report

The following MUST be included at the start of your report,

Cover Page (including: name, student number, hand in date, word count, title of the module, title of the report, tutor name and the time/date of your seminar group)

Contents Page – including the headings and sub headings from your text, with page numbers, also a list of figures/tables, with figure/table number, title and page number, and a list of appendices with number, title and page number.

You MAY include an executive summary, if you do this, then it should be after the cover page and before the contents page. This is an overview of all that is in the report, including your key decisions and recommendations. Write it last, but put it in at the beginning of the report.

The following MUST be included at the end of your report,

Immediately after the end of your report, include your bibliography. This should include references from books, journals and from current affairs. As a guide, aim for approximately 30 references in your list.

You should also have a number of Appendices. These may relate to each of the models that you have used in your analysis of the problem/issues. Appendices should always be referred to in the main text of your report.

None of the above count in your word count.

All of what follows counts in your word count (3000 words +/- 10%):

In structuring the report, consider the following

Please note that what follows is a suggestion, you may choose to structure your report differently. If you do, please make sure that your work is logical and that you include all the required content and meet the assessment criteria:

Introduction – in this section you need to be brief (but write in full, concise sentences)

Introduce the company, briefly; the context (key issues from part 1 which you may choose to summarise in an appendix),

· Summarise all the issues you have identified in the business

· State the objectives of the report.

Introduction to problem solving and decision making

· Introduce and define your chosen the problem/issue you will cover in the report, justify your choice and state why this is a problem/issue for the business;

· Analyse the approaches that can be taken in problem solving, for example: rational or bounded rationality approach; BRIDGE; 6 step decision making etc). (See table in lecture 4)

· Select and justify which approach you will use in your report

Main body of the report:

Use the approach you have selected above and use whatever models and techniques you feel are appropriate at each stage… whichever you use, the key stages you will work through are as follows, (the models/techniques you might consider are listed at each stage, you do not need to apply all of these, but you MUST use some and show that you understand and can apply them):

· Understanding the problem: mindmapping/brainstorming/6 hats/ imaginary mentor/politics/ethics; are there any cost vs ethics challenges etc

· Identifying the Root Cause of the problem: Fishbone/mindmap/imaginary mentor

· Generating solution options: brainstorm/mindmap/imaginary mentor/Green Hat

· Selecting your solution – this final stage follows the John Adair Lobster Pot framework

· Reduce your options from many to feasible: decision grid/paired comparison;

· Reduce from feasible to a shortlist of possible: decision grid;

· Analyse your shortlisted options: decision tree/pros and cons/ cost benefit analysis/risk analysis/legal ethical financially viable etc;

· Select your final option(s).

Conclusion

Justify your final solution option, and show that it meets the solution criteria, ie:

· It is legal, ethical, practical, financially viable etc;

· Does it add value to People Profit Planet;

· Does it resolve any cost vs ethics challenges identified at the start

· Will it work in the context of external issues/stakeholder interest/organisational culture/Balanced Score Card etc and

· Check that it will solve the problem without creating more.

Recommendations – Is there anything that needs to be taken into account when you implement the solution in order to ensure that risks are mitigated, budgets are met, stakeholders are satisfied etc.

We need to be persuaded by the end that your solution option is the right one for the business, and we need to understand why it is the right option.

Please write in 3rd person throughout.

Please also remember that you MUST use Harvard Referencing throughout, in your text and in your appendices and bibliography. Reference all sources of information and models/figures/theory/ current affairs/news articles etc.

Any questions – please ask

Kind regards

Karen Trem and the teaching team