Assessment
Assessment for the module is by means of Coursework Assignment (100%) structured as described below
(Part 1 and Parts2a&b).
The deadline for submission is 4pm, Monday 1st June 2020.
You should submit as one document (MS Word format with pages numbered) with the cover sheet from
the Appendix as the first page of the document.
Part 1. Coursework Assignment (40% weighting)
Following the global recession of 2008 many businesses cut-back on their investment in human resource
development (HRD); as a result HRD budgets were often one of the first things to be reduced1
. From what
you know and understand about learning and human resource development do you think this was a wise
thing to do? Your task in this assignment is to evaluate the following statement made by a senior manager
who was sceptical about the potential contribution that learning and HRD can make to organizations:
“If you want my opinion, human resource development (HRD) is an expensive and unnecessary
luxury; I think it can be cut-back without there being any significant or long-lasting impact on
the business, its performance and the ‘bottom line.”
It’s up to you whether you agree or disagree with this statement, however whatever opinion you put
forward MUST be justified both logically and with reference to hard evidence (from the research literature
and other relevant sources such as examples and case studies from business).
Your answer should be written in an academic essay (i.e. not report) style (see Criteria 1), and the views,
opinions, and insights you offer (see Criteria 2 and 4 below) must justified by reference to key concepts,
models, theories, and examples from the relevant literatures, i.e. research and other work that has been
published in academic journal articles and professional magazines (see the list above for some suggested
sources), as well as in books (see Criteria 2 and 3 below). Your ‘Summary and conclusion’ should not simply
recapitulate what you have already said; it should build on what you’ve said in the earlier parts of your
assignment and offer something interesting, new, and insightful (see Criterion 5 below).
You should use example(s) of HRD to illustrate your answer (you will be able to get these from journal
articles, magazine stories, web sites (e.g. The Times 100, see page 2), company web sites and reports, text
books, etc.) (see Criterion 3 below).
NOTE: In general weaker assignments tend to be those that fail to answer the question that has been asked
and/or fail to address all of the criteria (see below). All the usual requirements regarding referencing,
plagiarism, etc. apply. The word limit is 2000 words ( excluding references, figures, tables and appendices), it
should be single-spaced, use headings/sub-headings, and each page should be numbered. All references
that you have cited should be listed alphabetically by author surname in a separate section called
‘References’ placed at the end of your assignment.
The assessment criteria and their weightings (%) are as follows:
1. Presentation and style 05
2. Evidence of reading and application of theory 30
3. Use of relevant examples in context 20
4. Logical and well-structured argument; evidence of depth of understanding 30
5. Summary and conclusion 15
You are strongly advised to make sure that you cover all the criteria. For example, if you did not use any
examples at all you would score 0/20 for Criterion 3, which would automatically limit your maximum mark
to 80/100 (i.e. 32 % of the module total) – this would not be a wise thing to do.

Parts 2a&b. Assignment (60% weighting)
The Assignment Part 2a&b is in lieu of the examination. It is in TWO parts 2a and 2b and its structure and
weighting corresponds precisely to the structure and weighting of the Examination.
Assignment Part 2a
This is a Case Study and is in lieu of the compulsory Question 1 on the Examination. It is based on the
content of Weeks 8 and 9. The Task is as follows:
It is crucial to build change management capability among leaders and managers in order to successfully
deliver business transformation. Based on the ThermoFisher case study (Weeks 8 and 9) write a proposal
(maximum 1000-words; ‘learning needs’, ‘plan’, and ‘evaluation’―see below) for an HRD (i.e. Learning and
Development, L&D) ‘intervention’ that would help the company to deliver on its sales transformation goals.
Your proposal should be written in a style that could be presented to an HR director (you do not need to
include any academic references in the proposal, but you should use relevant concepts, models and
theories that you have learned on the module, where appropriate) and include the following three
elements:
(1) a statement of the most important learning needs* that the intervention will address;
(2) a learning and development plan for how you would meet the learning needs identified in (1);
(3) a strategy for evaluating the success of the plan you have devised in (2).
This part of the assessment is worth 30% of the overall mark and each of the elements 1,2 and 3 above are
equally weighted.
* for this assignment it is not necessary to cover all of the identified learning needs; select what you think
are the most important ones; there is no rule about ‘how many?’, it’s up to you to decide.
The assessment criteria and their weightings (%) are as follows:
1. Presentation and style 10
2. Statement of learning needs 30
3. Plan for how you meet identified learning needs 30
4. Strategy for how you would evaluate success of program 30
The maximum word count for this part of the assignment is 1000 words (excluding supplementary
materials such as figures and tables) and there is no 10% allowance); the deadline is 1st June 2020.

Assignment Part 2b
This is an Essay and is in lieu of the second question on the Examination. Choose ONE of the following
Essays. You should support you answer with appropriate academic references and list them at the end of
the Essay in a suitable (see Module Handbook Guidelines) and consistent format.
Essay Question 1
(i) What are single-loop and double-loop learning, and why is the distinction between them relevant to
organizations?
(ii) What is a ‘learning organization’ and how can becoming a learning organization help to facilitate double
loop learning in organizations?
Essay Question 2
Choose ONE of the following learning theories and:
(i) explain the theory;
(ii) describe how the theory could be applied to the practice of HRD in organizations.
Choose from:
Experiential Learning Theory, ELT (Kolb)
OR
Situated Learning Theory, SLT (Lave and Wenger)
The assessment criteria and their weightings (%) are as follows:
1. Presentation and style 10
2. Part (i) 45
3. Part (ii) 45
The maximum word count for this part of the assignment is 1000 words (excluding references and
supplementary materials such as figures and tables) and there is no 10% allowance); the deadline is 1st
June 2020.