[BUY] MBA-FPX5910: MBA Capstone Experience – Capella University Cheat Sheet

MBA-FPX5910: MBA Capstone Experience

MBA-FPX5910 Assessment 1 Instructions: Capstone Project Summary

Create a 2-3 page project summary that describes your chosen organization, a business problem or opportunity, the kind of data you will need, and how your topic allows you to demonstrate the MBA program outcomes.

Introduction

This course revolves around the creation of a single, significant capstone project. In other words, a project that caps off your learning and your program, allowing you to demonstrate the competencies of leadership and collaboration, ethical and evidence-based decision making, and innovative and strategic thinking. For your capstone, you will choose a real company and analyze it in a way that demonstrates your understanding of the MBA program outcomes. You will turn your analysis of that company into a written report with recommendations and a formal presentation for your intended audience.

Having a solid, doable scope is an important part of creating a successful capstone project, and the exact scope is up to you. To help you establish a realistic scope, you will start with the project summary. Be careful to consider the scalability of your project scope, ensuring that it demonstrates your ability to lead in a business environment and showcases your achievement of all MBA program outcomes.

Examples

A scope that is poorly defined:

• I want to write a general analysis of the bookseller, Barnes & Noble.
  • This topic is too broad, and it would probably require hundreds of pages to address all of the possible analyses.

A scope that is better defined:

• I want to focus on how Barnes & Noble has managed to survive the Internet age while Borders has crumbled.
  • What makes this a better scope? The scope is grounded in a problem (such as how to survive Internet competition) or opportunity (such as the area lacking a business that you plan to open), which allows you to focus the analysis.
  • It must also allow for you to analyze and suggest evidence-based recommendations, takeaways, or actionable next steps as the crux of your project.

Preparation

• Read the MBA Capstone Project Description [PDF].

Assessment Description

For this assessment, introduce the organization you have chosen to research, why you chose it, and how it will allow you to demonstrate all of the MBA program outcomes.

Write a 2–3 page paper, in an academic writing style, that details the topic and scope of your capstone project. Your project summary should be clear and concise yet thorough enough for faculty to provide feedback and guidance. Your project summary should be well organized and include the following sections:

• Describe the background of your chosen organization.
  • Provide a brief background of your selected organization. For instance, discuss its product lines, number of years in business, organization structure, location, et cetera.
  • If you choose an organization for which you work, your introduction must include a statement that you received permission to use the company from a supervisor.
• Describe a business topic, problem, or opportunity that you intend to research.
  • Describe the problem or opportunity you see that makes this company a good choice.
  • Explain the scope of your project by clearly identifying the topics or areas you intend to research.
• Explain the level of accessibility to data necessary to examine the chosen business topic, problem, or opportunity.
  • Address how you will go about obtaining the data.
  • Identify any special requirements that you might need to meet to access the data you will need.
  • Explain risks you think will be encountered and the mitigation plan to manage those risks.
• Explain how your topic will allow you to showcase your leadership ability by demonstrating each MBA program outcome.
  • List out each program outcome clearly, and then explain in 3–4 sentences how your topic will allow you to demonstrate each. The MBA program outcomes are listed in the MBA Capstone Project Description.
  • Identify specific items of your project summary that you believe demonstrates the outcome.
• Wrap up your paper with a clear, concise conclusion that summarizes your plan. Just a couple sentences is fine.

Your project summary should have these sections:

• Introduction.
• Statement of scope.
• Demonstration of outcomes.
• Conclusion.

Submission Requirements

• Style: Your paper should follow the corresponding MBA Academic and Professional Document guidelines (available in the MBA Program Resources) for academic style. It should be double spaced, use subheadings, and be well organized and well written.
• Communication: Ensure written communication is free of errors that detract from the overall message and quality.
• APA guidelines: Format your paper according to current APA style and formatting.
• Resources: At least one resource should be a scholarly article or other content found in the Capella library, and one should be from the Wall Street Journal. If using Internet sources, evaluate them appropriately to make sure they are credible resources.
• Length: Your paper should be between 2–3 pages.
• Font and font size: Use 12 point, Times New Roman.

EPORTFOLIO

You should consider adding this to your personal ePortfolio. This assessment demonstrates your ability to draft a project summary, which is necessary in a professional setting when you are trying to pitch an idea or potential project, or make recommendations.

