HND IT1 试题

Assessment task 2
Outcome(s)
covered 2 and 3 USAP
Assessment task instructions
This assessment is based upon a case study for USAPITAS Ltd. You should receive a copy of this case study prior to the assessment event to allow you sufficient time to assimilate the details of it. During this period, you may ask questions or seek clarification on any matters included in the case study.
The assessment will be carried out under supervision although you may wish to refer to on-line help facilities, notes, textbooks, other paper based sources of information and also the internet. You must extract information from local and remote computer data sources. The local information in this instance is in the form of a series of files shown below:
USAPITAS 1.xls
USAPITAS 2.mdb
USAPITAS 3.doc
USAPITAS 4.doc
You will find these files in a folder called USAPITAS LTD on your college intranet or from a location indicated by your tutor/assessor.
The remote computer data sources will be found on the web. The file USAPITAS 1.xls provides you with a collection of web links, which will assist you in finding information on the web. You will have to access at least three sites on the web. In all cases where information is used from external sources you must clearly detail your sources in your bibliography at the end of each assessment.
You will assess the information requirements of Mr Campbell, Sales Director of USAPITAS Ltd, and design solutions using IT.
You will select appropriate software application packages to meet the identified information requirements of Mr Campbell. Four or more applications must be
used and output should be in the form of at least two different data types. For the purposes of this exemplar you will use at least text, number and graphics.
For the purposes of this exemplar assessment, the following software applications will be used:
♦database
♦spreadsheet
♦word processing and/or desk top publishing
♦communications (internet, intranet and e-mail)
Case study: USAPITAS LTD
Background information
USAPITAS is a food and beverage supplier. USAPITAS purchases various different speciality beverages and foods from around the world. Currently the firm deals with up to 29 different suppliers from 12 countries. USAPITAS purchases up to 70 different products from these suppliers, and sell to 24 different firms in 10 different countries.
The firm has been trading since 1956 when it started selling bulk teas and coffees to the retail trade. The firm is a private limited company. USAPITAS is currently undergoing some structural changes and Mr Campbell, the Sales Director, is seeking to achieve efficiency gains in the area of sales within the organisation. Mr Campbell wishes to increase the customer base of USAPITAS. Initially this will involve reviewing current countries that the firm is trading in, but eventually should lead to expansion into other countries. Mr Campbell wants to see improvements in communications between USAPITAS and all of its stakeholders including customers, suppliers, staff and shareholders. He would also like to introduce more products into the
firm’s range of supplies. Mr Campbell sees ICT as a useful tool in his expansion plans. He wishes to make better use of current ICT facilities at USAPITAS, and he also wishes to harness the use of the internet to better effect for USAPITAS. The firm has recently lost its IT manager and you have been promoted into his post.
Mr Campbell has asked you to look at the existing IT facilities in use at USAPITAS. He is unhappy with the information being provided to him and his staff. He would like you, as the new IT manager, to provide better data from existing data sources, and make better use of the internet in various areas within the firm.
In part 1 of this task you will be expected to provide data from an existing database, which contains some sales information. The data contained within the database is accurate but poorly presented. Your task will be to use the database provided to produce some queries and reports, which should be available for staff to use with the minimum level of IT expertise. In carrying out this task you should note that current sales staff have varying degrees of IT skills.
In part 2 of this task you will be asked to use software to support analysis of the financial performance of USAPITAS. You will be provided with current data which should be used for test purposes. Again, as above, you must take account of the fact that staff using your solutions may not be very familiar with IT.
In part 3 of this task you will be asked to produce a newsletter for staff which will increase their awareness of the internet and its benefits for USAPITAS. This newsletter will also contain staff development and training information.
In part 4 of this task you will be asked to complete a table recommending appropriate software applications which meet the needs of USAPITAS in a number of examples identified by Mr Campbell.
Assessment task 2
Outcome(s)
covered 2 and 3 USAP
Assessment task instructions
Task 2: Part 1
USAPITAS 2.mdb
This file contains a database that Mr Off, the previous IT manager, had maintained. It includes information on all sales staff, all customers, all suppliers and details of the products, which the firm deals in.
Activity 1
Mr Campbell is unhappy with the quality of information on the sales front and has asked you to provide the following information for him in printout form.
a) Details of all products which have been discontinued — this should include the product name, the suppliers we have used in the past and a contact name.
b) Details of products for which we are currently holding levels of stock worth more than £2,000. This should detail product name, supplier, stock values and unit prices.
c) A printout of our suppliers showing the details of all of our British, French and German suppliers.
d) A report on our customers showing the names and contact details of all contacts where the contact is in fact an owner of the firm.
e) A report on our sales staff showing those who started between 1st August 1998 and 13 August 2003. This report should detail names, start dates and job titles for each member of staff.
