In this era, organizations are expected to have a) strong corporate strategies b) employ appropriate concepts of Corporate Governance, and c) Ethical considerations aligned with Corporate Governance and Strategy. You are required to take look at the list of organizations, provided at the end, prepare a report of a minimum of 3,500 words and incorporate all facets in the form of a management report, which discusses the corporate strategy, governance, and ethics practices of a given organization within the environment in which it operates.
What does the assignment require?
You should have a sound understanding of the following:
1) How to analyze business environment and development of business organisation which operates worldwide.
2) The relationship between organisation’s resource, product/services and its environment. 3) How to evaluate business ethics from worldwide perspective?
4) The concepts and perspective of Corporate Governance in an organisation.
Students within the same college must not choose the same multinational organisation within a calendar year; a list of 25 global companies is provided at the end of these guidelines for the use of students and tutors.
Examiner’s requirements
In order to meet these objectives, you will need to address the following because these points actually relate to the Learning Outcomes, which need to be covered by students.
These are aspects of the organisation in its current environment and in relation to predicted future changes in the environment from a global perspective. They relate directly to the Learning Outcomes of the unit. • Critical analysis of the specified organisation (products/services, markets, divisions and subdivisions).
- Critical analysis of the organisation’s environment.
- Critical evaluation of how the organisation relates its competences to its environment via its strategy.
- Critical appraisal of the impact of social, environmental, ethical, legal and governance issues on the organisation.
- Critical evaluation of how the organisation is currently framing these issues in its strategy and operations.
- Assess the extent to which the organisation is managing tensions between corporate responsibility and maximising shareholder value.
You will need to draw conclusions on the extent to which the organisation is managing and controlling the variables that are most critical to its survival and prosperity, and hence its ability and propensity to achieve its chosen goals. Conclusions should not merely repeat the points mentioned in the main text; they should demonstrate critical thinking and original thought.
Unit 2: Corporate Strategy, Governance and Ethics
2
You are advised to examine the purpose of the unit, as stated in the syllabus, the learning outcomes and the assessment criteria. By doing this you will remain focused on the key points that should be considered in your research and report.
Mark Scheme
Quality of research undertaken [marks 0-20]
- Knowledge of relevant theories/literature used to inform the work.
- Evidence of extensive research of areas to underpin the evaluation.
Application of literature researched and appropriate theories used [marks 0-45]
- Critical evaluation of how the specified organisation relates its competences to its environment via its strategy [marks 0-15].
- Critical appraisal of the impact of social, environmental, ethical, legal and governance issues on the organisation [marks 0-15].
- Critical evaluation of the manner in which the organisation frames these issues in its strategy and operations so as to manage tensions between the conflicting goals of corporate responsibility and maximising shareholder returns [marks 0-15].
Conclusions [marks 0-25]
- Critical analysis and evaluation and the validity of the conclusions [marks 0-15]. • Original thought in deriving conclusions [marks 0-10].
Structure and clarity [marks 0-10]
- Appropriate structure including suitable use of tables, charts, references, appendices, etc. [marks 0- 5].
- Clarity of analysis [marks 0-5].
Word count
The word count for this assignment is 3,500 words. A tolerance of +/- 10% is allowed where no penalty is incurred.
Where an assignment falls outside this tolerance the total mark awarded will be reduced. Assignments which are up to 10% under or above the word count tolerance will be subject to a deduction of 5 marks, with subsequent penalties of an extra 5 marks deducted for every further 10%.
For clarification the word count applies to the entire body of the text (i.e. including headings, citations, content of tables and diagrams) but does not include the reference list or the appendices.
Materials included in appendices should add to the reader’s understanding of the assignment. All appendices must be cited within the body of the assignment and must be clearly numbered.
An accurate electronic word count must be noted on the front of all assignments. The penalty for not providing a word count, or for providing an inaccurate word count, will be a deduction of 3 marks.
Unit 2: Corporate Strategy, Governance and Ethics
3
List of organisations
Below is a list of 25 large corporate organisations from which students are required to select one (only) for their assignment topic. No two students within the same college must select the same organisation in a calendar year. If a college has more than 25 students submitting an assignment for this unit, two students may choose the same company but they must choose a different topic/strategic decision and the tutor must make note of this and forward it with the student assignments to LRN.
Possible organisations:
- Apple
- AstraZeneca
- AXA
- BP
- Bradesco
- Coca-Cola
- Gazprom
- Generali Group
- Goldman Sachs
- HSBC
- IBM
- ITT Industries
- Microsoft
- Pearson
- PepsiCo
- Petrobras
- Reliance Industries Limited
- Rio Tinto
- Rosneft
- Schroeder Group
- Sinopec
- Sony
- Tata
- Xerox
