Students

MQBS3010 – Agility and Excellence in Business

2023 – Session 1, Online-scheduled-weekday

General Information

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Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit convenor and teaching staff Bachelor of Commerce Course Director & MQBS3010 Unit Convenor
Prashan Karunaratne
Contact via "Contact the Unit Convenor" link on iLearn
4ER 736
Please see iLearn
Seminar Leaders
Teaching Team with lecturers from across each MQBS Department
Contact via e-mail - please see iLearn for details
Please see iLearn
Prani Manandhar
Credit points Credit points
10
Prerequisites Prerequisites
Admission to BCom and 130cp at 1000 level or above including 10cp at 3000 level
Corequisites Corequisites
Co-badged status Co-badged status
Unit description Unit description

This course-wide Capstone unit is designed to be taken by students in their final session of study within the Bachelor of Commerce. Students work collaboratively with peers and advisors to integrate the discipline-specific knowledge acquired within the course and to address practical business challenges requiring cross-disciplinary and cross-functional insights, knowledge and skills. Assessment is designed to assure student proficiency in course learning outcomes. Students work in self-managing cross-functional teams to complete a session-long project, preparing individual and group reports that are assessed by academic staff. The unit aims to prepare students for ethical and sustainable leadership in their future workplaces as team players. Learning activities may include a combination of case study/ies, business simulation and seminars/workshops.

Important Academic Dates

Information about important academic dates including deadlines for withdrawing from units are available at https://www.mq.edu.au/study/calendar-of-dates

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

  • ULO1: Integrate discipline specific knowledge and skills and apply subject knowledge critically, analytically with appreciation of cross disciplinary requirements.
  • ULO2: Identify and analyse issues from a variety of ethical and sustainability positions as applied to the business context.
  • ULO3: Reflect on outcomes of working in multi-functional teams to apply teamwork knowledge and skills for effective collaboration to achieve business solutions in a range of contexts.

General Assessment Information

The Agility Exercise, the Capstone Report, and Capstone Presentation are all connected to the project you work on as a team from Week 03 and onwards.

You have to work on these as a team.

The Agility Exercise and Capstone Presentation will be assessed solely based on your individual submission.

The Capstone Report will be based 50% on a group component and 50% on an individual component.

 

Sometimes unavoidable circumstances occur that might prevent you from submitting an assignment on time and, in that case, you may be eligible to lodge a Special Consideration request.

Unless a Special Consideration request has been submitted and approved, please note that no extensions to assignment deadlines will be granted.

 

Late Assessment Submission Penalty (written assessments) 

 

Unless a Special Consideration request has been submitted and approved, a 5% penalty (of the total possible mark) will be applied each day a written assessment is not submitted, up until the 7th day (including weekends). After the 7th day, a grade of ‘0’ will be awarded even if the assessment is submitted. Submission time for all written assessments is set at 11.55 pm. A 1-hour grace period is provided to students who experience a technical concern. 

 

For any late submissions of time-sensitive tasks, such as scheduled tests/exams, performance assessments/presentations, and/or scheduled practical assessments/labs, students need to submit an application for Special Consideration

 

Special Consideration

To request an extension on the due date/time for a timed or non-timed assessment task, you must submit a Special Consideration application. An application for Special Consideration does not guarantee approval.

The approved extension date for a student becomes the new due date for that student. The late submission penalties above then apply as of the new due date.

Assessment Tasks

Name Weighting Hurdle Due
Reflective Essay 20% No 5th March
Agility Exercise 20% No 5th & 8th May
Capstone Project Presentation 20% No 2nd June
Capstone Project Report 40% No 2nd June

Reflective Essay

Assessment Type 1: Essay
Indicative Time on Task 2: 20 hours
Due: 5th March
Weighting: 20%

 

2,000 word reflective essay

 


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Integrate discipline specific knowledge and skills and apply subject knowledge critically, analytically with appreciation of cross disciplinary requirements.

Agility Exercise

Assessment Type 1: Case study/analysis
Indicative Time on Task 2: 10 hours
Due: 5th & 8th May
Weighting: 20%

 

Collaboratively analyse the impact of a commercial shock on the ongoing capstone project by utilising a teamwork framework.

