Master's Dissertation Research Skills: Literature Review Assessment

Learning Outcomes to be Assessed:

The module aims to provide you with a foundation for academic research skills employed in all modules, but particularly the master’s dissertation. This will enhance your learning experience providing a research output which is both industrially relevant, and contributes academic value to the research base of your chosen field / industry.

This assessment enabled you to demonstrate effective delivery of your research findings in the form of a Literature Review.

1. Evaluate the conceptual nature of research philosophies & methods.

2. Appraise existing literature to develop a literature review using appropriate research methods & techniques.

4. Make critical judgements on the applicability of appropriate professional skills and research ethics, within a given research context.

You will need to present the development and findings of the literature review by means of an academic poster presentation and then a report.  

A formative PowerPoint presentation (on topic & findings so far) would be given by you prior to the poster presentation.  Similar to the literature review report, the poster should be designed with intention of presenting to subject matter experts in the field, such as conference proceedings.

The final piece of work written as a literature review, must demonstrate an understanding of research philosophies and methods used by the most important references detailing the contributions of major authors, noting arguments and contestations. This should also be written to the standard requirements of international journals appropriate to the chosen research topic.

You are to consider a topic within your subject area or choose from the list below, and critically evaluate, applying appropriate research methods in the development of a literature review. You must demonstrate an understanding of research philosophies and methods

used by your most important references and a demonstration of how these contributed to your final piece of work.  

·at least eight pieces of peer-reviewed literature – such as journals

·three industry publications and

·three articles/pieces from either books, newspapers,  magazines or credible web based sources

You are to perform a critical evaluation of the underpinning theories used and compile a literature review in the form of an academic research paper (max 2500 words). Should you choose or select a topic from the list below, you may have an opportunity, subject to agreement and negotiation, to contribute to the school’s research output in the form of co-authorship of papers, conferences and publications. Also, you may be able to discuss your topic with a subject matter expert in the school – once agreed by them. (This literature review may form the basis for your dissertation and the subject matter expert may be your future supervisor / second marker).  

Presentation of Literature Review

·Lean methods for supply chain management.

·Agent-based Supply Chain Management.

·System Dynamics for Project Management.

·Simulation Modelling in Operations Management.

·Virtual Teams in Project Management.

·Collaboration Tools for Project Management.

·The integration of social networking tools as an aid to Project Management.

·The use of social networking tools to assist the collection of primary data from appropriate subject specialists in research Projects.

·Use of Business Intelligence within PM / L & SCM.

·Migration of data onto mobile devices and how this could / is used as a strategic differentiator for business.

·Logistics costs in processing and transporting biomass in the UK.

·Analysis of Environmental Auditing Methods and Tools, (eg Factor 4, 10, Life Cycle Assessment, The Natural Step, Carbon Auditing, ISO 14001 etc).

·Barriers to supply chain integration in bioenergy in North West Europe/UK (can be wholly UK-based or take on a European Perspective for comparative analysis).

·The value of ‘soft skills’ in practice in Project Management?

·Evaluate enterprise application systems deployment within supply chains.

·Critical success factors for a CRM (Customer relationship management) strategy.

·Should success of a project be measured by how good the team feels?

·Investigating causes of project team failure leading to the failure of projects.

·Impact on procurement post-Brexit?

·Impact on UK supply chains (industry specific) post-Brexit?  

·Digitalisation of supply chains and logistics

·Managing big data across supply chains and platforms

·Sustainability issues in connected logistics and supply chains

·Bridging the skills gap in supply chain management

·The Social Side of Supply Chain Management

·Inter-organisational co-ordination across humanitarian supply chains

·Supply chain risk management or project risk management

·Stability control in electric vehicles for application in a remote control car.  

·Reducing the recharging time of batteries in electric vehicles.

·Has the author formulated a problem/issue?  

·Is it clearly defined? Is its significance (scope, severity, relevance) clearly established?  

·Could the problem have been approached more effectively from another perspective?  

·What is the author's research orientation (e.g., interpretive, critical science, combination)?  

·What is the author's theoretical framework (e.g., psychological, developmental, feminist)?  

·What is the relationship between the theoretical and research perspectives?  

·Has the author evaluated the literature relevant to the problem/issue? Does the author include literature taking positions she or he does not agree with?  

·In a research study, how good are the basic components of the study design (e.g., population, intervention, outcome)? How accurate and valid are the measurements? Is the analysis of the data accurate and relevant to the research question? Are the conclusions validly based upon the data and analysis?  

·In material written for a popular readership, does the author use appeals to emotion, one-sided examples, or rhetorically-charged language and tone? Is there an objective basis to the reasoning, or is the author merely "proving" what he or she already believes?  

·How does the author structure the argument? Can you "deconstruct" the flow of the argument to see whether or where it breaks down logically (e.g., in establishing cause-effect relationships)?  

·In what ways does this book or article contribute to our understanding of the problem under study, and in what ways is it useful for practice? What are the strengths and limitations?  

·How does this book or article relate to the specific thesis or question I am developing?

·develop and enhance presentation and communication skills

· problem solve using academic language and academic underpinning

·develop critical analysis skills

·become a subject matter expert in the chosen field

·be able to effectively present and report on findings from an academic standpoint – argue and debate appropriately   

·apply skills and knowledge to other modules and the dissertation