The evaluation of EDI principles in coursebook evaluation checklist and EAP coursebooks



Introduction

The concepts of Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) have received considerable attention in higher education (HE) and have been widely recognized among HE sectors as essential elements within the missions of their institutions (Barnett 2020). However, despite the frequent appearance on universities’ mission statements, Von Robertson et al. (2016) argued that the support provided by many institutions are not sufficient, moreover, based on students’ negative experiences, it seems some universities only appear to be inclusive superficially, whilst not demonstrating a true commitment to EDI. 

In the attempt to develop university students’ intercultural competence throughout their academic study, fruitful resources were produced in terms of comprehensive guidelines, training programmes, long term recruitment and retention plans at the institutional level (Fuentes et al. 2021).  Lots of efforts have been made in increasing EDI awareness and positive changes through curriculum (Tamtik 2019), such as creating more inclusive classrooms, using appropriate language and exploring EDI related topics in courses. However, Fuentes et al. (2021) believed with the focus falling on the generic curricula and pedagogical approaches, how to design an inclusive syllabus remains under-developed. Brown and Nanguy (2021) also pointed out the global coursebooks employed for English language teaching (ELT) have been criticized as ‘one size fits all’- avoiding sensitive topics such as politics, alcohol, religion, sex, narcotics, isms, pork (PARSNIP), ignoring important ethical and educational concerns to achieve commercial purposes. 

Among the extensive provision of coursebooks, a comprehensive evaluation is crucial for deciding the most appropriate one in specific teaching contexts (Demir and Ertas 2014). Therefore, to address the increasing attention of EDI in HE and to assist with its effective application in ELT, this study intends to evaluate the extent EDI concepts are included in existing English language coursebook evaluation criteria, to suggest EDI appropriateness coursebook evaluation criteria, and to evaluate global English for Academic Purposes (EAP) coursebooks. Though being criticized as not practical and containing over simplistic or ambiguous words, checklists are often used as an effective tool to evaluate English language coursebooks (Mukundan et al 2011), which will be employed as the evaluation method in this study. 

Literature Review 

EDI in Higher Education 

Equity, diversity and inclusion are complex and interrelated terms which carry intricate meanings in varying contexts (Tamtik 2019). Equity is defined by the AAC&U (n.d.) as providing equal access to underrepresented populations, so that they can participate and achieve success in education. With the co-existence of different forms such as equality, justice and fairness, multiple and overlapping versions tend to appear in policies interpreting contemporary norms (Gilbert et al 2011). Equity, therefore, with the combination of other words or situations could address different focuses (Savage 2013). Rizvi and Lingard (2011) argued while demonstrating its importance, there is a lack of agreement over the definition of Equity. However, despite its difficulty to understand in a generalized abstract manner, it is apparent when combining and comparing with contrasting values. 

The definition of diversity includes a series of identifying factors such as race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, socio-economical background and disability, with added considerations of religion, education and family/marital status (Tamtik 2019; Loden and Rosener 1991). However, it is more than those naming categories that are used to identify people, it extends to the principles of inclusion, which not only acknowledge but also value differences, and the ability for people to engage equitably in society (Multiculturalism B.C., 2000). 

In addition to removing barriers that limit participation and achievement, UNESCO (2015) addresses that inclusion in education systems should ensure and respect  diverse needs, abilities, and characteristics, and eliminate discrimination in learning environments. To put it in simple terms, it is fundamental for institutions to be safe, caring and engaging places where everybody feels included and in which there is a sense of belonging (Dixon 2011).

Due to the multi-layered connections between equity, diversity and inclusion, universities tend have a slogan-like approach and address all EDI issues together as an integrated concept, rather than looking at the detailed complexities within each term (Tamtik 2019). However, Tamtik (2019) found many universities only stay at a surface level by expressing their institutional principles and matching these with the federal performance criteria, very few aim at identifying challenges and goals designed, and reflective of their particular university. 

Coursebooks and evaluation criteria 

Despite the ongoing debate on whether coursebooks help or hinder the process of teaching and learning, they provide extensive language input and exposure for learners, more importantly, they hold a unique and significant social function, which is to represent generational knowledge and culture of human beings (López-Medina 2016).  Sheldon (1988) proposed that coursebooks play a significant role in any ELT programme. Apart from providing ready-made materials which lessen teachers’ preparation time (Tsiplakides 2011), coursebooks serve as a framework and measure of students’ learning progress. 

At the same time, the use of coursebooks has also drawn negative criticism. Tsiplakides (2011) argued the target language used tends to be unnatural, which does not represent real-life scenarios, hence challenging their suitability for the purpose of communicative language teaching. Renner (1997) believed coursebooks carry a great degree of cultural content as well as the target language, which was unfortunately dominated by the mainstream groups, with little representation of cultural diversity and often contains stereotypes and biases. 

Since coursebooks could be outdated due to the long process between writing and publication (Sheldon 1988), it is critical that materials should meet current needs and objectives (Murphy 1985). What is more, coursebooks could be suitable for some situations or students but might not be suitable in different contexts (Richards 2007). Therefore, a comprehensive evaluation comes as a vital step in selecting the appropriate coursebook for the targeted learners within a specific learning context (Demir and Ertas 2014). Coursebook evaluation also helps with identifying whether the materials facilitate the achievement of the expected language learning outcomes (Mukundan 2006). 

