BSM24105 Operations and Project Management Project Brief Level 4 / Sem 2 (Sep 2025) | RUL

BSM24105 Operations and Project Management

Project Brief

Imagine you have been hired as an external consultant to analyse and improve RainyDay Café’s performance by optimising their operations. Propose a well-structured project plan to revamp RainyDay Café’s efficiency and customer satisfaction. For this project you may “hire” hypothetical team members if necessary.

Background:

RainyDay Café opened its doors five years ago, founded by a passionate entrepreneur who wanted to bring artisanal coffee and quick, tasty meals to a busy commercial neighbourhood. Initially celebrated for its inviting ambiance, friendly staff, and distinctive menu, the café has gradually lost its competitive edge due to growing operational inefficiencies.

Key info:

• Operating hours: 7 AM – 9 PM on weekdays, 10 AM – 6 PM on weekends.
• Customer Base: mix of local students, office workers, and nearby residents.
• Product Offering: sandwich-style meals (reheated, grilled, or served as-is), coffee, hot drinks, cold drinks, pastries, and light snacks.
• Preparation Space: all food preparation and heating occur behind the counter, there is no separate kitchen.
• Footfall: ~350 on weekdays, ~100 on weekends; several notable peak hours on weekdays.
• Transactions: ~150 on weekdays, ~80 on weekends.
• Average Transaction Value: £6.30

Pre-Project Audit Results:

1.Wait Times

• Average queue wait at peak hours has risen from ~3 minutes to ~8 minutes.
• Customers report “slow service” and congestion around the ordering counter.

2.Layout & Workflow

• All sandwich prep and coffee-making happen in a small shared space, causing staff to bump into each other and slowing service.
• Customers crowd near the counter, further adding to bottlenecks.

3.Staffing & Scheduling

• The café employs 4 full-time and 1 part-time staff members.
• Minimal training on standardized workflows leads to ad-hoc processes.

4.Supplier & Inventory

• Key supplier (fresh sandwich ingredients) delivers twice a week, risking both stockouts and wastage.
• Coffee bean supplier offers large orders with a 2-week lead time; smaller orders can be placed at a 30% premium.
• No automated inventory system—manual tracking often leads to errors and last-minute orders.
  Staff Roster:
• Café Manager: oversees daily operations, supervises staff. Works full-time Mon – Fri (10 AM – 6 PM).
• Head Barista / Lead Sandwich Maker: Handles coffee orders, coordinates food prep, designs menu, keeps track of inventory, manages stock orders. Works full-time Mon – Fri (9 AM – 5 PM).
• Assistant Barista #1: Floats between espresso machine, food prep, and counter service. Works full-time Mon –
  Fri (7 AM – 3 PM).
• Assistant Barista #2: Floats between espresso machine, food prep, and counter service. Works full-time Mon –
  Fri (1 PM – 9 PM).
• Assistant Barista #3: Manages weekend operations. Works part-time Sat – Sun (10 AM – 6 PM).
  Project Constraints:
• Timeframe: 3 months.
• Budget: Under £5,000 (note that any “hired” team member will require a salary; your participation is pro-bono).
  Customer Feedback
• Negative Points: Slow service, long queues, crowding at the counter, occasional stockouts of popular sandwich fillings, the pastries are not always fresh.
• Positive Points: Friendly, approachable staff, and good-quality coffee.

Assessment Task 1 – Business Project Plan (50% of your overall module grade)

Your project plan document should follow the recommended structure below:

1.Cover Page (Signed and completed “BSM Assignment Cover Sheet” to acknowledge academic regulations and declare use of AI, template on Canvas

2.Title Page (Module, Student Name/ID, Cohort Number, Project Name, Date)

3.Project Scope Statement (corresponding Learning Outcomes: LO1, LO2, LO3, LO4)
a)Operational issues addressed within the project
b)Solutions summary
c)Project Deliverables
d)Expected Outcomes and Benefits
e)3 Project Objectives (SMART methodology)
f)Project Constraints and Assumptions.

4.Project Team (corresponding Learning Outcomes: LO1, LO2, LO3)
a)Describe responsibilities for the hypothetical project team members (including yourself as Project Manager).
b)Chose, describe and illustrate your preferred project team structure (Functional, Projectized, Matrix). Explain the rationale.

5.Project Resource and Task Allocation (corresponding Learning Outcomes: LO1, LO2, LO4)
a)Develop a Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) that breaks down the entire scope of the project into manageable tasks.
b)Create a Project Schedule (tasks start & end dates, durations, and dependencies) based on your WBS.
c)Create a Gantt Chart to visualise the Project Schedule.
d)Create a RACI Matrix to clarify hypothetical team members’ roles within each task.

