Posted: July 14th, 2019

IAP 607 INDEPENDENT CRITICAL ANALYSIS PROJECT

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Term 2, 2019
Lecturers:

IAP 607 INDEPENDENT CRITICAL
ANALYSIS PROJECT
UNIT INFORMATION PACK
MASTERS OF INTERNATIONAL HOTEL MANAGEMENT
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IAP 607 INDEPENDENT CRITICAL ANALYSIS PROJECT
Introduction to IAP 607
In this capstone subject, students have the opportunity to demonstrate the core
attributes of written communication, information literacy, synthesis of complex
information, and logical and critical thinking. This is achieved by completing a
substantive piece of analysis, supported by research and based on experiential
learning and the analysis of an actual business situation that has significance to
industry.
This subject enables you to independently undertake a small-scale project based on
the analysis of an actual business situation that has significance to the hotel industry.
Prerequisite: Students must have completed BRH606 Research Methods prior to
undertaking this subject.
You will be supported throughout the development of this project by scheduled
workshops where each stage of the development of your project will be discussed.
You are strongly advised to attend these workshops and to engage with your peer
support group. Students may also seek guidance from the lecturer, the Academic
Skills Facilitator and the librarians.
Learning Outcomes
a. Critically reflect upon and apply disciplinary methods and approaches in the
design of the hotel analysis
b. Critically review the literature as it applies to the hotel analysis
c. Collect and synthesise data using appropriate research tools.
d. Critically reflect upon and interpret information to generate findings, reach
meaningful conclusions and make recommendations.
e. Communicate the hotel analysis in appropriate academic language and
structure.
f. Seek and utilise resources provided by the University and maintain an effective
working relationship with faculty and a peer mentor group to meet identified
milestones.
Lecturer Consultation
The role of the lecturers is to provide consultations at the individual and group level,
grade you assessments and moderate the unit.
Academic Faculty Support
You are able to seek support from the academic faculty as experts indoor chosen
interest area. You are strongly recommended to seek support from Ms Teta,
Academic Skills Facilitator.
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Assessment Brief
Students will independently research and analyse an issue pertaining to the hotel in which
they have worked or are currently employed.
PART 1- PowerPoint Presentation
A Powerpoint presentation of the primary research (interview) design and methodology will
be presented in week 5&6 for assessment. A PDF of the PowerPoint must be uploaded to
turnitin by Week 5.
The issue will be identified in the first instance, during an in-class workshop, through the
students’ own personal experience and further investigated through an interview with a hotel
employee. This interview will be considered primary research and students are required to
design the interview and analyse the data collected. Students are required to contextualise
the research within the existing literature by referencing at least 5 articles.
PART 2 – Research Report
Students will submit a Research Report that identifies and analyses an issue in a particular
hotel that has been identified in Part 1. The report will synthesise the business situation with
relevant research found in the literature and with the primary research conducted in Part 1.
You will be required to make informed recommendations to the organisation.
The report should be formatted according APA 6th edition 2018.
Assessable Components of
Business Analysis Project
Submission Due By Learning Outcomes
PowerPoint Presentation
35 % (500 words)
Monday Week 5
Presentations in
weeks 5 & 6
a, b, c, f
Research Report (4,500 words)
65%
Monday, Week 11 a, b, c, d, e, f
It is anticipated that you will spend a minimum of 10 hours a week on your independent
research project, in addition to timetabled workshops and consultation sessions.
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Schedule
Week 2
Introduction to IAP 607
Overview of assessment tasks
Business selection. Identification of business issue. The consent form.
Identification of interviewee
Students form peer support groups (4-5 students )
Developing a research question
Beginning the literature review – situating your research within the existing research.
Week 3 The Conceptual Framework
Public Holiday- The class will be rescheduled to Friday 26th April in Jamison.
Designing the interview- open-ended questions, ethical considerations.
Data analysis.
Workshop: In your Peer Support Groups, practice and give feedback on your interviewing
techniques and question design.
