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MODULE NAME: MODULE CODE:

BUSINESS MANAGEMENT 2B BMNG6212/d/f/p/w
BUSINESS MANAGEMENT 2B BMNG6222/d/p/w

ASSESSMENT TYPE: TAKE-HOME EXAM (PAPER ONLY)

TOTAL MARK ALLOCATION: 120 MARKS
TOTAL TIME: 21 HOURS (midnight to 9PM on the same day)
By submitting this assessment, you acknowledge that you have read and understood all the rules
as per the terms in the registration contract, in particular the assignment and assessment rules in
The IIE Assessment Strategy and Policy (IIE009), the intellectual integrity and plagiarism rules in
the Intellectual Integrity Policy (IIE023), as well as any rules and regulations published in the
student portal.

INSTRUCTIONS:
1. Please adhere to all instructions. These instructions are different from what is normally
present, so take time to go through these carefully.
2. Independent work is required. Students are not allowed to work together on this
assessment. Any contraventions of this will be handled as per disciplinary procedures in The
IIE policy.
3. No material may be copied from original sources, even if referenced correctly.
4. All work must be adequately and correctly referenced.
5. You should paraphrase (use your own words) the concepts that you are referencing, rather
than quoting directly.
6. This is an open-book assessment.
7. Assessments must be typed unless otherwise specified.
8. Ensure that you save a copy of your responses.
8.1. Complete your responses in a Word document.
8.2. The document name must be your Name. Student Number. Module Code.
8.3. Once you have completed the assessment, upload your document under the
submission link in the correct module in Learn.
Additional instructions:
• Answer All Questions.

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Referencing Rubric

Providing evidence based on valid and referenced academic sources Markers are required to provide feedback to students by indicating
is a fundamental educational principle and the cornerstone of high- (circling/underlining) the information that best describes the
quality academic work. Hence, The IIE considers it essential to student’s work.
develop the referencing skills of our students in our commitment to
achieve high academic standards. Part of achieving these high Minor technical referencing errors: 5% deduction from the
standards is referencing in a way that is consistent, technically overall percentage – the student’s work contains five or more
correct, and congruent. This is not plagiarism, which is handled errors listed in the minor error’s column in the table below.
differently.
Major technical referencing errors: 10% deduction from the
Poor quality formatting in your referencing will result in a penalty of overall percentage – the student’s work contains five or more
a maximum of ten percent being deducted from the percentage errors listed in the major error’s column in the table below.
awarded, according to the following guidelines. Please note,
however, that evidence of plagiarism in the form of copied or If both minor and major errors are indicated, then 10% only (and
uncited work (not referenced), absent reference lists, or not 5% or 15%) is deducted from the overall percentage. The
exceptionally poor referencing, may result in action being taken in examples provided below are not exhaustive but are provided to
accordance with The IIE’s Intellectual Integrity Policy (0023). illustrate the error

