Objective:

To provide an opportunity for students working within a supportive assessment environment to demonstrate their situation awareness and understanding of advanced logistical thinking. The assignment is worth 25% of the marks available for the paper. The analysis focuses on contemporary demands for transparent and ethical supply chains, as well as innovative business models driven by new technologies.

Assignment Procedure:

The assignment is in three (related) parts, which are added to Moodle according to the following schedule. Students must submit their deliverables via Moodle by the due dates/times indicated:

1. Pre-Assignment (Activity 1): View a Background Video
   • The video is available on Moodle from 3 pm on Friday, 10 October 2025.
   • Watch the 51-minute video, noting the main facts and themes. It will help you to address every part of the assignment.
   • Recommended: View the video before analysing Case 1.
2. Assignment (Activity 1): Analyse Case 1 (individually assessed; 25% of the assignment marks)
   • Case 1 is also available on Moodle from 3 pm on Friday, 10 October 2025. It describes relevant contextual issues that will help you identify appropriate solutions.
   • Join with all the other class participants to annotate Case 1 using the Perusall online discussion forum (refer to the Perusall guides beforehand)
   • You must complete this deliverable by 30 pm on Monday, 13 October 2025.
3. Pre-Assignment (Activity 2): View two Background Videos
   • These short videos are available on Moodle from noon on Sunday, 12 October 2025. They will help you to address the remaining parts of the assignment View the videos actively (i.e. noting the main facts and themes)
   • Recommended: View both videos before analysing Case 2.
4. Assignment (Activity 2): Analyse Case 2 (individually assessed; 15% of the assignment marks)
   • Case 2 is also available on Moodle from noon on Sunday, 12 October 2025
   • Working in the SAME GROUP as for your RESEARCH PROPOSAL, prepare a comprehensive ‘Prep Sheet’ using Moodle wiki (guides for using Moodle wiki, and an example Prep Sheet, are provided). Be sure to identify which part(s) you were personally responsible for.
   • You must complete this deliverable by 30 pm on Wednesday, 15 October 2025
5. Pre-Assignment (Activity 3): Prepare your Case 2 Prep Sheet (optional – not assessed)
   • Recommended: Before tackling the final assignment activity, prepare a personal Prep Sheet if you think you can improve on your group’s jointly prepared one.
6. Assignment (Activity 3): Solve Case 2 (individually assessed; 60% of the assignment marks)
   • ** You must work by yourself from this point **
   • The specific questions for Case 2 are available on Moodle from midday on Thursday, 16 October 2025, in the form of an online quiz.
   • You will need to nominate 6 hours when you will attempt the questions by yourself.
   • You must complete this deliverable by 30 pm on Tuesday, 21 October 2025, when the assignment closes (select the ‘Situation Awareness’ assignment located in the ‘Own Work Central’ section on Moodle).

Notes: 

• It is reasonable to expect that every participant will spend 6-8 hours on this assignment.
• Cite every source mentioned in your report using the American Psychological Association (APA) style. For details, go to https://apastyle.apa.org/ and select the ‘Style and Grammar’ tab at the top of the page, then select the ‘References’ style guide
• To excel, you should complete case preparation before collaborating in Perusall or Moodle wiki.
• Each group will need to agree on a time when they will ‘meet’ online to work on the wiki.
• Guides for using Perusall and Moodle Wiki will be included in the Final Assignment section on Moodle at the appropriate times, and both apps (with final instructions) will be directly accessible from there.
• You are permitted to work with other participants until the cut-off time for completing Assignment (Part 2) – wiki. Hence, you MUST NOT confer with any other participant on any aspect of the assignment AFTER midday on Thursday, 16 October 2025.
• This entire assessment is based on a high-trust model. The work you submit must be solely yours. You must not send/exchange any written or electronic information with another person or any artificial intelligence tool. Hence:
• Be sure to comply with the university’s regulations regarding plagiarism and the use of AI.
• All work will be submitted to Turnitin ^TM.
• Using ChatGPT or any other AI tool to help you answer the questions is expressly forbidden.
• Using ChatGPT or any other AI tool for writing/rewriting/formatting is also explicitly banned. The only exception to this is the use of Grammarly ^TM.
• Although the questions for Part 3 (Quiz) will be available on Moodle from midday on Thursday, 16 October 2025, you should only access these quiz questions WHEN YOU ARE READY TO ATTEMPT THE FINAL PART OF THE ASSIGNMENT BY YOURSELF. Be sure to:
• Answer the questions concisely and in a well-organised manner by planning the structure of the answer before beginning to write. Point-form responses are preferable over long, rambling essay-style answers. Make your point once, quickly and briefly. Do not restate the facts in the case unless critically needed to support a point of analysis.
• Although you will use a computer to compose answers, you bear the responsibility if files are lost or cannot be prepared and submitted by the correct time.
• You must not paste any pre-prepared material into your answer. It is totally inappropriate to incorporate other class members’ work into your submission.
• Unless there are special arrangements agreed in advance, you must submit your answers to the quiz by 30 pm on Tuesday, 21 October 2025

Confidentiality:

Other participants may take this assessment later, so you mustn’t discuss or reveal the names of the cases, their nature, or other details to others. Additionally, you must not discuss, make, or supply photocopies of the questions or case descriptions to anyone at any time.

To be fair to everyone, failure to strictly follow all these procedures may result in a mark of 1% being awarded for the whole assignment.

Assessment:

The assessment of all three submissions accords with the following parameters:

• Demonstration of independent critical judgment regarding reported matters, the theory used, and the use made of ‘facts’ and opinions stated in the case
• Suitability of answers to the case situation
• Insights concerning the analysis of the case situation
• Application of chosen theories
• Validity of assumptions made
• Structure and layout of the answer
• Clarity and succinctness of all statements (use point form statements where possible).