The submission is in the form of a portfolio which includes the following components:
1. Project management plan including a work breakdown structure in the form of a Gantt chart.
2. A completed project Logbook.
3. A comprehensive management report (Reflective summary).
4. Project Log Book (Use the template provided for log book).
5. Performance Review template (Use the template provided).
6. Power point presentation with speaker notes included at the end of report.
The presentation is in the form of a 10-minute individual PowerPoint presentation and 5 minutes allocated for questions. The presentation slides and speaker notes should be submitted in theportfolio. You are required to make effective use of PowerPoint headings, bullet points and subsections as appropriate. Your research should be referenced using the Harvard referencing system. Please also provide a bibliography using the Harvard referencing system. The recommended word limit is 2,500 to 3,500 words, including speaker notes, although you will not be penalized for exceeding the total word limit.
LO1 Explain the key stages of the project lifecycle that should be considered when project managing.
LO2 Produce a Project Management Plan (PMP) for a business project using primary and secondary research methods.
LO3 Implement the Project Management Plan (PMP) to communicate results from the research and make conclusions from the evidence of findings.
LO4 Reflect on value gained from implementing the project and the project management process.
- Articulating and effectively explaining information.
- Communication and listening, including the ability to produce clear, structured business communications in a variety of media.
Conceptual and critical thinking, analysis, synthesis and evaluation.
Organisation
Falcon consulting was established in 1984 as a marketing and management consulting firm with a great reputation in the industry. The company provides services to its clients who are mostly business firms but also serves individuals in need of conducting business research for their business ideas and also helps in providing them support to find the right connections (Staff and Suppliers) to establish the newly formed business in the market.
Falcon consulting was doing it in the traditional way but more recently it is receiving requests from the E-Commerce based firms to help them in finding the right products and markets to sell online. With the ever increasing influence of digital media and losing its market share to digital platforms like Linkedin and ecommerce platforms that provide the similar services.
Falcon Consulting Recently established its Digital Media presence and started providing digital services across the world with a special focus to help businesses establish their physical presence in the UK market. Digital media and Business development department provides the clients with research and management reports required by the clients and also helps in providing the solutions they find out during the business and marketing audit. Laura is Managing Director of Falcon consulting and is particularly interested in the digital media and International clients. And always emphasizes the need to “under promise and over deliver to the client”.
Role
You are a Junior Analyst in the Falcon Consulting’s Digital media and Business development department. Your role encompasses Product and market hunt for the individuals aspiring to become sellers on Amazon and eBay. This job role requires you to do the market research for the international clients interested in establishing physical presence of their businesses across UK as well as the marketing and management strategy development in the light of independent research done on behalf of the clients. Your duties include:
- Conducting Marketing research for the clients.
- Developing proposals and reports for the clients.
- Presenting the findings of the research report to the clients.
- Developing Project end report for the senior management of Falcon Consulting.
You have been approached by a clothing Manufacturing Company (American Dress) in Pakistan that was established in 1992 and works in the men’s formal ware suiting business exclusively. Business model of American dress is to open outlets with a huge variety of fabric for men only and provide customers with personal attention and help in selecting the fabric with the help of sales team present on all 7 stores in Pakistan and one store in UK (Newcastle upon Tyne) . Sales process at any American dress store is as under:
1. Customers select the Fabric from a vast selection of custom made fabric exclusively available at American Dress centers.
2. Customer selects design with the help of an experienced tailor.
3. Measurement of dress is taken with the help of an expert.
4. Customer proceeds to the payment counter where receipt (containing the dimensions and other necessary information about the clients and product) is generated and a copy is provided to the client to show at the time of collection.
To shelf the 8 outlets of American Dress they need to keep a huge inventory which is there to ensure the repeat customer can buy the previously purchased products.
In last three decades American Dress has become a household name in the urban areas of Pakistan but yet it is far from a developed brand and is still in its early stages of evolution to become a big brand.
Mr. Sohail (Managing Director) of American dress is an ambitious businessperson and wants to expand internationally with the help of digital media by opening online store with capability to provide delivery in most of the Europe and UK to start with.
Sohail had decided to explore the UK market for this purpose because most of the Pakistani Diaspora living in the UK is already familiar with the brand and possibly is potential customer. For this purpose they opened their first physical store in UK in 2018. American Dress company’s Newcastle branch was doing fine and there was a 14% monthly increase in sales revenue recorded in almost two years before the lock down was announced and the shop was closed.
Before the shop closed due to lockdown there were following departments and staff members in the shop.
Store Manager: Responsible for the overall performance and function of the store.
Sales: Seven Staff members working in shifts.
PR & Marketing: One staff member to plan, create and hire temporary staff for PR and marketing events.
Production: Five Tailors for alterations and stitching the urgent orders.
Cleaner: One Full time cleaner responsible for keeping the production area and shop floor clean.
