You are required to complete a research-based case study assignment that is worth 10% of
your overall grade in ACCG1000. This will encourage you to explore ethical issues in business,
using materials outside the unit texts.
Requirements
Research internet, newspapers, and business magazines for a corporate case that has
attracted media attention due to ethical issues. Write an ESSAY to address the following
points using the case you chose.
1. Provide an overview of the company’s background, i.e. its business operations,etc.
2. What ethical issue has arisen? Clearly explain the ethical dilemma faced by the
involved parties.
3. Clearly identify and evaluate the stakeholdersthat were impacted by the ethical issue.
4. Was the decision made by the involved parties ethical? How would the business be
positively/negatively impacted by the decision? Explain your answer.
The ethical issues under consideration do not necessarily have to be accounting related. You
can choose either an Australian or international corporate case, but the case must be
reported by the media after the year 2010.
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Other requirements
Length: 800 words excluding references.
Structure: use essay structure (i.e. introduction + main body + conclusion + reference list).
Formatting: standard 12-point font, 1.5 line spacing, and side margins 2.5 wide.
Referencing: all sources (i.e. the work and ideas of others) cited and referenced using the
Harvard referencing system. You need to provide both in-text references and the reference
list.
Guidance on how to reference your assignment correctly can be found at
http://libguides.mq.edu.au/c.php?g=674324&p=4748637
Criteria and standards
The estimated workload for this assignment is 20 hours.
Your essay will be marked taking into account:
– Your ability to find out relevant materials.
– Your ability to identify and explain issues.
– Your ability to apply relevant concepts to analyse issues.
– Your writing skills.
You should get to the point and avoid wordy repetitions(i.e. be succinct and clear). You should
reference the appropriate paragraphs of relevant regulations/standards or other sources you
referto. You must avoid copying orstringing together lengthy quotesleaving little said in your
own words.
Please refer to the marking rubric for specific guidance on marking criteria and standards.
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Case Study Assignment Marking Rubric (40 marks)
Not attempted Fail Pass Credit Distinction High Distinction
Relevance – ability to
find out relevant
materials
Not attempted or
entirely/significantly
plagiarized from other
sources.
The case chosen is not suitable
for the assignment topic (i.e.
the case is irrelevant or before
the year 2010).
The case chosen is relevant to
the assignment topic, but
limited information is provided,
or most information is
irrelevant.
The case chosen is relevant to
the assignment topic. Fairly
sufficient information is
provided, but some
information is irrelevant, or
information is omitted.
3 marks
The case chosen is relevant to
the assignment topic. Mostly
sufficient and relevant
information is provided.
The case chosen is relevant to
the assignment topic. Highly
sufficient and relevant
information is provided.
1 mark 2 marks 4 marks
5 marks 0 marks 5 marks
Articulation – ability
to identify and
explain ethical
issue(s)
Not attempted or
entirely/significantly
plagiarized from other
sources.
Issue is not clearly identified,
explanation is unclear,
insufficient and/or not
succinct.
Issue is identified generally well;
explanation is generally clear yet
insufficient and/or not succinct.
5 marks
Issue is identified reasonably
well, explanation is generally
clear, fairly sufficient and/or
generally succinct.
7 marks
Issue is clearly identified,
explanation is mostly clear,
sufficient and/or mostly
succinct.
Issue is clearly identified,
explanation is clear,
comprehensive and highly
succinct.
10 marks 0 marks 3 marks 8 marks 10 marks
Analysis – ability to
apply relevant
concepts to analyse
issue(s)
Not attempted or
entirely/significantly
plagiarized from other
sources.
Concepts used in the analysis
are insufficient, irrelevant
and/or inappropriate; the
exploration of the issue is
unclear and/or insufficient.
Issue is analysed using some
relevant concepts to develop a
generally clear and/or sufficient
exploration of the issue.
Issue is analysed using
sufficient relevant concepts to
develop a reasonably clear
and/or sufficient exploration of
the issue.
Issue is analysed using a broad
range of relevant concepts to
develop a comprehensive
exploration of the issue,
demonstrating some
original/innovative/advanced
insight into the issue.
12 marks
Issue is analysed using an
extensive range of relevant
concepts to develop a
comprehensive exploration of the
issue, demonstrating significant
original/innovative/advanced
insight into the issue.
15 marks
15 marks 0 marks
5 marks 8 marks
10 marks
Writing skills
(including formatting,
structure, clarity,
grammar, spelling,
etc.)
Not attempted or
entirely/significantly
plagiarized from other
sources.
The essay is not structured in a
logical way. Numerous
grammatical, punctuation,
and/or spelling errors/typos.
Style and tone are not
professional.
The essay has some structure.
Organisation of sections and
paragraphs is generally clear.
Several grammatical,
punctuation, and/or spelling
errors/typos. Style and tone are
generally professional.
The essay has a clear structure.
Organisation of sections and
paragraphs is clear. Occasional
grammatical, punctuation,
and/or spelling errors/typos.
Style and tone are reasonably
professional.
7 marks
The essay is well structured.
Organisation of sections and
paragraphs is clear. No/few
grammatical, punctuation,
and/or spelling errors/typos.
Style and tone are mostly
professional.
The essay is well structured.