 


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Identify and analyse issues from a variety of ethical and sustainability positions as applied to the business context.
  • Reflect on outcomes of working in multi-functional teams to apply teamwork knowledge and skills for effective collaboration to achieve business solutions in a range of contexts.

Capstone Project Presentation

Assessment Type 1: Presentation
Indicative Time on Task 2: 10 hours
Due: 2nd June
Weighting: 20%

 

Collaboratively present a bespoke program / product / process for a chosen institution to excel in achieving (at least) one of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs).

 


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Integrate discipline specific knowledge and skills and apply subject knowledge critically, analytically with appreciation of cross disciplinary requirements.
  • Identify and analyse issues from a variety of ethical and sustainability positions as applied to the business context.
  • Reflect on outcomes of working in multi-functional teams to apply teamwork knowledge and skills for effective collaboration to achieve business solutions in a range of contexts.

Capstone Project Report

Assessment Type 1: Report
Indicative Time on Task 2: 50 hours
Due: 2nd June
Weighting: 40%

 

Collaboratively prepare a report for a bespoke program / product / process for a chosen institution to excel in achieving (at least) one of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs).

 


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Integrate discipline specific knowledge and skills and apply subject knowledge critically, analytically with appreciation of cross disciplinary requirements.
  • Identify and analyse issues from a variety of ethical and sustainability positions as applied to the business context.
  • Reflect on outcomes of working in multi-functional teams to apply teamwork knowledge and skills for effective collaboration to achieve business solutions in a range of contexts.

1 If you need help with your assignment, please contact:

  • the academic teaching staff in your unit for guidance in understanding or completing this type of assessment
  • the Writing Centre for academic skills support.

2 Indicative time-on-task is an estimate of the time required for completion of the assessment task and is subject to individual variation

Delivery and Resources

Learning and Teaching Activities - 3 hours weekly

You are expected to attend the 1-hour seminar on Mondays each week, as well as your weekly 2-hour seminar that is later in the week.

The 1-hour seminar appears as a "lecture" in e-Student - this will be an industry panel event with Q&A from the audience and networking. All students attend the same 1-hour seminar (face-to-face and online cohorts at separate times).

The 2-hour seminar is for a smaller group of 45-55 students. Here you will meet your team members weekly, and work on a project.

 

For the online streams - seminars will be conducted on Zoom.

For the in-person streams - seminars will be conducted face-to-face on campus.

You cannot mix and match seminar groups as you will be placed in teams according to your registered seminar.

 

Registering in a seminar in your timetable is your commitment to attend every week:

You will need to commit to your timetable for the entire session (semester). 80% of your grade will depend on work done during seminars in teams. Your timetabled seminar slot is where you will be actively learning during class with your lecturer and your peers.

This unit cannot be completed asynchronously given that we are assessing the learning outcomes of Teamwork, Employability, and Global Issues.

If you are unable to commit to your weekly timetable - you are strongly advised to un-enroll from this unit.

You will be placed in teams, where scaffolded team tasks will be worked through during each week's seminar. These scaffolded tasks ultimately work towards your Capstone Project which is a highly-weighted assessment component.

In other words, non-attendance at seminars will jeopardise both your individual component and the group component of the Capstone Project.

You may have 1 or 2 absences from seminars during the session, which is fine so long as you let your team know about it, and commit to catching up with the team as soon as possible within a reasonable amount of time, and constantly communicate with your team to keep up-to-date.

Communicating and keeping up with your team during class and at least twice during the week is an expectation of this unit.

 

Team members will keep a record of your attendance and participation during seminars, and rate your participation during seminars. This will directly impact your own marks - as Teamwork is part of the marking rubrics used in this unit.

 

Recommended Texts and/or Materials

Resources uploaded on iLearn.

 

Technology Used and Required

Students will need to use online tools for collaboration with their team members.

