Australian School of Business

Information System, Technology & Management

INFS1602 Information Systems in Business

Semester 2 2012

THIS IS A GROUP ASSIGNMENT

EACH GROUP CONSISTS OF EITHER 2 OR 3 STUDENTS FROM WITHIN THE
SAME WORKSHOP

THIS ASSIGNMENT COUNTS FOR

15 PER CENT
OF THE AVAILABLE MARKS FOR THE COURSE

INFS1602 Semester 2 2012 Group Assignment A

1.

Scenario

Chris, a Merchandising Manager, returned to Sydney 2 years ago after spending 10 years
working in various retail organisations in Europe and the USA. Chris would like to try running
his own business, but he doesnt have the capital to invest in a city centre retail premises or
to employ a lot of people. He is keen to leverage his merchandising knowledge and skills
and has saved $25,000 that he is willing to invest in an Internet start-up.
Two months ago, Chris met Lyn while queuing to get into a play at a local theatre. They had
both purchased their tickets through a well-known Australian group buying site. Chris had
not used the site previously, but Lyn admitted to being addicted to the daily deals offered by
the group buying site. Lyn told Chris that while the discounts offered were very attractive, the
main drawback was getting the right product/service when she wanted it. Lyn and Chris soon
began to discuss the feasibility of what they called a customisation aggregation site.
After several meetings to discuss their emerging business idea, Chris and Lyn decided to
invest some time and money in exploring the possibility of starting up an online business that
offered a customised group buying process. While the value proposition offered by existing
group sites are largely push-oriented (i.e. businesses decide on the offer) and focus on a
single criterion (price), Chris and Lyn wanted to think about group buying focusing on
customised products/services that were demand driven (i.e. potential buyers told business
what they want). As Chris and Lyn explained to the loans manager at their local bank, a
sports clothing company might produce ten-year old replicate team shirts if 2,000 fans
wanted them or a restaurant might crowdsource its menu one night a week if there was
sufficient interest. Nevertheless, both Chris and Lyn know that they need some focus (type
of business and/or type of buyer) to make the business work in the short-term.
Lyn and Chris have approached you and your team of Information Systems consultants to
transform their idea into a viable business venture. They need you to design a start up
strategy for the new online company.

2.

Requirements

Prepare a Business Report (2,500 to 3000 words, excluding appendices) for Chris and Lyns
business. The report should address the tasks outlined below.

Identify possible target markets (businesses/buyers) for Chris and Lyns business.
Recommend a specific target market (consisting of businesses and buyers). Justify
your recommendation.
Describe the value proposition that Chris and Lyn should offer to both businesses
and buyers. Explain how the products/services offered fit with delivering this value
proposition.
Use the 5 forces model to identify the opportunities and threats that Lyn & Chris
should be aware of in entering this market.
Recommend a business model for Chris and Lyns business. Provide a clear
description of each component of the business model.
Explain how mainstream and emerging Web 2.0 technologies and applications could
be used to enable the strategy and operations of the agency.

You are required to carefully consider the points that you wish to make in this report. A brain
dump of all you know is of little value. You should consider using tables and figures to
present some material as they may help structure your argument.
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INFS1602 Semester 2 2012 Group Assignment A

In order to prepare your assignment you will need to undertake research. However, you
should ensure that you use the information gathered to illustrate your argument; you should
not simply describe your research findings. A percentage of the marks available will be
awarded for quality research, so you should ensure that your sources are appropriately
referenced.
In preparing the assignment, you should place yourself in the role of an external consultant.
It is important that you provide your audience with information that is customised for their
situation rather than producing material that reads like a generic textbook. You should
therefore illustrate that you understand their context and priorities. You should include an
appendix detailing any assumptions that you make.

3.

Submission Details

Using Blackboard Turnitin, each GROUP should submit a single document that includes:
(i)
(ii)
(iii)
(iv)

A fully completed and signed cover page (available on Blackboard)

The business report (including all appendices)
An overview (approx. 1 page) of how the INFS1602 course material was used to
prepare the report.
A full set of references used to prepare the report.

Due date is Friday 24th August 2012 at noon.

Please note that ONE submission per group is required. Multiple submissions from the same
group will be considered an invalid submission.
A mark of zero will be awarded for assignments submitted by individuals or by groups larger
than three.
Each INDIVIDUAL should provide their tutor with a completed and signed Peer Assessment
Sheet (available on Blackboard). The peer assessment sheet should be provided to your
tutor no later than the end of your week 7 workshop.
You are advised to keep a copy of each submission. In line with School policy, the late
submission of assignments carries a penalty of 10% of the maximum marks for that
assignment per day of lateness (including weekends and public holidays), unless an
extension of time has been granted. An extension of time to complete an assignment may be
granted by the lecturer in charge (LIC) in case of misadventure or illness. Applications for an
extension of time should be made to the LIC by email or in person within 3 days of the
submission date. You will be required to substantiate your application with appropriate
documentary evidence such as medical certificates, accident reports etc. Please note that
work commitments and computer failures are usually considered insufficient grounds for an
extension.

4.

Marking Criteria

The aim of the assignment is to get you to consider the material that you have covered in the
course in light of the scenario described in the assignment. The assignment requires you to
illustrate your understanding of the course material by making an argument. The report
should therefore be analytical rather than descriptive, and should explain the reasoning
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INFS1602 Semester 2 2012 Group Assignment A

behind the argument made. Marks will be awarded for using course material rather than
reproducing it.
A very good report should illustrate that you understand some counter arguments to the one
that you have proposed, and can briefly illustrate why the argument that you have proposed
is more valid than the one suggested by the counter arguments.
The report should have a professional layout and be well presented and should read like a
well justified consultant report rather than an essay.
Marks are available as follows:
A well articulated and justified argument recommending a specific target market from a
number of possible alternatives (10 percent).
A well articulated and justified argument explaining the value proposition for the target
market (businesses and buyers) and how the products/services offered will fulfil this
value proposition (10 percent).
A well articulated and justified argument explaining the opportunities and threats facing
Chris and Lyns start-up. This argument should illustrate that the competitive forces in
the industry that Chris and Lyn are entering have been well considered in the analysis of
opportunities and threats (15 percent).
A well articulated and justified argument for an appropriate business model, with a clear
description of each component that demonstrates the interplay between components (25
percent).
A well articulated and justified argument identifying how specific mainstream and
emerging Web 2.0 technologies and applications could be used to enable the strategy
and operations of the agency (20 percent).
An insightful analysis of how relevant course material was used to undertake the
analysis contained in the report (10 percent).
The effective and coherent presentation of information in a format suitable for a
consulting report. Adherence to ASB presentation standards including Harvard
referencing and the use of acceptable research materials (10 percent).

5.

References:

Please remember to properly cite all sources used to prepare the report. For information on
how to acknowledge your sources and reference correctly, see:
http://www.lc.unsw.edu.au/onlib/ref.html
For the ASB Harvard Referencing Guide, see:
http://wwwdocs.fce.unsw.edu.au/fce/EDU/harvard_ref_guide.pdf
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