GSZ572 Integrated Workplace Project - Business Planning


To view more information for this unit, select Unit Outline from the list below. Please note the teaching period for which the Unit Outline is relevant.


Unit Outline: Flexible Period - A 2022, Gardens Point, Internal (Start Date: 23 Jan 2022)

Unit code:GSZ572
Credit points:6
Other Requisite:114 CPs of Core EMBA units as approved by MBA Director including GSZ405 and GSZ410
Equivalent:GSZ416, GSN416
Coordinators:Tony Peloso | a.peloso@qut.edu.au
Disclaimer - Offer of some units is subject to viability, and information in these Unit Outlines is subject to change prior to commencement of the teaching period.

Overview

The confidence to lead in complex business environments requires business leaders to look at problems and opportunities from multiple perspectives, to determine the course of action through integrating multi-disciplinary knowledge and skills, make decisions with incomplete information and to be a highly effective and persuasive communicator.

The aim of this unit is to enable you to apply the learnings from the program in an integrated manner to address a complex work-based problem or a new or emerging business opportunity of interest to you, your employer or a sponsoring organisation.

This capstone unit in the Executive MBA program and draws together and integrates learning from across the program and assists students to synthesise approaches, frameworks and theory in a manner that provides practical ways to apply them to an industry project.

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit you will be able to:

  1. Prepare a project plan to define and scope a workplace project and apply knowledge of ethical and legal principles relevant to the business environment. KS 1.1, SEC 5.1
  2. Integrate and apply advanced multi-disciplinary theory, frameworks, skills and techniques to design and plan for a proposed new venture or a strategic business initiative in a complex environment. KS 1.1 , HO 2.1
  3. Design and conduct business research and synthesise findings to design an appropriate business model for the proposed new venture or industry project. KS 1.1, HO 2.1
  4. Demonstrate advanced communication skills and use creativity along with a range of technology to develop a presentation that is relevant to the project. HO 2.2 PC 3.2
  5. Critically reflect upon and demonstrate advanced use of digital and written communication to create a comprehensive written business plan for the new venture or industry project. HO 2.2, PC 3.1

Content

This unit builds upon learning from across the program and shall include content specific to the projects been undertaken by students.

Course Learning Outcomes (Postgraduate - Executive)

The Graduate School of Business has established the Assurance of Learning (AoL) Goals to meet contemporary industry needs and standards. Achieving these learning outcomes will assist you to meet the desired graduate outcomes set at QUT - aligned with other internationally renowned business schools. Students will develop the following capabilities relevant to a contemporary global and sustainable business environment:

Knowledge and Technological Skills (KS)
1.1 Demonstrate and apply integrated and advanced theoretical and practical knowledge (including systems thinking approaches, multidisciplinary frameworks and knowledge of research principles and methods) that incorporate recent development in business disciplines and professional practice.
1.2 Apply advanced technical and technological knowledge and skills to critically reflect on, evaluate and contribute to developments that enhance innovative, sustainable and effective business performance in local, national and global business environments.

Higher Order Thinking (HO)
2.1 Provide evidence of effective analysis, interpretation, evaluation and synthesis of complex data, theories, ideas, issues and situations and demonstrate knowledge of how research and inquiry can be used to interpret, contribute to and create theoretical and practical knowledge. 
2.2 Provide evidence of higher order thinking including creativity, judgement, cognitive flexibility and critical reflection in designing, planning and implementing strategies and solutions for effective performance in complex business environments.

Professional Communication (PC)
3.1 Demonstrate advanced use of language and argumentation in written communication, including digital communication, to frame strategic and influential responses to engage, persuade, negotiate, collaborate and lead in diverse and complex contexts and for diverse audiences.
3.2 Demonstrate advanced use of language and argumentation in oral communication, including digital communication, to frame strategic and influential responses to engage, persuade, negotiate, collaborate and lead across diverse and complex contexts and for diverse audiences.

Self and Leadership (SL)
4.1 Demonstrate adaptive personal leadership and accountability, including self-awareness, reflective practice and foresight in adapting and applying knowledge and skills to inform and influence effective and innovative practice.
4.2 Lead, manage and foster the development of collaborative teams that value and leverage the diverse knowledge and skills of others to contribute to the development of robust, adaptable and sustainable courses of action.

Social, Ethical and Cultural Understanding (SEC)
5.1 Demonstrate and apply knowledge of ethical and legal principles and practices of business, to contribute to responsible organisational governance and citizenship in local, national and global business environments.
5.2 Apply knowledge and skills to demonstrate, interpret and critically reflect on, appropriate culturally and socially inclusive and responsible decisions and actions across diverse social and cultural contexts.

Learning Approaches

This unit adopts a blended learning approach and as such, includes a variety of teaching and learning approaches.

Intensive face-to-face class sessions and/or webinars are the primary methods of teaching this unit. A textbook and/or readings and a range of digital materials that are designed to support and extend learning prior to, during and after class sessions available in the unit Blackboard site supplements the classes and/or webinars. Where appropriate, social media tools and forums will be used to extend learning and build connections with students outside the class or webinar sessions. Given the importance of the unit Blackboard site to the teaching and learning strategy used in this unit, a computer and tablet device with internet access is strongly recommended for all students.