Milestone: prepare a set of interview questions to be reviewed in class.
Milestone: Contact your proposed interviewee and confirm an interview time.
Week 4 Student presentations
Present (summarise) at least 6 articles that you will use in your literature review.
Workshop: writing a literature review
Milestone: Students must organise and conduct their face to face interviews, analysis and
determination of business situations so that these can be presented in a PowerPoint in
week 5 or 6. The methodology and analysis from the PowerPoints will be included later in
your research reports. Please ensure that you have filled in the blank section of the
consent form and that your interviewee has signed the Consent Form (available on
SharePoint).
Week 5 Student presentations
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Assessment Task:Submission of Individual PowerPoint presentations of primary
research to Turnitin.
Week 6 Student presentations
Individual PowerPoint presentations of primary research
Week 7 Writing a Research Report
Structuring the report- the whole report
Week 8 Writing a Research Report
Structuring the report- Findings/discussion/analysis
Week 9 Writing a Research Report
Structuring the report- Recommendations and Implementation
Week 10
Structuring the report- the abstract
Week 11
Assessment Task: Submission of research report to Turnitin.
Attendance:
Students should attend all sessions. Please bring a laptop with you to work on your
report during class.
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PART 1.
1. Identify actual business situation through primary data. This must be
limited to consultation with a single face to face interview with an
employee of the hotel.
A scheduled face-to-face meeting (personal interview) is to be held with your key
informant to identify and explore relevant situations. For the purpose of this report
the interview is considered primary data. Additional information will be obtained
through secondary sources (literature review).
Please note that additional means of collecting primary data, including interviews
with other staff and additional face-to-face meetings with your key informant
beyond the two identified above, are not allowed in this unit due to BMIHMS at
TUA ethics restrictions. This is non-negotiable.
Actual business situations must relate to one of the following major interest
areas. Please discuss with your lecturer if you wish to undertake a project that
does not meet one of these areas:
• Guest experience
• Leadership and organisational culture;
• Food and beverage,
• Revenue/yield management rooms division
• Marketing.
• Hotel facilities and design
• Any other area (must be approved by your lecturer)
2. Present a PowerPoint of the primary research (interview) design,
methodology and data analysis in week 5 or 6 (as scheduled by your
lecturer) for assessment.
• Write a page paper – Describe the business issue that you observed.
• Give background information on the business/hotel and the division or area that
you are focussing on if relevant.
• State the research question.
• Explain how you selected the interviewee, designed the interview questions and
any other relevant factors.
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• Show how you analysed the data to identify relevant issues.
• How did this research lead you to identify/refine the topic your
research report? Do you have a new research question?
• State the research question and objectives of you research going forward.
• Your speaking notes for your presentation must be given to the lecturer on the day
of the assessment. Upload a PDF of the PowerPoint on turnitin.
• REFERENCES- include at least 5 references on the last slide.These can be
industry or Academic or a mixture of both.
• Include the signed and completed interviewee consent form in your PowerPoint.
MASTERS OF INTERNATIONAL HOTEL MANAGEMENT
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PRESENTATION
(35 %)
Presentation
(5%)
Presentation of
assignment
overall.
Disorganised/inc
oherent.
Not all material
is relevant and/or
is presented in a
disorganised
manner.
Shows some
attempt to
organise in a
logical manner.
Material
presented is
relevant but lacks
structure or
visual impact.
Shows
organisation and
coherence.
Material included
is relevant to topic
and has been
structured. Visual
aspect of
presentation is
limited.
Carefully and
logically
organised.
Material is
carefully
structured with
clear message and
visual effect.
Shows a polished
and imaginative
approach to the
topic.
Material is
imaginatively
presented resulting
in clarity of message
and information.
Research
(20 %)
Research
Methodology
and Findings
Methodology is
flawed. Data is
irrelevant to
research topic.
Data is poorly
analysed.
Methodology is
somewhat pragmatic
and poorly justified
through research
methods and
somewhat effective.
