ASSIGNMENT 1 - RESEARCH Brief Write a Research Brief TASK At the beginning of semester, you will be provided with a company or case study. Your task is a write a research brief as if you were the marketing manager of that company seeking out some marketing research to help solve the company's main objectives. INSTRUCTIONS Students (individually) are required to write a research brief in response to the assigned company or case study as provided on the online learning management system (Blackboard or Canvas). In the process, students should provide an executive summary, background to the company and the problem they face, a discussion of the marketing problem and research problem, at least 2 research objectives, and least 5 research questions across the research objectives. A suggested format: - Title Page - Table of Contents - Executive Summary - Main Body · Background · Marketing Problem and Research Problem · Research Objectives and Research Questions - References - Appendix: Any additional information you want to reference that is not in the main body Submission Details: The report, references and appendices to be assembled in one document and submitted as an electronic copy through the online learning management system (Canvas) by end of Week 4, Sunday 11:59pm. 1
Word limit: The word limit on this phase of the assignment is 1500 words (not including table of contents, executive summary, references). Value/Weighting: This assignment is worth 30% of your total assessment in this subject. The assessment criteria are provided following the next page. NOTES ON REPORT SUBMISSION - All submissions should be 1.5 spaced. Allow a minimum of 25mm (1") on left, right, top and bottom margins. All pages should be numbered. - A standard font should be used, such as Arial, Times New Roman or equivalent. Size 11 font should be used. - Do not use first person, e.g., "I" and "we" and avoid colloquialisms and clichés in formal business reports. - All tables and figures need to be numbered and labelled and referred to as such in the text before they appear in the report. - You should adopt the Harvard system of referencing, i.e., in text referencing (e.g., Smith and John, 2013). All quotations and references should be properly sourced. Inadequate details of publications and other sources will reduce the assessed grade. Please see page 10 of the Unit Outline as well as http://www.swinburne.edu.au/corporate/registrar/plagiarism/ for direction on writing style and how to avoid plagiarism. NOTE: Assignments or projects which are submitted after the due date and time will attract a penalty of 10% of the total marks available per working day late, up to a maximum of five working days. Assignments submitted after five working days will be graded with zero marks. 2
ASSESSMENT CRITERIA Your work will be assessed using the following marking guide: Criteria Executive summary (10%) Background (20%) Marketing Marketing problem Marketing problem and Research problem and and Research problem, Research are not defined, or problem, poorly defined. problem are defined, but some elements may