College of Banking and Financial Studies

Assignment Brief – BTEC

Higher National Diploma in Business (Level 5)
Assignment 1
Student Name /ID
Number Unit 6: Managing a Successful Business Project (D/618/5039)
Unit Number and Title
Academic Year Spring 2023-2024

Unit Assessor Dr Omar Ali Ibrahim/ Moharanjithan Gnanendran

I. V. Name Mr. Vaheed Z Ubaidullah

Assignment Title
Implementing CSR activities within organisations to meet

sustainable objectives.

Issue Date 18/3/2024

Formative submission 17/4/2024

Date
Summative Submission 27/4/2024
Date
Submission Format: ASSIGNMENT information PLEASE READ

1. The submission is in the form of an individual written report. This should be

written in a concise, formal business style using single spacing and font size 12.
2. You are required to make use of headings, paragraphs and subsections as
appropriate, and all work must be supported with research and referenced using
the Harvard referencing system.
3. Please provide a bibliography using Harvard referencing system if you referred
any sources for theoretical parts or questions.
4. The document must be submitted to Turnitin in MS Word document.
5. The total word count (excluding bibliography) of the report should be around
2,500 words, but you will not be penalized for exceeding the word limit.
6. The file must be saved in the format: student ID-MSBP-Formative-A1, for
formative submission and student ID-MSBP-Summative-A1, for summative
submission.

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 7. In case of extenuating situations, the relevant college policies apply.

Unit Learning Outcomes:

LO1 - Explain the key stages of the project lifecycle that should be considered when
project managing.

LO2 - Produce a Project Management Plan (PMP) for a business project using
primary and secondary research methods.

Learning outcomes and Assessment Criteria

Learning Pass Merit Distinction

outcome
LO1 Explain the P1 Explain the stages of M1 Evaluate the stages D1 Critically
key stages of the project lifecycle of the PLC and the evaluate the
the project (PLC) and their factors, (deliverables, project-
lifecycle that importance to quality, risk, management
should be the success of a project. communication and process, PMP
considered resources) to be and research
when project P2 Examine the factors considered in a PMP. methods for
managing to be considered when gathering
compiling a project M2 Evaluate a range of information
management plan research methods and and data
(PMP). strategies for gathering collection.
information and data
P3 Examine a range of collection.
research methods and
strategies and their
importance to project
management.
LO2 Produce a P4 Produce a PMP that M3 Produce a detailed D2 Justify the
Project covers, aim, objectives, PMP, and schedule for choices made
Management deliverables, quality, monitoring and in the design
Plan (PMP) for a risk, communication completing the aims of the PMP for
business resources and research and objectives of the completing the
project using methods. project. aims and
primary and P5 Produce a work objectives of
secondary breakdown structure the project.
research and a schedule to
methods provide timeframes and
stages for completion

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PLEASE READ THIS PAGE CAREFULLY TO ENSURE YOU COVER WHAT IS REQUIRED
TO SATISFY THE GRADE

Vocational Scenario

Corporate Social Responsibility is the continuing commitment by business to behave

ethically and contribute to economic development while improving the quality of life of

the workforce and their families as well as of the local community and society at large

(Wolf et al. 2015). Businesses worldwide have increasingly embraced the concept of

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) to develop and adopt sustainable practices and

approaches in their business operations. It is a multifaceted concept that encompasses

many different aspects ranging from philanthropy, ethical responsibilities, and

environmental considerations.

The CSR provides various benefits for the business, including increased employee

retention, loyalty, and satisfaction (Ngoc and Usama, 2022). Corporate social

responsibility policies will boost business profitability and produce a higher value

for all stakeholders by reducing costs and making effective use of resources (Luu,

2019). A socially conscious corporation can gain a competitive edge through

initiatives that increase customer happiness and loyalty as well as cost-cutting

(Hadj, 2020). Additionally, CSR strengthens a company's accountability and

openness with customers, the media, shareholders, and local communities,

enhancing its reputation (Azman and Mustapha, 2018). By reducing opportunistic

behaviour and boosting stakeholder participation, CSR can also improve a

company's ability to access additional capital and finance (Ansong, 2017).

