Business Finance - Operations Management Strategy Formulation and Strategic Thinking Literature Review: Outline Assignment

BUSI 770

Literature Review Assignment Instructions

Literature Review: Outline Assignment

Overview

A critical skill at the doctoral level is the ability to conduct scholarly research guided by clearly articulated research questions that address a specific issue or problem. For this literature review, your research will be guided by the following three Research Questions:

1. How do individual and group decision processes aid or impede business decision making?

2. What are the latest developments in the process of strategy development and execution?

3. How can my academic discipline (see note below), as a function within the organization, influence the process of business strategy development and execution?

The first two questions are explored from a broad business perspective, while the third question gives you the opportunity to change your frame of reference to your specific cognate in the Doctoral Program.

Note: The third research question deals with your Cognate (from your DCP) as a function that is performed in a business. This is not exploring your degree program, the courses you have taken, or higher education in any way. You will replace the words ‘my academic discipline’ in Research Question 3 with your actual academic discipline from your DCP. Examples of academic disciplines include Finance, Marketing, Accounting, Information Systems, International Business Management.

The purpose of this research project is for you to create a scholarly piece of doctoral level research and writing which conforms to current APA format.

For this initial assignment, you will be developing the outline for your literature review. Use the Research Questions as provided in the instructions above. Your outline will include a minimum of one level of indentation below each Research Question with not less than two sub‐headings not including the Summary. Following each sub-heading you will provide a one to two sentence description of what you will cover in that section of the literature review. Do not provide any narrative beyond what is being requested and be sure to include citations for any factual assertions you make in your descriptions. The sources documents for all citations provided must be included in the Reference section. Your headings must be descriptive to allow a reader to understand what is included each section and subsection. You can include more than two subheadings for each Research Question and additional levels of indentation if required for your discussion. In the final module you will be submitting your completed literature review.

Use the format below:

Introduction

Level 1 ‐ RQ1

Level 2 ‐ Sub heading 1

Level 2 – Sub heading 2

Summary

Level 1 – RQ2

Level 2 ‐ Sub heading 1

Level 2 – Sub heading 2

Summary

Level 1 – RQ3

Level 2 ‐ Sub heading 1

Level 2 – Sub heading 2

Summary

Conclusion

References

You must attach a word document (.docx).

Literature Review: Final Assignment

Overview

A critical skill at the doctoral level is the ability to conduct scholarly research guided by clearly articulated research questions that address a specific issue or problem. It is important that you include and address the research questions provided. Changing the research question changes the focus of the study, and the resulting document will not meet the requirements for the literature review. For this literature review, your research will be guided by the following three research questions:

1. How do individual and group decision processes aid or impede business decision making?

2. What are the latest developments in the process of strategy development and execution?

3. How can my academic discipline (see note below), as a function within the organization, influence the process of business strategy development and execution?

The first two questions are explored from a broad business perspective, while the third question gives you the opportunity to change your frame of reference to your specific cognate in the Doctoral Program.

Note: The third research question deals with your Cognate (from your DCP) as a function that is performed in a business. This is not exploring your degree program, the courses you have taken, or higher education in any way. You will replace the words ‘my academic discipline’ in Research Question 3 with your actual academic discipline from your DCP. Examples of academic disciplines include Finance, Marketing, Accounting, Information Systems, International Business Management.

What are we looking for in this literature review?

A literature review discusses published information in a particular subject area and sometimes information in a particular subject area within a certain time period. This literature review will be more than just a simple summary of information from various sources as it will include an organizational pattern that combines both a summary and synthesis of information. Please keep in mind that a summary is a re‐encapsulation of the important information found in the source, while a synthesis is a re‐organization and combining of that information to present a more complete picture. Finally, the literature review will evaluate the sources and advise the reader of the most pertinent or relevant points.

How will this literature review be evaluated?

Your work will be evaluated in the areas listed below. Be sure to review the grading rubric to ensure that you have addressed all areas that will be evaluated. If you are uncertain or have questions reach out to your professor right away for clarification.

Content

Required page count

Relevance of Information

Academic Level of Information

Quality of Information

Sources of Information

Structure

Organization of Information

Adherence to Formatting Instructions and APA Style Guide

Important note regarding required page count: Assignments must meet the minimum page count indicated in the instructions. Documents that are short of the required page count as well as documents that address a different subject matter than assigned in the instructions by altering the research questions will have the Content area scores reduced as described below.