Activity 2
Mr Campbell has carried out a review of all sales and has decided to cease trading with customers in Finland due to excessive costs being incurred in delivering to that country. He has decided to increase all unit prices by 1% and he has also decided to reward the good work of all sales representatives by giving them all a pay rise. Printouts must include either screen dumps of the design views of your queries or definitions of your queries.
a) Use a delete query to remove all customers based in Finland.
b) Use an update query to increase all unit prices by 1%.
c) Increase all sales representatives’ salaries by 2%. Produce a report showing all salaries of sales staff, include within this report new salary levels plus last year’s bonuses.
Activity 3
Mr Campbell would also like you to provide him with a word-processed report explaining what databases are and how they work. This report should contain illustrations from the database provided (USAPITAS 2.mdb). This report should make a case for using database software, ie it should include the benefits and possible efficiency gains to be had from using database software. At some point in your report Mr Campbell would wish to see illustrations and explanations of relationships between tables using the USAPITAS 2.mdb file.
You should make use of on-line help facilities and you should add sources of support from the web —these may include references to justifications for using databases to on-line support from software manufacturers.
A suggested layout for this report is shown on pages 15–21 and is available in your USAPITAS LTD folder; the file is called USAPITAS 3.doc. The report should be about 1,500 words long.
Suggested layout for word processed report (Task 2: Part 1 Activity 3)
1 Insert a statement explaining the objectives or purpose of the report here.
2 An explanation of what databases are and how they work. Use USAPITAS 2.mdb to illustrate the structure of this database. Explain the relationships between tables in this database and highlight the benefits of setting up such structures.
3 An explanation of the general benefits of using databases. Expand upon these benefits by using examples within USAPITAS LTD. Illustrate your suggested benefits with examples of queries and reports from USAPITAS 2.
mdb.
4 Conclusion.
5 Bibliography.
Your submissions on this case study, ie your word-processed report and your final database including queries and reports should be attached to an email to be sent to your lecturer.
INSERT YOUR NAME HERE BY SELECTING
THIS LINE AND OVERTYPING
INSERT LECTURER NAME HERE
INSERT YOUR CLASS HERE
INSERT YOUR REPORT TITLE HERE
INSERT YOUR UNIT NAME AND DETAILS OF ASSESSMENT
INSERT THE DATE ON WHICH REPORT IS PRODUCED HERE
Remember to remove all template instructions from your final report.
IF APPROPRIATE, INSERT A CONTENTS PAGE HERE
1 Insert a statement explaining the objectives or purpose of the report here.
2 Insert an explanation of what databases are and how they work here.
Use USAPITAS 2.mdb to illustrate the structure of this database. Explain the relationships between tables in this database and highlight the benefits of setting up
such structures.
3 Insert an explanation of the general benefits of using databases. Expand upon these benefits by using examples within USAPITAS LTD. Illustrate you suggested
benefits with examples of queries and reports from USAPITAS 2.mdb.
4 Insert a conclusion to your report here.
5 Bibliography
Insert details of any books, newspapers, journals or websites referred to in your
report.
Task 2: Part 2
Activity 1 (Note there is only one Activity here)
Mr Campbell wishes to carry out some financial analysis on the accounts of USAPITAS. Mr Campbell will provide you with simplified Trial Balance figures. This information can be found in your USAPITAS LTD folder, in a file called USAPITAS 4.doc. From these figures he would wish to be able to analyse the figures under broad headings of profitability, solvency and performance. He would like to see the easy production of Profit and Loss statements and Balance Sheets from the figures provided. He would like to see the automatic calculation of at least six ratios covering the broad headings above including Return on Capital Employed.
Mr Campbell wishes to view this analysis himself, and he asks you to produce a model or template, which would allow him to carry out such analysis regularly with different sets of data.
You must take account of the fact that Mr Campbell is not very comfortable with using a PC. As a result you must design a model which will be user friendly, simple to use, capable of repeated use and with as little operator input as possible. Your model must include guidance and assistance for the user —this should take the form of utilising comments, hyperlinks and simple macros where appropriate.
You will use the data provided in USAPITAS 4.doc as test data for your model. Your first step in this task should be the preparation of a specification for your model. Within this specification you must give a design for your model with an explanation of how it meets the requirements of the user, in this case Mr Campbell. This specification should be a word processed document, which must be submitted to your lecturer before
the model is fully developed.
The final model must have a facility for data entry. The model must be capable of repeated use. Easy viewing and printing of key data is essential. The model should include links to sites providing support and explanation of key financial data. The analysis of ratios should allow for some automated comments.
