BBS013-1 Foundations of Business Management Project - Case Study

This project report provides a comprehensive analysis of business management principles, focusing on Original Creations, a UK-based company facing declining sales. The report identifies the reasons for the company's struggles, including inexperienced staff, lack of market research, and quality control issues. It evaluates various business options using a weighted scorecard model, recommending digital transformation. The report details the benefits and drawbacks of this option, including enhanced data collection and potential privacy concerns. It also includes a reflective report on the development of key skills such as communication, problem-solving, and teamwork. The project concludes with recommendations for Original Creations to improve its business operations and marketing strategies.

Foundations of Business
Management Project

Executive Summary
This project highlights understanding of foundation or basics of business management. It
also comprises of reasons for solving business problems based on given company. This project
also depicts business options and expected benefits and costs incurred in managing projects. This
project also consists of reflective document for summarising the learning objectives of
individuals.

Contents
Executive Summary ........................................................................................................................2
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
PART 1 ...........................................................................................................................................1
Reasons for doing the project .....................................................................................................1
Business options provided to chosen company ..........................................................................2
Benefits of doing something else option .....................................................................................3
Drawbacks of doing something else option ................................................................................3
Expected timescale.......................................................................................................................4
Costs incurred for the project ......................................................................................................4
CONCLUSION ...............................................................................................................................4
PART 2 ...........................................................................................................................................5
Reflective report ..........................................................................................................................5
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................8