Competencies Measured

By successfully completing this assessment, you will demonstrate your proficiency in the following course competencies and scoring guide criteria:

• Competency 2: Integrate information across disciplines and from differing perspectives.
  • Describe the background of the chosen organization.
• Competency 3: Think critically and analytically to provide evidence-based solutions to business challenges and opportunities.
  • Describe an intended business topic, problem, or opportunity to research.
  • Explain the level of accessibility to data necessary to examine the chosen business topic, problem, or opportunity.
  • Explain how the topic will allow showcasing of leadership ability by demonstrating some MBA program outcomes.
• Competency 7: Communicate clearly and effectively in a business environment.
  • Write coherently to support a central idea with correct grammar, usage, and mechanics as expected of a business professional.

MBA-FPX5910 Assessment 2 Instructions: Capstone Proposal

Create a 2-3 page proposal that analyzes your business topic, defines the scope and strategy for how you will go about your capstone project, and explains how your proposed project allows you to demonstrate the MBA program outcomes.

Introduction

Based on the feedback you received from faculty on your capstone summary in Assessment 1, you should now have a firm grasp on the scope of your project. In fact, if someone asks you what your project is about, you should have an “elevator speech” prepared. That is, you should have memorized 1–3 sentences that explain the topic, problem, and scope in a clear and concise way. With just these few sentences, explaining your project to someone while on a short elevator ride would be no trouble at all! Additionally, having such a clear vision will help you with this assessment and the project overall.

For this assessment, you will formally propose your capstone project.

Preparation

• Review the MBA Capstone Project Description [PDF].

Assessment Description

Write a business proposal that formally proposes your capstone project and ends by asking for permission to continue, just as you might propose a project to a supervisor or client.

Include, at minimum, the following information:

• Analyze a business challenge or opportunity.
  • Include an introduction about your proposal.
  • Summarize the capstone project topic, scope, and components; saying that your capstone will comprise a paper and presentation is not enough.
  • Establish the premise of your paper; for example, if your plan is to talk about how Dillard’s department store can come back after a huge financial loss, you should include citations that establish its dramatic financial loss.
• Define the strategy, scope, and action plan that you will use to complete the capstone project.
  • Provide a general action plan on how you will research, analyze, and identify recommendations or solutions to this business challenge or opportunity.
  • Discuss the general type of data sources you will be using to inform your analysis. Provide at least two specific sources that you are considering. These resources should be from credible sources such as the Wall Street Journal, IBIS, et cetera. Use the excellent Research Guide – MBAfor locating credible resources from the Capella library’s business databases and article collections.
  • Include the process or steps on how you will access the data necessary for analysis of a business topic or challenge.
• Write a conclusion.
  • Include a wrap-up that ensures your supervisor/client that your project will meet all requirements, be valuable to them, and be completed on time.
  • Be sure to conclude by asking for permission to continue to the next step.

Your proposal should be organized using these sections:

• Discussion of the Proposal.
• Strategy and Scope.
• Action Plan.

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Submission Requirements

• Style: Your proposal should follow professional style, as described in the corresponding MBA Academic and Professional Document Guidelines (available in the MBA Program Resources), including single-spaced paragraphs. It should use subheadings and be well organized and well written.
• Communication: Ensure written communication is free of errors that detract from the overall message and quality.
• APA guidelines: Format your citations according to current APA style.
• Resources: Use at least two citations from credible sources.
• Length: Your proposal should be 2–3 pages (single-spaced, professional style).
• Font and font size: Use 12 point, Times New Roman.

ePortfolio

You should consider adding this to your personal ePortfolio. Writing formal proposals is a business fundamental; this proposal deliverable demonstrates this skill, and you might consider showing it to potential employers and clients.

Competencies Measured

By successfully completing this assessment, you will demonstrate your proficiency in the following course competencies and scoring guide criteria:

• Competency 1: Apply foundational knowledge and an understanding of business systems, processes, and technology within and across core disciplines.
  • Analyze a business challenge or opportunity.
• Competency 2: Integrate information across disciplines and from differing perspectives.
  • Define the strategy, scope, and action plan that will be used to complete the capstone project.
• Competency 7: Communicate clearly and effectively in a business environment.
  • Write coherently to support a central idea with correct grammar, usage, and mechanics as expected of a business professional.

