Overview

You are required to work individually to conduct a strategic analysis and write a report on a real-life business. Please note that this report will focus on business-level strategy.

The purpose of this assessment is not only to test your understanding of the content but also to build your lifelong learning skills. These valuable employment skills include cognitive conceptualisation, critical thinking and analysis, and creative application. How well you are able to demonstrate these skills and bits of knowledge will impact not only you (in terms of a mark) but also has the potential to influence the future of the case study organisation. Your work matters.

Specifically, completing this assignment can help you develop your capabilities in the following areas:

• Understanding of the key concepts, models, theories, and analytical concepts covered from the relevant Modules (1-3) in this Course;
• Developing your ability to apply strategic management concepts and theories to the organisation selected, particularly in analysing its strategic position;
• Enhancing your capability in critical thinking through evaluating existing strategic concepts, analytical frameworks, and theories; and
• Developing your generic skills for pursuing your professional career in the areas of communication and report writing.

Learning Outcomes

The targeted Course Learning Outcomes for this assessment are:

• CLO1: Identify and describe the key components of the strategic management process and how they can be applied in organisations.
• CLO2: Assess and judge strategic inputs, including the external and internal environment, strategic mission and strategic intent.
• CLO3: Create a strategy including synthesising appropriate elements of business-level strategy, competitive dynamics, corporate-level strategy, cooperative strategies and international strategies
• CLO4: Examine the relationship between strategic inputs, strategic actions (formulation, implementation and evaluation) and strategic outcomes to design a strategic plan.

Assessment details

In this assignment, you are required to undertake an analysis of the strategic operating environment for our case study organisation: Bonza Airlines.

You are expected to use theory and concepts covered in the course and to apply these when conducting an analysis of the strategic positioning of our case study organisation.

What you are expected to do:

1. Conduct a macro-level analysis (utilising PESTEL, VUCA and Confrontation Matrix frameworks) to identify and analyse the main macro-level elements and their potential impact on the organisation.
2. Conduct an industry-level analysis incorporating the use of Porter’s Five Forces model, and identifying the Key Success Factors of the industry to determine the attractiveness of the industry.
3. Identify and classify resources and capabilities in terms of threshold and distinctive capabilities required at the operating level for Bonza to compete successfully in the industry.

References should be utilised within this Report to validate the information presented and should be drawn from academic sources and organisational information such as the website and annual reports. The business press may be used to identify relevant issues.

Advisory notes for this assignment  

• You should conduct an extensive information search on the organisation selected.
• Company websites, annual reports, and media reports are important sources of such information, but their objectives, and thus credibility, should be carefully analysed and evaluated.
• You should use appropriate concepts and analytical tools in your report.
• The report should be written in prose; however limited use of dot points is acceptable.
• This advice should be read in conjunction with RMIT assessment policy and the course guide.
• Written assignments must be presented in a professional format. Quality of presentation, especially literacy, will be considered in the marking criteria. Written communication skills are an essential component of RMIT University’s courses.
• The assignment should be in report format and use Arial font size 12, 1.5 line spacing.

Assessment Criteria 

This assessment will measure the following components:

• Background of firm
• Macro environment analysis
• Industry analysis
• Internal Analysis and KSF
• Summary, and key opportunities and threats for Bonza
• Presentation and quality, access and use information professionally and referencing

Referencing guidelines 

In line with RMIT policy, all sources of information must be fully referenced using the RMIT Harvard referencing systems. You are encouraged to use referencing software such as Endnote for referencing and formatting. You must acknowledge all the courses of information you have used in your assessments.

Please read Bloomberg Case in the News, Can a Bunch of Doctors Keep an $8 Billion Secret? Not on Twitter, page 127 in the textbook, and answer the corresponding questions (1-3) that follow it.

1. Do you think it was unethical that the attendees tweeted out information about the new drug and results of the study?  Why or Why not?
2. How have social media platforms such as Twitter and Facebook changed the discussion about confidentiality and social responsibility?  Explain.
3. Suppose you were the marketing director at a pharmaceutical company that had just received promising results about a new drug still in the development stage.  What ethical responsibilities do you have to keep the information confidential?

Type all answers in a Word Document set up in APA format,

Please read Bloomberg Case in the News, Can a Bunch of Doctors Keep an $8 Billion Secret? Not on Twitter, page 127 in the textbook, and answer the corresponding questions (1-3) that follow it.