You should provide both printed copies of your specification and model, and electronic copies delivered via e-mail to your lecturer or course tutor.
The printouts from your model should include printouts of all sheets including
your model with full test data included.
Task 2: Part 3
Mr Campbell is keen to make use of modern techniques and practices in the constant drive for efficiency and to develop his staff in these techniques. He feels that the internet would be an important tool to assist in this process. He suggests that you should design and create the first issue of a monthly newsletter for the firm. The purpose of this newsletter will be to improve communications within USAPITAS. In the first issue he would like you to try to raise awareness of the internet among staff. This will involve you looking at the current needs of USAPITAS and matching up the main services offered by the net. The newsletter should also be used to encourage staff development, eg in this issue Mr Campbell would like you to offer staff information on a Conversational French class being offered nearby, information on globalisation and information on marketing. These are all areas which Mr Campbell feels sales staff should be finding out about.
Activity 1
Produce a newsletter which includes two distinct sections. You may want to refer to the web for newsletter templates.
Your newsletter must include the use of columns, graphics, headers, footers, paragraph and text formatting and effective design.
Section 1: Awareness of the internet
This section should include the following sub-sections:
♦the World Wide Web and its benefits for USAPITAS, in particular in the area of increasing sales and extending their product range
♦e-mail and its benefits for USAPITAS in improving communications with all stakeholders
♦Chat and how it can be used by USAPITAS
♦newsgroups and how they can be used to improve marketing and sales for USAPITAS
This section should include reference to at least two websites providing further information on the areas being explained.
Section 2: Staff development
This section of the newsletter will explain that Mr Campbell sees staff development as beneficial for both USAPITAS and its staff. It should then highlight a number of areas that staff should be thinking of developing their skills in —languages, marketing and globalisation —all areas that Mr Campbell feels would impact on the organisation.
After pointing out the significance of each of these topics to staff, Mr Campbell then wants to include sets of notes on each of these areas. These notes should be downloadedfrom the appropriate sites shown below and placed into the newsletter as samples of materials that staff might find helpful in their own staff development.
♦Information on Conversational French Courses available to staff. (Download information on this for your own town or area from [centre to insert appropriate location])
♦Information on globalisation and business
You must download revision notes on globalisation and business from
and insert these notes into your newsletter.
♦Practical Marketing Theories
Mr Campbell wants all of the sales staff to be fully conversant with the following topics:
The Marketing Mix
Market Segmentation
He has come across a useful resource in the Cameroon Balloons virtual factory section of the Bized site. These marketing theories notes should be downloaded from the Cameron Balloons section of the Bized site and inserted into the newsletter.
Before producing this newsletter you should produce a draft specification outlining your design and explaining how it meets the requirements of Mr Campbell.
Your newsletter should be delivered to your lecturer attached to an email.
You must also produce a printed copy of the newsletter.
Activity 2
Send an e-mail to your lecturer and five fellow students in your class inviting them to a meeting in two weeks to discuss the introduction of the newsletter and its content. You should cc the five students.
Print a copy of this e-mail.
Task 2: Part 4
Activity 1 (Note there is only one Activity here)
Finally, Mr Campbell would like you to help him to identify opportunities for greater use of IT applications within USAPITAS. He asks you to complete the following table. The completed table should identify a particular type of software that might be used in each scenario. In some cases you may recommend more than one piece of software. If this is the case, explain your reasons in the comments column. Under suggested product you should name a particular product; for example, you might recommend Microsoft Word or Corel WordPerfect for a word processing task. Your comments column should give a brief explanation of your reasons for choosing the particular type of software and particular product.
When you are old and grey and full of sleep, And nodding by the fire, take down this book, And slowly read, and dream of the soft look Your eyes had once, and of their shadows deep; How many loved your moments of glad grace, And loved your beauty with love false or true, But one man loved the pilgrim soul in you,
And loved the sorrows of your changing face; And bending down beside the glowing bars, Murmur, a little sadly, how love fled
And paced upon the mountains overhead
And hid his face amid a crowd of stars.
The furthest distance in the world
Is not between life and death
But when I stand in front of you
Yet you don't know that
I love you.
The furthest distance in the world
Is not when I stand in front of you
Yet you can't see my love
But when undoubtedly knowing the love from both Yet cannot be together.
The furthest distance in the world
Is not being apart while being in love
But when I plainly cannot resist the yearning
Yet pretending you have never been in my heart. The furthest distance in the world
Is not struggling against the tides
But using one's indifferent heart
To dig an uncrossable river
For the one who loves you.。