BISM7202 Information Systems for Management

Assessment Guideline:

MS Office Assignment – Office 365 Excel 2019

SEMESTER2, 2024

Summary

Task Description

This assignment requires you to create a professional business application using Microsoft Excel 2019 / Microsoft Excel 365. The assignment is worth 35% of your grade in this course. This is an individual assignment – group work or any collaboration on the assignment is not permitted. This assignment consists of several tasks to be completed in Excel.

Please be aware of the University's Statute regarding academic integrity, plagiarism, and the submission of your own work.

Please note you can resubmit your assignment as many times as you like prior to the deadline. We will only mark the latest version of the assignment submitted up until the due date.

Requirements

The purpose of this assignment is to test the student’s ability to operate, manage, and interpret business data in spreadsheets.

The assignment is worth 35 marks that equals to 35% of the overall grade achievable in this course. A foundational Excel Spreadsheet is provided for students to modify and update to meet the ‘challenges’ presented in the Case Specification document that is separate to this Assessment Guideline.

The assignment MUST be done individually.

The  assignment may  also  include  self-learning  components that  covers  content/knowledge not presented in the tutorials. It is expected that the student will undertake their own research to master this component.

The assignment requires no prior technical background. Moreover, it is designed for business students in general to appreciate basic IS applications. Prior familiarity with the software tool (Excel) could be beneficial but will not guarantee a significant advantage or higher marks.

Through tutorials, students are exposed to practical exercises like those in the assignment, develop the skills to manage business data in Excel, and the skills to complete this assignment. It is essential that students carry out the required readings and preparation for each tutorial before attending/attempting each tutorial and this assignment.

Students are to further develop an Excel solution based on the template that is provided with the Case Specification (provided in Week 4 of Semester). Students are to format, complete,and further develop the spreadsheet according to the assessment guidelines and Case Specification.

However, students are not allowed to add columns/rows or type data outside the assigned areas unless otherwise instructed.

This is a difficult assignment worth 35% of your course grade, and you should start working on the assignment early in the semester.

Guideline

Expectation

This assignment requires you to complete an Excel workbook file using Microsoft Excel 2019 /Microsoft Excel 365 based on the specification provided in the UrbanEats Delivery (UED) Assessment Case Specification. This document is a companion to a template Excel workbook that contains several sheets you are to develop as part of this assessment.

The specification relates to UrbanEats Delivery (UED), which is a franchise business that deliver daily groceries by the box to homes and businesses in nearby suburbs (their ‘franchise area’). The case has four main requirements for you to develop:

i. Develop a Schedule of Employee Budgeted Salary Costs and Build a Summary Table:

•     Create a detailed schedule of employee salaries according to his specifications.

•     Summarize the data using database functions in a summary table.

ii. Undertake a Solver Analysis on Business Franchise Areas:

•     Use Excel's Solver tool to analyze and reallocate franchise areas to minimize the distance travelled from each store.

iii. Undertake a Scenario Analysis for Saving Monthly/Fortnightly:

•     Analyze different scenarios for saving money either monthly or fortnightly to fund the

construction of a new store, estimating the required amount in a few years.

iv. Provide Business-Focused Comments:

•     Offer insights and recommendations based on the spreadsheet analysis, focusing on the business impact and environmental benefits.

More details on the specific requirements of the case are contained in the Case Specification.

The Excel template  of the  expected worksheets will be made  available  on the BISM7202 Blackboard site with the Case Specification.  The  Excel template provided must be used as the basis for the assignment. You may change the visual formatting (typographical errors, color, fonts,  data  format  presentation,  column  widths,  etc.)  of  the  Excel  template  to  providea professional  finished  product, but nothing else unless explicitly required in the Case Specification. For example, do not change the structure of the template spreadsheet; do not add columns/rows or type data outside the assigned areas except when you are asked to do so.

Implementation Guidance

You must use  Microsoft  Office  365  Excel  2019  for this  assignment. Any  of the previous Microsoft Excel versions (e.g., Microsoft Excel 2016) might cause some unnecessary problems. The  spreadsheet  can  be  developed  using  the  latest  OSX  version  of Microsoft  Office,  but Windows 10 is the preferred platform. and tutorials will be undertaken using Windows 10.

Please note that earlier versions of Windows are now out of mainstream support with Microsoft (XP, Vista, 7, 8, 8.1).

Please develop your solution based on the provided files. In general, you are not allowed to insert any other columns or tables.

It is highly recommended that, prior to assignment submission, you check that your solution works  on  the  university’s  computers  in  the  Labs if you can (although  note  their  limited availability) if you have developed it on your own machine – particularly if you have used a non-standard version of Excel (e.g., the MacOS version or a non-Office 365 version of Excel).

When you develop your solution, you should aim to use the functions and features you were taught in the tutorials  as appropriate. However, if you need functions or techniques that are not addressed explicitly in tutorial exercises, you should explore your pre-tutorial reading materials and preparation exercises or refer to the help component of Excel or other online resources. Aspects of the assignment have purposefully been designed to train and test a student’s self- learning ability with a software application, and thus these have not been included directly in a tutorial exercise.

