Project Title: Analysis – A Sustainable Business Scenario in 2057
Individual Project Aims and Objective
This individual project ‘Analysis – A Sustainable Business Scenario in 2057’ should reflect your ability to consolidate your knowledge, understanding and application of the key concepts and tools learned throughout the module and whilst being free to independently research, analyse and express your creativity within a possible medium term future context.
The project consists of developing a 2057 strategy for a sustainable innovation that will provide value creation and competitive advantage to a sustainable business together with developing an underlying ‘scenario’ for the business in 2057.
The chosen 2057 business scenario should be justified by analysis of the likely future environmental limitations and the socio-political issues and technology changes you have researched; emerging and future trends related to the chosen industry sector and country (You can follow the trends, predictions and guidelines already in place from the EU, UN and several organisations who have already in place their vision for 2050); the contemporary situation (circa 2017). This ‘back cast’ should be further illustrated through the creation of key intermediate milestones on a timeline that stretches from 2057 back to 2017.
Through this project you are expected to document your analysis and rational using credible sources and bibliography based both on key readings and the module content as well as in you individual research.
Formative assessment
Submission: Formative assessment: Week 8 in-class synopsis and 1 to 1 discussion of your project work with your tutor. The principal focus will be your analysis
(including a list of references from your research) justifying your 2057 scenario. If you have progressed further you can discuss a draft of your summative report.
What follows is a possible approach to developing your project
1. Using ‘blue sky’ thinking to develop a proposition for your future business that will create competitive advantage by addressing the difficult environmental and social challenges of 2057. Your projected solution should be focused around its technical, social and environmental benefits
2. Research contemporary (circa 2017) sustainability challenges of an industry in a country of your choice (consider your home country first) or globally. (NB. This is element will only be a minor contribution to your overall summative assessment and is situated at the end of the back cast)
3. Based on your findings you could project these same sustainability challenges into the future to the year 2057. You can follow the trends, predictions and guidelines already in place from the EU, UN and several organisations who have already in place their vision for 2050. This should be illustrated with events at key intermediate dates, which should be justified through some form of analysis.
STM5A1 – RBS – Spring 2017
STM5A1 ASSESSMENT: INDIVIDUAL PROJECT BRIEF
4. Based upon your projection and using analytical tools practiced within the module, you should create a scenario, set in 2057, which describes the socio-economic, technical, legal and environmental challenges your chosen industry/business is facing then. For example, it could be a resource-constrained, low carbon economy, with harsh environmental and social conditions and significant technological advances.
The aim is also to help you establish a context for understanding the sustainability drivers and barriers that affect a future business in the chosen industry and country. This will support your innovative proposition in (1).
5. Now revisit your time line in (2) and add intermediate milestones that support the scenario you have developed in 2057.
6. Now revisit your innovative solution (1) and adjust in the context of the scenario you have developed
At each stage you should reflect your ability to consolidate your knowledge, understanding and application of the key concepts and tools learned throughout the module
Here are some further prompts to help you on your way:
When: The timeline between 2057 and now•
Where: The geographical location/country, as well as the socio-economic-environmental setting.•
Who: The users and what does the industry/business cater for? (e.g. demographics, needs,•
interests, aspirations, values, range…)
Why: the drivers/ barriers/ challenges and opportunities that will affect your industry/business in•
2057 and how have they changed since 2017? (think potential environmental and social
impacts?) Think projecting a timeline showing intermediate milestones
How: describe how the industry/business is innovative, feasible and responsive to the•
sustainability challenges of 2057.
What: the innovation/ business offer? What strategy is the best to meet the challenges of the•
environmental limitation/s (e.g. water shortage or climate change) and or social issues in relation to the industry’s and country’s specific conditions in 2057?
Research and documentation:
To support your idea and analysis you are encouraged to use an array of reliable and relevant sources of information. You should consult official (government) as well as industry and company sources. Additionally, third party sources are also useful. See the university on-line resources such as via RUL Discovery, Greenfiles etc. and naturally materials from the course
If you select quotes from any source you must indicate that source properly. All quotes, and resources used in the presentation must be referenced using the standard Author/Date system (see the Student University Handbook for guidance).
