Assignment Brief
As part of the formal assessment for the programme you are required to submit a Productivity and Collaboration Tools for Learning and Work assignment. Please refer to your Student Handbook for full details of the programme assessment scheme and general information on preparing and submitting assignments.

Learning Outcomes:
After completing the module, you should be able to:

1. Identify the key features of common tools found in learning and workplace settings that can improve productivity e.g. word processing, spreadsheets, presentation tools and collaborative tools.

2. Identify the appropriate tools to use to solve specific problems e.g. analysing data, making a sales pitch or presenting findings

3. Develop competence in using a range of tools that can be used to support study and workplace skills and enhance employability.

Graduate Attribute

4. Effective Communication: Communicate effectively both, verbally and in writing, using a range of media widely used in relevant professional context. Be IT, digitally and information literate.

Guidance
Your assignment should consist of 3 separate files (Word, Excel and Powerpoint), each named with your Student Number.
Your submission portal should allow you to submit multiple files via single upload link.

Your assignment files should include: a title page containing your student number, the module name, the submission deadline and the exact word count (For Task 1 only) of your submitted document; the appendices if relevant; and a reference list in AU Harvard system(s). You should address all the elements of the assignment tasks listed below. Please note that tutors will use the assessment criteria set out below in assessing your work.

You must not include your name in your submission because Arden University operates anonymous marking, which means that markers should not be aware of the identity of the student. However, please do not forget to include your STU number.

Maximum word count: 3,000 in total
Word report – equivalent to 900 words
Spreadsheet – equivalent to 1200 words
PowerPoint – equivalent to 900 words

Please refer to the full word count policy which can be found in the Student Policies section here: Arden University | Regulatory Framework
Please note the following:
Students are required to indicate the exact word count on the title page of the assessment.
The word count includes everything in the main body of the assessment (including in text citations and references). The word count excludes numerical data in tables, figures, diagrams, footnotes, reference list and appendices. ALL other printed words ARE included in the word count.
Please note that exceeding the word count by over 10% will result in a 10-percentage point deduction.

Assignment Task
Task 1

You have joined the technical support team at a small firm (100 employees) with plans for rapid expansion. The company has been overly reliant on paper based systems up to now. There are a core team of staff who are IT literate but the majority of staff has significant gaps in their skills and knowledge of the benefits of productivity tools.
Prepare a report for the employees of the company explaining the benefits of using Microsoft Office tools, using references to relevant literature and reports that highlight the need for skills in these applications. This literature may highlight the skills required by learners (e.g. undergraduate students developing employability skills) as well as
those already working in industry.
Use Microsoft Word to produce your report, using relevant features of the application to format and present your writing such as Table of Contents (TOC) with auto Page Numbers, Headings, Tables, Figures, creation and use of References by Manage Sources etc. The report should be error free.
Submit your completed Word report to the submission portal, name the file with your student number not your name.

(Equivalent to 900 words)
(30 marks)
(LOs: 1, 2, 3, 4)

Task 2
Having explained the benefits of using productivity tools, you have been asked to analyse some sales data held by the company. This data will be unique to you (provided to you by Tutor) and will not be the same as any other. This data is not in an easily usable format for analysis, being comprised or a series of pages. In total there are details of 20 sales.

Create a spreadsheet that presents this data. You should utilise the features of a spreadsheet that allow you to present this data in a logical and accessible way e.g. formatting of text and numbers (where appropriate format as currency for example), use of headings, adjusting column widths where necessary, naming of worksheet tabs, creation of a cover page

Perform the following calculations on the data:

Add a new column called Profit and calculate the profit on each sale.
If the selling price of each product was increased by 10% what would the profit have been? Create a new column called Predicted Profit 10% and calculate for each sale the profit that would have been generated if this increase had been made. Calculate the total profit generated across all sales, format and label this data appropriately.

How many instances of the London district are there in your data? There may be none. Use a COUNTIF function for this and label the data appropriately. How many instances of the Envelopes product are there in your data? There may be none. Use a COUNTIF function for this and label the data appropriately.

Create and format charts for each of the following in new worksheet tabs in your spreadsheet, name each tab to show which chart it holds:
Sum of quantities sold per salesperson
Sum of quantities sold per district
Sum of quantities sold per product

Submit your completed spreadsheet to the submission portal, name the file with your student number not your name.
Note: you will receive your Sales Data Sets by the end of Week-1 from your tutor, if you do not receive, then please contact your tutor.

(Spreadsheet submitted should be equivalent to 1200 words)
(40 marks)
(LOs: 2, 3, 4)

Task 3
Create a PowerPoint presentation for managers at the company that shows them the charts you have created in Task 2. In the presentation, include content that explains each of the charts such that the managers can understand what decisions they need to make in terms of sales (e.g. best/worst performing products in terms of profit, best
worst performing salesperson, best/worst performing region). In total, including a title slide and a summary slide you should aim for at least 8 slides in your presentation. In creating the presentation, you should demonstrate your ability to use features of the application that enable you to communicate effectively with the intended audience.
Due consideration should be given to use of slide design, use of colour, typefaces, media elements etc.
Submit your completed PowerPoint presentation to the submission portal, name the file with your student number not your name.

(equivalent to 900 words)
(30 marks)
(LOs: 2, 3, 4)

Formative Feedback
You have the opportunity to submit work in progress to receive formative feedback.
The feedback is designed to help you develop areas of your work and it helps you develop your skills as an independent learner.
If you are a distance learning student, you should submit your work, by email, to your tutor, no later than 2 weeks before the actual submission deadline. If you are a blended learning student, your tutor will give you a deadline for formative feedback and further details.
Formative feedback will not be given to work submitted after the above date or the date specified by your tutor – if a blended learning student.

Referencing Guidance
You MUST underpin your analysis and evaluation of the key issues with appropriate  and wide ranging academic research and ensure this is referenced using the AU
Harvard system(s).
Follow this link to find the referencing guides for your subject: Arden Library

Submission Guidance
Assignments submitted late will not be accepted and will be marked as a 0% fail.
For more information please see the “Submitting an Assignment – Guide” document available on the A-Z key information on iLearn.
You must ensure that the submitted assignment is all your own work and that all sources used are correctly attributed. Penalties apply to assignments which show evidence of academic unfair practice. (See the Student Handbook which is available on the A-Z key information on iLearn.)