Checklists are a commonly used instrument to evaluate ELT coursebooks, as they provide a set of generalized criteria that allows a sophisticated and systematic evaluation (Mukundan et al 2011). Hutchinson and Waters (1987) take evaluation as a straightforward matching between the needs and solutions, which appears as rating scales or scoring systems (Sheldon 1988). On the other hand, Mukundan et al (2011) pointed out that many evaluative criteria are identical regardless of the teaching and learning situations, places or purposes. What can be sure is, however, the importance of different criteria will change over the years, along with the interpretation of the scoring system (Sheldon 1988). Şahin (2020) pointed out many current concepts and topics are not included in early checklists, therefore, a timely review is needed to keep them in line with the steadily changing methodologies in language teaching. 

EAP courses

English for Academic Purposes (EAP), emerged in the context of academic study and scholarly exchanges, contains linguistic, applied linguistic and educational topics through the medium of English (Hamp-Lyons 2011). In Jordan’s (1997) view, EAP courses include essential study skills such as listening comprehension and note taking, academic writing, discussion, critical thinking, as well as the proficient use of language in a formal academic register. What content would be most appropriate to constitute these EAP course components, however, has drawn a degree of concern, i.e. to read or listen to which piece of materials (Jordan 1997). Various practitioners have criticized EAP for avoiding important ideological issues and that it should be prepared to adapt to the cultures, world views and languages of foreign students (Benesch 1993). Pennycook (1997) argued that limiting the focus to developing students’ academic linguistic skills would miss a crucial opportunity in building their linguistic, social, and cultural criticism, which could be very beneficial for them both within and outside the educational systems. Therefore, EAP should bear the responsibility to expose learners to the broadest context possible, to foster their linguistic and critical awareness (Pennycook 1997).

Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL)

As an educational approach that addresses a dual focus on both language and the content, CLIL has attracted lots of attention and its popularity keeps growing (López-Medina 2016). With CLIL, the subject matter is no longer taught in a foreign language, instead, with and through a foreign language (Eurydice 2006). With the evident global demand for English learning, English serves as a vehicular language that presents the extensive content subjects which prepare students for future studies or work (Coyle et al 2010). Apart from promoting linguistic competence, CLIL also stimulates learners’ cognitive flexibility (Marsh 2009). With its promotion on constructivist learning, CLIL provides learners with different thinking perspectives, create positive impact on their conceptualization, and helps them progress towards more autonomous and sophisticated learning (Coyle et al 2010). 

The emergence of English as a lingua franca has had a significant impact on higher education, with its rising importance as the global language, it is arguable that ELT sits as a part of the core academic life (Coyle et al 2010). Despite its considerable potential, Coyle et al (2010) think CLIL is at an exploratory stage in many HE institutions with situational and structural obstacles. 

Research gap

The above analysis of related literature presented the emerging needs and challenges of promoting students awareness of EDI and intercultural competence through coursebooks (Tamtik 2019; Brown and Nanguy 2021), the necessity of updating the coursebook evaluation criteria (Sheldon 1988), the narrow focus of the content scope in EAP (Pennycook 1997; Benesch 1993), and the growing popularity yet exploratory level of CLIL in HE (López-Medina 2016). However, scarce research has been identified regarding the representativeness of EDI in both the coursebook evaluation criteria and the EAP coursebooks. 

Research aims and questions.

To tackle the above issues and identified gap, the aim of this study is to create an EDI appropriateness checklist for EAP coursebook evaluation. This will be achieved by reviewing and comparing current coursebook evaluation checklists regarding the degree of EDI principles, to embed EDI elements with CLIL approach, and thereafter, to evaluate global EAP coursebooks with my developed checklist.

1. Therefore, it focuses on answering the following two questions:
2. Do current coursebook evaluation checklists include EDI principles? If not, what changes can be suggested?  
3. To what extent do EAP coursebooks include EDI related content? And what suggestions could be given? 

Methodology

Research design and process

To decide what criteria are important and suitable for evaluating EAP coursebooks in terms of EDI, an extensive literature review on previous research is required (López-Medina 2016; Lei and Soontornwipast 2020). The related literature includes existing English language coursebook evaluation checklists, guidelines for developing checklists, developed CLIL checklists, and EDI content benchmarks in coursebooks. Essential criteria shall be summarised, which will be used to adapted into an existing checklist or to produce a new checklist. 

This is followed by semi-structured interviews with tutors to collect valuable insights and constructive suggestions regarding the components of the checklists. Semi-structured interviews give greater flexibility in the order of the questions being asked and provides opportunities to gather in-depth information by asking follow-up questions (Zacharias 2011). Selection criteria of the participants will be addressed in the next section. A draft checklist is expected to be developed after the qualitative analysis of the interview data. 

To test the validity of the developed checklist, it will then be used to evaluate two chosen global EAP coursebooks, which will also contribute to the limited research regarding EDI appropriateness in global EAP coursebooks. The global EAP coursebooks will be chosen based on their popularity based on usage and quantum of publication. 