The focus is for students to be able to synthesise learning from a range of disciplinary perspectives obtained by undertaking previous units across the program and to apply these in a real-world project context. Any new material provided is meant to complement and enhance earlier taught material. The principal purpose of the webinars is to act as a virtual consultation session to ensure adequate progression and to provide assistance with project design and scoping, and to ensure academic rigour is being applied to the research investigation.

There is an expectation that the student will participate in class sessions and/or webinars, to take advantage of the opportunity to discuss important issues with their instructor and their peers.

It is expected that students have completed all Preparation for Class activities and readings identified in the unit Blackboard site prior to attending webinars to be able to maximise the learning opportunities of the class sessions.

There is a commitment to critical inquiry and intellectual debate in regard to the material covered. Students are encouraged to relate the theories and research discussed to situations known to them and will be encouraged to share their experiences relating to the topics explored in this unit with the class to enrich the overall learning experience of all students.

Expanding the awareness of Australian management policies and practices into intercultural and global perspectives is fostered within this unit. Typically, students enrolling in this unit have extremely varied backgrounds. There is diversity of professional background and socio-cultural background. Students are reminded that this is to their advantage and they have much to learn from one another. To this end, students are strongly encouraged to be sensitive to cultural, gender-related and international issues.

As all projects undertaken by students are 'live' ventures or industry projects, all projects are to be identified and approved by the Unit Coordinator prior to the commencement of this unit. If students do not identify a project deemed suitable by the Unit Coordinator, a project will be allocated to the student.

Where acknowledgment of confidentiality is a requirement by the project sponsor and a Confidentiality Agreement is to be entered into this is to be provided by the sponsor to the student for execution. QUT will NOT be a signatory to such agreements HOWEVER, a statement of confidentiality can be provided to the sponsor if required as well as acknowledgement that QUT staff confidentiality is addressed through the QUT Code of Conduct.

Feedback on Learning and Assessment

Students will receive a variety of formative feedback throughout this unit.

Informally, feedback will be given verbally in class through class discussions and during the debriefing of learning activities.

Direct feedback will be available to those students who request a private or group consultation session with the lecturer.

Formal feedback will be received on both formative and summative assessment tasks through a Criterion Reference Assessment sheet which will also include written feedback on the assessment task. The Criterion Reference Assessment Sheet will be available in the Blackboard unit site at the commencement of the unit.Students will receive feedback on their formative assessment task prior to their summative assessment task being submitted.

Academic Honesty

Academic honesty means that you are expected to exhibit honesty and act responsibly when undertaking assessment. Any action or practice on your part which would defeat the purposes of assessment is regarded as academic dishonesty. The penalties for academic dishonesty are provided in the Student Rules. For more information you should consult the Academic Integrity Kit, and the QUT Library resources for avoiding plagiarism.

This unit may use the SafeAssign tool in BlackBoard. SafeAssign is a text matching tool that assists students to develop the academic skills required to correctly use and cite reference material as well as to check citations and determine possible instances of plagiarism. You may be asked to use SafeAssign, in which case you will be expected to submit draft and/or final versions of one or more assignments and may be asked to answer a short online survey about the tool. Using SafeAssign does not constitute formal submission of an assignment. Your Unit Coordinator will provide detailed information on how the software will be used for individual assignments. The use of the tool is for educative purposes and is entirely voluntary.

Assessment

Unit Grading Scheme

7- point scale

Assessment Tasks

Assessment: Project Proposal and Plan

Students are required to prepare a Project Proposal & Plan for their project which will define and scope their proposed work-based project and an appropriate research methodology for their nominated project. The work-based project needs to be an actual 'real world' project that is supported by an executive sponsor. The project can be either one identified by the student, provided to the student by their employer or provided by a sponsoring organisation. If the project is student identified, the student is encouraged to ensure the project is 'real' rather than hypothetical in nature.

Students should seek approval of the project prior to the commencement date of the unit. If the student is unable to find a suitable project or the proposed project is deemed not suitable by the unit coordinator to meet the unit learning outcomes of this unit then a project will be allocated to students.

All projects must be undertaken on an individual basis (no groups). However, if the project opportunity is significant enough individual students may work on complementary aspects of the same project.

It is important for students to understand that it is their responsibility to manage the relationship with their sponsor including confidentiality and non-disclosure agreements. Part of this learning experience is for the students to ensure that their project is aligned with both the sponsor needs and the requirements of this unit.

Formative or Summative: Formative

Postgraduate Executive (AoL goals): KS (1.1), HO (2.1), SEC (5.1)

This is an assignment for the purposes of an extension.

Weight: 0
Length: 750 words
Individual/Group: Individual
Due (indicative): as timetabled
Related Unit learning outcomes: 1, 2, 3

Assessment: Project Presentation

Students are required to prepare and develop a project findings presentation to be delivered to the Unit Coordinator. The presentation is to cover Problem/Opportunity, Key Research issues, methodology summary, Data analysis, key findings, recommendations and progress to date.
This presentation is to be sufficiently detailed so as to be able to allow the Unit Coordinator to identify gaps in logic, areas of improvement and substantive improvement prior to the completion and the submission of the Project Report (Assessment 3).