Most recently, in response to maximizing stakeholder value and expectations, many

companies in Oman are adopting the idea of corporate social responsibility (CSR) to

create and implement sustainable practices and methods in their business

operations. Together with the rise of globalization, these companies are

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 increasingly employ CSR managers, experts, and consultants to produce

comprehensive CSR policies and programmes, to give them a competitive edge and

build stakeholder trust and loyalty.

As a project manager employed by a reputable firm in Oman, assume that your

director has requested you to initiate a project to assess whether the CSR activities

implemented by the company have achieved their sustainable objectives.

Assignment activity and guidance:

The director needs the report to be submitted in two phases. The first phase must

be completed within three months, followed by presentation of the results in the

second phase. The first phase of the report should

1. Critically evaluate the project management process and research methods used in

gathering information and data collection,

2. Justify the choices made in design of project management process for completing

the aims and objectives of the project.

To facilitate preparation of the report, you are required to review the “learning and

grading criterion table” on page 2.

The progress of your project should be maintained in a logbook. The logbook should

include a record of what you did, when and what you were thinking and where things

went wrong and what you did to overcome any unexpected results. You will also need

to reflect on the success of the project and performance in a personal performance

review document at the end of the project. This written reflection should be around

500 words. A template of the logbook and personal performance review is attached

as an appendix.

NOTE:

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 Please do not forget to attach a minimum of at least 4 logbooks with the report.

Additional instructions: (for assessment briefs 1 and 2)

Activity
In order to conduct you project successfully to produce your business case you will
need take the following steps:

Step 1 – Project planning

1. Devise a project management plan to map out how you intend to meet the project
objectives:
● Begin with the scope. What activities and tasks as defined in your project must
be done in order to make the project a success?
● Note the milestones or major events or phases in your project.
● Provide details of activities to be carried out during initiation, planning and
execution of the project.
● Create a work break down structure using a Gantt chart to track the activities to
be undertaken.

Step 2 – Conduct primary and secondary research.

1. Devise a short questionnaire/ or interview questions to complete with
employees within the organisation. Include questions on how they define
corporate social responsibility (CSR), what are their views of the CSR initiative
undergone by the organisation, and its effectiveness in achieving the organization’s
vision and mission.
2. Research at least two other organisations to see what type of Corporate social
responsibility (CSR) initiatives they have.
3. Research the value and benefits of addressing Corporate social responsibility
(CSR) in terms of improving the organization’s performance.
4. Focus on areas of good practice in Corporate social responsibility (CSR) to build
and support your business case.

Step 3 – Present findings

1. Collate your research and analyse your findings.
2. Produce and present the business case including an evaluation of tools used to
gather research and data to justify your recommendations for implementing
wellbeing initiatives.
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Step 4 – Reflective practice
1. Complete a performance review with your line manager to critically reflect upon
the project plan, process and outcomes in terms of your own personal and
professional development. Think about how well you have performed and
achieved your project objectives, what obstacles did you have to overcome? What
worked well or not well? What have you learnt from completing this project?

Recommended Resources

Please note that the resources listed are examples for you to use as a starting point in
your research – the list is not definitive.

www.asana.com Asana, Free project-management tools, (General reference)

www.projectmanagement.com, Project management, (General reference)

www.projectsmart.co.uk, Project Smart, Articles, Tools, Glossary, (General reference)

www.trello.com, Trello, Free project-management tools

References

Ansong, A. (2017). Corporate Social Responsibility and Access to Finance among

Ghanaian SMEs: The Role of Stakeholder Engagement. Cogent Business and
Management. 4(1), 1-13. 10.1080/23311975.2017.1385165.

Azman, N., and Mustapha, M. (2018). Benefits and challenges of corporate social
responsibility implementations: Evidence from manufacturing sector in Malaysia.
International Journal of Engineering and Technology (UAE). 7. 215-218.
10.14419/ijet.v7i2.29.13320.

