Unit title & code

BSS051-6 Global Logistics and Supply Chain Management

Assignment number and title

Assignment 2 – Full case study report

Assignment type

CW-CS

Weighting of assignment

60%

Size or length of assessment

3500-word report

Unit learning outcomes

1. Demonstrate a sound understanding of contemporary theories and practices within the areas of Global Logistics and Supply Chain Management
2. Evaluate critically the appropriateness of these theoretical concepts within a variety of differing organisations and evaluate the issues and problems concerning the implementation of these concepts at the operational level

What am I required to do in this assignment?

You are required to continue with the case study of The Gartner Top 26- 25 Supply Chain Ranking company you have already worked on for Assignment 1a and 1b. At this stage, you need to conduct more intensive research about the company; update and confirm the key issues and challenges that are CURRENTLY faced by the company; identify and conduct a critical review of relevant literature to support the analysis of the case issues.

This assignment requires you to submit a full case study analysis report (3500 words) before 10am GMT Friday of Week 6

The report should be presented as a formal business report with the following components:

(1)     Title Page

(2)     Table of Contents

(3)     Executive Summary and Introduction

(4)     Relevant information on the case company

(5)     Evidence of background reading and research on the topic, relevant literature review, and correct referencing

(6)     Evaluation and critical analysis of the company’s current performance; key challenges faced in managing their supply chain and logistics,  compare/contrast with its main competitors’ SCM strategy, and so on using the literature you have reviewed to support the evaluation and analysis

(7)     Summary, conclusions and recommendations

What do I need to do to pass? (Threshold Expectations from UIF)

• Build on your feedback from Assessment 1 and advance your critical analysis of the effectiveness of the management of the supply chain and logistics strategy of the organisation
• Demonstrate an aptitude to research areas where additional information is required to make judgements
• Incorporate contemporary and relevant theoretical concepts
• Effectively address the issues and problems faced by the company and discuss their implications within a logistics and supply chain context
• Provide clear recommendations that are underpinned by theory and context.  

How do I produce high quality work that merits a good grade?

Produce a report that presents a logically coherent three-fold discussion on the performance of a supply chain as follows:

You must apply the feedback provided on Assessment 1 and build the report for Assessment 2. The report must be presented using Business report format, professional formatting, written in third person. An excellent report will present critical analysis with relevant evidence

How does this assignment relate to what we are doing in scheduled sessions?

The scheduled sessions explore various key concepts of logistics and supply chain management by looking at: inventory management, warehouse management, Transportation, Supplier Management, Technology and tools and techniques used for demand management. These sessions are designed to help you develop knowledge and understanding of various supply chain functions.

The assessment 2 is therefore, is designed to evaluate your understanding of managing a supply chain in a dynamic market by applying theory and techniques discussed in the scheduled sessions.

Communication Skills sessions are designed to help you practice academic writing and critical reasoning on an ongoing basis.

Pass – 40-49%

Pass – 50-59%

Commendation – 60-69%

Distinction– 70%+

30%

An overview of the supply chain and performance metrics

Build on your feedback from Assessment 1 and advance your critical analysis of the effectiveness of the management of the supply chain and logistics strategy of the organization

A good understanding of the business case and their supply chain.

A very good account of the business case and their supply chain.

An excellent insight into the business case and their supply chain

40%

Evidence of understanding and application of relevant theories to context, case evaluation and key findings

Incorporate contemporary and relevant theoretical concepts

 Effectively address the issues and problems faced by the company and discuss their implications within a logistics and supply chain context

Evidence of a satisfactory level of understanding application of supply chain performance metrics and trends. Some omissions and/or errors. 

A sound discussion of the application of theories and models. showing a good grasp of the topic area and the business case.

An excellent insight into the business case and the syllabus topics.

30%

Critical Reasoning, Academic writing with referencing, spelling and grammar.

Demonstrate an aptitude to research areas where additional information is required to make judgements

Provide clear recommendations that are underpinned by theory and context.

Some inconsistencies in presentation of material.  Good style.  Satisfactorily expressed but several mistakes in grammar and spelling.   Most references are correct in text, with appropriate page numbers and listed in the Reference section.

Material well organised and presented.  Good style. Well expressed with very few mistakes in grammar and spelling.  Almost all references are correct, both in text and in the Reference section.

Excellent organisation and presentation of material.  Excellent style. Excellently expressed with perfect grammar and spelling.  All references are correctly cited both in text and in the Reference section.