Tutorial Letter: Guidelines for Examination Product Management - imm
Tutorial Letter: Guidelines for Examination Product Management (PM/PM001) Semester One 2014 Dear Student, The examination is approaching and it is important that you begin focusing your efforts on finetuning your understanding of the contents of this module. Make the most of the time still available to you to ensure that you are well prepared on the day of the examination. The examination focuses on the core aspects identified for you in the learner guide and presents you with the opportunity to show your understanding of the key concepts covered. The most important piece of advice we can give you at this stage is to read, read, and read some more. As you expose yourself to more information on this topic you will become more comfortable with it and thus reap the benefits in the examination. Please refer to the guidelines for the examination as indicated below. Examination format The 2014 semester 1 examination paper consists of 5 questions. You need to select any 4 of these questions to answer. Do not answer all 5 questions, as then only the first four will be marked. These questions count 25 marks each, giving a total of 100 marks. Each question is sub-divided into two sub-questions counting between 10 and 15 marks each. One of the question options counts 25 marks on its own. It is important to note that most of the questions in the examination are based on a case study supplied in the question paper. Take a few minutes to read the case study and highlight a few key phrases that stand out in your mind. Marks are awarded for both the theory and direct application to the case. It is therefore crucial that you make sure that you discuss the relevant theory and then apply it to the case study. Students listing only the theory will not be awarded full marks. It is also a good idea to provide practical examples throughout your discussions as they also serve to highlight your understanding of a particular principle or concept. At this point it is also worth reminding you to read the questions carefully before answering them. Make sure that you are 100% sure of what is being asked of you before committing pen to paper. You will see that the question paper highlights some key words for you in bold. Take note of these bolded words – they clearly indicate the topics to be discussed.
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What to study The complete syllabus is important for the examination as it is important that you have a broad knowledge of the entire module. However, you are reminded that the module is divided into three distinct study units:
Study Unit 1 – New product development Study Unit 2 – Innovation management Study Unit 3 – Turning technology into business.
The questions are developed in such a way that you will have to answer questions that cover work from each of these study units. In other words, do not focus only on one section of the work because you will be caught out. The good news is that the learner guide clearly demarcates the topics to be studied in the prescribed textbook (see section 12 on p. 9 of the learner guide). This does exclude some of the chapters in the prescribed book and some of the sections within the other chapters so the amount of work to be studied is not unreasonable.
Study Unit 1 captures the core focus of the module and it is essential that you study it diligently. For the May 2014 examination sections 1-3 & 5 of Study Unit 1 are important, with less emphasis being given to the chapter on market research and its influence on product development (section 4).
Study Unit 2 deals with the concept of innovation management and introduces you to a lot of new terminology. For this study unit it is essential that you focus on sections 2 & 3. For section 1 your focus should be on ensuring that you understand the terminology that is being introduced so that you are able to understand sections 2 & 3 more easily.
Study Unit 3 has at its core the turning of technology into business. In terms of the May 2014 examination you are advised to study sections 1 & 2 thoroughly. Section 3 contains some important concepts that you need to understand but is not the core focus for this examination opportunity.
Concluding comments Please make sure that you write clearly in your answer book. We understand that you are trying to write as much as you can in the allotted time but it is still important that your handwriting be legible. It is also important that you structure your answers clearly. Make use of headings and paragraphs. Feel free to leave empty spaces in case you want to go back to a question to write more if you have time. May we also remind you that we are always available to assist with academic queries. Academic queries should be submitted in writing to: [email protected]. Kind regards IMM GSM Team
© IMM Graduate School of Marketing Examination Tutorial Letter
PM/PM001
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What to study The complete syllabus is important for the examination as it is important that you have a broad knowledge of the entire module. However, you are reminded that the module is divided into three distinct study units:
Study Unit 1 – New product development Study Unit 2 – Innovation management Study Unit 3 – Turning technology into business.
The questions are developed in such a way that you will have to answer questions that cover work from each of these study units. In other words, do not focus only on one section of the work because you will be caught out. The good news is that the learner guide clearly demarcates the topics to be studied in the prescribed textbook (see section 12 on p. 9 of the learner guide). This does exclude some of the chapters in the prescribed book and some of the sections within the other chapters so the amount of work to be studied is not unreasonable.
Study Unit 1 captures the core focus of the module and it is essential that you study it diligently. For the May 2014 examination sections 1-3 & 5 of Study Unit 1 are important, with less emphasis being given to the chapter on market research and its influence on product development (section 4).
Study Unit 2 deals with the concept of innovation management and introduces you to a lot of new terminology. For this study unit it is essential that you focus on sections 2 & 3. For section 1 your focus should be on ensuring that you understand the terminology that is being introduced so that you are able to understand sections 2 & 3 more easily.
Study Unit 3 has at its core the turning of technology into business. In terms of the May 2014 examination you are advised to study sections 1 & 2 thoroughly. Section 3 contains some important concepts that you need to understand but is not the core focus for this examination opportunity.
Concluding comments Please make sure that you write clearly in your answer book. We understand that you are trying to write as much as you can in the allotted time but it is still important that your handwriting be legible. It is also important that you structure your answers clearly. Make use of headings and paragraphs. Feel free to leave empty spaces in case you want to go back to a question to write more if you have time. May we also remind you that we are always available to assist with academic queries. Academic queries should be submitted in writing to: [email protected]. Kind regards IMM GSM Team
© IMM Graduate School of Marketing Examination Tutorial Letter
PM/PM001
