BUS7011D Risk Management

As part of the formal assessment for the programme you are required to submit two Risk Management assignments – this is the first part and is worth 50% of the overall assessment mark. Please refer to your Student Handbook for full details of the programme assessment scheme and general information on preparing and submitting assignments.

After completing the module, you should be able to:

1. Critically apply and evaluate the concepts and principles of risk management in different IT risk enterprise scenarios.

2. Evaluate the strategic importance of risk management within an enterprise.

3. Critically assess what is involved in the management of IT risk.

4. Critically evaluate a range of risk management tools and techniques to both assess the positive and negative impact of IT risk.

5. Incorporate and evaluate in a critical manner risk management for IT risk initiatives in the implementation of business objectives.

6. Critically evaluate, and problem solve using the underpinning research of risk management for IT risk.

7. Undertake critical analysis and reach reasoned and evidenced decisions, contribute problem-solving skills to find and innovate in solutions

Your assignment should include: a title page containing your student number, the module name, the submission deadline and a word count; the appendices if relevant; and a reference list in Arden University (AU) Harvard format. You should address all the elements of the assignment task listed below. Please note that tutors will use the assessment criteria set out below in assessing your work.

Maximum word count: 2,500 words

Please note that exceeding the word count by over 10% will result in a reduction in grade by the same percentage that the word count is exceeded.  You must not include your name in your submission because Arden University operates anonymous marking, which means that markers should not be aware of the identity of the student. However, please do not forget to include your STU number.

This assignment is worth 50% of the total marks for the module.

Consider that you have just been appointed as a risk management consultant-analyst at Transport for London (TfL), reporting directly to the Chief Information Technology Officer (CITO: a board level position within the organisation), to conduct a strategic evaluation of its IT risk and risk management system to determine how these may be better managed to maintain and increase the company’s resilience and competitiveness - both now and into the future.

NOTE: Provide the web address of this organization so that the marker can follow it up and, to add visual appeal, include a screenshot of their home page.

Using the learning materials provided in the module as the core for your answer, supplemented by reading materials from authoritative sources (EBSCO, Google Scholar etc.), information gathered during research of IT risk management at the TfL business organisation and your own research more generally from the Internet, you are required to answer the following assignment tasks as part of your report:

1. Critically evaluate the strategic importance of IT risk management within the TfL business organisation. Include in your answer a description of the key concepts and principles of risk management, as they apply to TfL and its IT infrastructure. (40 marks)

2. Critically evaluate what is involved in the creation of a risk management system for IT and how business objectives align with it for the TfL business organisation. (30 marks)

3. Critically evaluate key trends in risk management for IT risk as they relate to TfL and how these will impact on its development and adoption of these into the future. Use current (or recent) research in this area to support your answer. (30 marks)

This assignment is worth 50% of the total marks for the module.

NOTE: This second assignment will build on and extend the work of your first assignment - so you should base this second assignment on Transport for London (TfL) business organisation from the first assignment. Thus, begin this assignment by restating the name of the organization and supply a web link to their home page.

You have now been asked to return to the TfL business organisation by the Chief Information Technology Officer (CITO) to advise on the risk management tools and techniques  available and to evaluate their impact on IT risk in the company. The advice will include an evaluation of how the tools and techniques can be aligned with the company’s business objectives as well as their impact. This is with a view to maintaining and improving the organisation’s resilience and competitiveness into the future. This is in the context of increasing competition from other companies operating in the same business sector.

You are required to evaluate the various tools and techniques with a view to recommending  the most appropriate of these to the CITO according to the specifics of the company’s business operations and its ‘risk appetite’.

Using the learning materials provided in the module as the core for your answer, supplemented by reading materials from authoritative sources (EBSCO, Google Scholar etc.), information gathered during research of IT risk management at the TfL business organisation and your own research more generally from the Internet, you are required to answer the following assignment tasks as part of your report:

1. Critically evaluate the risk management tools and techniques that are available to the TfL business organisation, and how these may impact its risk management for IT risk as well as support its business objectives going forward. (40 marks)

2. What research has been done on risk management in IT that is associated with the kind of risks the TfL has experience in the last two years? Critically evaluate the research is found, in the academic literature, on IT risk and risk management that we can learn from that is associated with the TfL and other transport services. (30 marks)

3. Critically analyse and suggest an innovative solution that is based on sound evidence and reasoning for the current risks faced by the TfL business organisation. This may include a reflection of the processes used for IT risk assessment and IT risk management in transport services. (30 marks)

You have the opportunity to submit a draft of the assignment to receive formative feedback.

The feedback is designed to help you develop areas of your work and it helps you develop your skills as an independent learner.

Your work must be submitted to your tutor at least three weeks before the deadline. This is to allow time for you to reflect on the feedback and draft your final submission.

Formative feedback will not be given to work submitted after the above date.

You must underpin your analysis and evaluation of the key issues with appropriate and wide ranging academic research and ensure this is referenced using the AU Harvard system.

The My Study Skills Area on iLearn contains useful resources relating to referencing.

You must use the AU Harvard Referencing method in your assignment.

Students are required to indicate the exact word count on the title page of the assessment.

The word count excludes the title page, tables, figures, diagrams, footnotes, reference  list and appendices. Where assessment questions have been reprinted from the  assessment brief these will also be excluded from the word count. all other printed words are included in the word count See ‘Word Count Policy’ on the homepage of this module for more information.

Assignments submitted late will not be accepted and will be marked as a 0% fail.

Your assessment should be submitted as a single Word (MS Word) or PDF file. For more information please see the “Guide to Submitting an Assignment” document available on the module page on iLearn.

You must ensure that the submitted assignment is all your own work and that all sources used are correctly attributed. Penalties apply to assignments which show evidence of academic unfair practice. (See the Student Handbook which is on the homepage of your module and also in the Induction Area).