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Management Issues for Information Professionals

Task:

Journal Entry. The Journal function in Interact2 must be used. External journal sites are not permitted. If your country geo-blocks Interact2 website or your circumstance prevents you from accessing the Internet (eg. due to a disability or if you are in a correctional centre), please contact your lecturer immediately. If it is an office/organisation firewall preventing access, you must find an alternative Internet access point to complete this task.

Warning: Entering or editing data in this journal entry after 2359 hours on 5 April will result in deduction of marks.

Oz Supermarket is a new retail chain that is setup to reduce exit queues at the check out point. It encourages customers to come in, grab what they want and leave the store. To achieve this goal, it has embarked on the following:

1. The chain stocks only household, stationery and non-perishable goods.
2. It has adopted PayWave technlogy entirely. It does not accept cash. A customer waves his/her card at the entrance and is allowed entry. Special RFID readers are installed in trolleys. When an item is selected or picked, it is automatically queued for payment. If it is removed, the item is deleted. Customers bag their items as they shop. When shopping has been completed, the customer merely exits the store. The total is automatically charged to the card used as the customer walks out of the store. No queues at the check-out.
3. Customers without a PayWave card (eg. tourists and children for example) may approach the front desk to put a temporary cash deposit. They will be issued a store-issued PayWave card that will allow them to shop. They will still be able to exit the store like other customers. The balance is returned in cash or recorded so it can be used for future purchases. If the amount is insufficient to cover the purchases, an alarm will ring.
4. Tagging every item with an RFID chip incurs extra overheads. The store absorbs this cost in the interest of customers who are in a rush.
5. Shopping summary stations strategically placed throughout the stores allow a customer to view in detailed list of items that is in their trolley.
6. Store car parks are also timed by the minute during the peak shopping period. In non-peak periods, car park rates are lower. Disabled parking is free.

Question 1 (1000 words) 

Write a well presented report for the above outlining the business operation. Provide three recommendations that are well substantiated with journal literature and referenced correctly. (You may use the reasons/justifications above or use your own that supports this change).

Question 2 (1000 words) 

Provide an additional option to the above suggestion to improve customer service.

Provide three suggestions into improving business service/operation offerings such as customer feedback, product quality review, etc, substantiated with current literature.

All referencing to be done in APA 6th edition.

Rationale 

This task meets Learning Outcomes 3 & 4:

Students will:

• Be able to analyse the efficiency of information delivery and manage the information and Information Systems;
• Be able to evaluate information capability and delivery options.

Marking criteria 

Question 1

Criteria

HD

DI

CR

PS

FL

Outlining an analysis of the business operation

Adherence to Presentation Format stated below

Provided a well presented case of the given business operation, stating assumptions made. Adherence to

Presentation format stated. Provided a written case of the business operation AND/OR

Non-adherence or more than two errors in Presentation Format

Provided an inaccurate case of the business operation and/or with errors AND/OR

Non-adherence to Presentation Format

Possible Marks

4

3

Less than 2

Providing three recommendations to process improvement in business processes, substantiated with literature.
APA 6th edition to be used

Three recommendations made related to the business, well substantiated and referenced the journal used correctly in APA 6th edition. Three recommendations made to the business, connected to the business and more than 2 errors made in referencing (including not using journals). Less than three recommendations made, or not connected to the business and/or major errors in referencing.

Possible Marks

4

3

Less than 2

Question 2

Criteria

HD

DI

CR

PS

FL

Provide an option to improve customer service

Evaluated current case and provided an option to improve customer service, based on literature. Evaluated case and provided an option with a weak link to literature. Evaluated case and provided an option without substantiation to literature.

Possible Marks

4

3

Less than 2

Providing suggestions into improving business service/operation offerings

Provided at least three suggestions into improving business service/operations. All substantiated with journal literature using APA 6th edition style. Provided up to three suggestions which may not substantiated with journal literature. Provided inappropriate solution and/or not substantiating suggestions made.

Possible Marks

4

3

Less than 2

Only one Reference List is required at the end for both questions.

Presentation 

• After you “Create Journal Entry”, please click “Post Entry”You are given full editing rights even after you post – even the ability to delete that Post.
• It will also enable the lecturer/marker to provide you assistance prior to deadline.
• If you “Save Entry as Draft”, only you can see it and in the past, many students forget to click on “Post Entry” which means you have not submitted your assignment at all.

Journal Presentation Formatting Requirements:

• Journal space on Interact2 presentation text width between 85-95 characters including spaces.
• Font types and sizes consistent (use Arial 12pt) throughout and paragraphs well formed.
• Submit answers to all work in one journal entry.
• No attachments to journal entry allowed.

Other Presentation Requirements:

1. Avoid using dot points, bulleted points, numbered points in your work. Lists do not display your
   understanding of the subject matter and may even appear disjointed to the reader/marker.
2. Meet word limits in each question (allowance of +/- 5%). Table of contents are not required and
   the Reference list are not included in the word count.  (Failure to follow all the above rules, eg. if you do not meet word limit for Q3 but meet for the others,  this is considered as not meeting word limit for all: no partial mark allocated.)
3. Use either UK spelling or USA spelling but do not mix both.
4. All work presented should be carefully proofed, so that spelling and typographical errors are
5. All language used should not be sexist.
6. If acronyms and jargon are used, please explain them in the first instance, then use theabbreviated form in the rest of the report.
7. Appendices are not to be used.
8. Use of headings and sub-headings can be used for clarity.
9. It is important to get the balance right between the citing of referenced material and your own interpretation and ideas. When using your own thoughts and ideas, you can signal the reader by using words and phrases such as ‘it can be argued that…”, “it is evident that…” and  “it seems as though…”
10. Writing in the third person is expected in all pieces of work.
11. Do not submit multiple copies (or versions) of your work. If you do, the marker will only pick the one with the lowest mark awarded. You have full editing rights, kindly remove all  unnecessary material before date due.
12. All date/time mentioned and used is in Australian Eastern Standard Time (or Australian Eastern Daylight Savings Time) or Sydney time.