ASSIGNMENT 2: Target Market Research/Initial Stakeholder Consultations
20% of Course Grade
(See Course Schedule for Due Date)
This assignment is stage 2 in your term long project. In Assignment 2, you will present your market research for the business initiative you are exploring for distance learning.
Resources
You will find some pertinent resources in Content > Course Resources (eReadings and eReserves) and Course Modules, but you should also locate additional high quality sources (e.g., from peer-reviewed articles) through the access to open journals.
Format and length
Your paper should be an essay that conforms to standard essay requirements (see the Written Communications Rubric in Course Resources > Writing Resources).
Word count approximately 2,000 words (excluding the reference list).
All sources must be cited within the paper and included in a References list in APA format.
Submit your assignment as a document (e.g., Word file) in the Assignments Folder.
Name your file using the following format: LastnameFirstinitial_A2
Where to submit: Submit your assignment in the folder for Assignment 2
Instructions
Any business initiative requires an analysis of the market needs and environment in which it will operate. Peter Drucker (1973) asserts that the purpose of a business is to create a customer, a customer willing to pay for a good or service. This assignment asks you to analyze the market that you are targeting in your business case. You are asked to collect intelligence showing that you know your market and its characteristics so well that your product/venture/idea is ideally suited and aligned with their expectations and needs.
There are many ways to carry out a market analysis, and your context will determine the best approach. Your analysis should include descriptions of:
Current market: What do you really know about your market? Are there current market trends that signify a demand for your services/products? Specify these trends and their influence within your business case.
What information do you have and how will you organize that information? Your customers and their needs and the basis for your conviction that you understand them: Who are your customers/potential students? What are their needs and what do they want? Is there sufficient demand for this concept? What products, services and functions will need to be developed to meet the business objectives and satisfy the market? Is there sufficient incentive, motivation and capability in the current organization to support the new business?
Your competitors and an analysis of how you compare. What is the competitive environment? How will you design your product/program to your comparative strength and advantage? Include brief profiles of at least two competitors and how your business compares.
Why do you care more about these customers than your competitors? What strengths do you bring? Why would p
eople prefer your services and/or products to those of your competitors? Where is the added value for your potential customer?
You should use a minimum of three references to market research data that supports your market analysis.
For this assignment, you will also need to develop a workplan that describes how you plan to move forward with your business case idea. This workplan should be as detailed as is possible and give us an idea of how you plan to complete your business case over the remaining weeks of the course.
Questions you should address are:
Who will you interview? What is the stakeholder role in and importance to the business case? What do you want to achieve through this interview?
What desk-based research will you complete?
What is your plan for completing the next two parts of the business case assignment?
What data will you gather and for what purposes?
Please include the workplan as an Appendix in your paper. The workplan does not contribute to the overall word count. We have provided you with a Final Business Plan Outline at the beginning of Module 1. This will give you a roadmap of the key tasks you must complete for the remainder of your business case. Your workplan should be a brief summary of what and how you plan to complete your business case.
GRADING RUBRIC Maximum 100 points (20% of course grade)
Excellent
Good
Needs Improvement
Response to the assigned task
32-35
The paper describes the market analysis in detail, including stakeholder data, your plan moving to the next stage for your business case
28-31
The paper describes the market analysis, including stakeholder data, your plan moving to the next stage for your business case
<28
The does not cover enough of the required information to determine whether or not the business venture is viable.
Support for comments and propositions
27-30
Comments and propositions are supported with sound analysis and references to experts, research, and/or data.
24-26
Comments and propositions are supported with some analysis and references to experts, research, and/or data.
0-23
Comments and propositions are presented primarily as opinions with little or no analysis and support from external sources.
Writing quality
27-30
Highly proficient in categories specified in TGS Written Communications Rubric
24-26
Proficient in categories specified in TGS Written Communications Rubric
0-23
Is not proficient in categories specified in TGS Written Communications Rubric
Technical matters
4-5
Paper adheres to all of the following:
Paper includes an appropriate title, author, date.
The format is appropriate for the topic.
Paper is at the specified length (within 10%)
3
Paper adheres to the majority of the following:
Paper includes an appropriate title, author, date.
The format is appropriate for the topic.
Paper is at the specified length (within 10%)
<3
Paper lacks a significant portion of the technical specifications for the paper.