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Doing 2013 HSC essay question help ! (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter Bongos
- Start date
I've sent Drifting95, obliviousninja and RivalryofTroll a link to this thread. Since they've answered the question firsthand I presume they will give better advice. 
Last edited:
Drifting95
Should i change my DP?
You have to break down the question into its different components.
Assess the strategies that management may use to respond to influences on operations
From this you can see you have to:
1. Talk about the influences on operations with clear examples (case studies)
2. Judge the effectiveness of the strategies in their response to the influences (pick a handful from the syllabus, don't do them all as you can't cover all of them in sufficient detail)
The key is to have a direct link between each section of the essay. Start by highlighting the the influence on operations for a business and talk about the possible outcomes. E.g the effect of globalisation can lead to increased worldwide competition, in turn leading to potential decreases in market share and profits. In order to show higher order understanding i would try and integrate some sort of relevant real life business example.
You would then link this by saying how a business can adopt a strategy of introducing leading edge technology in order to produce more efficiently, accordingly allowing the firm to offer lower prices and thus increase sales/market share once again. Again, the use of real world examples is vital as it will differentiate yourself from a similar student who has studied the course on the theory aspect. Do this for each strategy you do.
cbb writing anymore now, i'll get back to it eventually.
Assess the strategies that management may use to respond to influences on operations
From this you can see you have to:
1. Talk about the influences on operations with clear examples (case studies)
2. Judge the effectiveness of the strategies in their response to the influences (pick a handful from the syllabus, don't do them all as you can't cover all of them in sufficient detail)
The key is to have a direct link between each section of the essay. Start by highlighting the the influence on operations for a business and talk about the possible outcomes. E.g the effect of globalisation can lead to increased worldwide competition, in turn leading to potential decreases in market share and profits. In order to show higher order understanding i would try and integrate some sort of relevant real life business example.
You would then link this by saying how a business can adopt a strategy of introducing leading edge technology in order to produce more efficiently, accordingly allowing the firm to offer lower prices and thus increase sales/market share once again. Again, the use of real world examples is vital as it will differentiate yourself from a similar student who has studied the course on the theory aspect. Do this for each strategy you do.
cbb writing anymore now, i'll get back to it eventually.
obliviousninja
(╯°□°）╯━︵ ┻━┻ - - - -
You trying to become mod as well, like strawberrye?
Drifting95
Should i change my DP?
lol no
RivalryofTroll
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Not sure if it's still needed but I'll post my recommendations for this question anyways for future students.
I selected this essay question (operations option) and got 17.5/20 for it.
This was my own approach to the question but since the question was very open - there are many other ways to approach it (ultimately, there are better ways which 20/20 students would have used).
I spent around 2 minutes on PLANNING TIME. During this time, I wrote any OPERATION INFLUENCES and OPERATION STRATEGIES that came to mind onto my exam paper.
Then I thought about how I'd hit the word ASSESS. The question verb is very important if you want to hit the very high marks. Ultimately, I thought I'd assess the strategies by highlighting their effectiveness (I made a mention in my introduction about this).
In terms of Case Studies which I used throughout my essay - I did around 3-4 --> Qantas (did this the most for my essay), Mechatronics Haven Pty Ltd. (a hypothetical), Aldi and Woolworths.
This is how I approached the BODY PARAGRAPHS for the essay. Simply, I stuck with the good ole PEEL method.
POINT for the topic sentence.
E.g. Supply Chain Management (SCM) strategies may be utilised to address the influences of globalisation and technology.
It sounds simple yet it hits the question. I noted a strategy and I noted influences.
EXPLAINING your point
E.g. For Mechatronics Haven Pty Ltd., globalisation has allowed the business to utilise global sourcing and a global web.
EVIDENCE of effectiveness?
E.g. This global web is a supply chain of manufacturing companies that provides the business with lower-cost intermediate goods.
So I'm trying to hit LOWER COSTS --> so yeah, SCM has been great.
I repeated the double Es for the INFLUENCE of technology in the same paragraph.
EXPLANATION - E.g. Also, the emergence of technology such as the internet has allowed for E-commerce to be pursued by Mechatronics Haven.
EVIDENCE - E.g. This means that the transfer of supplies becomes more efficient for the business and there is a lower cost for collecting the manufactured goods.
LINK back to the question
E.g. Thus, the strategy of SCM has clearly been effective in responding to the influences of globalisation and technology on Mechatronics Haven's operations.
I admit, I could have ended that paragraph better but I think I had time constraints from spending too much time on the BUSINESS REPORT (which I got 19/20 for) so I couldn't think too much.
Linking back is important for one to hit the question and even the question verb of ASSESS.
But yeah, I think ASSESS for me (or how I interpreted it) is looking at the EFFECTIVENESS of STRATEGIES in responding (so like taking advantage of or dealing with) to certain influences on OPERATIONS. Did it help? Did it make it worse? Did the company take advantage of the influence of globalisation from utilising a certain strategy (thus, allowing them to make more profits or lower their costs or become more competitive)?
