Choose an industry or company (e.g., manufacturing, retail, healthcare, automotive, etc.) that interests you and secondary sources from literature such as company reports, research articles to produce a short report critically discussing the role of ONE

Assignment Task

This is an individual assignment.

Choose an industry or company (e.g., manufacturing, retail, healthcare, automotive, etc.) that interests you and secondary sources from literature such as company reports, research articles to produce a short report critically discussing the role of ONE of the following key areas of operations analytics:

·Process design and throughput management

• Capacity management

You must provide a detailed account of relevant concepts learned in this module and must consider ALL of the following sections in your report;

1. Overview. An overview of the organization including operations structure, key products/services and the scope of that operational area (i.e. topic selected) for the organization and its impact on the organizational performance.

For example,

• If you choose, process design, you may discuss to what extent the operations of the organization are influenced by the design of its processes, and its contribution to organizational performance.
• In the case of capacity management, you may discuss scope of capacity management for the selected organization and the influence of capacity management on the organizational performance in context with organizational current production and service processes/demand and supply patterns/existing capacity utilization.

1. The existing operational environment and key variables. Critically discuss the current situation of the organization related to selected topic. Identify and describe existing inventory management policies or process design and management practices, and important factors or variables that are most relevant currently to inventory management or process design and management of the organization.

For example,

• In the case of process design, identify a core process within the chosen industry (e.g., production process, order fulfillment, procurement, logistics etc.). Map the current process using a process flow diagram (Your own illustration). Analyze the process in terms of efficiency, bottlenecks, and value-added vs non-value-added activities.
• If you choose capacity management, you need to analyze an organization’s current capacity utilization and provide calculations or data to support your analysis where relevant. You can look at the organizational current base capacity and capacity mismatch issues based on market demand. You can also identify the distinct types of capacity within the chosen organization (e.g., production capacity, service capacity, labor capacity, machine capacity etc.). You can also analyze the current capacity utilization rates. Determine if the organization is operating under full capacity, over capacity, or under capacity to guide your thinking and identify the key decisions and variables to capacity management. Identify any bottlenecks in the production or service processes that are limiting capacity. Discuss the impact of these bottlenecks on overall operations.

1. Discuss the application of proposed solution by proposing key analytics techniques or model for improvement and key challenges for implementation. Discussion of a major operations analytics tool or model you recommend should be used in the organization’s

operational area. Also, outline the challenges faced by the organization in achieving excellence in support of this area of its operations analytics.

For Example,

• In the case of process design proposes a redesigned process that optimizes efficiency, reduces lead times, and minimizes waste. Justify your design decisions using relevant operational analytics techniques. (e.g. volume variety mix, and product-process matrix etc.). Discuss challenges faced by the organization in implementation of your proposed design.
• If you choose capacity management, based on your analysis of organizational existing capacity management practices assess the organization’s future capacity needs. Discuss how the organization can align its capacity with the demand through strategies like: Level capacity planning, Chase demand strategy, Hybrid strategies, Use of overtime, subcontracting, or part-time labor. And/or propose strategies for capacity expansion or reduction as needed (e.g., investing in new machinery, opening new facilities, reducing the workforce). Also, analyze the costs and benefits of these strategies.

Note that this discussion must be technical in nature, and must include at least one your own illustrations, and at least one example of mathematical calculation, and/or its description. 

1. Conclusions and key challenges. Conclude your study based on your findings and proposed recommendations for improvement.

Note: Your report should strive for a good balance between theory and practice in discussing the selected case and to be concise in its presentation.

Word Count

• The word count is 1000.
• There will be a penalty of a deduction of 10% of the mark (after internal moderation) for work exceeding the word limit by 10% or more.
• The word limit includes quotations and citations but excludes the references list.

Submission Instructions:

The assessment must be submitted by 18:00 on 27/06/2025. No paper copies are required. Your assignment must be in Microsoft Words format, NOT in PDF. You can access the submission link through the Aula page – Assignments section.

• Your coursework will be given a zero mark if you do not submit a copy through Turnitin. Please take care to ensure that you have fully submitted your work.
• Please ensure you submitted your work using the correct file format, unreadable files will receive a mark of zero. The faculty accepts Microsoft Office and PDF documents, unless otherwise advised by the module leader.
• All work submitted after the submission deadline without a valid and approved reason (see below) will be given a mark of zero.
• The University wants you to do your best. However, we know that sometimes events happen which mean that you can’t submit your coursework by the deadline – these events should be beyond your control and not easy to predict. If this happens, you can apply for an extension to your deadline for up to 5 working days, or if you need longer, you can apply for a deferral, which takes you to the next assessment period (for example, to the resit period following the main Assessment Boards). You must apply before the deadline. Additionally, every student may avail an automoatic 24-hour grace period to

overcome any technical fault causing a delay in the submission and this does not require an extension application to be made. Note the following for the grace period: (a) this is only available if no submission has already been made (b) only one submission can be made during this 24-hour grace period, and (c) as Turnitin may take more around 24 hours to process full similarity comparisons – it may not show an accurate report at the time of submission.