Required: Minor errors in technical correctness of Major errors in technical correctness of referencing
Technically correct referencing referencing style style
style Deduct 5% from percentage awarded Deduct 10% from percentage awarded
Consistency Minor inconsistencies. Major inconsistencies.
• The referencing style is generally • Poor and inconsistent referencing style used in-
• The same referencing format consistent, but there are one or two text and/or in the bibliography/ reference list.
has been used for all in-text changes in the format of in-text • Multiple formats for the same type of referencing
references and in the referencing and/or in the bibliography. have been used.
bibliography/reference list. • For example, page numbers for direct • For example, the format for direct quotes (in-text)
quotes (in-text) have been provided for and/or book chapters (bibliography/ reference
one source, but not in another instance. list) is different across multiple instances.
Two book chapters (bibliography) have
been referenced in the bibliography in
two different formats.
Technical correctness Generally, technically correct with some Technically incorrect.
minor errors. • The referencing format is incorrect.
• Referencing format is • The correct referencing format has been • Concepts and ideas are typically referenced, but a
technically correct throughout consistently used, but there are one or reference is missing from small sections of the
the submission. two errors. work.
• Concepts and ideas are typically • Position of the references: references are only
• Position of the reference: a referenced, but a reference is missing given at the beginning or end of large sections of
reference is directly associated from one small section of the work. work.
with every concept or idea. • Position of the references: references • For example, incorrect author information is
are only given at the beginning or end of provided, no year of publication is provided,
• For example, quotation marks, every paragraph. quotation marks and/or page numbers for direct
page numbers, years, etc. are • For example, the student has incorrectly quotes missing, page numbers are provided for
applied correctly, sources in presented direct quotes (in-text) and/or paraphrased material, the incorrect punctuation is
the bibliography/reference list book chapters (bibliography/reference used (in-text); the bibliography/reference list is
are correctly presented. list). not in alphabetical order, the incorrect format for
a book chapter/journal article is used, information
is missing e.g. no place of publication had been
provided (bibliography); repeated sources on the
reference list.
Congruence between in-text Generally, congruence between the in-text A lack of congruence between the in-text referencing
referencing and bibliography/ referencing and the bibliography/ and the bibliography.
reference list reference list with one or two errors. • No relationship/several incongruencies between
• There is largely a match between the the in-text referencing and the
• All sources are accurately sources presented in-text and the bibliography/reference list.
reflected and are all accurately bibliography. • For example, sources are included in-text, but not
included in the bibliography/ • For example, a source appears in the in the bibliography and vice versa, a link, rather
reference list. text, but not in the bibliography/ than the actual reference is provided in the
reference list or vice versa. bibliography.
In summary: the recording of In summary, at least 80% of the sources In summary, at least 60% of the sources are
references is accurate and are correctly reflected and included in a incorrectly reflected and/or not included in
complete. reference list. reference list.

Overall Feedback about the consistency, technical correctness and congruence between in-text referencing and bibliography:
........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................ .

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GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS:
Read all questions carefully and answer them in your own words. Marks will only be awarded for
answers that are in your own words and that relate to the context provided. As such, marks will be
allocated for both content/theory and application to a given context.

Question 1 __ (Marks: 50)

Google
Google's CEO Sundar Pichai has allowed staff to work from home to absorb the "difficult news"
about the company's planned layoffs. Pichai sent a memo to staff on Friday morning to say that the
tech giant is laying off around 12,000 employees, roughly 6% of its global workforce. "Please take
good care of yourselves as you absorb this difficult news," Pichai said. "As part of that, if you are
just starting your work day, please feel free to work from home today."

Pichai said that the layoffs affected all areas, with jobs being lost in both the US and outside. "The
fact that these changes will impact the lives of Googlers weighs heavily on me, and I take full
responsibility for the decisions that led us here," he wrote. The company is providing support to
staff in the form of a 16-week severance package, full pay during the 60-day notification period,
and six months of healthcare, job placement services, and immigration support.

Google joins several big tech companies in laying off thousands of staff amid worsening economic
conditions. Meta announced plans to lay off 11,000 employees in November, Twitter cut 50% of its
roughly 8,000 staff in the same month, and Microsoft said it's laying off 10,000 employees earlier
this week.

In contrast to Pichai, when Elon Musk laid off half of Twitter's workforce in November, many staff
found out they had lost their jobs because they were cut off from work programs and
communication platforms. Musk also never apologized or offered a concrete reason as to why the
layoffs were happening. Meta's CEO Mark Zuckerberg, however, did apologize for laying off staff
saying the company hired too aggressively during the pandemic, and offered 16 weeks of severance.

Source: Business Insider. Google boss Sundar Pichai tells staff they can work from home to
process 'difficult news' of layoffs. Online. Available at: https://www.businessinsider.com/google-
sundar-pichai-layoffs-allows-staff-work-from-home2023-1 [accessed 22 May 2023].

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Q.1.1 With reference to Google, discuss the importance of the management (10)
environment and the impact it had on Google management’s decision to lay-off
thousands of people.

