/ 7117IBA
Semester 1 2014

GRIFFITHBUSINESSSCHOOL

DEPARTMENT OF INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS & ASIAN STUDIES

7117IBABusiness Intelligence Systems

Individual Assignment

Semester 12014

Due Date: Week 11 Monday 19/05/2013 (In Class)

TotalValue:40% 2500 Words approx.

In this individual project, you are required to identify a business intelligence application (system) in an industry or organisation and explain how the system can help and/or support these businesses improve their functional activities and gain competitive advantages. Alternatively, you are required to identify a problem in an industry or organisation and explain how a Business Intelligence solution can help and/or support these businesses improve their functional activities and gain competitive advantages. These might include, decision making, organizational performance issues, data and information issues and any other relevant BI issues. You will be required to write a business report in Word and develop a clear discussion derived from the relevant literature related to your topic. You are encouraged to use examples of BI tools or applications to illustrate the findings in your report. Examples are the spreadsheet package Excel, database application Access, BI tools like SAS, Cognos etc., development programs, diagrams, charts and tables that help better understand your report.

The report should be targeted at the Board of Directors or Executive Management group and be formatted as a formal business report. The content of the report, including tables and graphs must be appropriate for a Senior Management audience.

Assignment focus:

There is a large amount of information available on Business Intelligence. I suggest

that you identify key themes described in the course and use those themes as a

basis of their analysis. This approach will give you the ability to study the key

aspects of the course at a reasonable depth.

While the theoretical underpinnings of the assignment will be primarily drawn from lectures/seminars, tutorials and the textbook, students are expected to supplement this with academic and practitioner-based literature.

A limitation of this assignment is that you have only got a short period of time to identify, collect, analyse, and report on your findings. Assessment of your work will take this into account as long as you demonstrate a “reasonable attempt”

Narrow down your focus to an issue/problem that is small enough to allow you to complete your analysis in 6 to 8 weeks while avoiding addressing a trivial issue.

Use tables and graphs, as appropriate, to communicate your findings and recommendations

Criteria guide for Project

A general guide used for marking is attached. A rubric will be used to assess and mark the project.

Section
Executive Summary
Introduction and Background. Describe the business context, the problem and the main aims of the report.
Literature review: relevant literature review to the topic, systems and/or the BI applications proposed in this report.
Evaluation. Explain the model approach used and the development process. Reflect on the usefulness and limitations of the BI as well as any management issues identified.
Discussion and analysis: using relevant ways and approaches to explain the main issues supported by relevant citations. Charts, diagrams and tables should be also used to help explain your argument
Main BI issues in the study should be covered, explaining the impacts of BI on organizational aspects such as performance, quality of products and services, and customer satisfaction
Demonstrates creative and original thinking
Comprehensiveness of report
Write clearly and present report professionally.
Use correct spelling and grammar
Conclusions and recommendations
Clearly state the main conclusions of the report and case study with some practical suggestions or solutions for your organization.

Submission Instructions:

The project submission should be organised using the following guidelines:

  • A cover page must identify each student with name and number.
  • The report must be in hard copy, typed (12 point font size minimum) using at least single line spacing, and the pages of the report should be numbered and suitably secured.
  • The assignment should be submitted at the lecture to Course Convenor in week 11.
  • Students are encouraged to utilise Safe Assign to check their assignment before submission.
  • Marks will be lost for poor writing, inadequate report structure, and poordiscussion.

Extensions:Requests for an extension beyond the submission date must be accompanied by supporting documentation and be submitted to the course convenor in writing before the due date.

Penalties:University penalties for late submission without an extension are 10% per day or part day. Penalties for cheating or plagiarism range from a reduced result to program exclusion. For full details, refer to the course outline or Griffith web site.

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