MBA-FPX5910 Assessment 3 Instructions: Annotated Outline

Create a 2-5 page annotated outline that include the sections to be analyzed, ethical decision making aspects of the topic, main points of the recommendation, and credible evidence you plan to use for supporting the analysis and recommendations.

Introduction

While everyone has their own process for writing, creating an outline is often an important early step in the process in all types of writing, even for the most seasoned writers. By creating an outline, you draft a plan that organizes your thoughts, helps you see gaps in your thought process, and enables you to decide where in your paper you will address particular issues.
An annotated outline is a document that organizes the main sections to be included in your paper. The annotations are based on thinking through your approach to the paper and developing enough detail that anyone who reads the outline can follow your thought process.
The purpose of this assessment is as follows:

• • To build an annotated outline that shows the key sections of your analysis, the ethical considerations, and the leadership and collaboration aspects that you intend to include in your capstone project. With this outline, faculty can understand the organization and purpose of your paper; upon approval, you may move forward to writing the capstone project (Assessment 4).
  • To help you manage your work because you will need to start researching now (if you have not already) in order to create your annotated outline.
  • To demonstrate that you know how to cite in APA format by including some quotations or paraphrases from researched sources. The sources you include in the outline may or may not be used in your actual paper.
  • To demonstrate your ability to create a well-organized document, suitable for academic or business, that meets established criteria.
  • Assessment Description
    For this assessment, create an annotated outline that provides a framework of your capstone project. Begin by reviewing the MBA Capstone Project Description [PDF]. Your annotated outline must state the name of your chosen organization and must include the following items:
  • Identify the main sections to be developed in the paper and tie them to the project objectives.
    • In your key sections, you should use at least four main headings; these sections make up the body of your outline.
    • Each heading must have at least two sub-points to develop the detail required.
    • Include a description of each major point.
  • Identify where each supporting reference will be integrated.
    • Include at least one reference to support each major point of the paper.
    • Incorporate relevant quotes or paraphrases from a source that you might use for support, with an APA in-text citation.
  • Identify main points that address ethical aspects associated with your chosen business.
    • Ethical considerations/aspects should also be one of the headings of your outline.
    • Use the program outcomes to help determine the areas of ethics that you might want to cover.
    • Include at least one reference to elaborate on how you intend to cover ethics in your project.
  • Identify main points that address leadership and collaboration aspects associated with your chosen business.
    • Leadership and collaboration considerations/aspects should also be one of the headings of your outline.
    • Review the program outcomes to determine the areas of leadership and collaboration that you should consider.
    • Include at least one reference to elaborate on how you intend to cover leadership and collaboration in your project.
  • Identify main points of your recommendations. Your recommendations should also be one of the headings of your outline.
    • Identify credible evidence to support an analysis.
    • For the evidence you provide, include key points to clarify why it matters and how it will inform the analysis.
  • Your annotated outline should have these sections:
  • An executive summary.
  • An introduction.
  • The body of your outline should be comprised of at least four main headings with additional subheadings and points. (Never use the word “Body” as a heading or subheading.)
  • A conclusion.
  • References. Use APA style and formatting for all the sources you use in the annotated outline.
  • Submission Requirements
  • Style: This outline should be written in academic format; refer to the corresponding MBA Academic and Professional Document Guidelines. It should be double spaced, use subheadings, and be well organized and well written.
  • Communication: Ensure written communication is free of errors that detract from the overall message and quality.
  • APA guidelines: Format your paper according to current APA style and formatting.
  • Resources: Use at least four resources from credible resources.
  • Length: Your outline should be 2–5 pages.
  • Font and font size: Use 12 point, Times New Roman.
  • It is highly recommended that you submit your outline to Smarthinking (linked in the MBA Program Resources) to request feedback on ideas and organization (that is, global issues). Smarthinking can be instrumental in helping you get a solid, flowing outline and foundation to your capstone.
    Evaluation
    By successfully completing this assessment, you will demonstrate your proficiency in the following course competencies through corresponding scoring guide criteria:
  • Competency 1: Apply foundational knowledge and an understanding of business systems, processes, and technology within and across core disciplines.
    • Identify the main sections to be developed in the paper and tie them to the project objectives.
  • Competency 2: Integrate information across disciplines and from differing perspectives.
    • Identify where each supporting