You will find information about the 5 day extension process and what is or is not considered to be an event beyond your control at https://share.coventry.ac.uk/students/Registry/Pages/Deferrals-and- Extension.aspx

• Students MUST keep a copy and/or an electronic file of their assignment.
  • Checks will be made on your work using anti-plagiarism software and approved plagiarism checking websites.

AI and Assessment

Amber – AI Used to assist only.

AI can be used in the exploratory stage of research to understand the subject area but cannot be used to create finished content.

Definitions of academic misconduct, including plagiarism, self-plagiarism, and collusion can be found on the Student Portal. All cases of suspected academic misconduct are referred for investigation, the outcomes of which can have profound consequences to your studies. For more information on academic integrity please visit the Academic and Research Integrity section of the Student Portal.

You may not use AI to assist you or to generate content for your assignments unless clearly indicted by the module leader. Where permitted, any assistance/content generated by AI is not your own work and must be acknowledged within your work. Failure to do so is academic misconduct. If you are uncertain whether you may use AI, or the extent to which you may use it in a given assignment, you should seek clarification from the module leader.

Please note it is your responsibility to keep a record of how your thinking has developed as you progress through to submission. Appropriate evidence could include: version controlled documents, developmental sketchbooks, or journals. We strongly suggest you regularly save your work to your university OneDrive account. This evidence can be called upon if we suspect academic misconduct.

Please also see the student guide to AI at the link below:

Artificial Intelligence: A Student Guide – A guide on appropriate use of AI tools in learning and assessment 

Marking and Feedback

How will my assignment be marked?

Your assignment will be marked by the module team.

How will I receive my grades and feedback?

Provisional marks will be released once internal moderation completed. Feedback will be provided by the module team alongside grades release.

You will be able to access your feedback via the same Turnitin submission link you submitted your work to.

Your provisional marks and feedback should be available within 10 working days.

What will I be marked against?

Details of the marking criteria for this task can be found at the bottom of this assignment brief. 

Assessed Module Learning Outcomes

The Learning Outcomes for this module align to the marking criteria which can be found at the end of this brief. Ensure you understand the marking criteria to ensure successful achievement of the assessment task. The following module learning outcomes are assessed in this task:

1: Demonstrate a critical understanding of the use of analytic methodologies in Operations Management and Logistics, with a particular emphasis on the Forecasting function.

3: Critically apply various analytics methodologies and techniques to solve operational problems.

Assignment Support and Academic Integrity

If you have any questions about this assignment please see the Student Guidance on Coursework for more information.

Spelling, Punctuation, and Grammar:

You are expected to use effective, accurate, and appropriate language within this assessment task. 

Academic Integrity:

The work you submit must be your own, or in the case of groupwork, that of your group. All sources of information need to be acknowledged and attributed; therefore, you must provide references for all sources of information and acknowledge any tools used in the production of your work, including Artificial Intelligence (AI). We use detection software and make routine checks for evidence of academic misconduct.

It is your responsibility to keep a record of how your thinking has developed as you progress through to submission. Appropriate evidence could include version-controlled documents, developmental sketchbooks, or journals. This evidence can be called upon if we suspect academic misconduct.

If using Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools in the development of your assignment, you must reference which tools you have used and for what purposes you have used them. This information must be acknowledged in your final submission.

Definitions of academic misconduct, including plagiarism, self-plagiarism, and collusion can be found on the Student Portal. All cases of suspected academic misconduct are referred for investigation, the outcomes of which can have profound consequences to your studies. For more information on academic integrity please visit the Academic and Research Integrity section of the Student Portal.

Support for Students with Disabilities or Additional Needs:

If you have a disability, long-term health condition, specific learning difference, mental health diagnosis or symptoms and have discussed your support needs with health and wellbeing you may be able to access support that will help with your studies.

If you feel you may benefit from additional support, but have not disclosed a disability to the University, or have disclosed but are yet to discuss your support needs it is important to let us know so we can provide the right support for your circumstances. Visit the Student Portal to find out more.

Unable to Submit on Time?

The University wants you to do your best. However, we know that sometimes events happen which mean that you cannot submit your assessment by the deadline or sit a scheduled exam. If you think this might be the case, guidance on understanding what counts as an extenuating circumstance, and how to apply is available on the Student Portal. 

Administration of Assessment

Module Leader Name: Shazib Shaikh Module Leader Email: ae3262 Assignment Category: Written Attempt Type: Normal

Component Code: Cw1

Assessment Marking Criteria

This table details the weightings of the criteria by which your work will be assessed.

Criteria	Proportion of overall marks
1.     Overview a.     Introduction to the organization b.     Scope and impact of operational area on organizational performance	(10%) 4% 6%
2.     The existing operational environment and key variables a.     Application of an appropriate operations analytical framework or methodology b.     Discussion and analysis of existing operational area c.      Discussion of key variables b.     Analysis of the key analytical tools and resources, which support this process. c.      Inclusion of at least one own illustration and/or calculation	(40%)   3%   15% 7% 5%