The design and process of this study takes reference from scholars’ work in related research areas (López-Medina 2016; Cruces Rodríguez 2015; Lei and Soontornwipast 2020; Demir and Ertas 2014; López-Medina 2021; Jafarigohar 2013; Brown and Nanguy 2021; Coyle et al 2010). 

Sampling 

At the literature review stage, this study intends to review an exhaustive number of evaluation checklists relating to ELT and CLIL, to cover a wide representation of the features and critiques of existing criteria. This will help with the overall examination and selection of the most important criteria that are suitable for EAP coursebook evaluation in terms of EDI. A potentially suitable checklist will be evaluated in the pilot study; adjustment shall be made based on the pilot result. 

In terms of the interviewing of participants, this study intends to approach tutors who ideally have 1) EAP teaching experience; 2) knowledge relating to EDI in a teaching and learning context; 3) experience in evaluating coursebooks. The selection of the sample thereby follows a homogenous procedure, which focuses on participants who share specific characteristics that are closely related to the topic being researched (Etikan et al 2016). In consideration of the available research opportunities at this current institution, and the challenges of finding participants that meet all mentioned criteria, this study intends to employ both convenience sampling and snowball sampling. Use of convenience sampling means taking advantage of the geographical proximity and easy accessibility, it will firstly approach members of the target population that meet the above criteria and are willing to participate (Etikan et al 2016), after which with the purpose of enriching the sampling pool and reaching saturation, the snowball sampling will be used to recruit more interviewees provided by initial participants (Noy 2008). One drawback of the snowball sampling being it concedes the control of the sampling phase to the participants, in other words, it is the participants’ initiative to provide more interviewees and to drive the sampling process forward (Noy 2008). Therefore, to mitigate the potential negative impact of using snowball sampling I will be acutely aware of the status of the data collection progress ensuring that successful collection of the required information is achieved.

Though convenience sampling has the benefit of being easily accessible, an apparent disadvantage is the potential bias caused by limited representation of the data (Etikan et al 2016). In terms of this study, the foundation of the criteria will be generated from the literature review stage, and the interview is used to add supplementary data. Therefore, it will not become the dominant aspect of representation. Moreover, with the combination of snowball sampling, participants from different institutions and background would appear and present a level of diversity. 

Regarding the choice of coursebooks, due to the space limit, two global coursebooks from different publishers will be selected for analysis. To reflect the wide representation of current EAP classroom teaching and learning, coursebooks that are most popular with the highest levels of publication and the latest editions will be used. Considering the targeted learners are university students, selected coursebooks will be at upper intermediate level. 

Data collection and analysis 

For the convenience of participants and the potential geographical distance, interviews will be conducted either face to face or via MS Teams. Collected data will be manually transcribed and analysed based on relevant themes and topics, which will then be used to enrich the existing data. The selected coursebooks will then be evaluated based on the developed checklist, findings regarding the indicators of EDI elements will be compared and explained in detail. 

Strength and limitation

As mentioned in previous sections, this study distinguishes itself by addressing the importance of EDI in higher education through English language coursebooks, and the emergent needs of including EDI both in coursebooks evaluation criteria and coursebook content. This study also attempts to explore the practicality of using CLIL approach to evaluate the degree of EDI content in coursebooks, which will be useful for future adaptations of coursebook and implementation of lesson planning and classroom teaching. 

However, the apparent limitation of this study is its narrow focus on EAP coursebooks. It further limits the evaluation range into upper intermediate books from only two global coursebooks. Future research could be done relating to English for Specific Purposes coursebooks, broader English language coursebooks, or with the focus in the EFL or ESL context. On another note, although only student books are selected in this study, as the primary source of content for both students and tutors, skipping teacher’s book and other additional resources won’t diminish the impact of the study (Brown 2021). 

Ethical consideration

Ethical approval with participants will be granted before the interview, to comply with information confidentiality requirements, and to provide them with the intended purpose and content of the interview (Rose et al 2019). In this case study, consent forms will be sent to interviewees, including the main focus of the interview, and that it will be recorded and kept in a safe place, which will only be used for research purposes, and any point in time it is possible for the participants to stop or withdraw from the interview (Dornyei 2007). The data and results will be reported truthfully without personal preferences or biases, even if the result was unexpected or conflicts with the original hypothesis, it adds depth to the study findings and its implications (Cohen 2007; Rose et al 2019). 



Reference

MODULE COIS70735/ COIS71208 DATABASE MANAGEMENT & SECURITY || QestionPaper

 

MODULE COIS70735/ COIS71208 

DATABASE MANAGEMENT & SECURITY

Assignment 1:  Research Paper and Seminar

If these submission dates or times change, or if there is a variation to this specification, you will be informed.

Introduction

This document forms the specification for one of your assignments in this module (there are two assignments in total).  This assignment will address and assess Learning Outcome 2 as indicated below and in the Module Handbook:

Learning Outcome Skill Assessed Through

• Discuss critically the major developments and research in database. security Learning Practical assignment. 
• Discuss critically the major developments and research in database administration Knowledge and Understanding .
• Research paper and seminar.
• Analyse, design and build an appropriate secure database system. Analysis Practical assignment.

