Bdm

BUSINESS DECESSION MAKING

Assignment

Course Title:

BTEC HND Business Management

Student Name:

Unit No. & Title:

D/601/0578Business Decision Making

Edexcel No.:

Semester/ Batch No. 5,6,7 Centre

Ref. No.:

Learning Outcomes: LO1, LO2, LO3,LO4 E-mail:

Issued Date: 05.11.2013 Submit

Date: 31.12.2013

Assignment Title:

Decision making process of real time

business

Assessor:

Mr. Faiz

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* The assessor has made sufficient comments within the work and brief is mentioned here.Final Grade Awarded : Assessor Signature: Date:

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Table of ContentsTASK 1 Scenario:.......................................................................................................................3

TASK 2.......................................................................................................................................8

TASK 3.....................................................................................................................................12

TASK 4.....................................................................................................................................19

References................................................................................................................................23

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TASK 1 Scenario:

You have been approached by Siddhalepa Group of Companies, to conduct a research to

improve customer awareness and satisfaction in the Hotels and Spas belonging to this

group. You have been approached to conduct a thorough research and finally present the

details to the group itself.

1.1 Create a plan for the collection of primary and secondary data for a given business problem.

They are two types of sources that can be used when conducting a research: Primary and

Secondary.

Primary sources give first-hand results that are provided by a research or study directed

specifically for the case in question.

Secondary sources usually interpretation or an analysis of a primary source.

In the case of SIDDHALEPA GROUP OF COMPANIES, the usual sequence would be to

start by searching for potential reasons for the low customer satisfaction, in other words

secondary sources to reduce the range of possibilities. Internet and Books are usually the best

secondary sources to start the search.

The next step for SIDDHALEPA GROUP OF COMPANIES would be to focus on primary

sources that provide more accurate and relevant information. SIDDHALEPA GROUP OF

COMPANIES has already identified the main problem by interviewing the customers that

actually left the firm. After acknowledging the customers satisfaction issue, SIDDHALEPA

GROUP OF COMPANIES has to conduct a survey that will give them a closer insight on the

reasons why the customers are not satisfied. The survey will provide SIDDHALEPA GROUP

OF COMPANIES with relevant information that will help find solutions for the current

concerns.

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1.2 Present the survey methodology and sampling frame used.

To create the right survey, SIDDHALEPA GROUP OF COMPANIES has to define its target

population, the sample it is focusing on and how they both are related with the sampling

frame.

-A population is the compilation of all the people or items that are subject to the study: For

SIDDHALEPA GROUP OF COMPANIES’s case it is “All the customers”.

-A sample is the particular group of the population that is being observed or studied.

-A sampling frame is the group that can be studied in a certain population.

The goal of SIDDHALEPA GROUP OF COMPANIES is to create a thought-through survey

that will provide descriptive statistics that will be inferred to create a more successful

strategy. The survey methodology is about sampling a certain population based on pre chosen

characteristics. In the case of SIDDHALEPA GROUP OF COMPANIES, the population and

the sample are the same: All the customers. Having the whole population as a sampling frame

is a positive characteristic. Let’s assume to take a sample size that the total number of

customers that visits the hotel and Spa that is part of SIDDHALEPA GROUP OF

COMPANIES is 150, it is a manageable population plus having the opportunity to survey all

the customers will give very accurate results. After collecting the results, SIDDHALEPA

GROUP OF COMPANIES will look at the outcomes in a general way then divide the

customers by function/level of management to have a more detailed look.

The survey will be close-ended questions mostly with some room for suggestions. It will be

in a multiple-choice format with answer based on a scale of three.

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1.3

Design a questionnaire for a given business problem.

1) What professional background are you coming from?

a. Manager

b. Executive

c. Office assistant

d. Other _______________

2) How long have you been visiting Hotel and Spa under SIDDHALEPA GROUP OF

COMPANIES?

a. 1 year or less

b. 2 years

c. 3 years

d. 4 years or more: ___ years.