 

Unit Web Page

The web page for this unit can be found at: iLearn http://ilearn.mq.edu.au

 

Teaching and Learning Strategy

The unit is designed as a capstone unit. A capstone unit is designed to bring all your knowledge together to solve a problem.

There is no new content in the unit - rather a presentation of frameworks to consolidate all your content learned in your degree so far.

This is a final year unit of study that integrates the material and skills presented across the degree.

Students will be placed in mixed-major teams to solve real-world problems.

These real-world problems will revolve around the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

Students will address how commerce and business can play their part in achieving these goals.

Students will construct an artefact that integrates all their learning, as well as demonstrate empathy & appreciation for other disciplines.

Students will write a reflective report about how their own major is an integral part of the puzzle in the diverse world of commerce.

Students will demonstrate agility by dealing with shocks that occur to the economy and responding to these effectively.

Students will demonstrate excellence by presenting their projects online, ready to be showcased to the job market

Unit Schedule

Week

Activities & Resources revolving around (2-hour seminar)

Assessment Weight
1 Introduction    
2 Reflection Reflective Essay 20
3 Introduction to Teams    
4 Theory of Teams    
5 Collaborative Problem Solving    
6 Communication Skills    
7 Conflict Management    
  Session Break Interim Pitch 0
  Session Break    
8 Focus on Your Major / Agility Exercise Agility Exercise  
9 Focus on Your Major / Agilty Exercise Agility Exercise 20
10 Guidance / Work on Project / Employabiity    
11 Guidance / Work on Project / Employabiity    
12 Guidance / Work on Project / Employabiity    
13 Feedback on Projects

Presentation

Report

20

40

Note: The 1-hour large seminar for all students ("lecture" in e-Student) on Mondays with the industry guest will be one week ahead of this schedule.

Policies and Procedures

Macquarie University policies and procedures are accessible from Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au). Students should be aware of the following policies in particular with regard to Learning and Teaching:

Students seeking more policy resources can visit Student Policies (https://students.mq.edu.au/support/study/policies). It is your one-stop-shop for the key policies you need to know about throughout your undergraduate student journey.

To find other policies relating to Teaching and Learning, visit Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au) and use the search tool.

Student Code of Conduct

Macquarie University students have a responsibility to be familiar with the Student Code of Conduct: https://students.mq.edu.au/admin/other-resources/student-conduct

Results

Results published on platform other than eStudent, (eg. iLearn, Coursera etc.) or released directly by your Unit Convenor, are not confirmed as they are subject to final approval by the University. Once approved, final results will be sent to your student email address and will be made available in eStudent. For more information visit ask.mq.edu.au or if you are a Global MBA student contact globalmba.support@mq.edu.au

Academic Integrity

At Macquarie, we believe academic integrity – honesty, respect, trust, responsibility, fairness and courage – is at the core of learning, teaching and research. We recognise that meeting the expectations required to complete your assessments can be challenging. So, we offer you a range of resources and services to help you reach your potential, including free online writing and maths support, academic skills development and wellbeing consultations.

Student Support

Macquarie University provides a range of support services for students. For details, visit http://students.mq.edu.au/support/

The Writing Centre

The Writing Centre provides resources to develop your English language proficiency, academic writing, and communication skills.

The Library provides online and face to face support to help you find and use relevant information resources. 

Student Services and Support

Macquarie University offers a range of Student Support Services including:

Student Enquiries

Got a question? Ask us via AskMQ, or contact Service Connect.

IT Help

For help with University computer systems and technology, visit http://www.mq.edu.au/about_us/offices_and_units/information_technology/help/

When using the University's IT, you must adhere to the Acceptable Use of IT Resources Policy. The policy applies to all who connect to the MQ network including students.

Changes from Previous Offering

Added a note:

Change from 2021: Team members will keep a record of your attendance and participation during seminars, and rate your participation during seminars. This will directly impact your own marks - as Teamwork is part of the marking rubrics used in this unit.

Change from 2022: We have changed the 3-hour seminar into a 1-hour seminar with an industry guest, followed by a 2-hour seminar where we apply what we learnt into our work.


Unit information based on version 2023.01 of the Handbook