Requirements

You are required to write a research paper and to present this in a seminar session.  The theme of the paper is challenges in database administration practices and procedures in contemporary digital environments.

Your paper should focus directly on the above theme.  You will need to determine the specific scope and content, and the manner in which you identify, include, synthesize and report your findings – liaise with your Tutor regarding this and see Point 2.2 below.   

When determining the scope of your research paper, you must liaise with the module team to ensure you are ‘on track’ with your approach. 

The paper and seminar should be structured in accordance with the sections outlined in the Paper Requirements and Assessment Scheme below (see Section 3 and Section 4).

The paper must be formatted in accordance with the formatting guidelines for an IEEE paper (search for IEEE paper template). Note: if you have specific accessibility requirements then adopt a format that is in accordance with your needs.  Let your Tutor know in advance if this is the case.   

You are required to write a research paper and to present this in a seminar session.  The theme of the paper is challenges in database administration practices and procedures in contemporary digital environments.

The word count limit for the paper will be 2,500 words, with a 10% variation allowance (plus or minus). The seminar will have a duration of 5 minutes. It should summarise your research findings in relation to the topic of your research. The seminar element consists of both a submission and a presentation, and is to be submitted (see Section 5) by the deadline prior to presentation. The seminar presentation will take place during the dates specified in the heading of this document.  This session will occur in the usual scheduled laboratory for the weekly taught sessions unless you are informed otherwise.

This coursework is weighted at 40% of the overall module mark.  Further to this, the individual weightings of the paper and seminar are 80% and 20% respectively. The coursework should be completed and submitted as an individual piece of work.  It is not group work.

You should be aware of the rules on academic misconduct.  These rules are very clear. The Faculty takes a strict line in enforcing them. It is important that you understand the regulations as the penalties for infringement can be very serious including: module failure; grade point zero; downgrading your degree classification; award failure; expulsion from the University. To avoid plagiarism please consult the guidelines on the University website.

Paper Requirements

The following table shows the sections that you are required to include in your paper and which you will be assessed upon.  The assessment of your paper will be a matter of academic judgement in the context of the Assessment Guide detailed in Section 4.

Paper Section

• Paper Title, 
• Author, 
• Affiliation
• Abstract
• Introduction
• Body – Incorporating the Literature Survey/Review and Critical Analysis
• Conclusion and Future Work
• References

(Quality of formatting and general paper presentation)

Assessment Scheme

The following sections aim to provide you with guidance when producing your research paper and seminar.  Only grades D (Distinction), M (Merit) and P (Pass) are pass grades.  Pass is divided into Good Pass and Low Pass.

Paper (Distinction): An excellent paper (Distinction) will excel in each of the sections listed in Section 3.1 and provide the assessor with a high degree of confidence in the student’s understanding and ability in the area under investigation.  The paper may provide a basis for subsequently developing a real paper suitable for publication.  The paper will follow the suggested structure, and within this contain content that is further structured in a manner suitable for the topic under investigation.  The style of academic writing will be excellent, with minimal or no spelling and grammatical errors.  The title and accreditation of the paper will be unambiguous, concise, and provide the reader with a clear indication of the topic being addressed.  The abstract will articulate an overall position and statement of the work, and be written in a clear and concise manner.  The introduction will provide an excellent context to the work, outlining key areas of focus or concern and the importance of the topic.  If appropriate, any methodology will be briefly described along with associated rationale.  An overview of the paper structure will also be presented.  The body of the paper will demonstrate excellent critical insight and analysis into the domain under investigation, and the construction of this will demonstrate excellent synthesis of the contributing areas.  Journal papers, appropriately referenced, will underpin this.  The conclusion will draw the paper to a close in a coherent manner by summarizing the key areas of concern and provide an overall concluding statement and position, supported by evidence drawn from the body of the paper.  The future work section will outline areas of possible further development as a consequence of the work presented in the paper.  The references will be accurate with no omissions or errors.  

Seminar (Distinction): The seminar will aim to convey all key aspects of the work, articulated in a clear and comprehensive narrative.  The overall clarity of the seminar and associated content will be of an extremely high academic and professional standard.  

Paper (Merit): A Merit paper will demonstrate a good level of engagement in each of the sections listed in Section 3.1 and provide the assessor with a good degree of confidence in the student’s understanding and ability in the area under investigation.  The paper will follow the suggested structure, and within this contain content that is further structured in a manner suitable for the topic under investigation.  The style of academic writing will be good, and may contain some minor spelling and grammatical errors.  The title and accreditation of the paper will be unambiguous, concise, and provide the reader with a clear indication of the topic being addressed.  The abstract will articulate an overall position and statement of the work, and be written in a clear and concise manner.  The introduction will provide a good context to the work, outlining key areas of focus or concern and the importance of the topic.  If appropriate, any methodology will be briefly described along with associated rationale.  An overview of the paper structure will also be presented.  The body of the paper will demonstrate a good level of understanding into the domain under investigation, and the construction of this will demonstrate an overall understanding of the contributing areas.  Journal and conference papers, appropriately referenced, will underpin this.  The conclusion will draw the paper to a close in a coherent manner by summarizing the key areas of concern, supported by evidence drawn from the body of the paper.  The future work section will outline areas of possible further development as a consequence of the work presented in the paper.  The references will be accurate with no omissions or errors. 