Organisation of sections and
paragraphs is clear with excellent
flow. No/few grammatical,
punctuation, and /or spelling
errors/typos. Style and tone are
professional.
10 marks 8 marks 10 marks
0 marks 3 marks 5 marks
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Submission
The assignment is due by 5pm Friday 24 April 2020 (Week 7). Submissions must be made
electronically through Turnitin on iLearn. Turnitin will open for submission in Week 6.
Extensions and penalties
No extensions will be granted. There will be a deduction of 10% of the total available marks
made from the total awarded marks for each 24 hour period or part thereof that the
submission is late (for example, 25 hours late in submission will attract 20% penalty). This
penalty does not apply to cases in which an application for Special Consideration is made and
approved.
Detailed information on how to apply for special consideration can be found at
https://students.mq.edu.au/study/my-study-program/special-consideration
Turnitin submission
Guidance on how to submit a Turnitin assignment may be accessed from
http://mq.edu.au/iLearn/student_info/assignments.htm#turnitin.
It is the student’s responsibility to ensure that work is submitted correctly prior to the due
date. No hard copies of assessments will be accepted and only Turnitin records will be taken
asrecords ofsubmission. Please referto these instructions on how to submit your assignment
through Turnitin and accesssimilarity reports and feedback provided by teaching staff. Should
you have questions about Turnitin or experience issues submitting through the system, you
must inform your unit convenor immediately. If the issue is technical in nature, you may also
lodge OneHelp Ticket by referring to the IT help page. It is the responsibility of the student to
retain a copy of any work submitted. Students must produce these documents upon request.
Copies should be retained until the end of the grade appeal period each session. In the event
that a student is asked to produce another copy of work submitted and is unable to do so,
they may be awarded zero (0) for that particular assessment task.
Frequently asked questions
Please read this section carefully before contacting the teaching team with any
queries.
1. Where can I get help to write up my essay?
You can:
a) Use StudyWISE provided on iLearn (In StudyWISE, you will explore the structure
of an essay, you can also look at some examples of real Macquarie students’
essays. https://ilearn.mq.edu.au/login/index.php; or
b) Attend learning skills workshops – it is free
https://students.mq.edu.au/support/study/skills-development/workshopcalendar; or
c) Ask our learning adviser – Library Info Desk 12-2pm, Monday – Friday.
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2. I have done something similar in my other units/previous study. Can I use my
previous work for this assignment?
No. You are required to submit a new work for this assignment. Submission of a work
previously submitted is considered as deception by the university. It is seriously
dishonest behavior and thus a mark of ZERO will be awarded.
3. Can I use the corporate cases mentioned in the lecture?
Yes, you can. However, you are expected to provide more detailed information and
discussion.
4. Can I reference the ACCG1000 lecture slides (e.g. use the definitions provided in the
lecture slides)?
Yes, you can.
5. Do I need a cover page for the assignment?
No. You don’t need to have a cover page for your online assignment submission.
6. How do I know if my Turnitin submission is successful?
A confirmation message will pop up on the screen once your assignment has been
successfully submitted. You will also receive a confirmation email sent to your
@students.mq.edu.au email address. In addition, you will be also given an originality
report which provides a summary of matching or similar areas of text found in your
submitted assignment.
7. If I found a typo/mistake in my first submission, can I resubmit my assignment?
Yes. Multiple submissions are allowed BEFORE the due date. However, it takes
approximately 24 hours for the originality report to be generated. This may be after
the due date so you should plan any resubmissions carefully.
8. Am I still able to submit my assignment after the due date?
Yes. You are still allowed to submit your assignment after the due date. However,
there will be a deduction of 10% of the total available marks made from the total
awarded marks for each 24-hour period or part thereof that the submission is late (for
example, 25 hours late in submission will attract 20% penalty). This penalty does not
apply to casesin which an application for Special Consideration is made and approved.
9. Who will be marking my assignment?
Your tutor will be marking your assignment based on the marking rubricprovided.
10. By how much can I go over or under the number of wordsrequirement?
The number of words is 800. However, you are allowed to go over by 10% (i.e. 880)
maximum.
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11. What is the correct structure of an essay?
The correctstructure of an essay should contain three parts: an introduction, the main
body, and the conclusion. In the introduction, you should provide a statement about
the purpose of the essay (i.e. what is this essay about, why is ethics important, what
are you going to say in the main body of the essay). In the main body of the essay, you
are expected to address each of the questions in a separate paragraph. The first
sentence of each paragraph should be the topic sentence which outlines the central
idea to be developed in the paragraph. The remainder of the paragraph should provide
information and evidence that help explain your position set out in your topic
sentence. The last part of the essay is the conclusion. An effective conclusion should
restate the purpose of the essay, remind readers what has been discussed in the main
body of the essay and make your final conclusion. Again, detailed guidance on how to
write an essay is provided on StudyWISE on iLearn.
Case searching
Below are some suggested links for case searching. However, cases from other sources are also
acceptable.
Smart Company http://www.smartcompany.com.au/
The Conversation https://theconversation.com/au
Financial Review http://www.afr.com/
In the Black https://intheblack.com/
MIT Management Sloan School Ethics Case Studies
https://mitsloan.mit.edu/LearningEdge/Leadership/Pages/default.aspx