Data analysis and
results are somewhat
relevant to research
topic and somewhat
analysed.
Methodology is
pragmatic and
justified through
research methods
and effective.
Data analysis and
results are relevant
to research topic and
analysed.
Methodology is
pragmatic and well
justified through
research methods
and effective.
Data analysis and
results are very
relevant to research
topic and
demonstrates critical
analysis
Methodology is
pragmatic and strongly
justified through
research methods and
strongly effective.
Data analysis and
results are highly
relevant to research
topic and demonstrates
coherent critical
analysis and problem
solving
ORAL (5%)
Oral structure
of presentation
Material is
difficult to
understand due
to poor structure
and/or pace and
audibility
Shows some
attempt to
structure material
for presentation,
pace and audibility
are satisfactory
most of the time.
Clearly structured
and addressed to
audience. Pace
and audibility
satisfactory.
Visual aids used.
Well-structured
and signposted
presentation.
Audible and pace
appropriate to
audience. Visual
aids used to
support the
presentation
Imaginative
presentation of
material resulting in
clarity of message
and information.
References
(5%)
Failure to meet
minimum
referencing
requirements
References used
are mostly not
relevant and/or not
in correct APA 6th
style
References are
occasionally not
relevant and/or not
in correct APA 6th
style.
References are
mostly relevant
and are mostly in
correct APA 6th
style
Choice of references
relate to all key
points and in correct
APA 6th style
Mark range
out of 35% 0 – 17 17.5 – 22 23 – 25 26 – 29 30+
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PART 2
The Research Report
Use the following guide to structure your research report. If you have any questions
about how to lay out the report please talk to your lecturer or the Academic Skills
Facilitator.
The word count for the research report is 4,500 words.
While each project has its own individual characteristics, the following is provided as
a general guide to structuring your final report. If you feel you need to structure your
report in a way that is very different to the general structure set out below, then you
should discuss it with your lecturer before proceeding.
Use the subheadings.
Structural Layout:.
Abstract *not included in the word count. Should be approx. 250-400 words.
Page i.
Statement of the problem
Research Methods
Main Findings
Conclusion
Recommendations
Table of Contents * not included in the word count
Page ii
Each Heading should correspond to a page number. Use the function in Word to
make your contents page.
List of Tables and Figures* not included in the word count
Page iii
Only required if you have tables or figures in your report.
* not included in the word count
1.0 Introduction
Page 1.
• Background to the research
Include essential information about the hotel. Position of the problem against existing
theoretical knowledge.
• Problem Statement
What are you being asked to do?
• Research aim, questions/objectives
What is your report targeting, specifically? What is the precise question that you are
investigating.
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Try and keep the number of objectives to 3. (This helps with maintaining clear focus
in your project.)
• Significance of the Research
What is important about this research?
• Scope of Report
This section explains what will be covered in the report. State the major sections and
sub-sections of your report (tell the reader what is to come).
2.0 Literature Review
Ensure that all sources of information are referenced, and that citations are used intext. A minimum of 12 academic journal articles are required. To produce a
comprehensive report it is an expectation that there will be more than 12 sources cited.
To supplement academic references, credible industry sources can be integrated to
contextualise the industry environment of your identified business situation, strengthen
your developing argument about the topic area and evaluate relevant industry
knowledge e.g. Credible industry sources such as industry publications; Company
reports including those of competitors; Credible newspaper articles; Secondary data
sets from the ABS, Tourism Australia, Tourism NSW, World Tourism Organisation,
national tourist offices (NTOs).
Identify the gap where your research will fit.
3.0 Methodology
Write in the past tense. Clearly explain how you have collected data to complete
your project. Include the interview (we will call this ‘primary data” for the purposes of
this report) and the selection and analysis of the literature (called ‘secondary data’)
and ethical considerations. It is important that all decisions are clearly identified and
justified.
A diagram of the research process may also be included if you think it is suitable.
