DIGITAL BUSINESS MODELS #BEMM129

MODULE HANDBOOK 2024

This ONLINE module is designed to enhance your understanding of contemporary digital business models, while helping to prepare you for changing employment priorities in an increasingly digital and networked business world. These changes pose opportunities and challenges for both individuals and organisations.  

**IMPORTANT**

The module was specifically designed in 2019 for flexible asynchronous online learning (with additional “real time” peer to peer collaborative sessions in MS Teams). THERE ARE NO "LECTURES”. Most module materials and activities take place on our virtual learning environment, (ELE) and you will be expected to make regular contributions via online discussions throughout as an integrated part of the module. 

This means you can build upon the key themes introduced in the weekly materials by drawing upon the combined expertise of your cohort – by reading work posted by your colleagues, commenting on significant points that they raise, then reflecting on the value that this process adds to your own learning.

In the first 2 weeks of the module, you will have the opportunity to engage with a global community of learners on our introductory open course “Building your Career in Tomorrow’s Workplace”. You will be introduced to the key module themes that we will pick up in more detail later in the module.

There are additional real time webinars timetabled in weeks 2, 4, 8 and 10. These are peer to peer collaboration opportunities - NOT LECTURES! You are encouraged to meet and work together on the module activities and assessed work in small groups whenever you wish (either online or offline). This means that you will directly experience collaborative learning in a digital environment. This corresponds closely to the professional modes of workplace communication that were becoming common even before Covid-19, (and are now increasingly the norm).

A critical review of the contemporary digital landscape paints a complex picture. In practice many technologies endure while others gradually evolve, or spark off totally new applications. Technology alone is meaningless – it is created and shaped by people. As noted in this Forbes article the emerging digital workplace requires more "people" skills, not less. For example, such skills are critical in managing and participating in project teams meeting online, or in implementing major organisational change projects.

We are inspired by the educational research of Diana Laurillard, Gilly Salmon, Mike Sharples and Alejandro Armellini. Our challenge as educators is to ensure that you are equipped with the critical thinking skills and digital literacies necessary to take advantage of the opportunities inherent in a digital workplace which rewards flexibility, adaptability and commitment to lifelong learning.  For more background, you may wish to read our publication "Let's take the remote out of online learning".

In summary, we are asking you to re-think many of the ways you may have come to see learning and working, and directly experience the value of an active, participative and collaborative approach.

What we will cover

Digital developments have created significant business opportunities while generating new modes of competition in both ‘traditional’ and ‘new’ sectors via such innovations as the "sharing" and "circular" economies. Established businesses need to appreciate the capabilities of digital technologies within their own organisational context and embrace cultural change in order to effectively capture value through digital innovation, while entrepreneurs have few such constraints.

The module is structured around three levels:

1. The “big picture” - we will reflect upon the role of the evolving digital economy in the sustainability of society as a whole. 

2. The organisation - we will examine the business models of a wide range of businesses, from start-up environments to established organisations. We will critically evaluate the strategic decisions needed to convert digital opportunities into competitive advantage and assess the importance of culture change in successful transformation.

3. The individual - in preparation for your working lives within such organisations or entrepreneurial ventures, you will be guided in developing your own digital literacies. Via a social learning pedagogy, you will develop strategies to find and evaluate online sources of information, interrogate the ways in which you curate your own digital lives, and communicate effectively with others within virtual environments for learning and professional purposes.

Module Learning Objectives

Upon successfully completing this module, you will develop the ability to:

· Review the opportunities and challenges posed by contemporary digital business models

· Discuss the role of digital developments in terms of the changing nature and location of employment

· Reflect upon the culture changes required for effective business transformation in the digital age

· Explain how digital innovations can be integrated within businesses in a variety of contexts

· Discuss the implications of disruptive innovation for social enterprise and sustainability of society

· Evaluate the challenges and opportunities associated with the social learning process

Module Timetable

There will be many opportunities to share your experiences and collaborate with others in the weekly exercises within the course itself. By the end of each week you should have shared experiences and insights, and as a result improved your understanding of the subject. 

Assessment Portfolio

This module has three summative assessments:

Assessment 1: Quiz

This assignment will focus on testing knowledge specific to the module content covered in weeks 1 - 4. The purpose of this task is to encourage you to engage with the module materials in a timely manner throughout the module, and NOT leave all your efforts until it is too late to be of benefit. The quiz will be completed online on ELE. 

15% of module credit - online ELE Quiz (Multiple Choice and True and False Questions Only)

The quiz will open at 10am on 15^th February and be available for 24 hours. You will be able to start the quiz at any point in those 24hrs, and you will have 30mins (plus any ILP extra time) once you click “start”. The exam team will be able to support you with issues but they are only available 9am - 6pm GMT Mon-Fri, so you should try to complete the quiz during their opening times (Module Educators CANNOT answer any questions or assist with any issues while the quiz is open).

 Assessment 2: Quiz

This assignment will focus on testing knowledge specific to the module content covered in weeks 5 - 7. The purpose of this task is to encourage you to engage with the module materials in a timely manner throughout the module, and NOT leave all your efforts until it is too late to be of benefit. The quiz will be completed online on ELE.

15% of module credit - online ELE Quiz (Multiple Choice and True and False Questions Only)

The quiz will open at 10am on 7^th March and be available for 24hrs. You will then be able to start the quiz at any point in those 24hrs, and you will have 30mins (plus any ILP extra time) once you click “start”. The exam team will be able to support you with issues but they are only available 9am - 6pm GMT Mon-Fri, so you should try to complete the quiz during their opening times (Module Educators CANNOT answer any questions or assist with any issues while the quiz is open).