After the lockdown was lifted world was facing an international crisis of Supply chains a followed by commodity market prices and Ukraine-Russia War. The growth in sales revenue was interrupted and now the sales are 15% lower (yearly average) than the pre pandemic sales figures which were £21000 per month and there is no sign of growth so far. Considering the monthly expenses are in the same range the shop is barely surviving and needs to increase sales to at least £25000 to make reasonable profit.
Alice was working as PR officer at the shop and her job was to create various events and opportunities to engage the potential customers and introduce them to the brand. After the lockdown this positioned was kept empty to cover the costs, therefore this important business function is temporarily dysfunctional.
Therefore to reassure the management about the strength of Idea and acceptance of the product in the market American dress decided to hire the services of Falcon consulting to conduct market research and answer the questions in the minds of the American Dress board members.
- They want to know if it is going to be successful strategy to keep investing in the physical store and open more physical stores? Or they should only focus on online stores in UK and Europe without any physical presence.
- Another very important question in front of them is to do business continuity planning if they are to survive in the UK market.
Therefore the American dress company has requested management consultancy from Falcon consulting to help them maintain and resume the business functions at American dress company’s Newcastle shop after pandemic is over.
You have been provided following Terms of Reference agreed between Falcon consulting and American Dress company.
- Conduct a Marketing research to explore the potential of physical stores in UK market after the pandemic.
- Explain the key stages of the project lifecycle and the research methodology as well as the project deliverables.
- The research should aim at following things.
- Which segment of the Market to target? (Online, Physical Market, Hybrid).
- Which option would the target market more willing to take if given Online VS Physical store option to see and feel the fabric in store.
- Does it make any difference to the customers if the brand has a physical presence or not in regards to customer assurance?
- What areas need improvement in the light of repeat Buyers’ reviews and suggestions?
- Target Market selection (online only or hybrid approach should be considered).
- Satisfaction levels and probability of repeat purchase from those customers who bought from the American Dress company’s Newcastle branch in past.
To fulfill the client’s requirement, you are required to provide the following activities completed and compiled in a portfolio to be submitted to the top management. The portfolio shall consist of following
Step 1:
Project planning
- Devise a project management plan to map out how you intend to meet the project objectives set by the American dress and agreed in the Terms of reference.
- Begin with the scope. What activities and tasks as defined in your project must be done in order to make the project a success? Design it in the light of the terms of reference agreed between American Dress Company and Falcon consulting.
- Note the milestones or major events or phases in your project.
- Provide details of activities to be carried out initiation, planning and execution of the project.
- Create a work break down structure using a Gantt chart to track the activities to be undertaken.
Step 2:
Conduct primary and secondary research
- Perform primary and secondary research to find out the potential of growth and survival of American dress company’s Physical stores in UK.
- Devise a short questionnaire/ or interview questions to be asked from the potential and actual customers. Include questions based on the objectives defined by American Dress Company in the Terms of reference. Include questions to probe in all the matters described in the TORs. Provide insight on the matter by using the previously done research and use both secondary and primary research tools.
Step 3
Present Findings
- Collect the responses collate the research and provide solution with reasonable arguments.
- Present the Conclusions and recommendations for American Dress Company as per the terms of reference agreed with them.
- Produce and present the business case including an evaluation of tools used to gather research and data to justify your recommendations for making decisions regarding the future of physical stores in UK and how to revive and consolidate the growth pattern achieved by American dress Newcastle upon Tyne after Pandemic and lockdown so that it can regain and retain its growth in all departments especially PR department again.
Step 4 – Reflective Practice
- Produce a separate section of report from your side for your line manager to use for the internal purposes (Training needs assessment and performance appraisal) Falcon Consulting in which it is explained how well you have performed and achieved during this project and what obstacles you faced while you conducted this research for American Dress company. What were limitations and what could have been done better.
- Produce a power point presentation to be presented to the client (Include speaker notes as well).
Submission Guidance
- Submit a soft copy to Turnitin on or before the submission date.
- Use the references carefully and make sure there is no plagiarism. Keep the work as original as possible, use the references appropriately where you cite someone else’s work.
- Use Normal script of a proper font size 12 and font style Calibri.
- Attach the front sheet of this assignment brief to your work for assignment submission with signatures on the statement of authenticity.
- Assignments submitted after the deadline will not be accepted unless Extenuating Circumstances Form is submitted with third party evidence.
- Start each answer on a new page and pages should be numbered. Highlight each question clearly.
- Include Header and footer, Justified alignment and normal line spacing.
- Include a Bibliography at the end of the assignment and use the Harvard referencing system.
- All work should be comprehensively referenced and all sources must be fully acknowledged, such as books and journals, websites (include the date of visit), etc.
- In order to pass you need to address all the LOs and meet all the PASS (Ps) criterions within the LO.
- In order to get a merit you need to address the characteristics of Pass and then M1, M2, M3 and M4
In order to get a distinction, you need to address the characteristics of Pass, Merit and then D1 and D2.
