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ACC585 Research Skills Guide: Plan Your Search

Topic Analysis

A topic analysis will help you to clarify and understand what your assessment question is asking you to do.

You will generally be given three key pieces of information:

    The key topic or concept words direct you in what to research.
    The limits or qualifiers tell you the specific focus of the topic or concept.
    The task or instruction terms tell how you are to deal with the content. CSU has a list of explanations for common instruction words.

Your ACC585 assessment item 2 (part 1) is:

You will choose an ASX Listed company. You are encouraged to: 1. selected a larger firm, 2. avoid financial firms, 3. avoid newly listed firms, and 4. discuss your selection with your lecturer. Before making your final company selection, it is recommended that you briefly review the requirements of both Part 1 and Part 2 of this Assignment.

Part 1 requires you to research your chosen company and prepare a brief (max 750 words) report covering the following:

  1. Brief history and nature of the company
  2. The different segments and geographic regions that the company operates in
  3. Overview of trends in the company's profits and share price over the last 3 years
  4. Significant financial/other events to have impacted the firm in the last 3 years
  5. Summarise the characteristics of your company according to Porter’s Five Forces Classification
  6. Explain what competitive strategies are being employed by the company to gain a competitive advantage

Your discussion should include references to a range of academic, news and corporate sources available through the internet and library databases. It is not sufficient to rely solely on sources prepared by your company (i.e. materials on your firm's corporate website). Examples of relevant sources include the following:

The report should be professionally presented and referenced in accordance with APA Style.

For more details on these library databases go to the Find Company Information tab.

Instruction words prepare, summarise, explain
Qualifying words & phrases Porter’s Five Forces Classification, 3 years
Key concepts overview of trends, competitive strategies, competitive advantage

Find additional keywords

Tip: Online dictionaries and thesauri can help you identify synonyms.