I did APPLE for one of my other paragraphs.
Strategy - OUTSOURCING
Influence - Corporate Social Responsibility, Cost-Based Competition
Evidence - Really bad working conditions for workers in the company Foxconn (where Apple outsources its manufacturing to).
Link - Therefore...
In simple terms - it'd be great for addressing the influence of COST-BASED COMPETITION (lowering costs through outsourcing) but less effective (or ineffective) for addressing the influence of CSR.
But yes, clearly even with SIMPLE LANGUAGE and a SIMPLE RIGID STRUCTURE, you can hit 17/20+ for a Business essay.
My biggest tip in the end is to... DECONSTRUCT THE QUESTION.
- Question VERB.
- Which parts of the syllabus do I need to look at? Whether it be a topic (e.g. Operations) or a part of the topic (ROLE OF, INFLUENCES, PROCESSES or STRATEGIES).
Then just answer it. Spam your paper with SYLLABUS TERMINOLOGY. Your case studies = treat them as EVIDENCE --> they'll help you get your point across. If you ANSWER THE QUESTION, USE THE SYLLABUS and WRITE AS MUCH AS YOU CAN - you should do well
I selected this essay question (operations option) and got 17.5/20 for it.
This was my own approach to the question but since the question was very open - there are many other ways to approach it (ultimately, there are better ways which 20/20 students would have used).
I spent around 2 minutes on PLANNING TIME. During this time, I wrote any OPERATION INFLUENCES and OPERATION STRATEGIES that came to mind onto my exam paper.
Then I thought about how I'd hit the word ASSESS. The question verb is very important if you want to hit the very high marks. Ultimately, I thought I'd assess the strategies by highlighting their effectiveness (I made a mention in my introduction about this).
In terms of Case Studies which I used throughout my essay - I did around 3-4 --> Qantas (did this the most for my essay), Mechatronics Haven Pty Ltd. (a hypothetical
), Aldi and Woolworths.This is how I approached the BODY PARAGRAPHS for the essay. Simply, I stuck with the good ole PEEL method.
POINT for the topic sentence.
E.g. Supply Chain Management (SCM) strategies may be utilised to address the influences of globalisation and technology.
It sounds simple yet it hits the question. I noted a strategy and I noted influences.
EXPLAINING your point
E.g. For Mechatronics Haven Pty Ltd., globalisation has allowed the business to utilise global sourcing and a global web.
EVIDENCE of effectiveness?
E.g. This global web is a supply chain of manufacturing companies that provides the business with lower-cost intermediate goods.
So I'm trying to hit LOWER COSTS --> so yeah, SCM has been great.
I repeated the double Es for the INFLUENCE of technology in the same paragraph.
EXPLANATION - E.g. Also, the emergence of technology such as the internet has allowed for E-commerce to be pursued by Mechatronics Haven.
EVIDENCE - E.g. This means that the transfer of supplies becomes more efficient for the business and there is a lower cost for collecting the manufactured goods.
LINK back to the question
E.g. Thus, the strategy of SCM has clearly been effective in responding to the influences of globalisation and technology on Mechatronics Haven's operations.
I admit, I could have ended that paragraph better but I think I had time constraints from spending too much time on the BUSINESS REPORT (which I got 19/20 for) so I couldn't think too much.
Linking back is important for one to hit the question and even the question verb of ASSESS.
But yeah, I think ASSESS for me (or how I interpreted it) is looking at the EFFECTIVENESS of STRATEGIES in responding (so like taking advantage of or dealing with) to certain influences on OPERATIONS. Did it help? Did it make it worse? Did the company take advantage of the influence of globalisation from utilising a certain strategy (thus, allowing them to make more profits or lower their costs or become more competitive)?
I did APPLE for one of my other paragraphs.
Strategy - OUTSOURCING
Influence - Corporate Social Responsibility, Cost-Based Competition
Evidence - Really bad working conditions for workers in the company Foxconn (where Apple outsources its manufacturing to).
Link - Therefore...
In simple terms - it'd be great for addressing the influence of COST-BASED COMPETITION (lowering costs through outsourcing) but less effective (or ineffective) for addressing the influence of CSR.
But yes, clearly even with SIMPLE LANGUAGE and a SIMPLE RIGID STRUCTURE, you can hit 17/20+ for a Business essay.
My biggest tip in the end is to... DECONSTRUCT THE QUESTION.
- Question VERB.
- Which parts of the syllabus do I need to look at? Whether it be a topic (e.g. Operations) or a part of the topic (ROLE OF, INFLUENCES, PROCESSES or STRATEGIES).
Then just answer it. Spam your paper with SYLLABUS TERMINOLOGY. Your case studies = treat them as EVIDENCE --> they'll help you get your point across. If you ANSWER THE QUESTION, USE THE SYLLABUS and WRITE AS MUCH AS YOU CAN - you should do well