3) How well do you think you are satisfied by the service you paid for?

a. Extremely well

b. Well

c. Not Well

d. Comments:

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

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4) How are the options of services provided to you?

a. Best

b. Good

c. Unsatisfactory

d. Comments:

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

5) How is the level of stress relief you receive in this hotel and spa after a hectic day during

your work?

a. Extremely high

b. High

c. Low

d. Comments:

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

6) As a customer how would you describe the supervisor’s overall management?

a. Extremely satisfactory

b. Satisfactory

c. Unsatisfactory

d. Comments:

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

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7) Do you feel appreciated and valued by the co-workers and service providers?

a. Extremely appreciated

b. Appreciated

c. Not Appreciated

d. Comments:

___________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________

8) How satisfied are you with your overall service and options at this hotel and spa?

a. Extremely satisfied

b. Satisfied

c. Unsatisfied

d. Comments:

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

9) How likely would you be willing to change your usual destination of this hotel and spa

under SIDDHALEPA GROUP OF COMPANIES to another hotel?

a. Extremely likely

b. Likely

c. Unlikely

10) Personally, What is the most important aspect of this Hotel and Spa under

SIDDHALEPA GROUP OF COMPANIES you think should work more at? (Employer-

customers relationship)

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

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TASK 2

2.1

a) As mentioned before, SIDDHALEPA GROUP OF COMPANIES has 150 customers.

After conducting the survey, the Human Resources Management decided to study the results

in a specific way. They are going to separate the results based on the functions: Managers,

Executives, and Assistants/other based on their income and spending nature or behaviour.

Questions (refer above) Managers Executives Assistance/other

Q2 - 80% said 3 years or more 70% said 1 year or less 60% said 2 to 3 years

Q3- 90% said Well 60% said NOT Well 70% said EXTREMELY well

Q4 - 70% said Good 80% said Unsatisfactory 60% said Best

Q5 - 90% said High 80% said Extremely High 70% said Low

Q6 - 70 % said Satisfactory 90% said Unsatisfactory 60% said Extremely Unsatisfactory

Q7 - 80% said Appreciated 60% said Not appreciated (only fellow Executives) 70% said

extremely appreciated (not by managers)

Q8- 80% said Satisfied 70% said unsatisfied 60% said extremely unsatisfied

Q9- 80% said Unlikely 70% said extremely likely 60% said likely

Q10 No repeated suggestion Better Managers Better management

The results of the survey have clearly showed that the main unsatisfied customers are the

Executives who are followed by the assistants.

Question three’s results show clearly that the money is not the motive for SIDDHALEPA

GROUP OF COMPANIES’s customers’ early departures.

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It is clear that the problem that SIDDHALEPA GROUP OF COMPANIES is facing is related

to their management, especially the quality of their service provided. This huge

disappointment has been clearly proven in the last three questions where it states that most of

them are not satisfied with their choice of hotel and are most likely going to look for another

option.

SIDDHALEPA GROUP OF COMPANIES has distinctly found out what is the problem:

“Managers and Service Rendition”. Their strategy is failing which is dragging the whole

company down. The most considerable solution would be to start by meeting with 20

managers, sharing the results with them and discuss what potential changes that can be made

are. The HRM will need to keep track of the new managerial strategies and see if they are

effective and are implemented in the right way.

b) Analyse the data using measures of dispersion.

Taking the example of Question 8, SIDDHALEPA GROUP OF COMPANIES’s managers’

answers data look as follows:

Managers: 16 were satisfied, 1 was unsatisfied and 3 were extremely satisfied.

Let us assume that the customers had also to rank their level of satisfaction based on a scale

of 0 to 20. 0 meant that the customers were not satisfied at all and 20 meant that they were

extremely satisfied.

