Assignment Instructions

All assignments must be submitted ONLINE via my.wbs by 7pm UK time on the date displayed against this assessment.

Please ensure that you have inserted a completedassignment coversheet, which must be included as the first page of your script. This should include your Student ID number, but not your name.

Word Limit

2500-word limit.

Word Count Policy

WBS has a school-wide policy on word counts.  This is strictly enforced to ensure consistency across

modules and programme. You can find more information about this policy in your Student

Handbook under Academic Practice -4i. Word count policy.

This is a strict limit not a guideline: any piece submitted with more words than the limit will result in the excess not being marked.

Academic Practice

Please ensure you read the full guidelines forAcademic Practicein the Undergraduate Handbook    and ensure you understand it. If in doubt, please seek clarification in advance of your submission . This includes important information on:

•    Cheating, plagiarism and collusion

•    Correct referencing

•    Using internet sources in assessments

•    Academic writing

•    English Language support

•    Word count policy

When you submit this assignment online, you will be required to tick a declaration box indicating       that the work involved is entirely your own. Each assignment will be put through plagiarism software to identify any collusion or inadequate referencing of materials used from different sources.  Please  do not submit images of your typed work unless you have been specifically requested to do so.

We would consider taking action if your work:

1. is too reliant on the words of particular authors (rather than presenting your ideas in your own  words), if the essay uses the ideas or words of an author without referencing them or putting their words into quotations (plagiarism).

2. suggests that you have worked very closely with another student or students (unless explicitly asked to do so by your Module Leader/Tutor) (collusion).

3. includes unreferenced work that you have previously submitted for any accredited course of study (unless explicitly asked to do so by your Module Leader/Tutor) (self-plagiarism).

Extensions and Self-certification

Late submissions will incur a penalty of 5% for every 24-hour period after the due date and time, i.e., this begins one minute after the submission deadline (beginning at 7.01pm).

Requests for specific extensions (of up to 15 days) which are typically for longer and more serious  concerns must be submitted via my.wbs ideally 72 hours BEFORE the deadline. Extensions can only be approved if you clearly detail your circumstances and provide supporting documentation (or a

reason as to why you cannot provide the supporting documentation at the time) as set out in the

Mitigating Circumstances Policy.

Self-certification is a university-wide policy whereby you are permitted an automatic extension of 5 working days on eligible written assessed work without the need for evidence. WBS permits self-certification for all types of written, assessed works such as essays and dissertations. It is not permitted for exams, course tests, or presentations.

You can self-certify twice within each year of study, starting from the anniversary of your course start date. This will cover all eligible written assessments that fall within the self-certification period,

as long as they have not previously had an extension applied. To find out further details about the

self-certification policy please see:https://my.wbs.ac.uk/-/academic/20778/item/id/1244460/.

If you wish to self-certify for an extension of 5 working days, please select 'Self-certification' in the   Extension Type field. If you wish to request a longer extension than 5 working days, please leave the Extension Type as 'Standard'.

Your assignment instructions begin below.

Topic:

Artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning have emerged as important areas of study for both practitioners and researchers, reflecting the magnitude and impact of data-related problems to be solved in every segment of contemporary business organisations. The field of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and  machine  learning–  which  views  data  as  a  strategic  asset  used  to  help  decision-making  in organisations with the aid of technology – spans several topics that we have covered during our lectures: chatbots, recommender systems, predictive analytics, classification, fake news detection, hiring process optimisation, sentiment analysis, etc.

Scope requirements:

▪    Considering the topics mentioned above, but not limited to them, choose a phenomenon of your interest and critically discuss the application of AI in a particular industry and/or business sector or an organisation.

▪    Specifically, you  need to  leverage  Michael  Porter’s Value  Chain framework  (see  Figure  1 below) to identify the specific areas/functions of the business you would like to study. You should choose at least two activities but a maximum of three activities from Support Activities and Primary Activities indicated in the Michael Porter’s Value Chain framework. Think of AI and data as a value-driver in the value chain of an organisation or an industry and write an in- depth discussion on how the business areas/functions can benefit from the application of AI. (The business area/function here refers to the support and primary activities in the value chain shown  below, e.g.,  Human  Resources  Management,  Marketing & Sales, Service,  Inbound Logistics, Outbound Logistics, etc.)

Figure 1. Michael Porter’s Value Chain (Laudon and Laudon 2020)

o  Inbound Logistics : What is the potential role of AI and data analytics in the key inbound logistic processes (e.g., identification, sourcing, procurement, and supplier management of the “raw materials” that comprise a final product or service)?

o  Operations : What is the potential role of AI and data analytics in the key operational processes  (e.g.,  engineering,  inventory  management,  and  manufacturing  of the  final product or service)?

o  Outbound Logistics : What is the potential role of AI and data analytics in the key outbound logistics processes (e.g., planning, scheduling and distribution of the final product and service)?

o  Marketing  and Sales:  What  is the  potential  role  of AI  and  data  analytics  in the  key marketing and sales processes (e.g., marketing, merchandising, promotions, advertising, sales, and channel management to get the completed product and service to the end customer)?

o Service: What is the potential role of AI and data analytics in key service processes (e.g., support and maintenance of products and services after they are delivered to the end customer)?

o  Human Resource Management: What is the potential role of AI and data analytics in key human resource management processes (e.g., recruiting, hiring, development, and firing of personnel)?

Structure of an Essay:

▪    Introduction (introducing the topic – including the key two or three business activities on which you chose to focus –, business problem, and elaborate on the practical motivation of why it is important to study)

▪    Literature review (summary of previous related academic studies on the topic and issue)

▪    Present concrete examples/cases to make a point

▪    Critically discuss your argument and ideas around the topic you have chosen

▪    Conclusions (perhaps challenges/future directions for the topic … )

▪    References

Key criteria for your argument:

▪    Analytical thinking and ability

▪   The presentation and use of literature

▪    Critical ability (need to be critical of ideas presented … )

▪    Originality in developing the arguments and presenting the ideas

▪    Clarity, structure, and style (well-written, has flow, is consistent with the referencing style, etc.)

Format guidelines:

▪    Font: Times New Roman

▪    Font size: 12

▪    Line spacing: double spacing