Opportunity Analysis

The Assessment Task
You are required to produce an Opportunity analysis for a new venture. Please use the template below and answer all the sections.

Writing an Opportunity analysis (or feasibility study) can help finalise your business idea, and to check it against the initial perception of the marketplace. Feasibility study is a first draft of ‘nature of the business’ proposal that can allow further investigations and calculations to be based.

The maximum word limit for this assessment is 1600 words (excluding appendices).

1. BUSINESS OVERVIEW

Include key information points regarding your venture (write a short summary of a proposed venture including some details regarding your product or service, the industry, customers, and competition). (Approx. 200 words)

2. PERSONAL ANALYSIS

Carry out an analysis of your own strengths (S) and weaknesses (W) as an entrepreneur. What skills and experience will you bring to the new venture? (Approx. 200 words)

3. INDUSTRY AND MARKET RESEARCH

3.1 PESTEL – Carry out a detailed PESTEL analysis to assess opportunities and trends arising from changes in the environment. Include evidence of your statements (citations), use appendix for the full analysis and write conclusions of the analysis within the main text. Focus on the most relevant components.

3.2. Competitors – Carry out the analysis of competition. What is your USP and value proposition? What is your key differentiating factor?

Compare your new venture to main competitors (consider competitors’ strengths and weaknesses; identify how you will position yourself; decide what is your basis of competition, i.e., cost/differentiation).

3.3 Market – Describe your target market, segment it, and add information about its size with supporting evidence. If possible, carry a test trading or a survey to validate your idea (add survey tools to the appendix) and write main findings within the main text.

3.4 Other analysis – Carry out other analysis that will add key information to your industry and market analysis. Here are some tools you might consider using: Porter’s 5 Forces Model, CANVAS, Blue Ocean Strategy, Porter’s Generic Strategies/Bowman’s Strategy Clock, Four Cs-company/customers/competitors/collaborators, 4Ps of marketing, and SWOT/TOWS. Focus on the most relevant(s) for your business idea. Use appendices for the full analysis and write conclusions of the analysis within the main text.

Remember to support this section and related appendices with data and references to validate the business potential.

(Approx. 900 words)

4. GROWTH POTENTIAL

Compare your new venture to the future business you want to have.

How do you see the company growing (generating larger profits, expanding its workforce, and increasing production) in the future? (Approx. 100 words)

5. CAPITAL REQUIREMENTS AND FORECAST (1st year)

Identify your start-up capital (the money you need to start up your new company) and possible funding options. Project your sales for the first year and include a realistic Profit and Loss statement for 1st year. (Approx. 200 words)

NB: Please include a list of references using UON Harvard referencing style, any details of primary research, and applications of models and frameworks. You can include up to 5 pages of appendices. Appendices will not contribute to the grade, therefore when showing your analysis in appendices, don’t forget to add a conclusion/reflection about it in the main text.

Word Limits (where appropriate)

The maximum word limit for this assessment is 1600 words.

Where a submission exceeds the stipulated word limit by more than 10%, the submission will only be marked up to and including the additional 10%. Anything over this will not be included in the final grade for the assessment item. Abstracts, bibliographies, reference lists, appendices and footnotes are excluded from any word limit requirements.

Where a submission is notably under the word limit, the full submission will be marked on the extent to which the learning objectives have been met.

Learning Outcomes

The learning outcomes that are being assessed in this assessment are:

a

Select and apply academic literature, industry sources and models to examine and analyse markets and industries to identify opportunities for the development of a new business venture.

c

Demonstrate the capacity for original thinking through the identification and evaluation of an unexploited market opportunity.

Your grade will depend on how well you meet these learning outcomes in the way relevant for this assessment. Please see the final page of this document for further details of the criteria against which you will be assessed.

Assessment Support

Specific support sessions for this assessment will be provided by the module team and notified through NILE. You can also access individual support and guidance for your assessments from Library and Learning Services. Visit the Skills Hub to access this support and to discover the online support also available for assessments and academic skills.

Academic Integrity and Misconduct
Unless this is a group assessment, the work you produce must be your own, with work taken from any other source properly referenced and attributed. This means that it is an infringement of academic integrity and, therefore, academic misconduct to ask someone else to carry out all or some of the work for you, whether paid or unpaid, or to use the work of another student whether current or previously submitted.

For further guidance on what constitutes plagiarism, contract cheating or collusion, or any other infringement of academic integrity, please read the University’s Academic Integrity and Misconduct Policy. Other useful resources to help with understanding academic integrity are available from UNPAC – the University of Northampton’s Plagiarism Avoidance Course.

N.B. The penalties for academic misconduct are severe and include failing the assessment, failing the module and even expulsion from the university.

Assessment Submission

To submit your work, please go to the ‘Submit your work’ area on the NILE site and use the relevant submission point to upload your report. The deadline for this is 11.59pm (UK local time) on the date of submission.

Written work submitted to TURNITIN will be subject to anti-plagiarism detection software. Turnitin checks student work for possible textual matches against internet available resources and its own proprietary database.

When you upload your work correctly to TURNITIN you will receive a receipt which is your record and proof of submission.

If your assessment is not submitted to TURNITIN rather than a receipt, you will see a green banner at the top of the screen that denotes successful submission.

N.B Work emailed directly to your tutor will not be marked. The only exception to this is when you are instructed to do so because TURNITIN is down.

Late submission of work

For first sits, if an item of assessment is submitted late and an extension has not been granted, the following will apply:

· Within one week of the original deadline – work will be marked and returned with full feedback and awarded a maximum bare pass grade.

· More than one week from original deadline – grade achievable LG (L indicating late).

For resits there are no allowances for work submitted late and it will be treated as a non-submission.

Please see the Assessment and Feedback Policy for full information on the processes related to assessment, grading and feedback, including anonymous grading. You will also find Guidance on grades and resit opportunities from the main University website. Also explained there are the meanings of the various G grades at the bottom of the grading scale including LG mentioned above.

Extensions
The University of Northampton’s general policy about extensions is to be supportive of students who have genuine difficulties in meeting an assessment deadline. It is not intended for use where pressures of work could have reasonably been anticipated.

For full details please refer to the Extensions Policy. Extensions are only available for first sits – they are not available for resits.

Mitigating Circumstances
For full guidance on Mitigating circumstances please go to Mitigating Circumstances where you will find information on the policy as well as guidance and the form for making an application. Please also see Extensions & Mitigating Circumstances guide 22_23 that compares your options.

Please note, however, that an application to defer an assessment on the grounds of mitigating circumstances should normally be made in advance of the submission deadline or examination date.