Managers’ scores: 5, 10, 10, 10, 11, 11, 11, 11, 12, 12, 12, 12, 12, 13, 13, 13, 14, 18, 19, 19.

Mean: 5, 10, 10, 10, 11, 11, 11, 11, 12, 12, 12, 12, 12, 13, 13, 13, 14, 18, 19, 19 = 12.4

20

Median: 12

Mode: 12

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Standard deviation:

(13 Square root [3/2])/5= about 3.1843

Range: 19 – 5 =14

Using these measures of dispersion becomes very important when it comes to evaluating the

relevance of a survey. Identifying the outliers, in this case the “5” is the main one, is very

important. It clears out the misleading data to form educated results. For the case of the

example above, the mean and the median are very close, the standard deviation is minor and

there are no significant outliers. All these results assure us that for this case scores can be a

used in relevant decision making processes.

2.2 Describe how quartiles, percentiles, correlation coefficient are used to draw useful

conclusions in a business context.

Data: 5, 10, 10, 10, 11, 11, 11, 11, 12, 12, 12, 12, 12, 13, 13, 13, 14, 18, 19, 19.

-The first quartile (Q1) or the 25th percentile represents the number that 25% of the numbers

in the data given are smaller than.

-The second quartile (Q2) of the 50th percentile is the median. 50% are greater than it and

50% are smaller than it.

-The third quartile (Q3) or the 75th percentile represents the number that 75% of the data is

less than.

-The fourth quartile (Q4) is the largest number in the number line, 100% are smaller than it.

In the example of the survey, quartiles will clearly show what every percentage of the

customers scored and where the majority lies. This method can also be very important when

studying ranges of income or credits.

Taken the numbers above into consideration:

Q1 = 11 Q3 = 13

Q2 = 12 Q4 = 19

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The correlation coefficient is a “measure” that determines the linear relationship between two

related variables. It is calculated by dividing the covariance of both variables by the product

of their standard deviation.

The correlation coefficient equation is symbolized as:

It is not very relevant to the survey scenario but it can be in numerous other business cases. If

we were to compare the customer’s satisfaction with their output, the correlation coefficient

would be very helpful to compare, contrast and monitor the relationship. The correlation

coefficient is usually represented as a line graph with all the data plugged in as points to form

a two-dimensional scatter plot.

The correlation coefficient graph looks like this:

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TASK 3

3 YEARS OR MORE 1 YEAR OR LESS 2 TO 3 YEARS 0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

How long have you been Visiting the Hotel

FIG 1.1

After reviewing the question asked to customers about how often do the visit the hotel. The responses have been quite interesting that most of them have been quite familiar with the hotel and they have been visiting the hotel with the highest number being 3 years and more.

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well Not well Extremely Well0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

Column2Column1Series 1

FIG1.2

For the service that these customers pay for the response received summed up was they were

satisfied was majority said they were well satisfied right behind note well satisfied and finally

on a balanced note extremely well satisfied.

Best Good Unsatisfactory0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90


FIG1.3

Variety of options are provided to the customers who come to visit these hotel and spa and when asked how well are these variety of options provided to them the responses are as follows.

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High Extremely High Low0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100


FIG 1.4

After a long hectic day when they come to the hotel to relax how well they are relief and stress management received by the customers most of them responded they are highly satisfied.

Satisfa

ctory

Unsatisfa

ctory

Extre

mely unsati

sfacto

ry0

102030405060708090

Series 1Column1Column2

FIG 1.5

A supervisor has to make sure the service reaches the entire customer and they’re content

with the services. Now the customers perspective of how the supervisor manages the

subordinates in coordinating them to provide the customers with their options and needs the

result depicted they were unsatisfactory.

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Appreciated Extremely Aprreciated

Not Appreciated0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80


FIG1.6

The customers feel appreciated by the co-workers of this Hotel and they seem happy with the hospitality provided to them, Followed by others who had their personal opinion to provide.

