your file must also contain at least 20 words of text, consist of fewer than 400 pages and be less than 20MB 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 
 Please also note that work that is submitted up to 10 working days beyond the submission date will be considered 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.
 
Before you submit 
 Please use the provided checklist below to make sure you are ‘fit to submit’ your work 
 We recommend you use this checklist as soon as you get this assignment brief to help you plan your work.