Dritsaki ,C., (2017). Toda-Yamamoto Causality Test between Inflation and Nominal
Interest Rates: Evidence from Three Countries of Europe. International Journal of
Economics and Financial Issue. 7(6), 120-129

Hadj, T. B. (2020). Effects of corporate social responsibility towards stakeholders and

environmental management on responsible innovation and competitiveness. Journal of
Cleaner Production, 250, 119490.

Kiliç, M., and Kuzey, C. (2017), Factors influencing sustainability reporting: evidence
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from Turkey. In Tunca Çaliyurt, K. and Günay, S.G. (Ed.), Recent Issues in Accounting
Finance and Auditing 2017 (in the memory of Prof. Dr. Fehmi Yıldız), Trakya University,
Edirne, 139-175.

Luu, T., (2019). CSR and customer value co-creation behavior: The moderation
mechanisms of servant leadership and relationship marketing orientation. Journal of
Business Ethics, 155(2), 379-398, 10.1007/s10551-017-3493-7

Ngoc, T., and Usama, A. (2022). Impact of corporate social responsibility on customer
loyalty: Evidence from the Vietnamese jewelry industry. Cogent Business and
Management, 9:1, DOI: 10.1080/23311975.2022.2025675

Wolf, R., Issa, T. and Thiel M. (2015). Empowering Organizations through Corporate
Social Responsibility. Hershey, PA: IGI Global. DOI: 10.4018/978-1-4666-7294-9

Useful resources for Corporate social responsibility (CSR):

Type of Resource Resource Titles Links

Online resources Corporate Responsibility: https://www.oecd.org/
Frequently asked corporate/
questions
Online article Corporate Responsibility: https://www.cipd.co.uk/
Factsheet knowledge/strategy/
corporate-responsibility/
factsheet
Online guidelines Corporate governance: https://www.gov.uk/
new reporting regulations government/publications/
corporate-governance-new-
reporting-regulations
Online article Introduction to Ethical Organizations and
Leadership

Useful resources for Project Management:

Type of Resource Resource Titles Links

Online Resources What is Project https://www.apm.org.uk/
Management? resources/what-is-project-
management/
Online Resources Project Management links: https://
● Start Here www.mindtools.com/
● Scheduling pages/main/newMN_PPM.
● Scope Management ht m

Online article Demystifying the 5 phases https://

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 of project management www.smartsheet.com/
blog/demystifying-5-
phases- project-
management
Online Resources A range of project https://
management resources hnglobal.highernationals.c
available in the resource om/subjects/business/
library on HN Global resource-library

Additional materials

HN Global

HN Global (2021) Reading Lists. Available at:

https://hnglobal.highernationals.com/learning-zone/reading-lists

HN Global (2021) Student Resource Library. Available at:

https://hnglobal.highernationals.com/subjects/resource-libraries

HN Global (2021) Textbooks. Available at:

https://hnglobal.highernationals.com/textbooks

Journals/Textbooks

ALQASSABI, M. (2020). Insights on Sustainability of Small and Medium Enterprises in

Oman: A Conceptual Framework. International Journal of Economics and Financial
Issues. 10(1), 209-218.

DINSMORE, P. and CABANIS-BREWIN, J. (2018). The AMA Handbook of Project

Management. 5th Ed. AMACON.

FLICK, U. (2020) Introducing Research Methodology: A Beginner’s Guide to Doing a

Research Project. 3rd Ed. London: SAGE.

GRAY, D. (2017) Doing Research in the Real World. 4th Ed. London: SAGE.

MAYLOR, H. (2021) Project Management. 5th Ed. Harlow: Pearson.

SAUNDERS, M., LEWIS, P. and THORNHILL, A. (2019) Research Methods for Business
Students. 8th Ed. Harlow: Pearson.

Learner Assessment Submission and Declaration

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 When submitting evidence for assessment, each learner must sign a declaration
confirming that the work is their own.

Please list the evidence submitted for each task. Indicate the page numbers where the
evidence can be found or describe the nature of the evidence (e.g. video, illustration).

Task ref. Evidence submitted Page numbers or

Description
LO 1

LO 2

Additional comments to the Assessor:

Learner declaration

I certify that the work submitted for this assignment is my own. I have clearly
referenced any sources used in the work. I understand that false declaration is
a form of malpractice.