Formative or Summative: Summative and Formative

Postgraduate Executive (AoL goals): KS (1.1), HO (2.2), PC (3.2)

Weight: 40
Length: 10-minutes
Individual/Group: Individual
Due (indicative): as timetabled
Related Unit learning outcomes: 2, 4

Assessment: Project Report

Students are required to develop a comprehensive executive-level Report as agreed by the students' sponsoring organisation. The report is to address an identified problem or opportunity in the context of an organisation. It is expected that the report presented is a high quality professional document and the data collected should be presented visually in the form of graphs, tables or diagrams as appropriate for the type of data presented. The report should be professional with the primary audience being the sponsoring organisation (whilst conforming to standard academic requirements for referencing).

Formative or Summative: Summative

Postgraduate Executive (AoL goals): KS (1.1) , HO (2.1, 2.2), PC (3.1)

This is an assignment for the purposes of an extension.

Weight: 60
Length: 2,500 words
Individual/Group: Individual
Due (indicative): as timetabled
Related Unit learning outcomes: 3, 5

Academic Integrity

Students are expected to engage in learning and assessment at QUT with honesty, transparency and fairness. Maintaining academic integrity means upholding these principles and demonstrating valuable professional capabilities based on ethical foundations.

Failure to maintain academic integrity can take many forms. It includes cheating in examinations, plagiarism, self-plagiarism, collusion, and submitting an assessment item completed by another person (e.g. contract cheating). It can also include providing your assessment to another entity, such as to a person or website.

You are encouraged to make use of QUT’s learning support services, resources and tools to assure the academic integrity of your assessment. This includes the use of text matching software that may be available to assist with self-assessing your academic integrity as part of the assessment submission process.

Further details of QUT’s approach to academic integrity are outlined in the Academic integrity policy and the Student Code of Conduct. Breaching QUT’s Academic integrity policy is regarded as student misconduct and can lead to the imposition of penalties ranging from a grade reduction to exclusion from QUT.

Resources

Resource Materials

Prescribed text(s)

Sekaran, U., & Bougie, R. (2016). Research methods for business: A skill-building approach (7th ed.). Haddington: John Wiley & Sons

Other

GSZ572 Blackboard site

Risk Assessment Statement

There are no out-of-the-ordinary risks associated with lectures or tutorials in this unit. You should, however, familiarise yourself with evacuation procedures operating in the buildings in which you attend classes and take the time to
view the Emergency video.

Standards/Competencies

This unit is designed to support your development of the following standards\competencies.

QUT Business Capabilities (Postgraduate Executive)

HO (2.1): Critical Analysis

Relates to: ULO2, ULO3, Project Proposal and Plan, Project Report

HO (2.2): Independent Judgement and Decision-Making

Relates to: ULO4, ULO5, Project Presentation, Project Report

KS (1.1): Advanced Discipline and Professional Practice Knowledge

Relates to: ULO1, ULO2, ULO3, Project Proposal and Plan, Project Presentation, Project Report

PC (3.1): Professional Communication (Written)

Relates to: ULO5, Project Report

PC (3.2): Professional Communication (Oral)

Relates to: ULO4, Project Presentation

SE (5.1): Ethical and Legal Understanding

Relates to: ULO1, Project Proposal and Plan

Course Learning Outcomes

This unit is designed to support your development of the following course/study area learning outcomes.

GS50 Executive Master of Business Administration

  1. Demonstrate, apply and integrate contemporary, advanced multidisciplinary knowledge, business practices, and research principles underpinned by a systems thinking framework to respond to global, complex real-world challenges.
    Relates to: ULO1, ULO2, ULO3, Project Proposal and Plan, Project Presentation, Project Report
  2. Critically analyse, interpret, evaluate and synthesise complex data, research, theoretical knowledge, ideas and situations to lead and support decision-making in global complex business environments.
    Relates to: ULO2, ULO3, Project Proposal and Plan, Project Report
  3. Demonstrate holistic thinking, creativity, problem solving and critical reflection to design, plan and implement strategies and solutions for strategic leadership in global complex business environments.
    Relates to: ULO4, ULO5, Project Presentation, Project Report
  4. Demonstrate advanced professional written communication skills in a variety of genres to clearly communicate strategic and complex thinking, engage, persuade, influence and lead diverse stakeholders in a range of contexts.
    Relates to: ULO5, Project Report
  5. Demonstrate advanced professional oral communication skills and media to clearly communicate strategic and complex thinking and to engage, persuade, influence and lead diverse stakeholders to achieve a strategic outcome.
    Relates to: ULO4, Project Presentation
  6. Apply knowledge and skills of responsible organisational governance, legal and business practices to make executive level ethical business decisions in organisational and local, national and global contexts.
    Relates to: ULO1, Project Proposal and Plan