Q.1.2 Discuss the area of management you believe would manage the implementation of (5)
the downsizing plan, deal with staff regarding the 16-week severance package,
handle the payroll implications and ensure all documentation is maintained and
tracked.

Q.1.3 As CEO, discuss which level of management Sundar Pichai represents, and what his (5)
responsibilities are.

Q.1.4 The decision to downsize could not have been an easy one. Managers make use of (5)
a variety of tools under difficult decision-making conditions. Discuss whether a cost-
benefit analysis would be an appropriate tool to use at Google in deciding whether
to downsize.

Q.1.5 Discuss why an organisation like Google must manage information to sustain its (5)
competitive advantage.

Q.1.6 Assess the relevance of the contingency approach to leadership at Google. (10)

Q.1.7 Within the context of the article, recommend how management can apply the (10)
Herzberg’s two-factor motivation theory at Twitter. Justify your
recommendations.

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Question 2 (Marks: 50)

Woolworths Foods
Woolworths was founded in 1931 when the first store opened its doors in Adderley Street, Cape
Town. Three years later, a second branch opened in Durban, with another two in Port Elizabeth and
Johannesburg a year later. The Woolworths founder, Max Sonnenberg, believed that success lies in
providing customers with superior-quality merchandise at reasonable prices. This belief has been
instrumental in establishing Woolworths as one of South Africa’s leading retail chains. Woolworths
was among the first local retailers to offer employees a pension fund, medical aid, and maternity
leave. It was also an early adopter of technology. A lease agreement for the first computer was
agreed to with National Cash Registers (NCR) in the late 1960s, and Woolworths was already using
a computerised merchandising system by the early 1970s. In 1974, Woolworths became the first
South African retailer to introduce sell-by dates on food packaging. Woolworths was the first South
African retailer to offer pre-washed lettuce and machine-washable wool clothing to consumers. It
was also one of the first local retailers to remove as many artificial additives and preservatives as
possible from food, and it was instrumental in the successful planting of South Africa’s first
commercial crop of organically grown cotton.

Woolworths was also the first major retailer to make its products available in the 24-hour
convenience retail market. By 2009, there were about 40 Woolworths Food Stops in Engen
forecourts around the country and by 2018 this number had risen to 74. Today, Woolworths
Holdings Limited is an investment holding company and one of the top 40 companies listed on the
Johannesburg Securities Exchange. Its core business focus is the provision of retail (clothing, food,
homeware, and beauty) and financial services to upper- and middle-income groups, mainly in South
Africa but also in Africa, Australia, and New Zealand. It employs more than 44 500 employees across
14 countries, and trades in over 1 400 store locations. Throughout its 80-year history, Woolworths
has grown, evolved, and adapted to the changing world, and the brand has remained true to its
core values. The Woolworths values state: customer obsessed, inspiration, responsible,
collaborative, and committed to quality. Its vision is ‘to be one of the world’s most responsible
retailers’, and the Woolworths mission statement is: ‘We provide shared value through retail
brands that meet the needs of aspirational customers in the southern hemisphere’.

The WHL group consists of three operating subsidiaries, namely Woolworths Proprietary Limited
(Woolworths), Country Road Limited (Country Road Group) and David Jones Limited (David Jones),

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which was acquired with effect from 1 August 2014. Woolworths Financial Services Proprietary
Limited (Woolworths Financial Services) is a joint venture with Absa Group Limited, who has the
controlling interest in Woolworths Financial Services. The Group Chief Executive Officer is Ian Moir,
who was appointed in November 2010. He was appointed to the board of Country Road on 23
October 1998 and was formerly Chief Operating Officer of the company before being appointed
Chief Executive Officer in November 2000. He was previously Executive Director and Chief
Operating Officer of Woolmark.

The group’s management believes that its long-term success depends on its ability to implement
the WHL Group’s strategy and on achieving its targets for each of its strategic focus areas, namely:

• Build stronger, more profitable customer relationships.