6.Stakeholder and Communication Management (corresponding Learning Outcomes: LO1, LO2, LO3, LO4)
a)Create a Stakeholder Power-Interest Grid to derive stakeholder engagement strategies.
b)Create a Communication Plan outlining how information will be shared with team members and stakeholders.

7.Project Budget (corresponding Learning Outcomes: LO1, LO4)
a)Develop a detailed budget (expenses only) required for the project. Estimated costs must be plausible and supported with research and references to real market prices.
The project plan must be written using Times New Roman font (size 12) and double-spaced, with incorporation of images
/ diagrams / tables as needed. Please limit to a maximum of 2,000 words (excluding cover/title page, table of contents, appendices, and references).
The assignment must be submitted in MS Word or PDF format on Canvas by Thursday, December 11th 16:00.
NOTE: It is mandatory to attach the signed and complete “BSM Assignment Cover Sheet” to officially acknowledge any use of AI in this assessment. Failure to attach this in your final submission could mean that it may NOT be graded! The form is found on Canvas.

Assessment Task 2 – Business Project Presentation with Q&A (30% of your overall module grade)

In this task, you will roleplay as an external consultant presenting your operational improvement project to the owner of RainyDay Café. Your goal is to clearly demonstrate the critical importance of operational efficiency to the café’s success, showcase your analysis of key operational issues, propose actionable solutions, and justify why your project deserves approval and funding.

Your presentation should follow the recommended structure and timing below:

1.Introduction & Operational Context (approx. 1 min, corresponding Learning Outcomes: LO1, LO3, LO4)

• Briefly introduce yourself and your role as an external consultant.
• Clearly explain why operational efficiency is critical to RainyDay Café’s overall success and long-term viability.

2.Identification of Operational Issues (approx. 2 mins, corresponding Learning Outcomes: LO1, LO4)

• Present specific operational issues explicitly mentioned in the brief.
• Demonstrate analytical depth by identifying additional operational problems derived from your systematic analysis of the provided data and audit findings.

3.Proposed Operational Solutions (approx. 3 mins, corresponding Learning Outcomes: LO1, LO3, LO4)

• Present targeted, practical solutions that directly address each identified operational issue.
• Justify your solution choices with clear reasoning and demonstrate understanding of operational cause- and-effect relationships. Explain how your solutions will measurably enhance operational efficiency.

4.Project Management Framework (approx. 3 mins, corresponding Learning Outcomes: LO1, LO2, LO3, LO4)

• Clearly state your project's SMART objectives.
• Define key project deliverables explicitly linked to your proposed solutions.
• Present your project team structure, clearly explaining role allocation and reporting relationships.
• Demonstrate your Work Breakdown Structure (WBS), showing systematic decomposition of deliverables into manageable tasks with clear hierarchical relationships.
• Use a Gantt chart to clearly explain the project schedule and sequencing of your key tasks.
• Present your detailed project budget with realistic and justified costs linked to deliverables, demonstrating sound financial awareness.
  5.Expected Project Outcomes and Business Benefits (approx. 1 min, corresponding Learning Outcomes: LO4)
• Summarise the key operational improvements your project will achieve.
• Articulate tangible business benefits and connect operational improvements to broader business outcomes (revenue, customer retention, competitive advantage).
• Conclude with a compelling call to action, urging the café owner to support and fund your project.

6.Q&A Session and Feedback

Your presentation must include clear and professional visuals that effectively support your analysis and recommendations. Deliver it in a confident, consultant-style tone that demonstrates subject matter expertise. Strictly adhere to the 10-minute limit – presentations exceeding this duration will be stopped.
Presentations will be scheduled for w/c 15th December according to each group’s regular days and time.

Assessment Task 3 – Employability Skills Reflection and Log  (20% of your overall module grade)

In order to successfully demonstrate your competence and development of appropriate employability skills, you will need to create an Employability Skills Log (ESL) webpage.

For this, you will need to:

1.Identify the skills you need to develop and that you need to provide evidence of having developed (corresponding Learning Outcomes: LO4).
2.Engage in all module activities to build the identified skills (corresponding Learning Outcomes: LO4).
3.Collect evidence of how you have worked on each skill (e.g. posters, pictures, videos, etc.) (corresponding Learning Outcomes: LO4).
4.Use the collected evidence to build a personal ESL Webpage. The evidence you collect should be uploaded onto the ESL Webpage (corresponding Learning Outcomes: LO4).
5.Write a reflection on attainment of employability skills (250 words) and add the link to your ESL webpage to the 250-word reflection (corresponding Learning Outcomes: LO4).
The assignment (250-words reflection with the link to your ESL webpage) must be submitted in MS Word or PDF format on Canvas by Friday, December 19th 16:00.
NOTE: Detailed instructions, a reflection guide, and the Employability Skills Map can be found on Canvas

Module Learning Outcomes

Assessment methods and tasks