Seminar (Merit): The seminar will aim to convey many significant aspects of the work, although the presentation and articulation of this may not be entirely clear or comprehensive.  There will be good evidence of a high academic and professional standard being adopted. 

Paper (Good Pass):  A good pass paper will demonstrate a reasonable level of engagement in each of the sections listed in Section 3.1 and provide the assessor with confidence in the student’s understanding and ability in the area under investigation.  The paper will follow the suggested structure, and within this contain relevant content – though some of that content and the associated sub-structuring may be lacking.  The style of academic writing will be reasonable, though spelling and grammatical errors may be present.  The title of the paper will provide the reader with an indication of the topic being addressed and the accreditation should be present, but perhaps vague. The abstract will articulate an overall position and statement of the work, though the clarity of this may be lacking somewhat. The introduction will provide an overview of the paper.  If appropriate, any methodology briefly described though the associated rationale may be lacking. The body of the paper will demonstrate an acceptable level of understanding into the domain under investigation, though the construction of this may be weak in parts.  Mainly conference papers, appropriately referenced, will underpin this.  The conclusion will draw the paper to a close although this may be brief and somewhat disjoint from the body of the paper. The future work section may be weak or speculative and not based on the core content of the paper. The references will be generally accurate with some omissions and errors. 

Seminar (Good Pass): The seminar will aim to convey the core aspects of the work, and the presentation and articulation of this may not be entirely clear or comprehensive.  There will be some evidence of a good academic and professional standard being adopted.   

Paper (Low Pass): A low pass paper will demonstrate a weak level of engagement in the sections listed in Section 3.1, but will provide the assessor with some confidence in the student’s understanding and ability in the area under investigation.  The paper will attempt to follow the suggested structure but the associated content may be weak and sparse. The style of academic writing will be acceptable though spelling and grammatical errors may be present.  The title of the paper will provide the reader with an indication of the topic being addressed, though the clarity of this may be poor, or the title may be misleading. The accreditation will be incorrect or missing. The abstract may be weak and written in a speculative/discursive manner. The introduction will provide an overview of the topic under investigation.  If appropriate, any methodology will be described though the associated rationale may be lacking or weak. The body of the paper will demonstrate a weak level of understanding into the domain under investigation, and the content may appear fragmented in parts, and the focus of the paper will not be clear.  This will be underpinned mainly by some conference papers, and Internet-based non-academic references. The conclusion may be brief and somewhat disjoint from the body of the paper. The future work section will be very weak, speculative, or missing. The references may be weak or have omissions and errors. Seminar (Low Pass): The seminar will convey minimal aspects of the work. Some aspects of the work may not be reflected, or missing or superficial - and the overall construction, whilst demonstrating academic and professional engagement, may be weak and disjoint.  



Submission Guidelines

The primary method of submission is via Blackboard.

You should submit a PDF copy of your paper and a Powerpoint, or equivalent, copy of your seminar slides by the submission deadlines.  You may be asked to submit other file formats.  In this case your Tutor will inform you accordingly.  Note that the seminar will consist of both the Powerpoint slides and an in-person or remote presentation.

If necessary, you may be asked to submit via another secondary method – such as an email attachment.  In this case your Tutor will inform you accordingly.

PDF documents should not be password protected or have restricted permissions – specifically, they should allow modifications (for annotations and comments).

You are advised to keep copies of all your work for your own records.

Target: A Management Analysis: 4000 words sample

This report will discuss the management of Target, covering their history, mission and vision, culture, basic managerial functions, SWOT analysis, goals and objectives, and management issues.

Contents

Toc 

Executive Summery

 

The 8th largest retailer in United States that named "TARGET" is the division of Dayton Company of Minneapolis. They continuously delivered the innovative outstanding value. They train their employees to give the customers great level of satisfaction and hospitality. Every team member is highly encouraged to innovate and contribute ideas. Moreover they discover the solutions as an important part. This report focus on the management issues that will focus on any technical setbacks or issues a business might face that for poor communication between different sections or constant change and difficult employees who have a hard time to doing what they are told to do. This can cause poor morale. Thus affects the efficiency and productive levels. This company has Mission statement which can be drawn by the key points of one organizations’ mission. This statement consists with convenience, Reasonable prices, Exceeding expectations, Community engagement and Community giving. The Objectives for target organization are the brief to medium-term targets and objectives that the organization sets to realize the greater vital objectives set for the long. This company has some components. These components consist with specific, measurable, accomplishing, practical and opportune. And this also focuses on some basic managerial functions. These functions plan to describe the instruments to achieve the aims. Then organizing this can achieve the goal easily. After that it directing and staffing. Then reporting and budgeting set for the product's development. This company has Wide range of merchandise which is the biggest strength. It has many competitors like Walmart, Amazon. The retail business capital intensive is easily replicable. This company has many managerial skills and functions. This report has focused by those all managerial terms.

