Manufacturing and Service Company Strategies for Competitive Advantage: Assignment Brief

Late submission policy for coursework

·Late submission of any item of coursework for each day or part thereof (or for hard copy submission only, working day or part thereof) for up to five days after the published deadline, coursework relating to modules at Levels 0, 4, 5, 6 submitted late (including deferred coursework, but with the exception of referred coursework), will have the numeric grade reduced by 10 grade points until or unless the numeric grade reaches or is 40. Where the numeric grade awarded for the assessment is less than 40, no lateness penalty will be applied.

·Late submission of referred coursework will automatically be awarded a grade of zero (0).

·Coursework (including deferred coursework) submitted later than five days (five working days in the case of hard copy submission) after the published deadline will be awarded a grade of zero (0).

Where genuine serious adverse circumstances apply, you may apply for an extension to the hand-in date, provided the extension is requested a reasonable period in advance of the deadline.

This Assignment assesses the following module Learning Outcomes (Take these from the module DMD):

* explore the framework and constituent elements necessary for development of a manufacturing strategy;

* examine the key issues relevant to manufacturing strategy.

* critically apply the theoretical knowledge and tools required to develop a manufacturing strategy;

A.Ascertain two (2) Mission Statements one (1) from a large manufacturing company and one (1) from a service company using an Internet search. Research must identify examples that reflect the information required for the assignment. Investigate the publicized strategies from the company web sites and list them and discuss if they involve the three primary strategies for establishing/increasing a competitive advantage for the companies. Approx. 500 words

B.Source two Case Studies one (1) for a manufacturing and one (1) for a service organisation that operates in a global capacity and discuss the strategies related to either the successes or the issues from the two studies in terms of competitive advantage. Approx. 1000 words

Submission Requirements:

Submit WORD document online before the submission deadline. You are expected to provide a range of secondary sources to underpin your work. These should be cited and referenced according to the Harvard convention.

Font Arial 11, portrait layout, normal margins and 1.5 spacing The suggested word count for the assignment is 1,500 including tables. The word count does not include:

• the title page

• table of contents

• list of references (in text citations are included)

Material in appendices will not count for marks and they should not exceed 8 pages in length. Assignments shorter than 1,350 words will not lose marks but may lead to the omission of material which would gain them. Any words over 1,650 (i.e. +10% of the suggested count) will not be marked. You should not use any mechanism, such as embedded jpeg images containing significant text, to circumvent the word count.

This assignment is worth 20% of the overall assessment for this module.

1.Referencing quality and research scope showing selection of examples has been made after research 20%

2.Discussion pertaining to the three primary strategies as applied by a manufacturing and a service organisation. 20%

3.Report presentation 10%

4.Discuss (give your own thoughts and support your opinion or conclusion) of the strategies employed to gain the competitive advantage claimed by these Global companies. 50%

The University’s Grading Criteria will be followed in assessing the students’ work.

Outstanding 1st Class Honours / Distinction

Upper 2nd Class Honours / Commendation

Clear pass Lower 2nd Class Honours / Pass

Marginal pass 3rd Class Honours / Pass

Marginal fail

A note to the Students:

1.For undergraduate modules, a score above 40% represent a pass performance at honours level.

2.For postgraduate modules, a score of 50% or above represents a pass mark.

3.Modules may have several components of assessment and may require a pass in all elements. For further details, please consult the relevant Module Guide or ask the Module Leader.