1. Do you think it was unethical that the attendees tweeted out information about the new drug and results of the study?  Why or Why not?
2. How have social media platforms such as Twitter and Facebook changed the discussion about confidentiality and social responsibility?  Explain.
3. Suppose you were the marketing director at a pharmaceutical company that had just received promising results about a new drug still in the development stage.  What ethical responsibilities do you have to keep the information confidential?

Type all answers in a Word Document set up in APA format,

This assignment is a take-home essay assignment of four questions for which you are expected to develop a 2-3 page essay for each question that fully responds to the question being posed.

Essay 1: CO-3: Assess risk management processes for supporting resource relocation.

The basic equation for risk is defined as R = ƒ(C*V*T) where R is the level of risk, C is the consequences (public health, our economy, government action, public confidence in our institutions) of an attack, V is an assessment of the vulnerability of a potential target (how hard or easy it would be for it to be hit by terrorists) and T is the threat or the likelihood that a specific target will suffer an attack or disaster from a specific weapon. The Department of Homeland Security has stated that it will apply risk management principles to homeland security operations and has stated that “Ultimately, homeland security is about effectively managing risks to the Nation’s security” (DHS, 2010, p. 2). Drawing upon your class readings and additional research examine how risk management is used by the homeland security enterprise and how that use benefits such aspects as resource allocation, strategic planning, grant award, or any of the multitudes of other homeland security issues or operations.

Reference:

U.S. Department of Homeland Security. (2010). Quadrennial homeland security review report: A strategic framework for a secure homeland. Washington, DC: Government Printing Office.  Retrieved from http://www.dhs.gov/xlibrary/assets/qhsr_report.pdf

Essay 2: CO-1: Analyze the organizational roles, responsibilities, and strategies of homeland security and homeland defense.

In your readings you have been provided a variety of definitions for the term homeland security. Additionally, the national strategies and readings have talked to the difference between homeland security and homeland defense. Drawing upon your readings and other class materials, craft two columns; one labeled Homeland Security and the other Homeland Defense. Under the headers of each column list those missions, tasks, duties, responsibilities, operations, etc. which are identified from the national policies, strategies and readings. Some tasks may be listed under both columns. Where this occurs, be sure to identify if there is any element of that item that is specific to either homeland security or homeland defense. Lastly, drawing upon the list you developed, provide a definition of homeland security.

Essay 3: CO-4: Describe protection of key assets and critical infrastructure.

Critical infrastructure is defined in the National Infrastructure Protection Plan as “Systems and assets, whether physical or virtual, so vital that the incapacity or destruction of such may have a debilitating impact on the security, economy, public health or safety, environment, or any combination of these matters, across any Federal, State, regional, territorial, or local jurisdiction” (DHS, 2009, p. 109). From this definition, one can reasonably presume that protection of these assets is vital to the well-being of the United States and as such is an essential element of homeland security. Drawing upon the readings provide your assessment of the capability of the nation’s infrastructure protection program to ensure the survivability of its c

 

HOMEWORK ASSIGNMENT  MUST PROVIDE A MINIMUM OF 3 REFERENCES FROM THE COURSE MATERIAL PROVIDED, APA FORMAT WITH IN TEXT CITATIONS AND WEBSITES IN REFERENCE, 750 WORDS MINIMUM. FEEL FREE TO USE MORE REFERENCES IF NEEDED. ***DO NOT JUST Place IN TEXT CITATIONS AT THE END OF A PARAGRAPH!!!!!***

QUESTIONS ARE IN REFERENCE TO CASE STUDY WHICH IS ATTACHED IN A FILE

Learning Activity 

Create the conversation that you will have with Lauren. It is expected that you provide a substantive response in explaining each of the parties’ point of view. The assignment must contain the following, PLEASE REFER TO CASE STUDY IN ORDER TO ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS:

· The advantages and disadvantages of the making an individual vs. group decision.

· A business-related argument contained within the facts as to why each way was good.

· Point out to Lauren the bias in her decision process and how it may have affected her choice to make the decision alone. 

· Your final decision as to whether you will go through with the sale or not and why. Be sure to consider bias that may enter to your decision process and how you used the process in making the decision.

· Be sure to use only class material for the support of your anwers.

Additional Requirements:  

· You are expected to paraphrase – NOT use direct quotes.  For guidance on paraphrasing, see:   https://writing.wisc.edu/Handbook/QPA_paraphrase2.html.

· You must use APA-style in-text citations including page/paragraph numbers and a Reference list, along with website.

· Contractions are not used in business writing, so you are expected NOT to use contractions in writing this assignment.

· The expectation is that you provide a robust use of the course readings to support ideas, reasoning and conclusions.

· You may not use books as source material.