You are required to evaluate the importance of effective working capital management and critically appraise a relevant range of methods available including, but not exclusively, the use of ratios. Your discussion should be supported by comparing a large UK listed manufacturing company against a retail business.

You should then recommend an effective approach for managing working capital, which could be adopted by a UK private retail company that operates twelve retail stores, in the South of England.
Your discussion should clearly refer to textbooks, journals, and internet sources of research, in accordance with ‘good academic practices.

Assessment criteria (weightings indicated for each criterion)

1. Critical evaluation of the importance of effective working capital management.
2. Critical appraisal of a relevant range of methods and techniques available to manage working capital.
3. Large manufacturing and retail businesses identified which were then used and compared to support the discussion.
4. Justification and articulation of a recommended approach for effective working capital management which could be adopted by UK retail company operating twelve stores.