For documents that fail to meet the content word/page count called for in the instructions, the professor will multiply the score in each Content area by the percentage actualy provided. Example:

· The instructions call for 10 pages of content and the student provides 5 pages of content.

· Content score for Academic Level of Information is determined to be 16 out of 20.

· That Content score is multiplied by 0.5 for a final Content score of 8 out of 20 for Academic Level of Information. This is done for each Content area in the rubric.

· The professor will provide an explanation in the Comments section of the rubric.

Are there differences between plagiarism, paraphrasing, and quoting?

Paraphrasing is when you take a source or someone else’s idea and say it in your own words or even combine the ideas of several authors as well as your own. When you paraphrase, you will still give the author credit through the use of an in‐text citation connected to the idea as well as a reference at the end of the paper.

A direct quote from a source has quotation marks around the quote. If 40 words or more in length, it must be set in block quotation format. You can refer to the APA guide for more information on this.

At the doctoral level, you should be relying almost exclusively on the use of paraphrasing to allow synthesis of the original author’s views with your own. A direct quotation should only be used in this literature review (or most other documents you will produce) when paraphrasing would change the author’s intended meaning. In other words, you should only use a quotation when it is the only way to convey what the author intended to convey.

Plagiarism on the other hand exists when the writer simply copies the words directly from the source without giving credit with an in‐text citation and a reference. Plagiarism is not permitted and the paper will not be accepted for grading.

Specific Instructions:

· Follow the outline generated in the Literature Review: Outline Assignment to include any feedback from your instructor.

· Use the Research Questions as provided in the instructions

· Minimum of 24 pages of written content, not including introduction, conclusion, front matter, reference section, and any tables or figures provided.

· No less than 8 pages of content addressing each research question

· Minimum of 18 current sources not including course texts

· No less than 6 current sources for each research question not including the course texts

· 1 inch margins, Double Spaced, 12 point font

· Include Cover Page, Abstract, Table of Contents, and Reference Section

· Follow APA (Professional Version) current edition for all formatting

Note: Your Literature Review: Final Assignment will be checked for originality via the Turnitin plagiarism tool.

Page 2 of 2

BUSI 770

Literature Review Assignment Instructions

Literature Review: Outline Assignment

Overview

A critical skill at the doctoral level is the ability to conduct scholarly research guided by clearly articulated research questions that address a specific issue or problem. For this literature review, your research will be guided by the following three Research Questions:

1. How do individual and group decision processes aid or impede business decision making?

2. What are the latest developments in the process of strategy development and execution?

3. How can my academic discipline (see note below), as a function within the organization, influence the process of business strategy development and execution?

The first two questions are explored from a broad business perspective, while the third question gives you the opportunity to change your frame of reference to your specific cognate in the Doctoral Program.

Note: The third research question deals with your Cognate (from your DCP) as a function that is performed in a business. This is not exploring your degree program, the courses you have taken, or higher education in any way. You will replace the words ‘my academic discipline’ in Research Question 3 with your actual academic discipline from your DCP. Examples of academic disciplines include Finance, Marketing, Accounting, Information Systems, International Business Management.

The purpose of this research project is for you to create a scholarly piece of doctoral level research and writing which conforms to current APA format.

For this initial assignment, you will be developing the outline for your literature review. Use the Research Questions as provided in the instructions above. Your outline will include a minimum of one level of indentation below each Research Question with not less than two sub‐headings not including the Summary. Following each sub-heading you will provide a one to two sentence description of what you will cover in that section of the literature review. Do not provide any narrative beyond what is being requested and be sure to include citations for any factual assertions you make in your descriptions. The sources documents for all citations provided must be included in the Reference section. Your headings must be descriptive to allow a reader to understand what is included each section and subsection. You can include more than two subheadings for each Research Question and additional levels of indentation if required for your discussion. In the final module you will be submitting your completed literature review.

Use the format below:

Introduction

Level 1 ‐ RQ1

Level 2 ‐ Sub heading 1

Level 2 – Sub heading 2

Summary

Level 1 – RQ2

Level 2 ‐ Sub heading 1

Level 2 – Sub heading 2

Summary

Level 1 – RQ3

Level 2 ‐ Sub heading 1

Level 2 – Sub heading 2

Summary

Conclusion

References

You must attach a word document (.docx).

