Reference no: EM133027874

Assessment Task: Develop operational plan project

Task summary
This assessment task requires you, in the role of the Operations Manager for King Edward VII College, to develop an Operational Plan for the College.
You will then need to consult with and gain approval from the CEO and management team for the Operational Plan.

Instructions

Review the following information:

King Edward VII College has been operating since 2010. The College is based in the Melbourne CBD and offers a range of courses in management, marketing, human resources and international business and currently has around 500 students enrolled across all of its courses. Courses are offered at all levels from Certificate II to Graduate Diploma. The College is very popular due to its competitive pricing structure, innovative teaching methods and state of the art facilities.

The College currently employs 24 staff members that include the CEO, a Marketing Manager and Marketing Assistant, Human Resources Manager, Operations and Finance Manager, Administration Manager, Office Assistant, Receptionist, Academic Manager, Student Services Officer and approximately 14 trainers.

Due to its success, the College plans to establish two additional campuses, one in Brisbane and one in Sydney. The plan is for the Brisbane campus to commence operating in January 202X and Sydney in April 202X. Ideally campuses will be located close to the CBD. A maximum rental budget of $500,000 per annum in Sydney and $400,000 in Brisbane has been allocated. The desired floor area for each campus is at least 500 square metres.

With regard to staffing at each campus, the following should be noted. It is anticipated that initially each campus will require a receptionist and a student services officer. The receptionist and student services officer positions will be permanent, full-time staff. It is anticipated that maximum student numbers at the new campuses will be up to 60 students per campus in the first 12 months of operations. The College's requirements for trainers is that there must be at least 1 trainer per 20 students.

Existing staff at the Melbourne campus will complete all other staff functions until such time as student numbers increase substantially. It is expected that this would occur after the first two years.

The College will also need to purchase a range of office equipment, as well as furniture for at least 100 students, at each campus.

Complete the following activities:

1. Develop a draft Operational Plan
Review the scenario information and the Strategic Plan to identify all the actions that will need to be completed to achieve the College's objectives and be documented in an Operational Plan.

Use the Operational Plan Template to guide your work. As a minimum, your Operational Plan must address:
• Renting of suitable commercial properties
• Staffing requirements
• Fitting out of the campus
• Equipment requirements
• Marketing requirements

Research and analyse each of the above resource requirements associated with the identification and establishment of the two new campuses. This must include:
• Sources of information for commercial properties
• Staffing requirements and recruitment options
• Fitting out requirements
• Equipment requirements
• Potential suppliers
• Marketing requirements.

Where you identify sources of information with regard to procuring resources, make sure that you make notes on these for inclusion in your Operational Plan.

Ensure that all of the resources are clearly documented in your Operational Plan, including information sources relating to resources specified.

You need to include timelines and key performance indicators for all required actions, including how often these will be measured in order to assess progress.

2. Develop a draft Risk Management Plan.

As set out in the company's organisational processes, you are also required to develop a risk management plan to ensure that plans are in place to address operational contingencies.

You must identify at least three potential risks associated with the College's establishment of the new campuses, as well as identify associated risk management strategies/contingencies.

Use the Risk Management Plan Template to guide your work.

3. Prepare a draft an email to be sent to the senior Management Team (your assessor).
The text of the email should be in grammatically correct English, written in an appropriate (polite, business-like) style.
It should introduce and summarise the contents of the attachments and request a meeting to discuss and gain approval for the plans.

Attach your draft operational plan and risk management plan to the email.

4. Consult on draft Plans.
In this part of the assessment requires you to meet with the senior management team and discuss the operational plan and risk management plan that you have developed. The team will be roleplayed by your assessor.

Go through each part of your operational plan, explaining the activities to be completed, resource requirements, timelines and key performance indicators.
Outline the organisation's policies procedures that directly relate to your operational plan

During the meeting, you will need to demonstrate effective communication skills including:
• Speaking clearly and concisely
• Using effective non-verbal communication skills to encourage audience interest
• Responding to questions
• Asking questions to seek feedback
• Use of active listening techniques to confirm and clarify understanding.

Review also your risk management plan with the senior management team.
You will receive feedback from the team, which you must incorporate into your draft plans. Make notes on these suggested changes.

5. Update your operational plan and risk assessment plan.

Update both of your draft plans to incorporate the suggestions you received at the meeting. Save these new documents as Revised Operational Plan and Revised Risk Assessment Plan.

6. Prepare a draft an email to be sent to the senior Management Team (your assessor).

The text of the email should be in grammatically correct English, written in an appropriate (polite, business-like) style.
It should summarise what was discussed at the meeting, then introduce and summarise the contents of the attachments

The email text should then request approval of the plans and permission to move forward with the project.