Learner signature: Date:

ASSESSMENT RECORD SHEET – FORMATIVE FEEDBACK

Learner
Programme BTEC HND BUSINESS LEVEL 5
name
Assignment title Implementing CSR activities Assessor Dr Omar Ali
name
within organisations to

meet sustainable objectives

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 Targeted
Unit 6: Managing a Successful learning
Unit no. & title Business Project aims/ LO 1 and LO 2
D/618/5039) assessment
criteria
First Submission Date
17/4/2024
Deadline submitted
Targeted Criteria
Assessment comments
criteria achieved
P1
P2
P3
P4
P5
M1
M2
M3
D1
D2
General comments

I certify that the evidence submitted for this assignment is the

learner’s own. The learner has clearly referenced any sources
Assessor declaration
used in the work. I understand that false declaration is a form
of malpractice.
Assessor signature Date
Date of
feedback to
learner
Resubmission
authorisation Date
by Lead Internal Verifier*
* All resubmissions must be authorised by the Lead Internal Verifier. Only one

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resubmission is possible per assignment, providing:
● The learner has met initial deadlines set in the assignment or has met an
agreed deadline extension.
● The tutor considers that the learner will be able to provide improved evidence
without further guidance.
● Evidence submitted for assessment has been authenticated and accompanied
by a signed and dated declaration of authenticity by the learner.
**Any resubmission evidence must be submitted within 15 working days of
receipt of results of assessment.

ASSESSMENT RECORD SHEET - RESUBMISSION – SUMMATIVE FEEDBACK

Date
Deadline 27/4/2024
submitted
Targeted Criteria
Assessment comments
criteria achieved
P1
P2
P3
P4
P5
M1
M2
M3
D1
D2
General comments

I certify that the evidence submitted for this assignment is my

Learner
own. I have clearly referenced any sources used in the work. I
Declaration
understand that false declaration is a form of malpractice.
Learner signature Date
I certify that the evidence submitted for this assignment is the
Assessor learner’s own. The learner has clearly referenced any sources
declaration used in the work. I understand that false declaration is a form
of malpractice.
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 Assessor signature Date
Date of feedback to
learner

Project Logbook Template

Name: Student No:

Project Title:
Date:

Update on period of development

Points to consider:
What have you completed in this period?
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Did you complete the work that you had planned?

Are you on track and within deadlines set?

Did you need to make any changes to your project plan?

Risks and/or issues identified

Points to consider:
Did you identify risks/issues related to a lack of knowledge or skill required to undertake
the work you had planned?

Did you identify any additional risks/issues that have an impact on your project plan?

Problems encountered
Points to consider:
What challenges did you face?

How did you overcome them?

New ideas and change of project direction

Points to consider:
In developing work, addressing risks/issues, has the direction of your work changed?

How does your work justify the change of direction? Is this clear?

Do you feel this change of direction has enhanced your work? How?

What have you learned about yourself through your work?

Points to consider:
What are the most important things that your work has revealed to you? How might this
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learning apply in the future?

How did you feel when you had to deal with challenges/problems?

How well do you feel you have you performed?

What can you improve?

Next steps for your work

Points to consider:
What aspects of your work should you prioritise?

Have you allowed sufficient time for completion?

Project plan status to date

Points to consider:
Do you feel you are on track to complete your work on time? If not, how will you address
this?

Do you feel your work shows your achievement of the Learning Outcomes? If not, what do
you need to do?

Performance Review Template

Performance review:
What did you aim to achieve through your work?

Did your work succeed in achieving your aims? How do you know? Specifically, please
outline any evaluation and assessment undertaken.

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What aspects of your development process do you think worked well and why? Evaluate all
aspects of the project (e.g. initial research, concept development, development process,
presentation, etc.) from a range of perspectives.

What problems emerged during the project and how were they tackled? Was there timely
identification of issues and resolution during the project process?

What did you learn from undertaking the project?

What are the strengths and weaknesses of your process that you have identified?

How could your process improve for the future?

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