Literature Review: Final Assignment

Overview

A critical skill at the doctoral level is the ability to conduct scholarly research guided by clearly articulated research questions that address a specific issue or problem. It is important that you include and address the research questions provided. Changing the research question changes the focus of the study, and the resulting document will not meet the requirements for the literature review. For this literature review, your research will be guided by the following three research questions:

1. How do individual and group decision processes aid or impede business decision making?

2. What are the latest developments in the process of strategy development and execution?

3. How can my academic discipline (see note below), as a function within the organization, influence the process of business strategy development and execution?

The first two questions are explored from a broad business perspective, while the third question gives you the opportunity to change your frame of reference to your specific cognate in the Doctoral Program.

Note: The third research question deals with your Cognate (from your DCP) as a function that is performed in a business. This is not exploring your degree program, the courses you have taken, or higher education in any way. You will replace the words ‘my academic discipline’ in Research Question 3 with your actual academic discipline from your DCP. Examples of academic disciplines include Finance, Marketing, Accounting, Information Systems, International Business Management.

What are we looking for in this literature review?

A literature review discusses published information in a particular subject area and sometimes information in a particular subject area within a certain time period. This literature review will be more than just a simple summary of information from various sources as it will include an organizational pattern that combines both a summary and synthesis of information. Please keep in mind that a summary is a re‐encapsulation of the important information found in the source, while a synthesis is a re‐organization and combining of that information to present a more complete picture. Finally, the literature review will evaluate the sources and advise the reader of the most pertinent or relevant points.

How will this literature review be evaluated?

Your work will be evaluated in the areas listed below. Be sure to review the grading rubric to ensure that you have addressed all areas that will be evaluated. If you are uncertain or have questions reach out to your professor right away for clarification.

Content

Required page count

Relevance of Information

Academic Level of Information

Quality of Information

Sources of Information

Structure

Organization of Information

Adherence to Formatting Instructions and APA Style Guide

Important note regarding required page count: Assignments must meet the minimum page count indicated in the instructions. Documents that are short of the required page count as well as documents that address a different subject matter than assigned in the instructions by altering the research questions will have the Content area scores reduced as described below.

For documents that fail to meet the content word/page count called for in the instructions, the professor will multiply the score in each Content area by the percentage actualy provided. Example:

· The instructions call for 10 pages of content and the student provides 5 pages of content.

· Content score for Academic Level of Information is determined to be 16 out of 20.

· That Content score is multiplied by 0.5 for a final Content score of 8 out of 20 for Academic Level of Information. This is done for each Content area in the rubric.

· The professor will provide an explanation in the Comments section of the rubric.

Are there differences between plagiarism, paraphrasing, and quoting?

Paraphrasing is when you take a source or someone else’s idea and say it in your own words or even combine the ideas of several authors as well as your own. When you paraphrase, you will still give the author credit through the use of an in‐text citation connected to the idea as well as a reference at the end of the paper.

A direct quote from a source has quotation marks around the quote. If 40 words or more in length, it must be set in block quotation format. You can refer to the APA guide for more information on this.

At the doctoral level, you should be relying almost exclusively on the use of paraphrasing to allow synthesis of the original author’s views with your own. A direct quotation should only be used in this literature review (or most other documents you will produce) when paraphrasing would change the author’s intended meaning. In other words, you should only use a quotation when it is the only way to convey what the author intended to convey.

Plagiarism on the other hand exists when the writer simply copies the words directly from the source without giving credit with an in‐text citation and a reference. Plagiarism is not permitted and the paper will not be accepted for grading.

Specific Instructions:

· Follow the outline generated in the Literature Review: Outline Assignment to include any feedback from your instructor.

· Use the Research Questions as provided in the instructions

· Minimum of 24 pages of written content, not including introduction, conclusion, front matter, reference section, and any tables or figures provided.

· No less than 8 pages of content addressing each research question

· Minimum of 18 current sources not including course texts

· No less than 6 current sources for each research question not including the course texts

· 1 inch margins, Double Spaced, 12 point font

· Include Cover Page, Abstract, Table of Contents, and Reference Section

· Follow APA (Professional Version) current edition for all formatting

Note: Your Literature Review: Final Assignment will be checked for originality via the Turnitin plagiarism tool.

Page 2 of 2