Stelios Sapountzis, s.sapountzis@Salford.ac.uk, Maxwell 608f 

Aaron Robertson, a.d.robertson@salford.ac.uk , Maxwell 611

Submission deadline date and time 

The submission deadline is Monday 28/10/2024 by no later than 16:00. Any submission received after 16:00 (even if only by a few seconds will be considered as late). 

Students with a Reasonable Adjustment Plan (RAP) or Carer Support Plan should check your plan to see if an extension to this submission date has been agreed.

How to submit

You should submit your assessment in a PDF or MS Word Format within the FINAL assessment folder on Blackboard’s Managing Project Deployment and Delivery space

As the University will mark assessments anonymously where this is possible, please use your student roll number and not your name on your submission. 

Assessment task details and instructions

The CEO at your company have instructed you as their Project Director to provide them with an Outline Business Case report on how to plan and deliver a project based on the information provided in the following pages.

Project Information

You are the project director of a software development company, and your team has won a UK government bid to work with manufacturers in Aerospace, Rail and Automotive to create a software application to improve UK cross-sector manufacturing collaboration and overall efficiency. 

You must work with multiple sectors and their stakeholders to create a solution that has three main outputs:

1. A digital tool that will enable potential participating businesses to collaborate and share data. The tool should allow for cross-sector Small Medium Enterprise (SMEs) supply-chain collaboration. Functions should include the capture, consolidation and visualisation of supply-chain data from different companies.  
2. An App that will drive SME engagement and incentivise users to maintain profile data, connect with other network users and drive collaboration enabling organisations to share news posts, or company specific updates, capture survey/questionnaire data (e.g Linkedin or similar). 
3. A diagram (cross sector taxonomy) that shows the shared characteristics between the sectors) 

It us recommended that the app would utilise Machine Learning based on the taxonomy diagram that will optimise user experience & post relevance. The incorporation of AI should automatically recommend areas for collaborative work. 

Background 

There is an immediate need for granular supply-chain intelligence and proactive risk mitigation through collaboration and focused intervention, to prevent UK aerospace, automotive and other SMEs from getting into unrecoverable financial difficulties. 

Following the recent COVID-19 pandemic, combined with drastic policy changes because of BREXIT, the Aerospace, Rail and Automotive sectors identified over-reliance on overseas supply-chains, emphasising need for onshoring and establishing localised ecosystems which will protect UK jobs and reduce carbon footprint. 

COVID-19 decimated these sectors and there is now a government requirement to protect skilled jobs and the future of supply-chains by accelerating cross-sector collaboration with other manufacturing sectors such as Rail and Logistics. 

To mitigate these impacts, UK aero/auto manufacturing businesses can no longer work in silos and compete as individual organisations. Instead, they must connect and collaborate with customers and suppliers so that they can compete as integrated, cross-sector manufacturing ecosystems, which enables organisations to focus on core competences, benefit from economies-of-scale and share knowledge with the overall aim of:

• Reduction of transport carbon footprint
• Onshoring Manufacturing Supply
• Providing UK companies and the government with industry data to focus policy and support, ensuring UK taxpayer's money deployed most effectively. 

The project will address significant barriers that inhibit growth of these cross-sector manufacturing ecosystems, such as supply-chain transparency, data and security. 

There is currently a lack of digitalised infrastructure to streamline the capture analysis of big data.

This could be achieved by developing a cross-sector supply-chain collaboration tool that will enable companies to work together and share performance data. The proposed tool solutions will be established within an app-store that will incentivise users to maintain data. For example, profile data and allow connectivity with other network users to drive collaboration. This could be underpinned by AI to optimise sourcing and supplier selection decisions. 

The project should also generate a cross-sector classification taxonomy which classifies companies, into groups based on similar production processes, products and behaviours.

That underpins the matchmaking AI, automatically recommending connections for work-packages, tenders and suggest innovation partners, new customers/suppliers based on interests and company profiles.

The overall aim is to improve supply chain visibility of UK Aerospace and Automotive supply-chains reducing sub-tier risks, increase onshoring opportunities and connecting suppliers with more opportunities such as Rail, sustainable transport and renewable energy supply-chains.

Total budget: £500,000 (Funded by the UK Government)

Duration: 12 Months

Your task: 

Based on the above information you will need to develop an outline business case report (up to 3,000 words), detailing the utilisation of appropriate project management tools and techniques in relation to strategic alignment, economic impact, planning, scheduling and financial considerations.

The outline business case report needs to include:

1. The project’s Mission and Objectives including the anticipated Impact that the project will have to the organisation and other main stakeholders.

2. A full stakeholder management plan.

3. An outline project activity plan using the appropriate Planning Breakdown Structures.

4. A resource allocation and utilisation plan by using a Resource Assignment Matrix.

5. A cost estimation and allocation for the duration of the project using an appropriate technique.

6. A 12-month timeline schedule, with key milestones and a critical path. 

7. A Risk Management Assessment table for five key risks associated with the delivery of the project.

8. As part of this project you will need to define the Quality characteristics of the project outputs. This quality planning requires specifying the criteria that are used to validate that these outputs are fit for purpose and acceptable for the key stakeholders and customers.

You should follow an industrial report format. Therefore, your report should have: 

• Cover page that will include the Project title. 
• Executive Summary; (not part of the word count) 
• Contents page.
• Introduction
  • Project Background
  • Need Justification
  • Mission and Objectives 
  • Impact and value proposition
• Main body split in sub sections:
  • Stakeholder Management Plan
  • Project Deployment Plan 
  • Resource Allocation Plan 
  • Cost Estimation and Budget considerations 
  • Scheduling of key activities
  • Risk Management
  • Quality Characteristics 
• Discussion and Conclusion.
• References / Bibliography.

