Global business

Assignment #1 – A List of Frequently-Asked Questions (updated 18/03/2019 * recent updates are in italics)

General questions on the assignment

How strict is the word limit? Is there a penalty for exceeding the word limit or for writing less?

According to the school’s assessment guidelines, we must set word limit for an assignment according to marks allocation (the rule is a limit of 50 words for each mark worth). Therefore, the word limit should be 600 for Part A, 150 for Part B and 250 for Part C (total of 1,000 words for an assignment worth 20%). However, because Part B is a graph with no word count, I allow you to use these 150 words to write slightly more for Parts A and C. As a rule, we only start imposing a penalty when an assignment exceeds the total word limit by more than 10%, so you should ensure that you do not use more than 1,100 words for the whole report. Although there is no penalty for writing less, you should be cautious if your overall coverage is significantly shorter than the recommended number of words as this may mean that it is either too brief or has insufficient depth/detail. It is part of doing a good assignment to be able to decide what should be included and excluded in your coverage. And, be careful that your coverage for each question should be proportionate to the suggested word limit (eg. you should not have an extremely long Part C and very short Part A, one very long and two very short conclusions, etc).

Are references required?

As an academic assignment, referencing is required whenever you cite or quote from any formal sources. For example, if you forward an argument that relies on an author’s opinion, it should be referenced… if you quote directly from a book or article, it should also be referenced. For more details on referencing procedures, check http://www.citewrite.qut.edu.au/.

For referencing, do I need only to attach a list of references at the back of the document or do I also need to include in-text references within the coverage of the report?

As noted in the assignment document, you should use APA referencing style. This means including both in-text references and a reference list. This is a standard practice in all academic writing. A reference list included at the back of a document does not serve any useful purpose (we need to see the in-text references to know how you have utilised your references in the coverage). A simple example is to take a look at the referencing style used in any published journal article (eg. in Journal of International Business Studies). If you are new to academic referencing, please make sure that you check the APA style on Cite/Write as this will be important for all your assignments http://www.citewrite.qut.edu.au/.

Are references and in-text citations included in the word count?

No, these are not included in the word count.

How many references do I need per section?

There is no strict rule on how many references you need per section (you need to exercise some judgement here). In general, referencing is not so important for Part A as the conclusions are based mostly on your individual analysis, opinion and proposal. If your analysis or proposal is consistent with something similar raised in a book or article, you can reference it for support. For Part B, the only reference you need is the EIU database (see example in the ‘Task Guidelines’ document). For Part C, you should include some good references to support your discussion.

Should I use only recent books/articles for referencing? Are older references acceptable?

As a general guideline for academic referencing, I’d say that if you are looking for references to support theoretical issues, conceptual arguments, definitions of terms, etc., it is not a requirement to have new references (it’s more important here to ensure that the sources used are reputable and reliable). However, if you’re looking for references to support discussion of current trends and recent developments, the sources used must be reasonably up-to-date (preferably published within the past three years).

Is there a structure/format to follow for this assignment?

Follow the ‘format’ shown on page 2 of the ‘Task Guidelines’ document.

Am I required to include the task guidelines document in my submission?

No, you should not include the task guidelines document in your submission as doing so will increase your similarities percentage (which we use to track plagiarism). Your submission should only have your answers to Parts A, B and C structured according to the required format.

Are there any formatting requirements (font type, spacing, etc)?

Readability and neatness are always important for an assignment. I’d recommend: Times New Roman, 12pt font with double spacing.

Do I need an overall ‘introduction’ and ‘conclusion’ section for this assignment?

No, these are not required as this is not a formal report like Assessment #2. Simply follow the required format and label each part clearly (Part A, Part B and Part C).

Can I reference lecture slides? I heard this is not allowed in some units.

Referencing is an important part of academic practice and it is an indication to your marker how you have conducted your research. For all academic assignments (in any unit), never ever use lecture slides for referencing. Lecture slides are not considered original sources as they are mere compilations of materials for teaching purpose. When you do an academic assignment and need to cite or quote something, always seek an original source (eg. use a textbook or a journal article as reference). This is an important point to remember.