Assessment 3: Portfolio

Your portfolio (70% of module credit) should be submitted as a SINGLE FILE which includes all 3 parts (Documents A, B, C and screenshots) summarised in the table below:

TASK 1 – A review of digital transformation in an industry of your choice (750 words)

PREPARATION

Please note that before completing this task, you should have taken part in the week 8 webinar which demonstrates effective use of ChatGPT, and worked through the relevant supporting materials provided in week 7 of the module.

Go to https://chat.openai.com/ and select “getting started” to register with ChatGPT. Make sure you choose the free 3.5 version**. If ChatGPT is at capacity, try an alternative like Bard or similar. Do not pay to use the premium version of ChatGPT. Pose the general question “In what ways has digital transformation been achieved in the [insert an industry of your choice]?” (For example, depending on your interests you might choose retail banking, management consultancy etc.) Save a copy of ChatGPT’s answer to your initial enquiry (Document A) to include as an Appendix to your portfolio of assessed work.    

Refine your initial output as you consider necessary – this may include further queries within ChatGPT, your own additional research to cross check the results for accuracy, and supporting practical examples. Once you have made these adjustments, save a copy of your amended document A (as Document B) and include both documents as Appendices to your portfolio of assessed work.

ASSESSED TASK 1  - REVIEW (please present your answers to tasks 1 and 2 together as Document C)

Describe the approach you took to refining the information initially provided by ChatGPT to focus and complete your work. In comparing Documents A and B, in what ways did you find use of the tool helpful / unhelpful completing this task? (750 words, 50% of available marks)

The markers will be looking for:

· A critical review of the advantages and disadvantages of these tools in helping you to develop and present your knowledge of digital transformation.

· Evidence of critical engagement with the module materials and further research as relevant

· Clear, professional presentation of your work

ASSESSED TASK 2 - INFOGRAPHIC (please present your answers to tasks 1 and 2 together as Document C)

Summarise the ethical challenges facing organisations in your chosen industry when introducing generative AI into their digital business models. You may use ChatGPT to produce an initial framework for input to your answer, but make sure you present your completed work as an infographic, using whatever style/format you feel is appropriate for clarity and impact on the reader. You should also draw specifically upon the articles covered in week 7 of the module, and include practical examples where relevant (250 words, 25% of available marks)  

In preparing your work, you may wish to try out a free infographic package such as Canva (or similar).

The markers will be looking for:

· A comprehensive summary of the ethical challenges faced by organisations when introducing generative AI into their digital business models

· Evidence of critical engagement with the module materials and further research as relevant

· Clear, professional presentation of your work

We believe that learning about ethical and critical use of Generative AI tools such as ChatGPT is rapidly becoming a vital skill in the contemporary workplace. We have introduced these tasks to enable you to directly experience the opportunities and challenges that use of such tools present, and we strongly encourage you to fully engage with them. 

**Please note that there is already a more recent version of ChatGPT (V4) which requires payment of a subscription. It offers additional functionality that we will discuss in the webinars, but in order to exert version control and avoid any unfair advantage to some individuals over others, we are asking everyone to use version 3.5 which is free. This whole area is developing very rapidly and there may well be further changes and new versions during the next few months. It is an interesting example in itself of evolving business models!  

ASSESSED TASK 3 (reflective video, 2 minutes)

Reflect on how your experiences on this module as a whole have helped you to understand the subject area and progress your professional development. You should comment specifically on: 

· How your understanding of the module content has developed as a result of reading and responding to the comments of other students (with screenshots as the evidence base to be provided in an appendix)

· How collaborating with others via online forums/real time webinars/hybrid environments has enhanced your online communication and collaboration skills and helped you prepare for your future career.

· What challenges did you face in making the most of these opportunities and how did you address them (e.g. you may wish to reflect on any reluctance you had to speak or turn your camera on, and consider how you might build your confidence in online communication)

· How your digital skills have developed through the course of the module (drawing upon the completed “self-test” document)

You may wish to structure your reflection around a proven reflective framework such as Gibbs Reflective Cycle or the 4Fs of Reflection – more information is provided in the module’s “Welcome” section on ELE.

Videos can be created in your chosen format (e.g. live action, cartoon, voice over slides). There is no obligation for you to appear personally in your video, for example you may wish to explore some of the online tools we introduced you to in the module such as Powtoon or Biteable. You definitely DO NOT need to hire a studio, purchase specialist software or premium versions of digital tools to create your video!

Please do NOT try and upload the actual video file. You should include a clearly labelled link within Document C of your portfolio to where you have created/stored the video. This may be on OneDrive, YouTube, LinkedIn or other web-based location. It is your responsibility to make sure that the settings allow the marker to access and watch the video BEFORE the submission deadline (for example, if you’ve created it in YouTube, make sure you save it as “unlisted” rather than “private”, which will be the default setting.) If the marker is unable to access the video IT CANNOT BE MARKED.   

Provide the evidence base for your reflection with screenshots of your contributions to the module discussions/activities (a minimum of one comment and one response per week).

You can access online support in submitting your work under the ‘ELE Support’ tab in ELE 2. There are also guidance videos on how to use the assessment features of ELE 2, and these can be found on the Hubs Assessment page.