identify three elements of a successful “Silicon Valley” business model (or other such flexible business model) and provide one good example of an organisation that you believe possesses all three of those elements.

Business Models

1- essay

This is an assignment which must be completed by students individually.

Students must write an essay. The essay should be a minimum of 1,500 words and no longer than 2,500 words, not including references and appendices. (NB. MGMT20128 are encouraged to write 2,500 words to maximise the potential of getting a high mark. If you write the minimum number of words this is acceptable but you should make sure you write a compelling piece and your ideas are concisely presented. Either way, you need to focus on quality and not quantity, and writing something that is convincing and the product of research and thoughtful analysis.)

THE ESSAY

The objective of this essay is to develop your understanding of the business model as a concept and how a theoretical understanding of business models can be used to explain the exploitation of innovations by organisations in real-life.

To successfully complete Assessment 1, you are required to explore the academic literature on business models and write an essay addressing the following statement based on your exploration of the relevant literature:

There has been a perceptible trend in the last twenty years for firms to experiment with new models of organisation and governance, in effect eschewing Fordism in favour of models inspired by the “Silicon Valley model” and other flexible business model systems, demonstrating there is no longer one kind of business model that can be equated with success and efficiency across all sectors and in all countries.

1. What do you think was meant by this statement?

2. When answering this question make sure you adequately define the terms “business model” and “Fordism,” and explain why it has been argued successful Silicon Valley business models have forever changed how we all think about how businesses should be designed and operated.

3. In addition, identify three elements of a successful “Silicon Valley” business model (or other such flexible business model) and provide one good example of an organisation that you believe possesses all three of those elements.

4. Explain how these elements contribute to your example organisation’s success.

5. Discuss the significance of your findings in terms of the future of business models.

You should include at least 5 references and no more than 20 references.The sources used must be highly credible.

2. VIDEO PRESENTATION WITH TRANSCRIPT: Business Models

This is an assignment which must be completed by students individually.

The video is based on your essay’s findings, that is, what you argued in your essay for Assessment 1. Students must explain their essay’s main arguments via a short video presentation. The video presentation should be a minimum of 3 minutes in duration and no longer than 5 minutes. Your video submission should be accompanied by a (Word document) transcript of what was said in the video.

THE ONLINE VIDEO

The objective of this video is to develop your (practical) video production skills and ability to explain difficult theoretical concepts to laypeople.

To successfully complete this part of the assessment, you are required to produce a short video that summarises the key arguments of your essay. However, your video should not just be a verbatim repeat of what was said in your essay. It should be uniquely descriptive and explanative, and focuses on explaining the impact flexible business models have had on businesses around the world.

To maximise your marks, you should provide an example of a successful firm with a Silicon Valley (or flexible) business model. You should make sure your explanation is easy for someone with little business training to understand. Students will be rewarded for using the video medium effectively and creatively.

You should make sure your transcript makes sense without the accompanying video, that is, it makes sense even if someone reading it does not have the opportunity to view and listen to your video submission first.

Hint: It is a good idea to put together a transcript for the video before starting work on the video. You will be able to work faster and more efficiently if you do so.

Important: If your file is too big to load into Moodle you should set up your own Youtube channel or some other such system that allows the management and/or viewing of large files, and load your file up into that system. You should include the link (URL address) in your transcript document, which you must upload into Moodle. Please ensure your lecturer can easily access any externally uploaded files, including will not be barred from accessing the files because they are not in the public domains, etc. Please test the method you use to be sure your lecturer/marker can easily download and view the video.