 

Introduction

 

So to begin with today we will be covering about one of the 8^th largest retailers in the United States that we know as “TARGET”.  We will be covering about how target came to be in existence about its roots and the history behind the first establishment of it as the discount division of the Dayton Company of Minneapolis, Minnesota in 1962 to how it started then expanding its operations and introduced new store formats under the Target brand in the 1990’s. We will then talk about what Target stands for with its brand Mission and Vision that will take us further into what their purpose is and how they have went on to achieving customer satisfaction over the years with their famous slogan “Expect more, Pay less”. It will take us further as to how Target decides on their product and deliver outstanding value to it and continuous innovation. 

Next we have their culture of team leadership and program that talks about how target provides endless opportunities as a retailer to the customers as well their employees. It emphasizes on how they train their employees to give their best on customer hospitality and reaching the highest level of consumer satisfaction and their culture to work as a team in meeting all the new challenges and tackling them whilst having fun at the same time. This pushes them to stay ahead in the ultra competitive retail market today and hold onto their niche and get more efficient thus providing consumers with the best shopping experience. Every team member is encouraged to innovate, contribute ideas and discover solutions as an important part of a world class team which then takes us to the basic managerial functions that tells us about each and every employee as a contributing member to the corporation and how they bring about the most efficient performance in their assigned sectors and tasks and the role they play behind the smooth operations of Target. Then we will move onto the SWOT analysis that is a strategic planning technique used to help a person or organization identify strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats related to business competition or project planning which helps to build a businesses strong points as well as to address what they are lacking. 

It helps to minimize risks and to take the greatest possible advantages of chances for success. As a business it is also important to set about certain goals and objectives to reach that enable us to push to our greatest potential and take the business to new heights and keep a clear vision of the long term as well as build strategies to accomplish them and set about a competitive edge above potential competition. Lastly we will focus on the management issues that will focus on any technical setbacks or issues a business might face that may be poor communication between different sections or constant change and difficult employees who have a hard time doing what they are told to do which can cause poor morale which thus affects the efficiency and productive levels. How a business deals with these issues and works together to bring about an effective solution is what we will discuss about in further details which will then lead to us concluding our report.

 

Mission Statement Analysis

 

According to their website the mission statement of Target is “To make Target the preferred shopping destination for our guests by delivering outstanding value, continuous innovation and exceptional guest experience by consistently fulfilling our Expect More. Pay Less. Brand Promise.” This consciously created statement portrays that Target has good experience of the business and posses the resource to achieve their desired place in the market. 

Given below is our breakdown of the mission Statement of Target: 

 

1. Preferred shopping destination: Target has the reputation of being a destination in its attempt to deliver this part of the mission statement, where consumers never actually lose what they are looking for. It is true that time is an expensive and precious asset that should be used wisely, and Target helps its customers do so by giving them what they want to buy. In fact, Target makes sure of this by classifying all its items in such a way that any consumer can easily select what they are looking for, from grocery, personal care to appliances, and every other thing they need. 
2. Delivering outstanding value: This is the indication them delivering products in a reasonable price. In a report published by Remi Rosmarin in Business insider where he said “Target is less expensive than any local retail store”. According to Lucian Arye Bebchuk, Allen Ferrell as they found on their survey they have found that consumers think that Target is cheaper than Walmart and Target offers up to 25% discount of a lot of products than its competitors. 
3. Continuous innovation: Target claims that they are one of the innovative companies and this claim is baked by the Fast Company they stated “In the face of these challenges, Target has nimbly adapted to the preferences of the modern consumer.” Target has 1800 stores spread throughout USA and according to the city or neighborhood they are in the store size varies. Target also has very unique line of in-house brands and they have also acquired a lot of cult favorite brands like Project 62, Quirky kids, Cat & Jack. They recently introduce Disney store in store. More than $1 billion sales are annually generate by their in-house brands.
4. Expect More: As a member of a community Target has been taking a lot of responsibility as a corporate and delivering on them. Target is making 100 soccer fields scattered all over USA. They also donated $3 million in 2017 for disaster struck places in USA. Their team members volunteered 1 million hour every year. They do a lot of good work for the community and the community has a very positive opinion about them.

 

On a nutshell Target does standby with its mission statement and is delivering upon it. They are not a retail giant like Amazon or Walmart and that is why they are not that much mechanical like them. 

 

Leadership style

 

Leaders can direct using the traditional “command-and-control” traits. These are like top-down leadership, class systems and profit-driven values. There are five types of leadership styles that can define “Target”. Those are:

 

1. Directive Leadership: A Culture of Consistency: 

Directive leadership uses a pyramid structure, with power moving starting from the top. Those at the top give those at the base explicit directions and undertakings. This style doesn't support an authoritative culture of joint effort in which administration is described by discourse, receptiveness, or cooperation. Order administration is known for its consistency. 

Our leaders build up explicit qualities and personal conduct standards, and others are relied upon to follow. The colleagues need adaptability and dynamism to meet changing business sector powers or conditions with advancement and imagination. Also, colleagues are bound to purchase in to entire framework change when their voices have been heard in the arranging cycle.