• Offer customers a connected retail experience.
• Be a leading fashion retailer in the southern hemisphere.
• Become a big food business with a difference.
• Drive synergies and efficiencies across the group.
• Embed the good business journey throughout its business (in 2007, Woolworths launched its
Good Business Journey, which is a plan to make a difference in four key areas, namely
transformation, social development, the environment, and climate change).

Their five headline goals for 2020 are:

• Contribute R3,5 billion to their communities.

• Save 500 billion litres of water.
• Halve the energy impact by 2020 and source all energy from renewables by 2030.
• Responsible sourcing of all key commodities.
• Have at least one sustainability attribute for all directly sourced products.

Sustainability is a key component of the Woolworths strategy and has eight focus areas, namely
ethical trade, sustainable farming, energy and climate change, water, waste, social development,
transformation and health and wellness. Woolworths is the main partner of The MySchool
MyVillage MyPlanet programme – one of South Africa’s biggest community fundraising
programmes. In 2017 Woolworths customers raised R105 million for education through MySchool
swipes. MySchool MyVillage MyPlanet won three awards at the 2018 Loyalty Magazine Awards for
the following categories:

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• Best CSR Initiative Linked to Loyalty

• Best Long-Term Loyalty Programme
• Regional Loyalty Champions of the Year for Middle East & Africa.

Regarding ethical trade, the Woolworths Holdings ethical trade positioning statement indicates that
they are committed to ensuring that both Woolworths Holdings Limited (WHL) and their suppliers
operate in a way that respects workers’ rights, maintains safe working conditions, upholds local
employment laws, and protects the environment and the welfare of animals. Their goal is to ensure
that all their packaging across their food and clothing business is reusable or recyclable by 2022,
and that they will eliminate the use of single-use plastic bags by 2020. They are also in the process
of removing single-use cutlery and straws from their stores and cafés. All Woolworths suppliers are
audited independently against food safety and hygiene standards. Regarding ensuring an ethical
supply chain, WHL concentrate on the following:

• Policies: We expect our suppliers to share our vision and business codes of conduct. Our code
is underpinned by the ILO conventions and the ETI base code.
• Ethical audits: We’re a member of SEDEX, a transparency tool for ethical auditing. We are
working to convert our suppliers to SMETA or other globally recognised audit protocols using
the SEDEX data platform, but also continue to audit those who have not yet made the switch
against our own independently verified ethical audit protocols.
• Partnering: We partner with best-in-class organisations, standards, and certification schemes
to tackle complex and systemic issues to further strengthen our relationships with our
suppliers.
• Building capacity: Training our staff in human rights, ethics and responsible commodity
sourcing is key to driving progress.

Woolworths Holdings was included in the FTSE/JSE Responsible Investment Top 30 Index for
2017/2018 and was included in the FTSE Good Emerging Index Series for 2017/2018. It has been
included in the Dow Jones Sustainability Index for the seventh year in succession, as well as on the
Emerging Markets Sustainability Index.

Woolworths Holdings also maintained its Vigeo Eiris Best Emerging Markets Performers Ranking
(the 100 most advanced companies in Emerging Markets universe) as of June 2018 and was listed
at #40 in Fortune’s Third Annual ‘Change the World’ List of Companies That Are Doing Well by Doing

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Good. Woolworths is one of 27 BRICS’ companies selected by The Boston Consulting Group as part
of its 2014 BCG Local Dynamos report. ‘Local dynamos’ are emerging-market firms that have
succeeded by staying home and beating both multinationals and local, often state-owned,
companies. Woolworths was included for its uniquely ingrained sustainability principles across the
business. Woolworths is also investing in the latest technology. It has recently launched its updated
app on Android and iOS with new functions and more security benefits. This resulted in a 166 per
cent growth in app registrations for 2017. The app provides customers with daily information on
food and fashion and influences their on- and offline buying behaviour.