4.0 Findings/ Discussion/Analysis
Present a clear and logical outline of key findings of the study, in sequential order.
Present the findings from the interview followed by the findings from the secondary
research.
The discussion section is where you argue towards an interpretation of the findings.
Support your argument with citations from the literature (academic and industry).
Make sure it is clear what information comes from your investigation and what
comes from other research.
5.0 Conclusion
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Review all relevant issues in arriving at a conclusion. These are the issues that you
have discussed in the previous section.
6.0 Recommendations and Implementation
Recommendations must specifically address the hotel/business.
Recommendations should be listed in order of importance (the first one is the most
important). You can use bullet points.
Make practical recommendations for the organisation.You should make
recommendations for future research.
Consider including an action table and ensure that your recommendations and plan
for implementation are feasible ( that they are affordable and practical for the
hotel/business to implement). One way to do this is to refer to the SMART acronym:
Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound.
Summary of research project
Responses to aims and objectives
How did your research respond to the research question and to each of the objectives?
Limitations of study
Discuss the limitations of the whole study.
References * not included in the word count
Provide a full reference list using APA 6th referencing style. Students must refer, in
text, to a minimum of 12 journal articles, plus others as required, in order to show
competency in the assessment.
Appendices * not included in the word count
Transcript of interview with key informant.
Interviewee consent form (de-identified)
Research data
Results analysis: Tables/graphs ( if they are not embedded in the text).
Each appendix must start on a fresh page and be numbered A,B,C or 1,2,3 on top
right corner of the page.
All appendices must be referred to within the body of the work.
Submission guidelines
• Typed in format specified and to be submitted in electronic form as a wordprocessed file to www.turnitin.com by Monday Week 11.
• PDF documents are not an acceptable file type.
• A school assessment cover sheet plus the marking guide to be included with your
paper.
• Please note that plagiarism is a serious academic offence. Please see the
Academic Skills Facilitator for advice on academic integrity.
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• It is recommended that you upload a draft of your assignment to turnitin before
the due date to check the similarity report. Do not delete the draft as it will remain
in the system ( but be invisible to you) and return a similarity report on your final
submission. When you upload your final report it will over-write the draft.
• Penalties for late submission
24-48 hours late: 20 marks (2 days late)
48-72 hours: 30 marks (3 days late)
72-96 hours: 40 marks (4 days)
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REPORT (65 %)
Introduction,
research aims
and objectives
(10 %)
Research aims and
objectives are
developed through
no critical and
conceptual analysis
of subject matter,
with total reliance
on others’ work
Failure to meet
minimum
referencing
requirements
Research aims
and objectives are
developed
through little
critical and
conceptual
analysis of
subject matter,
with considerable
reliance on easy
and readily
available
solutions or
arguments
Research aims and
objectives are
developed through
limited critical and
conceptual analysis
of issues, with
tendency to rely on
others’ arguments or
solutions
Research aims and
objectives are
developed through
sound critical and
conceptual analysis
of the issue
Research aims and
objectives are
developed through
sophisticated critical
and conceptual
analysis of issues
Literature
Review (15 %)
Literature review is
poorly developed,
disorganised
and/or irrelevant to
research topic
Failure to meet
minimum
referencing
requirements
Literature review is
poorly organised
with some relevance
to research topic
with little
independent analysis
Literature review is
somewhat organised
with relevance to
research topic and
demonstrates some
level of independent
analysis
Literature review is
organised with sound
relevance to research
topic and
demonstrates good
level of independent
analysis
Literature review is
well organised with
excellent relevance to
research topic and
demonstrates high
level of independent
analysis
Methodology
(10%)
Methodology is
flawed with limited
justification of
research methods
and not effective
Failure to meet
minimum
referencing
requirements
Methodology is
somewhat pragmatic
and poorly justified
through research
methods and
somewhat effective
Methodology is
pragmatic and
justified through
research methods
and effective
Methodology is
pragmatic and well
justified through
research methods
and effective
Methodology is
pragmatic and strongly
justified through
research methods and
strongly effective
Findings and
Discussion
(10 %)
Data analysis and
results are
irrelevant to
research topic and
poorly analysed
Failure to meet
minimum
referencing
requirements
Data analysis and
results are somewhat
relevant to research
topic and somewhat
analysed
Data analysis and
results are relevant
to research topic and
analysed
Data analysis and
results are very
relevant to research
topic and
demonstrates critical
analysis
Data analysis and
results are highly
relevant to research
topic and demonstrates
coherent critical
analysis and problem
solving
Conclusion
(5%)
Only basic issues
used in reaching a
conclusion, and
those are
insufficient.