 

2. Transformational Leadership: A Culture of Inspiration:

Transformational leadership is tied in with investigating what characterizes our association's way of life and making changes to improve it. Transformational leaders start by uniting colleagues to give legit criticism. Workers distinguish difficulties and openings, just as close to home objectives and goals. At that point, pioneers adjust the association's objectives and qualities to those of its colleagues while likewise outlining a course for positive commanding change. The general objective is to provoke innovative feelings in representatives by mirroring their own objectives and qualities. Things like status and cash are momentary inspirations. Revolutionary authority divisions’ colleagues by assuring them that they are working for a reason greater than themselves.

 

3. Servant Leadership: Culture of Inclusion:

Servant leadership flips the hierarchical pyramid, making an air where everybody fills in as a pioneer. The leader's responsibility is to set up a suggestion's visionary objectives and arranged course. At that point, the chief serves in a help part as representatives’ work to accomplish these targets. Worker pioneers center around serving authoritative partners and the bigger network. This administration part is the thing that recognizes worker initiative from other authority styles. In our association enables workers by remembering them for the dynamic cycle, then, enable representatives by accepting a help job that assists representatives with achieving authoritative objectives.

 

4. Participative Leadership: Culture of Innovation:

By the democratic approach, participative leadership works on build consensus between team members. Besides for the transformational leadership and servant leadership, the participative leadership earns trust and commitment to achieve whole-system change. Leaders are always make the final decision, but they do so through a process of compromise, collaboration and consensus; which building that engages all team members. 

 

5. Authoritative Leadership: Culture of Compliance:

Authoritative leadership set the visionary bearing of associations and unmistakably clarifies the jobs that singular workers will play in that drawn out vision. This leadership shows others how it’s done and move representatives to follow yet they can likewise make an average culture that smothers cooperation, advancement, and expert turn of events. Workers know their place in the hierarchical progressive system and aren't urged to digress. This reflects conventional order and-control excellences like top-down initiative and the customary pyramid-designed progressive structure.

Most of the time Authoritative leadership and directive leadership share a number of behaviors. The biggest difference is that power can be more distributed under the directive leadership. A responsive leader might set the goals. And deliver specific instructions and tasks to subordinates who are under directive leadership.

 

Organisational Structure

 

 

 

Basic managerial functions

 

There are six types of essential managerial functions

 

Planning: They vary from benefit amplification to expanding the pie's objective piece or diminishing the costs. Usually, they are foreordained by top management. The primary objectives portray the points, and the sub-objectives depict the instruments to accomplish the ends. 

 

Organizing: They are a bit pricey, but the quality is excellent. They are useful to open and totally air  right A few kinds of arranging steps like Threshold Wall Cabinet Thai charming little cupboard are an ongoing expansion to the main washroom water closet.  This is a raw bar intended to hold towels in the restroom, and some s-snares initially made to have a shower curtain, and the pieces of jewelry are effortlessly arranged and don’t get tangled. Oxo Containers These compartments under our kitchen sink and I love them. 

 

Directing: Cell-based treatment abuses changed human cells to treat the ailment, yet it focused on application in explicit tissues, particularly those lying somewhere down in the body where direct infusion is unimaginable has been risky.

 

Staffing: Targets head workforce staffing and enrollment solutions. Strong Talent, great employers. Target coordinates these rapidly and effectively with the consideration they deserve. It truly is only that basic.

 

Reporting: As probably the biggest manager in the United States, with stores in more than 1,800 communities, we have a critical chance to drive change and work to convey happiness to all families today and tomorrow genuinely. 

 

Budgeting: A Budget is essential to arrange for how much your business ought to spend on costs and how much income it should cover those expenses. Target costing happens as an item is being developed. This technique includes utilizing statistical surveying to choose at what value the item will sell, then setting an objective for the measure of profit. These targets ought to be selected during the products improvement.

 

SWOT Analysis

 

Strengths   Very satisfactory customer experience. They provide this experience by keeping their stores clean as well as the shopping carts and with well trained staffs.  High purchasing power over suppliers. Since they buy in such a huge quantity they have the power to ask for lower price from suppliers. Because of this they have achieved economics of scale.  Huge assortment of products. Target sells a huge range of products from groceries to furniture’s. They even have variety of designer apparels. Portfolio of exclusive in-house brands. They have 25 exclusive in-house brands which provides higher profit margin. They have most attractive store-in-store alliances with many powerful brands. They have Starbucks and Disney stores inside of their stores in major cities.

Weakness   They are unable to cut costs like Walmart. Since the stores of Walmart are not well maintained they cut their price which makes it harder for the competition.  Higher price. The price of Target is higher than other competition especially on the grocery department compared with Walmart, Amazon and Costco.  They are lagging behind competition in the E-commerce department and their mobile app is not as efficient as Amazon and Walmart.  Less presence in the international market. They are not that present in the international market compared to Walmart and Amazon. Though they have over 133 stores in USA but very less stores outside of USA.

Opportunity   Better delivery system. They have introduced one day delivery system which has a huge impact on their revenue.  Reward program. They have introduced Redcard Reward loyalty program, which offers more discount for the members on top of the discount they are already providing.  Partnership with CVS for in-house pharmacy. After acquiring CVS Target has a pharmacy in their every store, this increases the amount of potential customer number.  Small sized stores. The store size of Target varies according to the location they are at. Because this they have the opportunity of incurring lower costs in less populated areas.

