1. 1 Useful Links General Essay Writing Help: http://tls.vu.edu.au/sls/slu/FOR_STUDENTS/CALM%20Resourc es/Resources_General- and_ESL/Academic%20writing/AcademicWriting.htm For tips on good writing: http://tls.vu.edu.au/sls/slu/FOR_STUDENTS/CALM%20Resourc es/Resources_General- and_ESL/Academic%20writing/Writing%20Good%20Paragraph s.pdf Unit Blog: VU’s Harvard Style Referencing Guide – http://acc2013.files.wordpress.com/2013/02/vu-harvard-ref-guide.pdf VU’s Essay Key Words Guide – http://acc2013.files.wordpress.com/2013/04/vu-essay-terms-guide.pdf

2. 2 Harvard Style Referencing In Text Referencing: It is important to take into account the mother's and father's perspectives about child rearing (Jones 2000). It is important to take into account the mother's and father's perspectives about child rearing (Jones 2000) in addition to….. Smith (1997) argues that it is important to take into account the mother's and father's perspectives about child rearing. Smith (1997) and Jones (2000) argue that it is important to take into account the mother's and father's perspectives about child rearing. It is important to take into account the mother's and father's perspectives about child rearing (Smith 1997; Jones 2000). Indirect References: – It is important to take into account the mother's and father's perspectives about child rearing (Smith 1997, cited in Jones 2000). – Only include the Jones (2000) article in the reference list at the end of the essay. Direct Quotes: Short direct quotes: – Holland (1998) stated that ‘all animals are intelligent’ (p. 36). – Holland (1998, p. 36) stated that ‘all animals are intelligent’. Long direct quotes: – If more than 30 words: indent left/right, no quotation marks, single spacing and italics. – Holland (1998, p.36) stated that: All animals are intelligent and need to be loved in order to bring out their intelligence. Lack of intelligence usually means lack of love…

3. 3 Harvard Style Referencing Lecture Notes: In text: – Yu (2013) Reference List: – Yu, J 2013, ACC2013: The Telegraph: Shrinking Time and Space, New Media ACC2013, lecture 5, Victoria University, Melbourne, accessed 7 April 2013,

4. 4 Academic References Course Readings – Reference/Bibliography lists of essential readings. – Further Readings listed in unit guide. Academic books Peer-reviewed Academic Journal Articles – http://library.vu.edu.au/screens/srchhelp_erm.html – Access Databases Arranged by Subject: “Arts & Humanities” – Useful Databases Academic Search Premier JSTOR Web of Science Informaworld Google Scholar on campus Not: Websites, News sites, blogs, newspaper articles, popular magazine articles. – Cite these for use as examples or as part of case study, not as academic references.

5. 5 Research Question: Discuss the role and influence of Six Sigma in a supply chain management context. Sample Essay Introduction The modern business world is a highly competitive environment where companies are always implementing new strategies to attain a competitive advantage and separation from their competitors. Six Sigma is an approach to quality improvement which has helped many companies attain such an advantage. It represents a tight and thorough packaging of quality tools and philosophies with a cost- reduction focus which has made it very popular among CEOs (Foster 2004). Also the global business environment now is not so much a case of single companies competing against each other but instead, entire supply chains. Supply chain management (SCM) is a concept that applies an integrative and systematic approach to managing the capabilities and relationships of companies along the supply chain (Wang, Du & Li 2004). The synergy of these two approaches may have a very significant impact on an organisation and many are attempting this fusion. The purpose of this essay is to provide a discussion of the role and influence of Six Sigma in a SCM context. I argue that whilst Six Sigma is a beneficial approach for SCM, its full potential can only be realised if implemented effectively and under the right organisational circumstances. I begin by providing an overview of the Six Sigma approach, drawing on Foster ’ s (2004) discussion. Then I will provide three short cases of companies using Six Sigma to improve their supply chain. I will analyse each case with respect to how Six Sigma was used (the role) and what it achieved after implementation (the influence). Then I will briefly compare the three cases in terms of the advantages and disadvantages of each company ’ s approach to Six Sigma and SCM. Finally, I will use the analysis provided by Slack (2001) to discuss the strengths and weaknesses of Six Sigma application in a SCM context.

6. 6 Sample Introduction Research question Opening observation (red) Brief definitions (green) Reword the question (black) Your argument/main claim summed up. (pink) Describe each of the main points of your argument / essay (blue) – You may include: How you will answer the question/proceed in the essay. The evidence which supports each point or argument. Any case studies or key examples used. For this essay: – 3 Academic References (not including the essential readings) – Harvard Style Referencing

7. 7 Sample Essay Structure Introduction (150-200 words) Body (1000-1200 words) – Definitions of Key Concepts Used. (300-500 words) E.g. Leroi-Gourhan’s technology/human relationship, Innis’s bias of communication, Basu’s memory dispositif, Lobato’s definitions of piracy. Possibly any of the 20 new media concepts? – Analysis - Each key point, beginning with topic sentence. (500-700 words) Apply your concepts to the examples/case study/whatever you’re analysing. Conclusion (150-200 words) – Draw together different strands of your discussion. – Sum up the key points and re-state the argument you have made.