You are strongly advised to use diagrams, illustrations, tables, graphics etc. as they have been demonstrated in class. If you do use these, please do not put them in the appendices as they are part of your main report.  

Appendices are the appropriate places to put supporting material, however, remember if the reader is satisfied with the main points of your discussion; the supporting information within the appendices may not even be reviewed.  

The report should also be page numbered. Please note if you are uncertain on how to present and structure a report then visit the university library and ask for assistance.

While you must be explicit about the theories, models, techniques etc. that you use, you can assume that the reader is familiar with them. What the reader requires is evidence of your ability to understand and apply the theory and learn from to support the development of your findings and/or ideas.

You must cite all sources on which you have relied, for example textbooks, journal articles, web pages etc. using the APA 7th (Harvard) Style system. If you do not cite all sources, then you may be accused of plagiarism, and that may endanger your success in passing the module. If you are in any doubt about how to reference your work, please obtain guidance from the library and/or your academic librarian(s) for this module. 

Marking Criteria

Knowledge and Understanding

Practical, Professional or Subject Specific Skills

Assessed intended learning outcomes

On successful completion of this assessment, you will be able to:

1. Apply knowledge of the theory and practice of project planning and control and the use of Project Management methods and techniques.
2. Critically evaluate the use of techniques in leading, planning and control of the project management process.
3. Create a sound understanding within organisations of the importance of Project Management in the development and maintenance of sustainable global organisations.
4. Apply knowledge and application of the tools and techniques such as estimating, forecasting and resource management to make decisions.
5. Critically appraise project outcomes for the purpose of continuous improvement and value generation
6. Use terminology associated with the subject area accurately and in a way, which demonstrates sophisticated knowledge and understanding

You will develop a range of employability skills sought by employers through each assessment.   Through this assessment will have an opportunity to develop and demonstrate the following employability skills:

I = You will have been introduced to this skill

U = You will have developed an understanding of this skill in the context of your subject

A = You will be able to apply this skill in the context of your subject

D = You will have demonstrated an enhanced understanding and application of this skill in a wider context 

For this assessment the use of tools, software, or features of software which use artificial intelligence to generate content such as text, images or data, is not authorised.

The work you submit must be entirely your own, representing your own abilities and ideas. 

Use of AI to generate a response to questions in this assessment, or the assessment brief, is academic misconduct. 

Word count/ duration (if applicable)

The report should be up to 3,000 words or equivalent and include the use of diagrams, illustrations, tables, graphics etc. Your word count is from the introduction to conclusion sections.  Therefore, it does not include title page, contents page, reference section, appendices etc. If the assignment exceeds these limits; the work in excess of 3,000 will not be marked.

Feedback arrangements

You can expect to receive feedback by Tuesday 19th November 2024, marks and feedback (verbal or written) will be available for you to access on Blackboard and attached to your submission.

During the seminar sessions we will work on group exercises associated with the assignment task and you will be provided with formative feedback on the quality of your work.

Academic Integrity and Referencing

Students are expected to learn and demonstrate skills associated with good academic conduct (academic integrity). Good academic conduct includes the use of clear and correct referencing of source materials. Here is a link to where you can find out more about the skills which students need:

Academic integrity & referencing

Referencing  

Academic Misconduct is an action which may give you an unfair advantage in your academic work. This includes plagiarism, asking someone else to write your assessment for you or taking notes into an exam. The University takes all forms of academic misconduct seriously.  

Assessment Information and Support

Support for this Assessment

You can obtain support for this assessment by attending your module lectures, seminars and drop-in sessions and part of one session will focus on the assessment. The sessions provide you with good opportunities to ask questions to seek clarity and direction on the subject and addressing the assessment brief. You can e-mail the tutor and visit the module Blackboard site for regular updates that can directly support your learning in the subject and in developing your assignment.

You can find more information about understanding your assessment brief and assessment tips for success here. 

Assessment Rules and Processes

You can find information about assessment rules and processes in the Assessment Support module in Blackboard.  

Develop your Academic and Digital Skills 

Find resources to help you develop your skills here. 

Concerns about Studies or Progress

If you have any concerns about your studies, contact your Academic Progress Review Tutor/Personal Tutor or your Student Progression Administrator (SPA).

askUS Services

The University offers a range of support services for students through askUS including Disability and Inclusion Service, Wellbeing and Counselling Services.

Personal Mitigating Circumstances (PMCs)

If personal mitigating circumstances (e.g. illness or other personal circumstances) may have affected your ability to complete this assessment, you can find more information about the Personal Mitigating Circumstances Procedure here.  Independent advice is available from the Students’ Union Advice Centre about this process:  https://www.salfordstudents.com/advice/centre 

In Year Retrieval Scheme

Your assessment is not eligible for in year retrieval. If you are eligible for this scheme, you will be contacted shortly after the feedback deadline.

You can find more information about this scheme in the Assessment Support module in Blackboard.  

Reassessment

If you fail your assessment, and are eligible for reassessment, you will be notified by our administration team by email. You will be informed for the data of resubmission. You will also be able to find the date for resubmission on your module site in Blackboard. The assignment brief for reassessment remains the same as the original task. 

Reassessment Submission date: 03/01/2025

For students with accepted personal mitigating circumstances for absence/non submission, this will be your replacement assessment attempt.  

We know that having to undergo a reassessment can be challenging however support is available.  Have a look at all the sources of support outlined earlier in this brief.