INTRODUCTION
Business project management can be described as managing internal operations of an
organisation in order to attain its objectives in an effective manner (Anantatmula and Rad, 2018).
In other words, project management is defined as undertaking group activities for accomplishing
specific goals. For gaining effective management of projects it is desirable for organisations to
invest time, skills and monetary sources. For better understanding of foundations of business
project management, Original Creations is taken into consideration. Original Creations is an UK
based company which offers a diversified range of products operating in United Kingdom.
Company offers creative designer lifestyle products to their consumers.
This project depicts the understanding of business options as well as related benefits and
drawbacks of chosen strategies. This project also highlights some of business problems and
solutions for them for chosen organisation. It also encompasses of reflective document for key
skill development of individuals.
PART 1
Reasons for doing the project
Managers of Original Creations is currently facing problem of not generating expected
sales for their newly launched products. Even they are perplexed after getting disappointed form
their constantly decreasing sales of their products in a line (Azis and Azis, 2020). Reasons for
which this project is undertaken is finding of inevitable rationale for decreasing sale as well as
solutions for facing them in a strategic manner.
Managers of Original Creations hires young and inexperienced staff for designing their
products. Their designing is done without researching market perspectives and consumer needs.
They do not manufacture their products by them selves but enter into a deal with other
organisations to produce their goods. Company is getting complaints in their product quality and
delivering processes. One of their product called toenail clipper which gives them
disappointment in sales. This has also increases their warehouse cost as they have to keep it there
for along time. Their product ideas are not align with market research and customer demands.
Company is consisted of lot of departments but directors are incapable of managing them in a
strategic manner.
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Newly appointed personnel is not provided with any sort of training before assigning of
job. Quality of products is not checked properly by warehouse manager which leads to increase
in customer complaints regarding quality of received goods (Beirau, 2020). Media managers are
not evolving their business operations through digital marketing and proper utilisation of official
website is also absent in organisation. These are basic business problems which needs to be
addressed by directors of Original Creations in order to generate more sales and viability in
market.
Business options provided to chosen company
Business options are described as opportunities present in market which can be
undertaken by organisation in order to attain their specified objectives. Weighed score card
model can be explained as a tool which helps to assign a comparative value to organisational
tasks or projects. It is beneficial for organisation as it aids in prioritizing probable tasks in order
to get better understanding of those. Various options evaluated by using weighted score card
model in relevance to Original Creations are as follows:
Do nothing option- It is a type of business strategy whereby managers determine that
their project is not viable and will not provide them adequate profits (Boyle, 2017). In relevance
with Original Creations, managers should not opt for this option as they are capable of trying and
making their business operations effective.
Do the minimum we can- This is an another option which is presented to managers of
Original Creations where they can try to mend some of their business activities such as providing
effective guidance, hires professional designers and collaborate with good manufacturing
companies in order to offer quality products to their consumers.
Do something else- This option talks about diversifying the operations or making
extensive modifications in organisation practices. In accordance with Original Creations,
managers should transform their marketing strategies through digital means. They should adopt
digital marketing channels for increasing their sales. Through digital channels they can be aware
of market trends and dynamic changes in consumer perspectives.
They can use weighted score card for prioritizing their business options. At first,
managers of Original Creations have to list the business options which they want to implement
such as doing nothing, something else or adjusting with minimum sources.
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Secondly, directors of Original Creations weigh the impact of each alternative business option on
the basis of associated risks, incurred cost, time and effort. It is recommended to choose doing
something else option. This option states that business activities of Original Creations should be
transformed through the use of digital technology.
Third step relates with assigning weights to different criteria selected. Directors of Original
Creations should assign weights to specific criteria in order to give priority to them. For instance,
directors of Original Creations can give weights to risks, cost and effort.
Fourth step of weighted score card is to create that in order to get better understanding of
different business operations. Weighted score card in respect to Original Creations is as follows:
Cost Risks Effort Time
Weights 0.2 0.4 0.3 0.1
Option 1 3 * 0.2 = 0.6 0.4 * 2 = 0.8 0.3 * 6 = 1.8 0.1 * 5 = 0.5
Option 2 2 * .20 = 0.4 0.4 * 3 = 1.2 0.3 * 4 = 1.2 0.1 * 4 = 0.4
Option 3 4 * .20 = 0.8 0.4 * 5 = 2.0 0.3 * 5 = 1.5 0.1 * 3 = 0.3
Benefits of doing something else option
Enhanced data collection – Digital transformation is described as a exercise which helps
organisation to enhance their practice of collecting data of consumers (Cristbal, 2017). Directors
of Original Creations relies on external third party to gather database of consumers and does not
perform market research.
Stronger resource management- Directors of Original Creations should evaluate their
resource management and have to deal carefully with their manufacturers. By making
improvements in their business operations, managers can heck quality standards. With the help
of digital marketing strategies, Original Creations can increase their customer base and handle
their complaints through received reviews from them.
Better customer experience- Digital transformation can help directors of Original
Creations in providing better experience to their customers. They are receiving consumer
complainants regarding quality and delivery of products.
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Drawbacks of doing something else option
Complexity- Digital transformation and product diversification is not an easy task. It is a
complex process which requires professionals for setting up and dealing with that.
Privacy concerns- It is a critical concern of every business house as data leakage issues
are increasing in a significant manner. This can be threat for Original Creations as this can lead
to theft of data of their consumers and employees.
Time consuming- Doing something new is a typical job for directors of Original
Creations. Transformation of business activities is time consuming process.
Expected timescale
Timescale of an incident can be described as the length of time which is taken by
organisational managers to perform the given task (Harrison and Lock, 2017). A project
timescale is considered as visual list of activities that are placed in a chronological order which
helps managers to view all the tasks in order to determine their start and end date. In case of
Original Creations, directors should determine varied tasks to be performed as well as their start
and end date in order to provide specified direction. They can set time limit of 3 months for
making transformation in their business activities.
Timescale for realization of benefits can be described as length of time in which tasks
gets completed and results are shown (Hisrich and Ramadani, 2017). In relevance with Original
Creations, directors can set time limit of 6 months for adapting changes and increase their
marketing activities.
Costs incurred for the project
Cost can be described as expenditure which is required to produce a product or acquiring
assets (Sadjadi, 2020). Project costs can be described as total needed funds that is required by
