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FINS5512 Group Project

“Extract from Course outline”

Final Group Work (15%)
Individual mark subject to Peer Evaluation
The Group Project is intended to develop your skills in research, critical thinking, your ability
to apply your learnings and your adeptness to concisely and coherently present your ideas as
well as work in groups. You will work in a group of (#TBC) and a topic will be assigned to your
group in Week 6-7 and your paper is to be submitted in Week 10.
Your contribution to group work will be peer-marked throughout the process.
(A more detailed assessment guideline will be provided in class).

The Assignment:
Name: Final Group Project
Report Due Date: Monday of Week 11 by 23:59pm Sydney time
Weighting: 15%
Length: 2,000 words (plus supporting appendices/references)
Format: Written paper based on external research presenting an analysis and
recommendation on the assigned topic to be provided

Topics to be assigned:

1. Banks and Compliance with Basel III
Requirements:
• Select an Australian bank.
• Research and analyse relevant ratios (trends, changes in ratios) to evaluate the
bank's risk and its ability to withstand adverse events and market conditions.
• Consider the bank's specific characteristics (e.g., customer base concentration,
markets) and current market conditions when analysing ratios and assessing risk.
• Provide recommendations for areas where the bank can improve.


2. Equity research
Requirements:
• Select an ASX listed company
• Research and analyse the company using either fundamental or technical
analysis
• In addition, consider market liquidity, risk/return profile, and any other important
aspects and suitability to the types of investors
• Provide your recommendations on the share


3. Bond Yields and the Yield Curve
Requirements:
• Compare three bonds from different issuers and discuss the factors contributing
to differences in bond yields. (You may choose bonds with varying maturities,
credit ratings, and features like callability, or convertibility.)
• Discuss how macroeconomic conditions and prospects might impact the yields
and prices of these bonds.

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4. Foreign Exchange Rate
Requirements:
• Choose an ASX listed company that either imports from or exports to overseas
markets.
• Analyse the firm's exposure to currency exchange risk by examining its business
model and identifying areas of vulnerability.
• Evaluate the firm's current strategy for hedging foreign exchange risk,
considering market conditions and relevant factors that could affect exchange
rates.
• Provide recommendations for improving the firm's hedging strategy.


Background

The group assignment has been designed with a number of objectives in mind. These
include:

1. Working in teams;
2. Conduct thorough external research and analysis;
3. Organisation of thoughts and arguments;
4. Articulating key concepts; and
5. Applying critical thinking to real world and businesses.

Your group is expected to work as a team which means a lot of discussions, trust and
coordination involved. Conflicts and differences in opinions among members are expected
just as in any teamwork in real world situations. You are expected to resolve any conflicts
and differences in a professional and respectful manner.

Each team member is expected to contribute to the completion of the overall project. We
have absolutely zero tolerance for free loaders and if reported, zero mark will be given to
free-loaders.


NOTE:
In Week 8, there will be an interim check of your work in class by your lecturer. You are
required to show:
• A scaffold (structure) of your paper
• A consolidated list of reference (Refer https://www.student.unsw.edu.au/harvard-
referencing)

Whilst the interim check does not contribute a mark to the course, poor interim progress will
contribute to poor overall final mark of this assessment.

Peer evaluation in Week 11 after your submission.


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Marking
A conclusion must be provided.
Assessment of your work will consider the following three key areas:

1. Depth and breadth of your research & analysis on your topic;
2. Structure of the paper (Refer: Article - Think Your Way to Clear Writing by Barbara
Minto);
3. Delivery of the paper (Refer: https://www.student.unsw.edu.au/writing).

Refer marking rubrics for details.

The quality of your work should be at a level that you are prepared to present to an
Investment Committee of a Fund or to a board of the company.

1) Depth & breadth of research & analysis:
This assignment is designed to be challenging. It requires you to go beyond textbook
learning and to apply critical thinking which means robust collection, review and
analysis of all relevant current research and market information.

In addition to theoretical or academic research, this is a practical application of your
learnings from the course to real live and current markets.

Marks will be deducted for obvious information gaps or incorrect applications of
various learnings. A simple copy and paste of data and graphs without insights,
analysis and recommendation will get a VERY LOW or FAIL mark.

2) Structure:
Research and analysis is only a partial skill. The next task is structuring the
information into a logical sequence so that your reader can easily follow and
understand your analyses and recommendations. There are many ways to structure
your paper. The objective of a good structure is to persuade your reader.

3) Delivery:
This includes Writing styles, editing, referencing, word limit (no more than 2000
words). This is important and forces you to present only the key information and
ensure that your paper is concise.

**Important note**
There is a peer evaluation post submission of your paper. Therefore, your final mark for the
group assignment may differ from the mark awarded to the group pending on “Peer
Evaluation”. Everyone will have the opportunity to mark their team members on their
effectiveness as a team member. For example, behaviour, attendance, contribution, etc.

Any evidence of student(s) freeloading within a group will be given a mark of zero for this
assignment. No negotiation what-so-ever. So, it is important that you are, at all times,
cognisant of your behaviour and work collaboratively as a part of the team to achieve the
task.
**YOU NEED TO MARK YOUR PEERS IN ORDER TO HAVE YOUR PEER MARKS**
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Team Contract Template Sample:

Group name: ________________ (eg. Tues 10am Group 1)
Topic # ___
Team members (If absent during 1st team contract meeting, please note)
Name University email







Below is some suggested wordings for your contract and your team is welcome to change as
your team deems appropriate:
We understand that the final group project is a team-based assessment and that the team will
work collaboratively from Week 6-10.
We understand that all team members will be responsible for the quality of the final product
and its timely submission. We also understand that we will be individually assessed by our
team members for our contributions to the overall group project. There is a formal peer
evaluation after submission.
To achieve this major assessment, we have discussed and agreed, and will adhere to, the
following requirements and protocols:

Make as many points as you need to under each of the following headings:
(1) Communication (methods and timeliness):
For example:
a. Respond within 24 hours to the group chat.
b. Attend all team meetings or notify the team a day before if you are unavailable.
c. Communicate through …. in a respectful manner.
(2) Weekly meeting protocols (scheduling and preparation)
For example:
a. Let the team know if you cannot complete your assigned task before meet-up, so they
can create a contingency plan.
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b. Come to all meetings prepared- know what you’re going to say and have work ready
to present to the group.
c. Begin each meeting by evaluating our teamwork and assessing what needs to be
improved.
(3) Meeting preparation / record keeping and documentation
For example:
a. Plan what we will discuss each meeting.
b. Assign someone to take notes during team meetings.
c. Put all documents you work on individually or as a group on Google Drive or One
Drive.
(4) Team roles / decision making / delegation of work
For example:
a. Respect all team members’ ideas before coming up with decisions.
b. Delegation of work will be split equally at all times.
c. Issues will be decided by a majority vote.
(5) Timeline, targets and expectations
For example:
a. Team contract due xxx.
b. 1 Page brief by xxxx.
c. Data download by xxxx.
(6) Conflict resolution / troubleshooting
For example:
a. When a member of the group dislikes an idea, make sure to express your thoughts
freely about it.
b. Use time at the beginning of team meetings to resolve any conflict.
c. Understand that each member is passionate and wanting to achieve the same team
goals thus we will have this at the forefront of our mind when resolving conflicts.

Purpose:
This document is connected to the Peer Evaluation Questionnaire which will be completed
at the Week 11. You should use this contract to both guide your conduct within teams and
evaluate your teammates’ and your own performances.

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