Erasmus, B., Rudansky-Kloppers, S. & Strydom, J. 2019. Introduction to Business Management. 11th
edition. Oxford University Press Southern Africa.

Q.2.1 Woolworths is an organisation that consistently goes through change. Justify any (10)
two possible internal forces of change applicable to Woolworths.

Q.2.2 Using Woolworths as context, explain three barriers to effective communication. (10)

Q.2.3 Discuss the positive impact of information technology on the communication (15)
process in a contemporary organisation such as Woolworths.

Q.2.4 Discuss “Globalisation and the global economy” as variables influencing a (15)
contemporary organisation such as Woolworths to change.

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Question 3 (Marks: 20)

“SolarTech Solutions” (fictional name) is an innovative technology-driven company specialising in

innovative solar-energy solutions. Recently, a conflict has arisen between the “Research and
Development” department and the “Sales and Marketing” department. In this respect, the
“Research and Development” department is predominantly focused on developing innovative,
breakthrough, solar-energy solutions, while the “Sales and Marketing” department is mostly
concerned with meeting short-term sales targets. More specifically, the “Sales and Marketing” team
is revenue-driven, rather than waiting for the “Research and Development” team to develop new,
innovative, sustainable solutions. Subsequently, there is constant conflict between the
departments.

Using the above scenario as context, write an essay of no more than 700 words in which you discuss
the characteristics of conflict and how the conflict can be managed. Conduct additional research
and compile a well-structured essay.
Note:
• You will receive more marks for your own original, detailed examples than for examples in
your textbook, from your lecturer, or on Learn;
• Marks will be allocated according to the rubric below;
• A word limit of 700 words applies. Markers will disregard any text beyond this limit. Please
indicate the word count at the end of your answer.

NB – Your lecturer will not mark beyond the maximum word count for the question. For example,
if you exceed the 700-word limit by submitting a 900-word essay, you could lose all marks allocated
to any sections/arguments that fall into the 200 words not marked.

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Essay Rubric – Question 3

Marking Criteria Does not meet the required standard Meets the required standard Exceeds the required standard
Content: • Student displays limited to no • A basic theoretical explanation of the • A comprehensive theoretical explanation of the
Characteristics of understanding of the characteristics of characteristics of conflict and how to characteristics of conflict and how to manage
conflict and conflict and how to manage conflict; manage conflict has been included in the conflict has been provided in the student’s own
conflict • No examples provided or examples are student’s own words; words;
management not relevant or are incorrect; • Relevant examples used but needs work; • Detailed, insightful application of examples;
• Answer lacks critical discussion; • More critical discussion needed; • Critical discussion evidenced;
Skill: • Answer lacks balance of breadth and • Attempt at balancing breadth and depth in • Good balance of breadth and depth in
Use of relevant depth in argumentation; argumentation; argumentation;
examples • Limited to no application to the context • Answer was adequately applied to the • Additional research evidenced;
provided. context but can be improved. • Detailed application of answer to the context.

[15 Marks] 0 – 7 Marks 8 – 11 Marks 12 – 15 Marks

Structure: • No introduction or conclusion to the • Relevant introduction and conclusion • Engaging introduction and conclusion that
Structure, essay, or what is provided is incoherent provided that adds value to the essay; successfully sums up the essay;
grammar, and or incohesive and adds little to no value • Essay is well structured with headings and • Essay is well structured with suitable headings
spelling to the essay; paragraphs; and paragraphs that flow well;
• More than 5 spelling, grammar or • Minor spelling, grammar, or punctuation • No spelling, grammar, and punctuation errors;
[5 Marks] punctuation errors throughout the errors; • Academic writing and register are consistently
essay; • Essay flows in a logical order. applied;
• No headings and/or paragraphs; • Essay flows in a logical order with good
• Lacks academic tone; transitions.
• Poor flow or illogical order.
0 – 2 Marks 3 Marks 4 – 5 Marks

END OF PAPER

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