Professional Documents
Culture Documents
BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT
PROPOSAL HANDBOOK
CONTENTS Page
1. Introduction 2
6. Academic Regulations 12
6.2 Extensions 13
Provide students with a critical overview of Scenario Planning and Case Study
Analysis and their application in the development of a Business Development
Proposal to a live and launch stage.
Provide an introduction to four scenario planning contexts in order that the
student may apply these to their professional and career intensions and objectives
The Scenarios are:-
Scenario 1 - a company start up
Scenario 2 - as a current business owner
Scenario 3 - working in the current employee organisation
Scenario 4 - as a commercial or non-commercial organisation that is known to the
candidate
Provide the student with specific opportunities to integrate the knowledge
acquired in the modules forming the early stages of the programme within an
employability and career development focussed learning framework
Provide students with an opportunity to develop the ability to apply their
knowledge to the analysis and solution of the kinds of business and management
problems that are encountered in the developing a viable and persuasive business
proposal
Provide the student with the opportunity to develop the skills to communicate
proposed solutions and the rationale behind them to an audience of potential
investors, peers, business professionals, and academic mentors;
Provide the student with the opportunity to present a plan of action on the basis of
the research and speak persuasively with the respect to the feasibility of the action
and the likelihood of it leading to business success.
Provide a framework in which the topic of the Scenario when carried through to
completion offer the students clear opportunities for New Venture start ups
Provide a Major Project context which is based on the clear identification of
business opportunity for the student and in which their formal report will be
capable of being translated into a business venture proposal and able to be
presented to investors for consideration for direct investment support.
Provide a formal experience for students in the preparation and delivery of a
business proposal and presentation which is suitable for presentation to business
investors and for submission for financial support.
(Note The students undertaking this option will be eligible to have their project
submitted to the Entrepreneurship Award for the cash prize for the initial start-up
capital (25,000).
Learning outcomes:
Core reading
Bryman, A. and Bell,E (2011) Business Research Methods, Oxford, OUP
Saunders, M.N.K., Lewis, P., and Thornhill, A. (2010) Research methods for
business students ; FT Prentice Hall
Recommended reading
Babbie, E. (1992), The Practice of Social Research, Belmont.
Bell, J. (1999), Doing Your Research Project, Open University Press.
Gillham, B. (2000), Developing a questionnaire, Continuum.
Huberman, AH and Miles, MB (2002). The Qualitative Researchers Companion:
Classic and contemporary readings, Sage.
Miles, MB and Huberman, AH (1994), Qualitative data analysis, Sage.
Academic Year:
Student Name:
Date of Submission:
BDP title:
Chap Mark
s
Is the title properly worded? Is the abstract clearly 10
written? Is the Introduction chapter well organised?
Are the Aims and objectives clearly expressed?
2 The business opportunity 15
Is the business opportunity described clearly?
3 Methodology for study Are concepts and 20
techniques to be applied identified (and duly
referenced)?
Is the basis which will be used to assess the feasibility
of the business development proposal clearly stated?.
Are sources of data, and ethical issues stated?
4 Analysis and findings 25
Are the techniques stated in 3 properly applied?
Is there adequate analysis?
Are resource availability and constraints appraised?
Are other critical factors identified?
Has a sensitivity analysis been conducted?
5 Evaluation of Business Development Plan 20
Is the viability of the Business development proposal
clearly discussed? Is a detailed plan of action and
implementation outlined? What are the critical
success factors? Alternately, if the BDP is not viable
in its original form, what conditions would make it (or
a variant) viable?
Good clear writing, adequate appendices, reference 10
list, overall presentation
Total 100
The supervisors play a key role in the research and Business Development Proposal
process. They are a specialist in the subject area chosen by the student and are
experienced in the supervision of Masters Business Development Proposal Analysis. The
student needs to have a close and continuing relationship with the supervisor and use
him/her as a source of advice and support. The Business Development Proposal seminars
and student-supervisor meetings scheduled on a weekly basis in the third semester are
aimed at supporting the development of this crucial relationship.
Students will be assigned a Supervisor in the third semester.. They are assigned a
supervisor with expertise in the research area that they have chosen. The supervisor is
given a group of students with a common area of interest.
On release of semester 2 results, students will have one of two possible progress paths:
Conditional or Unconditional Progress.
Conditional Progress Students with 2 or less re-sits may start MBA semester 3 on a
conditional basis. This means that they commence the semester and attend classes.
They then have the opportunity to re-sit the failed subjects during resit week. Students
who pass all re-sits will then go forward with Unconditional Progress. Students who fail
any of their re-sits will no longer be able to continue MBA semester 3. They will be
required to go back to semester 2 and retake the failed module. Once they have passed
the failed module(s), they will then have the opportunity to progress on to MBA semester
3 during the following semester.