organisation to complete a assigned task. These can be termed as monetary obligations that is
incurred or estimated in order to complete the project. Digital transformation of business
operations incurs huge cost for Original Creations.
Ongoing operating and maintenance cost incurred during smooth functioning of business
operations (Jain, Jain, and Jain, 2017). It can be direct or indirect cost which is incurred by
managers of Original Creations in order to generate sales and improve their quality standards.
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CONCLUSION
From the above presented report, it has been concluded that business house face many
types of issues relating to lowering sales, ineffective marketing practices and lack of experienced
staff of designers and operations manager. It is desirable for managers to choose viable business
option after analysing various factors like risk, efforts, return on investment and costs. It is
beneficial for organisations to transform digitally as it aids them in enhancing their data and
better resource management.
PART 2
Reflective report
This reflective report is about varied skills which is needed by me for getting ahead in my
life and in employability skills. I learned skills like communication, numeracy, problem solving,
information and communication technology (ICT) and working effectively in team. In week 1, I
explored leadership and emotional intelligence skills. In the course work, I got to understand the
meaning of managers and leaders. I understood different models of leadership which can be used
by me further in my employment. I learned that in complex organisational environment, effective
leadership skills are desirable. An effective leader is an individual who brings innovations in
organisation as well as motivates its followers so that they can perform in a strategic manner
(Kerzner, 2018).
I learned that emotional intelligence is significant for individuals as it able to motivate
students and perform persistently at the time of frustration. It is able to regulate mood and also
helps to keep the stress away from individuals. I learned that emotional intelligence helps me in
having self-awareness and mange my work in an effective manner. I performed leadership
assessment test which I have given in week . And after filling up the assessment, I secure 150
marks. Through this I have gained knowledge about some of my strengths and weaknesses. My
strengths are that I am good in learning, I treat others with respect, I used to prioritize activities
as per their significance and try to attain task with efficiency and many more. My weaknesses are
that I am not good in preparing financial budgets, I can not influence people and many more.
In week 2, I gained understanding of operations and how to manage them effectively. I
learned that operations management is an exercise which helps in managing resources in
effective manner. I learned that operations are considered as a heart of every organisation.
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Improvements in operations cam helps in lowering costs and improving customer satisfaction. I
also learned team building skills and how to work with efficiency and maintaining individual
identity while performing in groups. I got the understanding of sense of commitment and
individual efficiency in teamwork. I also learned to apply Tuckman theory which describes
formation and working of teamwork in an efficient manner. Under this, there are four stages of
teamwork. These are:
Forming stage is where teams are formed by selecting different individuals. This
individuals are characterised by different features and expertise (Mukhamadiev, Staroverova and
Shustrova, 2020). At the second stage of storming, conflicts arises due to difference in opinions
and relationships become strained at these stage. Norming stage is a phase where difference in
opinions are appreciated. Team members become focused and friendship develop at this phase.
Performing stage of this model relates with acquiring team spirit and attaining objectives and
goals which were determined at the starting of becoming a team.
In the same week I got the clear understanding of organisational structures which
describes needed co-ordination bifurcations of work into functions and divisions. There are
various organisational structures which are followed by organisations such as horizontal,
vertical, divisional and matrix (Ritter and Lettl, 2018).
In week 3, I learned about origin of lean production activities. I got to understand lean
production which helps in reduction of wasteful activities and is first implemented by Toyota. I
also learned about various disadvantages of lean production such as it is not helpful in meeting
instant demands.
In week 4, I learned about project management and its importance in organisation. It is
helpful in making portfolio of projects for prioritizing them. There are varied types of projects
such as pure, functional and matrix. I got to learn about disadvantages, advantages and structure
of these type of projects. Project life cycle is bifurcated into five stages, namely, initiation,
planning, execution, monitoring and closure. I learned that objective of every project should be
attainable and reliable. An action plan consisting of SMART objectives in relation to other
unlearned skills.
Skills Specific Measurable Attainable Relevant Time duration
Leadership
skills
This skills
are needed
For gaining
this skill, I
I will achieve
this skill by
This skill is
relevant for
3 months
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by me in
order to
influence
people and
make them
work
effectively in
my
employment.
participate in
sports and
annual
competition of
my University
as a leader and
I will try to
motivate my
team
members.
proper
interactions
with my team
members. I
can motivate
them to
perform better.
me as it helps
in becoming
leader in my
employment.
Communication
skills
I want
excellent
communicati
on skills
which helps
me to
interact
effectively
with my
peers and
superiors.
For gaining
this skill, I
have attended
seminars in
order to listen
effectively to
experts.
I will
accomplish
this skill by
practising
communicatio
n with my
peers and
friends.
This skill is
relevant for
me as it
benefits me in
making
socially
interact with
peers in my
employment
practice.
5 months
I learned to develop many skills such as leadership, numeracy, information and
communication technology and many more. I want to develop my communication skill as it can
be a foundation of many knowledgable areas. I want to develop verbal as well as written
communication skills. This can help me in enhancing my vocabulary and writing skills.
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REFERENCES
Books & Journals:
Anantatmula, V. S. and Rad, P. F., 2018. Role of organizational project management maturity
factors on project success. Engineering Management Journal 30(3). pp.165-178.
Azis, A. M. and Azis, Y., 2020. Foundation and basic information in designing performance
management system. International Journal of Innovations in Business. 2(4). pp.327-349.
Beirau, D., 2020. Theoretical Foundation. In Which Customers Pay? (pp. 9-48). Springer
Gabler, Wiesbaden.
Boyle, G., 2017. Design project management. Routledge.
Cristbal, J. S., 2017. Complexity in project management. Procedia Computer Science. 121(C).
pp.762-766.
Harrison, F. and Lock, D., 2017. Advanced project management: a structured approach.
Routledge.
Hisrich, R. D. and Ramadani, V., 2017. Foundation of Entrepreneurial Management. In Effective
Entrepreneurial Management (pp. 1-15). Springer, Cham.
Jain, R., Jain, C. and Jain, P., 2017. Management of education for entrepreneurship: conceptual
foundation for practice & research. Indian Journal of Industrial Relations, 52(4), pp.644-
658.Mitra, N., 2018. In the Pursuit of Building the Foundation for Sustainability.
In Building new bridges between business and society (pp. 13-23). Springer, Cham.
Kerzner, H., 2018. Project management best practices: Achieving global excellence. John Wiley
& Sons.
Mukhamadiev, R., Staroverova, N. and Shustrova, M., 2020, October. Specifics of Project
Management System Development for Large Organizations. In 2020 International Multi-
Conference on Industrial Engineering and Modern Technologies (FarEastCon) (pp. 1-8).
IEEE.
Ritter, T. and Lettl, C., 2018. The wider implications of business-model research. Long range
planning. 51(1). pp.1-8.
Sadjadi, E. N., 2020. Service-dominant logic as a foundation for business model innovation in
smart grids. The Electricity Journal. 33(5). p.106737.
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