Few of the relevant
issues used as a basis
for reaching a
conclusion.
Partial review of
relevant issues in
reaching a
conclusion.
Most relevant issues
reviewed in arriving
at a conclusion.
All relevant issues
reviewed in arriving at
a conclusion.
Recommendatio
ns (10%)
Limited
recommendations
integrated.
Few
recommendations
integrated but not
well analysed for
feasibility.
Some
recommendations
integrated and
analyzed for
feasibility.
Sound
recommendations
integrated and
analysed for
feasibility.
Recommendations are
comprehensively
analysed for
feasibility.
Presentation and
Referencing
(10 %)
Unstructured
presentation/ lacks
coherence
Failure to meet
minimum
referencing
requirements
Attempt made at
coherent
presentation, but
ideas not well
integrated
Good structure and
presentation,
however minor
problems exist
Citations are
occasionally missing
Clear structure and
presentation of
appropriate length
Citations mostly
correct
Well-structured and
organised with clearly
defined line of
reasoning.
Citations are present
for all key points and
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Citations frequently
missing and/or not in
correct APA 6th style
and/or not in correct
APA 6th style
in correct APA 6th
style
Mark range
out of 65
0-32 33-42 43-48 49-54 55+
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Recommended Texts:
O’Leary, Z. (2013). The essential guide to doing your research project (2nd ed.).
Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Mason, P. (2014). Researching tourism, leisure and hospitality for your
dissertation. Oxford: Goodfellow Publishers.
Polonsky, M. J. (2015). Designing and managing a research project: a business
student’s guide. Los Angeles: Sage Publishing.
Quinlan, C., Babin, B. J., Carr, J. C., Griffin, M., Zikmund, W. G. (2015). Business
research methods.Hampshire: Cengage Learning.
Bryman, A., Bell, E. (2015). Business research methods. Oxford: Oxford University
Press.
Sekaran, U., Bougie, R. (2013). Research methods for business: a skill-building
approach (6th ed.). New York: John Wiley and Sons.
Adams, J., Khan, H.T.A., Raeside, R. (2014). Research methods for business and
social students (2nd ed.). Los Angeles: Sage Publishing.
Patton, M.Q. (2015). Qualitative research methods and evaluation methods:
integrating theory and practice (4th ed.). Los Angeles: Sage Publishing.
Journals and magazines:
Annals of Tourism Research
Cornell Hospitality Quarterly
International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Get research paper samples and course-specific study resources under   homework for you course hero writing service – Manage ment
International Journal of Hospitality Get research paper samples and course-specific study resources under   homework for you course hero writing service – Manage ment
Journal of Tourism and Hospitality Research
Journal of Travel Research
The Cornell Hotel and Restaurant Administration Quarterly
Tourism and Hospitality Research
Tourism Review
Online Resources:
Action research made
simple: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qg83f72_6Gw
Methodspace: Connecting the Research Community,
Sage: https://monkessays.com/write-my-essay/methodspace.com
The Research Methods knowledge
Base: https://monkessays.com/write-my-essay/socialresearchmethods.net
Basic Business Research
Methods: http://managementhelp.org/businessresearch/index.htm
Stat Trek, Teach Yourself Statistics: http://stattrek.com
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Student Workload
To successfully complete this subject students must maintain a minimum average
class attendance of 80% at all times as a unit requirement