Threats   The competition is increasing and very fierce. It is tough for Target to compete against giants like Amazon who take losses of billion dollars without getting a scratch on their capital. These giants can take losses to undercut the prices of Target. The change in customer preference is another major threat. The customers now days prefer more mechanical stores for lower prices.  Target is basically high competitive and low margin industries where the barrier of entry is very low. Vulnerability of the economics. Since majority of the Target are in USA they are directly linked to economy of USA. This is proven right in 2020 when the USA economy took a huge hit because of COVID-19.

Objectives and strategies

 

Target’s current mission and vision articulations, ‘to make Target the favored shopping goal for our visitors by conveying exceptional esteem, nonstop development, and an uncommon visitor encounter by reliably satisfying our Anticipate More, Pay Less brand promise’ are missing in lawfulness and clarity. As is specified within the company’s 2010 Corporate Obligation Report, Target Enterprise centers on the categories of instruction, environment, well-being, and security & readiness. The company takes these four categories of responsibility a step advance to the sub-categories of secure communities, solid living, motivated understudies, and feasible hones. In expansion, the company is guided by its commitments to incredible esteem, the community, differences, and the environment, which is recognized within the company’s key arrange. (UKE)

The Objectives for Target corporation are the brief to medium-term targets and destinations that the association sets to understand the more prominent crucial goals set for the long.. The organizational goals are vital in forming asset allotment inside the target organization as well as in deciding the approaches, plans and forms that are implemented in Target Corporation. These are a few components of targets of Target Corporation.

Specific: All destinations set by the target corporation are particular and clear. This makes difference workers, as well as directors, oversee and keep up centre on the targets and the conclusion result that ought to be accomplished. At the same time, particular goals make difference directors decide aptitude and development. 

Measurable: Target Corporation is also quantifiable. This implies that all objects can be followed for advance. This is often critical for target enterprise because it makes a difference in assembly due dates. The component of measurability is included in goals by including Quantifiable criteria for deciding advance and objective accomplishment. 

Accomplishing: Target Organization is feasible in that they thrust the workers out of their consolation zones but stay conceivable to attain.

 Practical: This implies that target enterprise sets goals keeping in see the organizational assets and constraints to be able to realize goals viably and inside time. 

Opportune: Target Organization is moreover time bound in that they have an indicated begin and wrap up date. The convenience of the targets makes a difference target organization keep up sense of criticalness in workers. (George, 2020)

 

Management issues

 

In 2017, There were a few Management issues the one is target had misplaced its chief showcasing officer, chief computerized officer, and the head of its basic need division. Over the final two a long time, the company had too seen the chief legitimate officer, chief shipper, chief human assets officer, and chief stores officer positions changed hands. As it were two of the company's 11-member official group remains from when Cornell got to be CEO. Whereas revolution among administrators may essentially flag a company moving procedure, it's regularly agent of more noteworthy issues, such as differences over vital heading, destitute execution, a repulsive work environment, or indeed destitute recompense. Numerous of the later abandonments compare with issue regions for the target. Online deals had slacked behind those of peers and development had moderated, which likely clarifies the flight of chief computerized officer Jason Goldberger, and the company's basic supply methodology had long been tangled as well, driving to abundance decay. (Bowman, 2017).

Conclusion

 

Target is the greatest retailer and is headed to contend with Walmart on global scale. They are one the most network arranged retailers in USA. They have made a specialty retail portion for them while not being reckless about their essence like Walmart. Pioneers can coordinate utilizing the customary order and control characteristics. These resemble top-down administration, class frameworks and benefit driven qualities. Mandate authority utilizes a pyramid structure, with power moving beginning from the top. Our pioneers develop unequivocal characteristics and individual direct guidelines, and others are depended upon to follow. The associates need versatility and dynamism to meet changing business segment powers or conditions with progression and creative mind. By then, pioneers modify the affiliation's destinations and characteristics to those of its partners while similarly delineating a course for positive directing change. By then, the main serves in an assistance part as delegates' work to achieve these objectives. By the popularity based methodology, participative authority chips away at fabricate agreement between colleagues. More often than not authoritative initiative and order administration share various practices. The organization takes these four classifications of duty a stage advance to the sub-classes of secure networks, strong living, inspired understudies, and possible sharpens. In extension, the organization is guided by its responsibilities to inconceivable regard, the network, contrasts, and the earth, which is perceived inside the organization's key mastermind. The Objectives for target association are the brief to medium-term targets and goals that the association sets to understand the more prominent fundamental destinations set for the long. Over the last two quite a while, the organization had too observed the boss genuine official, boss transporter, boss human resources official, and boss stores official positions changed hands.

Bibliography

 

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Appendix

 

Names	Id	Contribution
		Mission Statement, SWOT Analysis and compilation of the report.
		Executive summary, Culture of team leadership and organogram.
		Objectives and strategies, Management issues and conclusion.
		Introduction and conclusion.
		Basic managerial functions