SECTION A:

(to be completed by the student)

Student Number (s):
Programme:(e.g. Business Management)
Module Title:  (e.g. Studying for Business)		Seminar Group
Module Code:		Word Count	250

I confirm that no part of this assignment, except where clearly quoted and referenced. has been copied from material belonging to any other person e.g. from a book. handout, another student.  I am aware that it is a breach of UEL regulations to copy the work of another without clear acknowledgement and that attempting to do so renders me liable to disciplinary proceedings.     – Business Report Proposal     A note for students undertaking the Individual Project/Guided Project:   A supervisor cannot and must not decide what you are going to examine. It is your project and therefore, your responsibility to tell your supervisor which area you are going to investigate and give reasons why you have chosen the area. Your supervisor cannot lead you in any specific direction because this is your project and your problem identification skills need to be assessed. S/he can merely support and guide you to conduct your project successfully.  

Using the criteria explained in "Framing the question" List your Title, the business context of your proposed report and provided answers to the project questions (below).   1. Report Title: (Investigating the Effectiveness of Product Diversification in granting Mattel Inc. a Competitive Advantage over LEGO in terms of Increasing and Maintaining Sales)   This is not in line with the set task. Please read the assignment brief again carefully with understanding. The focus is on Lego in comparison to three competitors in terms of what strategy they have implemented that has made them successful in their sales revenue where Lego has not been so successful.

2. Business Context: (The gaming industry is associated with intense rivalry where companies are struggling for market share by increasing sales (Gottlieb, 2014; Schultz & Hatch, 2003). dated material As such, adopting a unique strategy that sets the firm apart from competitors is key to increasing and retaining market share. LEGO has been experiencing the challenge of declining sales until recently when the company began showing weak indications of improvement. This study will investigate how LEGO’s main competitor, Mattel Inc. manages to employ its growth strategy in increasing and sustaining sales.) A fairly good attempt

3. Project Questions: What do you want to identify in the literature? I intend to identify issues such as the effectiveness of diversification strategy, competitive edge of using the diversification in terms of increasing and maintaining sales, how product diversification is accomplished in the gaming industry, challenges and solutions to product diversifications in the existing literature. What strategy do you intend to propose or focus on? Diversification Strategy Which organisations demonstrate effective use of the specific strategy you intend to propose? Mattel Inc.

4. Current/ preliminary research and relevant theory: Provide an overview of the literature that will inform your project. You should also ensure that your review is coherent, well organised and critical. Your proposed strategy will be based on your preliminary research. You need to carefully select specific competitor strategy/strategies to recommend to LEGO. (Don’t forget to give a list of references at the end of your project proposal. Use the cite-it-right system properly (Refer to the UEL guide). Researchers have indicated that product diversification as a corporate strategy contributes significantly to business growth by increasing and maintaining sales in many industries such as gaming and toy (Fonnesbaek & Andersen, 2005; Koty, 2017; Leten et al., 2007; Lin-Hi & Blumberg, 2017; SUNNY & SUND, 2014). As such, the finding of this literature informed my decision to choose the product diversification approach.     I am sure there are more strategies in the literature than just this.

5.  Method of Inquiry: Where will you look for your data. Show how you believe that this is an appropriate source of data. Data will be acquired from peer-reviewed academic articles, organizational websites, and company reports from Mattel Inc. and LEGO. Peer-reviewed articles are reputable, reliable, and authentic as they are published by credible authors after critical review by researchers in the concerned fields. Most be specific Company reports and websites are credible are they are owned by the organizations themselves and possess information provided by the companies themselves. Not so sure about information from websites as it has to be handled with care because of the element of bias.

6. Identify ethical issues that you might face. (Include any ethical issues raised by your particular project and how you propose to handle them)   The major ethical issue that can be encountered in this research relates to using information from peer-reviewed articles without acknowledging the authors. This issue will be addressed by citing the authors of the quoted texts or reviewed articles, and providing a reference list for these authors and their respective works. In addition, some companies’ annual reports may need permission to access

7. Planning:  Provide a Gantt Chart Identification and selection of relevant websites, reports, and peer-reviewed articles 8th Reviewing literature on various issues related to the topic under investigation 9th DEC Drafting of the final paper 10th DEC Review of the final paper 11th DEC Submission of the final papers 12th DEC The Diagra: The dates must all be visible.   The tasks must be in sequential order. starting with the framing of the question, preliminary research, research objectives/questions, Method of Inquiry, Literature review etc......to the deadline for submission.

8. Professional and career development skills: (What are your targets for developing professional and career development skills?)   Working in a prominent organization, networking with a range of professionals in the field of business management Enhancing my ability to employ management theories in practice and solving real world context business management issues Enhancing my ability to critically research and apply solutions to business management challenges affecting organizations in the real-world context You have not answered the question in this part adequately. What you are being asked to do is identify the transferable skills developed in the process of conducting this research project that will enhance your job prospects or career development for the future

9. References: (Cite-it-right system) Fonnesbaek, J., & Andersen, M. M. (2005). Story selling: how LEGO told a story and sold a toy. Young Consumers, 6(3), 31-39. GOTTLIEB, R. (2012). The 'Other' Play Industries. Gifts & Decorative Accessories, 113(9), 102 Koty, A. C. (2017). Child's Play: Opportunities in China's Toy Industry. China Business Review, 1. Leten, B., Belderbos, R., & Van Looy, B. (2007). Technological Diversification, Coherence, and Performance of Firms. Journal Of Product Innovation Management, 24(6), 567-579. Lin-Hi, N., & Blumberg, I. (2017). The Power(lessness) of Industry Self-regulation to Promote Responsible Labor Standards: Insights from the Chinese Toy Industry. Journal Of Business Ethics, 143(4), 789-805. Schultz, M., & Hatch, M. J. (2003). The Cycles of Corporate Branding: THE CASE OF THE LEGO COMPANY. California Management Review, 46(1), 6-26. SUNNY, K. P., & SUND, R. (2014). Productivity & Competitiveness of Indian Toy Industry: Prospects & Challenges. Productivity, 55(1), 120-130. Relevance?