Is it possible to apply for an extension? If I need an extension, how can I apply?

As a rule, an extension is only granted under special circumstances. Under the university’s assessment policy, lecturers and tutors are not allowed to negotiate with students on an extension. If you require an extension, you will need to apply by going through the formal procedures (read this page… https://www.student.qut.edu.au/studying/assessment/late-assignments-and-extensions). Once you have submitted an extension application, you must be prepared to wait up to 5 working days to receive an outcome. If you do not receive an outcome or a response before the due date, you should submit whatever work you have already completed. This is important because if your extension application is rejected and you have not submitted anything by the deadline, you will not be graded for the assignment. The university is very strict regarding this, so do be careful. Take note that the university’s assessment policy applies to all units and not only BSB119.

How can I submit my assignment?

For this unit, all assignments must be uploaded through SafeAssign. A submission link will appear in the assessment folder on Blackboard about a week before the deadline. Use this link to upload your assignment.

Questions relevant to Part A

What information should I be analysing?

Basically, your job is to make sense of the information provided in the table. You are required to write 3 conclusions. For each conclusion, you must compare the two countries using any two or more variables from the table. Then, based on your analysis, you should discuss (in each conclusion) what are the potential implications for an international business. For example, based on your analysis of the country data, you may propose that one country is more suitable than the other as an export market for certain products. Or, you may propose that one country is potentially suitable as a location for FDI based on your analysis. You must be able to explain why the entry method is appropriate based on your interpretation of the given data.

Are there any examples that I can look at?

Yes, there is an example in the ‘Guidelines and Examples’ slides covered at the end of the Week 3 lecture (this set of slides can be found with the Week 3 materials in the ‘Assessment’ column of the unit map table in Blackboard/Learning Resources). Also, make sure you attend the Week 4 tutorial as the tutorial exercise is an opportunity for you to do some practice on how to write and present conclusions.

Should both countries be analysed in a conclusion? Or should each conclusion focus only on one country?

You should analyse both countries in each conclusion. For example, if you are using the variables GDP and GINI in a conclusion, you should be analysing these in relation to both the countries, and based on your analysis, you will then propose what you think might be relevant from a business perspective (eg. maybe one country is more suitable as an export market for luxury products while the other is more suitable as an export market for food products, etc).

Are definitions required? Do I need to start each conclusion with a definition of the variables that I am using?

No, the purpose of writing these conclusions is for you to analyse the country information. You should not waste time and words defining what is GDP, what is population, what is inflation, etc. Instead, you should be analysing the information provided on both countries and discussing what may be important from an international business perspective.

Am I free to choose any type of business and entry mode for each conclusion?

Yes. For each conclusion, you’re allowed to consider any type of business and any type of international market entry mode.

Am I required to use real company examples in my conclusion?

This is not a requirement. You can discuss any business in general (like the example shown in Week 3). Just remember though that your conclusions must relate your business examples to internationalisation decision-making.

Should each conclusion only focus on one entry mode or can I relate to a number of different entry modes?

For each conclusion, the key requirement is that you compare both countries using at least 2 variables from the table, then consider what the implications may be from an international business perspective. You can relate each conclusion to as many entry modes as you like (eg. you may propose that one country is better than the other as an export location for certain products, while the other may be more suitable for FDI if the business is involved in certain manufacturing processes, or maybe one country is an excellent import source for a particular business type while another may be appropriate for attracting potential licensees/franchisees, etc). There’s much flexibility in terms of how you can present each conclusion and you’re allowed to be as creative as you like as long as you’re able to logically relate your proposed entry mode(s) to your analysis of the variables.

Is it better to analyse more than two variables for each conclusion?