Unlikely Extremely Ikely Likely0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80


FIG1.7

When customers see new destinations they opt to go there to try it out, if the service and

varieties seems to attract them they opt for it if not they prefer their usual spot. similarly

when asked how likely are the chances customers would prefer to choose another option

replacing this present hotel and spa a majority of them responded they wouldn’t except for

the part that they just have to bring slight changes in management and options or varieties to

choose from and they will remain loyal .

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3.2 Use trend lines in spread sheet graphs to assist in forecasting for

specified business information and thus inform decision-making.

The line starts at (.5, 2.4) and continues to increase. The unusual part is at the point (15, 5.2)

where the line stops to increase. This phenomenon can help forecast where the usual next

duration are on the line and also shows us how from the 5.5 hours point the duration are

outside the normal and the extremes like the 7.3 can be considered as outliers. This develops

the idea that the customers are pretty satisfied with the hotel and spa just the improvement in

Service providers can bring them better business in future.

3 4 5 6 7 8 9 100

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

f(x) = 0.910714285714287 x² − 4.69642857142858 x + 12.3928571428572

f(x) = NaN x + NaN

service result

Linear (service result )

Rated by Customers

Polynomial (Rated by Customers)

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3.3 Prepare a formal business report.

Title: Customer Gratification

Methodology: Application of Statistical methods and Skills to percept ionize service offered

Abstract: This study is done compare the different duration’s Customers take to understand

how well is the service offered to them good enough satisfactory or not. The sample that will

be taken in consideration will be of 20 Customers. After finding out that the Rating of

Services was quite different, it can be assumed that the different methods of study differed

between the 20 Customers in the sample.

Analysis: The overall experiment showed good results. The numbers did not vary a lot were

close to the mean, which was 8.64 Rate of average among 10 of study. They were some

outliers both at the top and the bottom, which show that some Customers used different

Observation and satisfactory techniques.

Conclusion:

The experiment was successful and all the information that was expected to be extracted was

extracted. For future trials, it would be interesting to even compare the actual marks the

Customers got in the test and try to find out what is the best way to improve the service

Quality including other variables like Spa Treatment and International Cuisines to Offer.

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SCENARIO 2

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TASK 4

4.1

A manager’s effectiveness is largely dependent on the existence of an equally effective

management information system MIS. An MIS provides information on a variety of different

organizational functions, allowing a manager to plan, monitor, and evaluate operations and

performance. MIS outputs also enable a manager to make strategic decisions and intelligent

choices that shape an organization’s future vision and mission. Monitoring and evaluation are

‘twin sisters’. They assist management in knowing whether program objectives are being

achieved, to what extent there is need for mid-course correction to address emerging

problems, in the environment, or and assess employees’ efficiency, and maintenance of

standards. Both examine indicators, targets, criteria and standards. The meanings and

definitions of monitoring and evaluation are often contentious because of the two activities’

substantial overlap.

Following are the useful information that should be stored in each management level

Do our organization’s MIS collect all the data we need, and do we Use all the data it collects?

☛ Is our MIS understood by staff at all levels, or is it complicated with many data elements,

variables, formats, and procedures?

☛ Does our MIS enable us to link program and financial information?

☛ How often do we as a team review data and use it as a basis for planning, resource

allocation, problem-solving, program monitoring, and other decision-making?

☛ Do we use data to provide feedback to all levels of the organization?

☛ Can we create “user-friendly” presentations of our data to share information with others?

☛ How often do we monitor, and what do we do with the information and insights we

gather?

☛ Do we use tools or instruments such as checklists systematically during monitoring?

☛ How do we use results of assessments and evaluations?

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4.2 Prepare a project plan for an activity and identify the earliest and the latest event time to

identify the critical path

Title: Test preparation

Methodology: Application of Statistical methods and Skills

Abstract: This study is done compare the different duration’s students take to prepare for a

statistics test. The sample that will be taken in consideration will be of 20 students. After

finding out that the times were quite different, it can be assumed that the different methods of

study differed between the 20 students in the sample.