Formatting and professionalism

UrbanEats Delivery (UED) is operated in a professional manner, and it is expected that your Excel workbook will be used by other staff, and potentially updated in the future by others.

Therefore, you would be well advised to make your work uniqueness quality.

(e.g.,  freeze  panes  to  long pages, use named ranges where appropriate, use lookup functions instead of nested IFs where appropriate, use hard coding only where appropriate, use appropriate fonts and colors, graph axes and titles, etc.).

You should use meaningful Named Ranges whenever referring to a Cellon a separate worksheet.

Keep in mind, however, that your work will be judged primarily on the quality of your solution rather than upon its appearance.

Submission

To be done through Blackboard Assignment Submission (NOT Turnitin) in the Assessmentsarea of Blackboard.

Your      Excel       Workbook       file      MUST       be      named       in      the       format       of

BISM7202_StudentLastName_StudentID.xlsx.

If your  ID  is  41724245  and  your  surname  is  Smith,  the  name  of  your  files  would  be BISM7202_Smith_41724245.xlsx.

Plagiarism

It is understandable that students talk with each other regularly and discuss problems and potential  solutions.  However,  it  is  expected  that  the  submitted  assignment  is unique. document – all parts of the assignment are to be completed solely by the individual student. The best practice to avoid misconduct is to not look at another student’s file and not show your solution to another student.

In case where an assignment is perceived to not be a unique work, a loss of marks and other implications  can  result.  For  further  information  about  academic  integrity,  plagiarism  and consequences,    please    visit http://ppl.app.uq.edu.au/content/3.60.04-student-integrity-and- misconduct.

Administrative Requirements

Consultation Sessions

To  ensure that  an  equal  and  sufficient amount of time is  allocated  for every  student who attends  consultation   sessions  regarding  the  practical  aspects  of  BISM7202,  the  average consultation time (during busy consultation times) will be limited to 5 minutes per student.

The main aim of this restriction during busy periods is to ensure equality to  students and minimize waiting time. However, in circumstances where no other students  are  waiting,longer consultation times will be provided. Tutors have advised you of their consultation times during tutorials   –   these   details   are   also   available   on   the   BISM7202   Blackboard   site under “Contacts” .

Please note that course staff are not allowed to look at your assignment files to provide feedback or answer questions.

Questions regarding your assignment can be answered if they are related to the understanding of the concepts and/or techniques of Excel.

For convenience, you may email the tutors with questions. Tutor email addresses have been advised in tutorials and are available on the BISM7202 Blackboard site under “Contacts” . Tutors will endeavor to respond to all questions within 2 business days.

Submission Date

5:00 pm 21st October 2024

For each calendar day (i.e., including Saturdays and Sundays) or part of after the submission deadline, a penalty of 5% of the total possible assignment marks will be deducted until the assignment is submitted.

Deadline Extensions

Students  must  fill  in  an  Application  for  Extension  of Assessment  Due  Date  and  provide

supporting documentation to Assessment, Examinations & Misconducts Coordinator at least

24 hours prior to the submission date.

Your application must be submitted at the location and by the due date specified in Section. 5.3 of the relevant Electronic Course Profile (ECP).

• Supporting documentation such  as a medical certificate, funeral notice etc. must be provided. Scanned or photographed copies should be attached to your email. A request for an extension based on medical grounds can use a statement of circumstances signed by   the student as its supporting documentation.

•     For an application on medical grounds, the medical practitioner must not be a near relative or close associate. Examples of near relatives are partner, child, brother,  sister,  parent. Examples of close associates are close friends, neighbors and partners or children of colleagues.

•     Extension criteria are applied consistently for equity reasons.

•     You may discuss your situation with your course coordinator, but you still need to make a formal extension request using this form.

•     Applications on medical grounds will be approved for the number of calendar daysthe medical certificate indicates you were unfit for study. You are expected to  act  in  a  timely  manner  and  must  make  an  appointment  as  soon  as  your condition impacts on your ability to study.

•     If you  have  a  continuing  condition,  you  should  contact  Student  Services  to arrange a Student Access Plan (Disability) [SAPD]. You must still submit the application form.

Non-permissible circumstances: Extensions  will  not  be  granted  where  the  school  is  not satisfied you took reasonable measures to avoid the circumstances that contributed to you not submitting by the due date. The following are not grounds for an extension:

•    holiday arrangements (including overseas travel).

•    misreading a due date.

•    social and leisure events.

•    moving house.

•    pressure of work/competing deadlines.

•    computer issues.

The due dates for assignments must be adhered to and you are reminded to keep a copy of your work, in case of lost assignments or disputes over grading.

You will incur penalties if your work is submitted late (i.e., after the due date and without an approved extension).

Items (for which no extension has been granted) submitted after the due date and time, incur a late submission penalty. The penalty is at the rate of 5% of the total available marks for that particular piece of assessment, for each calendar day or part thereof that the item is overdue. The penalty once calculated is deducted from the marks awarded for the assessment.

Assessment submitted more than 10 days after the due date will receive zero marks.