Unconditional Progress - Students who have passed all modules required for their
Postgraduate Diploma will progress unconditionally on to MBA semester 3.
Students have 7 seminars and individual student-supervisor meetings during the third
semester. Each session is of three hours duration. Attendance at these sessions is
compulsory and a prerequisite for submission of a Business Development Proposal.
Attendance is monitored by means of the standard attendance register currently in use for
all other courses.
The first hour of the Business Development Proposal Seminar should focus on
discussing issues of common interest to the supervisory group (e.g. How to carry
out and present the literature survey, how to present tables) and permit each
student to present their research progress. A presentation and report should be
made every two or three weeks. This enables supervisors to monitor progress,
provide objectives and motivation for students and minimise the risk of
plagiarism. It will also create a feeling of group cohesion by making them aware
of the progress of others.
The second two hours of the three hour session is devoted to individual
supervisory tuition. These are scheduled so that each student knows the time at
which they will meet their supervisor each week. Because of numbers, each
student will probably receive an individual meeting of a minimum of 30 minutes
in length on a fortnightly basis. A record is kept by the student and supervisor of
the content of the discussion of each meeting, the agreed actions to be taken by
the student before the next meeting and the time of the next meeting. The Record
Form is shown in Appendix B. This form is completed at the end of each meeting
and signed by the supervisor and the student. A copy is kept in the Attendance
Record Register.
Students who fail to attend the seminars will receive a warning after missing the
first seminar. If a second seminar is missed the student will be called in for a
disciplinary meeting and warning. If there are subsequent failures to attend
(unless a medical certificate is provided), the student may be suspended and
required to repeat the semester or asked to leave the School.
Monitoring of progress. Students are required to submit written work for the
supervisors approval in week 4 (2000 words) and week 8 (7000 words) of the
Business Development Proposal phase and this should be recorded on their
monitoring sheets in the Register. The staged submission of written work is an
essential part of the strategy to reduce plagiarism. In addition to assessing and
advising the student on the academic quality of their work, the supervisor is
required to check for plagiarism and report any cases to the Programme Leader.
The content of the Business Development Proposal seminars in the third semester may
follow the pattern below, although it may also vary depending on the needs of the
Session 1
Review of the relevant University Business Development Proposal Guidelines with
emphasis on Plagiarism, Citation and Referencing Guidelines. Students should be
informed about the importance of correct citation and referencing, and the consequences
should their work be found to be plagiarized. Details of the submission process should
also be explained during this session. Introduction to the module to students and
identifying as suitable business and set-up relevant information (UK Government and
similar websites for small businesses) Alternative scenarios for the BDP
Session 2
Discussion / Explanation of a sample project. A presentation by each student of his/her
project. Each presentation will be followed by a discussion and supervisors comments
Session 4
Financial Feasibility
4.1 Sales Forecasts and profitability
-Forecasting Sales
- Cost-Volume Profitability Analysis
4.2 Financial statements preparation
-Planning capital requirements,
- Drawing up cashflow, P&L, Balance Sheet
4.3 Investment Appraisal
Project Implementation Schedule
Session 5
Progress reports on the process of data collection. Discussion of problems encountered.
Session 6
Open sessions for review of students work and signing off *
Session 7
Open sessions for review of students work and signing off *
Lecture Topics
Financial Feasibility
4.1 Sales Forecasts and profitability
-Forecasting Sales
- Cost-Volume Profitability Analysis
4.
4.2 Financial statements preparation
-Planning capital requirements,
- Drawing up cashflow, P&L, Balance Sheet
4.3 Investment Appraisal
4.4 Project Implementation Schedule
Financial Feasibility
4.1 Sales Forecasts and profitability
-Forecasting Sales
- Cost-Volume Profitability Analysis
5. 4.2 Financial statements preparation
-Planning capital requirements,
- Drawing up cashflow, P&L, Balance Sheet
4.3 Investment Appraisal
4.4 Project Implementation Schedule
6. Open sessions for review of students work and signing off *
Notes: References are expected in chapter 3-4 which have an academic content.
Layout: 4 cm left margin, 3cm-top, bottom and right margin; 1.5 line spacing; Times New Roman
size 12;
Students are required to submit 2 typed and bound hard copies and one soft copy by
turnitin. This should be submitted to the Exams Office on the submission deadline. The
copies should include a set of forms available on the student portal and should include the
Student Declaration Form verifying that the Business Development Proposal submitted
is their original work.