Analysis: The overall experiment showed good results. The numbers did not vary a lot were

close to the mean, which was 4.64 hours of study. They were some outliers both at the top

and the bottom, which show that some students used different study techniques.

Conclusion

The experiment was successful and all the information that were expected to be extracted

were extracted. For future trials, it would be interesting to even compare the actual marks the

students got in the test and try to find out what is the best way to study including other

variables like class attendance or disturbance.

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4.3

Evaluate the financial viability of the new project using NPV, IRR, ARR and payback period.

Advise the management whether the project should be undertaken or not

When the data was computed in Microsoft Excel as follows:

Year Cash flow NPV IRR PV

0 -140000 -140000,00 -140000,00 0,00

1 25000 22321,43 19143,54 22321,43

2 40000 31887,76 23454,42 31887,76

3 45000 32030,11 20205,03 32030,11

4 60000 38131,08 20629,12 38131,08

5 100000 56742,69 26327,63 56742,69

6 150000 75994,67 30240,25 75994,67

137,338.32 0,00 257107,73

The graphs under show that based on the IRR and the NPV analysis the project is profitable

and should be accepted. The IRR was 18%, which surpassed the cost that was considered at

12%. When all the cash flow ins and outs were added the NPV was positive 137,338.32,

which proves that the project is viable.

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References

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http://www.dcf.state.fl.us/admin/publications/docs/empsatis.pdf [Accessed:20 Jan 2014].

En.wikipedia.org (1996) Survey methodology - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. [online]

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En.wikipedia.org (2013) Correlation coefficient - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. [online]

Available at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Correlation_coefficient [Accessed:20 Jan 2014].

Google Books (n.d.) Business Statistics. [online] Available at:

http://books.google.co.uk/books?

id=KQ25WExx5usC&pg=PA285&lpg=PA285&dq=mean+standard+deviation+customers+s

atisfaction&source=bl&ots=Jkj_31QSbT&sig=u1pyrGdUfQuVuF_xADA6u5NOnOE&hl=en

&sa=X&ei=j1p9UZqnC4epOra4gfgJ&ved=0CEMQ6AEwAg#v=onepage&q=mean

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Investopedia.com (2013) Correlation Coefficient Definition | Investopedia. [online] Available

at: http://www.investopedia.com/terms/c/correlationcoefficient.asp [Accessed:20 Jan 2014].

Ncalculators.com (2013) Correlation Coefficient Example. [online] Available at:

http://ncalculators.com/math-worksheets/correlation-coefficient-example.htm [Accessed:20

Jan 2014].

Princeton.edu (n.d.) Primary vs Secondary Sources. [online] Available at:

http://www.princeton.edu/~refdesk/primary2.html [Accessed:20 Jan 2014].

Simon.cs.vt.edu (n.d.) Measures of Dispersion I. [online] Available at:

http://simon.cs.vt.edu/SoSci/converted/Dispersion_I/ [Accessed:20 Jan 2014].

Simon.cs.vt.edu (n.d.) Untitled. [online] Available at:

http://simon.cs.vt.edu/SoSci/converted/Correlation/whcrop1b.gif [Accessed:20 Jan 2014].

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Surveymonkey.com (n.d.) Customers Satisfaction Template Survey. [online] Available at:

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/Job-Satisfaction-Survey-Template [Accessed:20 Jan 2014].

Unknown. (2013) Untitled. [online] Available at:

http://college.cengage.com/mathematics/larson/trigonometry/6e/shared/appendix/median.pdf

[Accessed:20 Jan 2014].

Yale.edu (1918) Primary Sources: What Are Primary Sources?. [online] Available at:

http://www.yale.edu/collections_collaborative/primarysources/primarysources.html

[Accessed:20 Jan 2014].

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