SUMMATIVE ASSESSMENT
Project Title: Analysis – A Sustainable Business Scenario in 2057
Project Aims and Objective
This individual project ‘Analysis – A Sustainable Business Scenario in 2057’ should reflect your ability to consolidate your knowledge, understanding and application of the key concepts and tools learned throughout the module and whilst being free to independently research, analyse and express your creativity within a possible medium term future context.
The project consists of developing a 2057 strategy for a sustainable innovation that will provide value creation and competitive advantage to a sustainable business together with developing an underlying ‘scenario’ for the business in 2057.
The chosen 2057 business scenario should be justified by analysis of the likely future environmental limitations and the socio-political issues and technology changes you have researched; emerging and future trends related to the chosen industry sector and country (You can follow the trends, predictions and guidelines already in place from the EU, UN and several organisations who have already in place their vision for 2050); the contemporary situation (circa 2017). This ‘back cast’ should be further illustrated through the creation of key intermediate milestones on a timeline that stretches from 2057 back to 2017.
Through this project you are expected to document your analysis and rational using credible sources and bibliography based both on key readings and the module content as well as in you individual research.
Written Format
Written report (so it can contain illustrations and bullet points) (2000 words +- 10%), Word processed, using 11pt with 1.5 line spacing.
Guidelines for content and structure (Indicative)
This project will be assessed on the way the document is structured and written. Make sure you check spelling and grammar. It is highly recommended to include illustrations such as images, drawings, tables, graphs if appropriate but make sure you acknowledge the sources correctly, authors/ copyright in captions under the image.
summary of the project must be briefly
presented in seminar during week 11
STM5A1 – RBS – Spring 2017
STM5A1 ASSESSMENT: INDIVIDUAL PROJECT BRIEF
To construct a coherent structure for your project you should consider the following template:
Title page: the title, sub-title if any, date, student name and module.
Contents page: including the headings for the sections
Introduction: introduce the aims and objectives of the report and then provide the context with the necessary background information in a concise manner.
Main section:
Describe the entrepreneurial offer of the sustainable business that is an ‘innovative’ (blue sky) solution to the difficult environmental and social challenges later described in 2057.
Introduce the scenario set in 2057 that describes the plausible sustainability challenges of an industry that future business operates within a resource-constrained economy of that time.
Justify the scenario:
Analyse the period between 2057 and today. For example: What has happened? What has changed? How have environmental limitations impacted your industry, society and global markets? How might governments respond? How can the industry respond? How do the specifics of your home country interact with the limitations and impacts? Why did you prioritise the impacts.
Produce a Timeline illustrating key milestones that have occurred between 2057 and today.
Describe the situation and trends in the industry today – circa 2017 Bibliography: All sources need to be cited including Internet. References should be traceable
Appendix
Research and documentation:
To support your idea and analysis you are encouraged to use an array of reliable and relevant sources of information. You should consult official (government) as well as industry and company sources. Additionally, third party sources are also useful. See the university on-line resources such as via RUL Discovery, Greenfiles etc. and naturally materials from the course
If you select quotes from any source you must indicate that source properly. All quotes, and resources used in the presentation must be referenced using the standard Author/Date system (see the Student University Handbook for guidance). For good practice you should aim to have a minimum of 7-8 sources of which 3 should be via RUL Discovery. In Class presentation:
Presentation:
As part of your assessment you have to perform a brief in class presentation of the main section of your project report (the content should reflect the main points of your innovation and analysis) for a minimum duration of 3 minutes. That is, you must present if you are to pass the module.
It is good practice to learn to present your work to a group of your peers. It will be interesting for them to understand, in a structured way, what you have been working on. You can present in any format that is both visual and audible. If you have not finished your presentation it will be stopped at 7 minutes.
STM5A1 – RBS – Spring 2017
RUL UG Common Assessment Marking Bands
STM5A1 ASSESSMENT: INDIVIDUAL PROJECT BRIEF
Assessment
This project and its report/presentation is a summative assessment and weights 100% of the final grade for this module.
The assessment will be moderated. No negotiation of marks will be possible once the final mark is given to you with feedback.
The final mark will be assessed using the criteria below.
CRITERIA
Demonstrates analytical evaluation and systemic understanding
Relevancy and quality of the scenario plan
Correct use and application of sustainability concepts and tools to sustain the analysis and recommendations
Structure, coherence and clarity of the text
Research skills and correct use of referencing and bibliography
Presentation and argumentation skills displayed in the report and reflected in the presentation material