The requirement for this assignment is that you analyse at least two variables for each conclusion, but you’re allowed to cover more variables if you feel that this will provide a stronger justification for your proposed international business strategies. However, this does not mean that you’ll automatically be awarded more marks if you analyse more variables (from a marker’s perspective, the important emphasis is whether your analysis is good and can provide adequate linkage to your proposals). Sometimes, an in-depth discussion using two variables may be better than being brief with multiple variables, while for certain business scenarios, it may be important to explore a few variables at the same time. To do well for an assignment, you must be able to exercise some judgement on which approach you feel is more appropriate in relation to your coverage.

Can you explain the meaning of “agriculture”, “industry” and “services”?

We use “agriculture”, “industry” and “services” to refer to the “primary”, “secondary” and “tertiary” sectors of an economy. “Agriculture” includes farming, fishing and mining, “industry” includes manufacturing and construction, while “services” include finance, tourism and healthcare.

Questions relevant to Part B

How can I access the EIU database?

You can access the database through the library website. Go to www.library.qut.edu.au and in the ‘Databases and specialised search tools’ section, click on ‘Business’ and then on ‘EIU Country Data’. See additional video examples in the Assessment #1 folder.

My exported Excel file from EIU data does not look right. I get long pages of information rather than just the relevant data. Have I done something wrong?

After selecting the ‘countries’, be careful with selection of the ‘series’. You do not want to include all the GDP information available, only the relevant data for the purpose of this assignment. You should only ‘tick the box’ for the item “GDP % Change PA”.

Do I need to provide comments on the graph?

No, you are not required to provide any comments. The Part B question only requires you to show the correct graph with proper labelling and referencing. You will have the chance to comment on this graph if you use it as part of your analysis in Assessment #2.

Where can I find the library video example that was mentioned in class?

The video is in the Assessment #1 folder (see Blackboard/Assessment/Assessment 1).

I tried the example but my graph looks slightly different even although the general shape is the same, why is this so?

As the example was taken from a previous semester’s assignment, it was based on EIU’s projected data at the point when the analysis was made a year ago. Therefore, there’s likely to be very slight differences although the general shape and trend direction should remain the same.

Is it possible for me to check whether my graph is correct?

Because this is an assessment item, we cannot check for you prior to submission as doing so will be giving the answer away. As noted in class, this is what you can do… try the given example (Slide #5 of the “Assessment #1 Briefing” slides) and make sure you can get the correct graph. After you’ve done this example correctly, simply repeat the same procedures for your Part B.

Should I have two separate graphs (one for each country) or do I need to have both countries on one graph (two lines on a single graph)?

You should have only one graph showing the trend lines of both countries (like the graph shown in the “Assessment #1 Briefing”, Slide #5 example).

Questions relevant to Part C

Is there any specific way that I should present my answer? Are there guidelines to follow?

It is up to you to decide how you want to structure/present your answer (as long as you address the requirements). The purpose of Part C is to test your understanding and knowledge of the stated entry modes. You need to provide some discussion and explanation in your coverage to show your marker that you really understand the topic. And, remember that this question is focused on a small tech-based business (your discussion should consider the entry methods from this perspective).

Do I need to provide definitions for both entry methods?

To show that you understand both methods, you should very briefly describe what they are. However, don’t waste too many words on definitions. The main focus of this question is for you to discuss why a tech-based company may prefer to use licensing rather than exporting. Consider what may be the potential benefits of licensing and problems with exporting for a business like this. Remember to include some good references for support.

Do I need to choose an actual company example to relate to Part C?

No, this is not required. You can simply treat this as a general small tech-based business.

Can I include an appendices section to provide more information?

No. An ‘appendices section’ should only be used for long research reports or essays to include supplementary information. It is not appropriate for this assignment as Part C is meant to be a short answer question at around 250 words. As noted, it’s part of doing a good assignment to be able to decide what to include and exclude in your coverage. If we’re after a very long answer, the word limit would have been set at 2500 rather than 250. So, read the question carefully and ensure that you’re just addressing the requirements and not covering more than necessary.

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