Content:
1. Tips for the report
○ Including how to structure the title, challenges & proposals
2. Tips for the presentation
○ What is expected on the slide & in the speaker’s notes
3. General tips for revision
○ Advice to help you make your revision more effective
4. Part B explanation: What to expect & how to prepare
5. Useful free resources
The purpose of this document is to provide you with FREE useful guidance and tips for the upcoming 2024 Unit 6 exam with the Stone Stylists Ltd case study. Many students get confused about how to structure the challenges & proposals, speaker’s notes and are often surprised by what Part B asks them to do. This document will help you study more effectively, and ensure that you have no doubts going into the exam!
Section 1 - Tips for the report
● Purpose
○ The purpose of the report is for you to act as a researcher for a management consultant company, addressing the current management issues of Stone Stylists Ltd, therefore the report should be in third person and use formal language, with clear headings
● Title
○ Write an appropriate title for the document, you want to specify the company name (Stone Stylists Ltd), what the report is on (management challenges) and your name.
● Structuring the challenges and proposals
○ The challenges and proposals can follow the same structure
○ Define→ Explain→ Theory→ Analyse→ Link
■ First you need to define the challenge/proposals e.g. low motivation, quality circles
■ Then explain the challenge/proposal e.g. why is it a challenge, how will the proposal solve the challenge?
■ Bring in theory
■ Analyse the theory, often referencing the data tables
■ Link to the strategic objectives! This is crucial for achieving a Distinction. State exactly how the challenge/proposal impacts the objective(s)
○ Make you you reference the strategic objectives in every challenge/proposal, you do not have to mention all 3 in one given challenge/proposal - quality other quantity
Section 2 - Tips for the presentation
● Purpose
○ The purpose of the presentation is to supplement your report, it draws on exactly what you have mentioned before, but in the context of a presenter at a meeting with the management of Stone Stylists Ltd
○ You can use first person, and less formal language in the speaker’s notes as
it is more of a script for the presenter
● Pages
○ The presentation should be 6 pages: Introduction, strategic objectives, challenges, business performance graph, proposals, recommendations
○ If you want a comprehensive breakdown of the structure checkout the Exam
Structure for Stone Stylists Ltd Unit 6 Principles of Management 2024
Exam
● Tips
○ The purpose of the slide is to be a prompt for the presenter, DO NOT include too much information on the slide, keep it clear & readable, saving most of the text for the speaker’s notes
○ Practice making different charts, this will help you make high quality charts quickly. Often students lose a lot of time because they’re not used to making charts quickly.
IMPORTANT: In the Part B extract that you get when you sit the exam, on one of the first few pages it will mention what your specific focus for the report and presentation needs to be, make sure that you make sustained references to this focus as this is required for achieving top marks. A detailed explanation of Part B can be seen in Section 4.
Section 3 - General tips for revision
● One of the best ways to revise for most people for an exam like Unit 6 is to do a couple of timed run throughs of the exam. This will not only help you get used to concentrating for 3 hours straight, but you can also address any weakness and get your teacher to grade your work straight after the Christmas break, before they’re busy with helping other students close to the exam
● As mentioned before, practice making different graphs for each relevant data point, this will help you cut down on unnecessary time and help you be more confident when you see the Part B requirement
● Although you only need to choose 3-4 challenges/proposals/recommendations, it is important to have at least 1-2 spare just in case the Part B extract wants you to focus on something you might not have in your 3-4
● Start early - do not leave attempting run throughs of the exam last minute as due to the length of the exam, it will leave you burnt out, so start early and get feedback early
● In terms of timing, the general tip is to spend 1.5 hours on each section, however this is something you should figure out for yourself by doing some exam run thoughts. From my experience you can get really good at making the presentation quickly, giving you more time to add detail to the report and time to check your work at the end of the exam
Section 4 - Part B
● The part that confuses students the most
○ Many students are unaware that Part B is a requirement for them to include in their exam
○ Part B is seen on the first few pages that you’re given in the exam, make sure that the first thing you do is read this extract as it will give you the exact focus for the report and presentation, without this, you will be limiting the number of marks you can achieve
● Example - you can find this example by searching ‘unit 6 principles of management part b’
○ The bullet points shown in the image are what Part B wants you to reference to, make sure you read the section (might not be bullet points, could be a list or paragraph) so that you understand exactly what you need to focus on
● What I recommend
○ Because the focus that Part B sets out is unknown until you sit the exam, you need to prepare for a variety of scenarios
○ Go through the Stone Stylists Ltd case study and question: What could Part B
want us to focus on?
○ Set different focuses for yourself and plan how you will respond in the report and presentation
○ As mentioned before, I recommend having 3-4 challenges/proposals that you are fully confident in at the very least, and if you’re about to, have another 1-2 that can be used if the focus of Part B means you’re not able to use some of the ones you had in mind
Section 5 - Useful free resources
● This section will list resources that you can use to help you prepare for the exam
1. Tutor2u websites and Youtube
○ Their Youtube page is really useful as closer to the exam they have interactive lives steams
2. Pearons (exam board) website
○ On the exam boards website you can find previous years Unit 6 exams with examiner reports, these reports are made by the examiners marking real students' answers. This will help you understand what the examiners are looking for, and they often have lots of tips
3. Facebook groups
4. You can also search ‘Unit 6 Principles of Management Resources’ and you’ll often find colleges upload pdf’s on the specification, exam structure, tips and worksheets
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