A Business Development Proposal is not submitted by the deadline date and time will be
considered a fail by non-submission and the student will have to exit with the post
graduate diploma if there is no extenuating circumstance . The student will be given one
more opportunity to submit their Business Development Proposal (usually within the
subsequent semester unless agreed otherwise by the Exam Board) if the non-submission
is due to mitigating circumstance. If a student fails with less than 30% in the first attempt
then the student will be have to leave the programme with post graduate diploma. If a
student fails the Business Development Proposal securing 30% or more then they will be
given one more opportunity resubmit and their grade will be capped at 40% regardless of
the mark achieved in the second attempt. Students who do not submit due to exceptional
circumstances can put forward an appeal to the Exam Board to request a resubmission as
a first attempt.
6.2 Extensions
The Business Development Proposal is first marked by the Supervisor and second
marked by another supervisor within a similar field. Should either marker suspect unfair
practice during the marking phase they should do the following:
Where the above conditions apply the student will be asked to attend a Viva with their
Supervisor and Programme Leader. They will be informed that they are under suspicion
of unfair practice and asked to explain and justify their Business Development Proposal
in detail. The evidence found will be presented to them and they will be asked to explain
their actions.
A report will be drawn up of the students case and this will be presented to the Chair of
the Examining Board with evidence of the alleged unfair practice and the Business
Development Proposal. The Chair may consult the External Examiner, and if there is a
prima facie case identified, will refer it to the Committee of Enquiry to determine the
outcome of the students case. In severe cases, the Committee of Enquiry may decide
to prevent the student from resubmitting their Business Development Proposal or
achieving any other award from the University in the future.
Students who fail their Business Development Proposal at the first attempt with 30% or
more will be permitted to retake during the next semester for submission at the
subsequent Exam Board. They will be required to pay a retake fee and to attend all
A student may put forward a request to the Exam Board for a retake as a first attempt (so
that there is no capping of the grade) if they have exceptional circumstances only. Any
claim for exceptional circumstances must be supported by documentation.
Students who fail their Business Development Proposal at the second attempt will have
no further attempts at Business Development Proposal. They will be awarded the
Postgraduate Diploma in Business Administration only and will therefore graduate with
this award.
A student may put forward a request to the Exam Board for one further attempt if they
have exceptional circumstances only. Any claim for exceptional circumstances must be
supported by documentation.
Weighting
Business Development Proposal is worth 80% and
Research Reflection Report is worth 20%
Good luck, work hard and we are sure you will be successful
These notes are designed to help you deliver and conduct a successful Reflective Research Assignment.
The Research Reflection Report is a major piece of work and is designed to support your own self-critical
consideration of your research and related business skills and demonstrate that you can:-
Reflect and comment critically on what you have learnt during the programme and during the
carrying out of your research activities
Carefully consider the research which you have carried out and critically comment on this
Discuss the relationship of your research, research sources and evidence, and researching
activities to the production of your Major Project
Critically comment on the key areas, examples, sources of your research
Consider the relationship of your research, and researching, to both your Major Project and
possible future employment opportunities
Your Research Reflection Report is not only an academic exercise but also a piece of work which you may
wish to use in future employment contexts to demonstrate your ability to consider the importance of
research and researching to:-
business planning,
business success,
organisational contexts
your own academic and business skills and the contribution which you can make to an
organisation as a result of developing these skills
The Research Reflection Report therefore aims to support the students ability to be self critical about their
research. It also develops the students understanding and application of the core concepts of business and
academic skills while developing their ability to perform more effectively within organisations in a real
world context. The Report therefore encourages reflection on:-
1) Research Processes
2) The research methodologies which you have considered and applied
3) Research and researching as a problem solving process used by you as a student,
4) The identification and discussion of your key learning points which could be applied to
other situations.
5) The relationship of research and your major project to your professional development
opportunities and career development intensions
What are the most important aspects/examples of Learning and/or skills hich you have gained
from:
(1) undertaking the MBA programme,
(2) following through your research, and
(3) applying your knowledge and what you have learnt in your Major Project (450 words)
Your Critical Thinking and your ideas 10
In carrying out your research, your analysis, your evaluation of evidence, and in identifying or
proposing conclusions
What has been the most important discovery, or piece of evidence, or theory, or viewpoint, or
critical idea, or critical addition to your knowledge, or other item of importance and why?
(450 words)
Barriers met 10
What were the main difficulties and barriers which you were faced with in:-
(1) undertaking your research, and
(2) completing your Major project
Your Professional Development
What are the most important business and/or management skill(s) or academic idea(s) or 10
lesson(s) which you have learnt from undertaking your research and your Major Project
and why ? -(450 words)
Based on your Research and the work which you have done in the MBA Programme and its 10
use in your Major Project:-
What were and how far have the objectives of your major project been achieved? (500 words)
How useful and/or feasible are the findings, recommendations, Conclusions, or outcomes of 10
your Major Project to you and/or to a future Employer?
You must justify your answer with specific examples. (500 words)