Business Studies: Course Outlines

Business Activity

• The stages and purpose of business activity   including a simple understanding of profit 
• The concept of adding value and how business might add value   including USP
• The factors of production   land   labour   capital and enterprise 
• The dynamic nature of the business environment 
• The qualities of a successful entrepreneur 
• The role of private sector and public sector organisations in a mixed economy 
• Primary   secondary and tertiary sector businesses activity 
• The organisation of business by function I e   marketing  finance   operations and human resources    

Business Legal Structures

• The main features   advantages and disadvantages of sole traders   partnerships   private and public limited companies  cooperatives 
• The concept of limited liability 
• The main features   benefits and limitations of franchises and joint ventures 

Measuring Business Size

• Number of employees  revenue   apital employed   market share   market capitalisation   
• Note   Profit is not an acceptable measure of business size 
• The inter-relationship between the functional areas of business 

The Nature of Marketing

• The marketing process   including an understanding of the elements of the marketing mix 
• Market orientation versus product orientation 
• Marketing objectives and the integrative nature of the marketing function 

Market Analysis and Positioning

• Types of markets including consumer and industrial markets   local   regional   national and international markets 
• Concepts of market share   market size and market growth  including the measurement of market share 
• Market positioning including the advantages and disadvantages of mass and niche markets and the benefits of establishing a unique selling proposition/point the need for market repositioning 

Market Segmentation

• Methods of market segmentation including demographic  geographic and psychographic methods  
• Advantages and disadvantages of market segmentation and how it relates to the marketing mix 

Market Research

• The importance of accurate and reliable market research information for business success 
• Primary  research and secondary research 
• Methods/sources of primary and secondary research data  including their advantages and disadvantages 
• Qualitative and quantitative market research 
• The nature and purpose of sampling including random  stratified and quota sampling methods 
• Interpretation and analysis of market research results

The Marketing Mix

Product

• The nature of products   including the augmented product 
• Stages of the product life cycle 
• How stages of the product life cycle influences marketing activities 
• The nature and purpose of extension strategies 
• Product portfolio analysis   including the Boston Matrix 

Price

• The relationship between price and consumer behaviour 
• Types of pricing strategies including skimming   penetration  competitive and loss leader   Cost based versus market based pricing 
• The concept of Price elasticity of demand   including how a product’s PED might influence pricing decisions 
• Selecting a pricing strategy for a given situation 

Promotion

• The aims of promotion 
• Above-the-line and below-the-line methods of promotion  including their advantages and disadvantages 
• Methods and use of digital marketing in product promotion 
• Measuring the effectiveness of promotional activities using the advertising/promotional elasticity of demand 
• The importance of branding in product promotion 
• Selecting appropriate promotional methods for a given situation 

Place

• The different channels of distribution available to businesses   including the role of intermediaries 
• Selecting an appropriate channel of distribution for a given situation 
• The role and importance of E-commerce 

Marketing Strategy

• The factors that influence consumer demand for a product 
• Developing a co-ordinated marketing mix for a given situation 

Business Finance

• The need for finance in business 
• The main internal and external sources of finance available to businesses   including their advantages and disadvantages 
• Factors affecting the choice of finance in a given situation including   use to which it is to be put   the business’ legal structure   cost  need to retain ownership/control and the level of existing borrowing
• Selecting an appropriate source of finance for a given situation 

Costs Revenue and Contribution

• Types of costs including fixed   variable and semi-variable costs   direct and indirect costs   total and average costs 
• The concept of revenue including total revenue and average revenue 
• The concept of contribution   including total contribution and contribution per unit 
• Accept or reject special order decisions 

Break-Even analysis

• The concept of break-even 
• The interpretation of break-even graphs  
• Numerical methods used to determine the level of output required to break even 
• The concept of margin of safety in break-even analysis 
• Uses and limitations of break-even analysis 

The Analysis of Financial Statements

• Contents of a simplified income statement including  revenue   cost of sales   gross profit   profit for the year and retained earnings 
• Contents of a simplified statement of financial affairs including   non-current assets   current assets   current liabilities   net current assets  net assets   non-current liabilities   reserves and equity
• The main users of accounting information 
• Interpretation and analysis of financial statements including ratio analysis
• The concept of working capital and the liquidity cycle 
• Problems caused by insufficient liquidity 
• Ways of improving the management of working capital 
• Limitations to users of ratio analysis and published accounts 

Managing Cash Flows

• Interpretation and use of cash flow forecasts
• How a business might improve its cash flow 

Budgeting

•  Role and use of budgets 
• The meaning and calculation of adverse and favourable variances 
•  Outline how businesses may use variance analysis 

Organisational Structure

• Understand how to interpret a simple organisation chart to explain the concepts of hierarchy   chain of command  wide/narrow spans of control and delayering 
• Centralised versus decentralised organisation structures 
• The advantages and disadvantages to managers and subordinates of delegation 
• The difference between authority and responsibility 

Management and Leadership

• The roles of management   for example   planning  organising   controlling and directing 
• The characteristics of a good leader 
• The main features of leadership styles   autocratic  paternalistic   democratic   laissez-faire and McGregor’s theory X and theory Y 

Motivation

• A general understanding of the motivation theories of
• Taylor   Maslow and Herzberg 
• The benefits to business of having a well-motivated workforce   higher productivity better quality/reduced waste ower absenteeism lower labour turnover 
• The calculation and importance of labour productivity and labour turnover 
• The main financial and non-financial incentives used by businesses to motivate workers 

Human Resource Management

• Role of HRM including recruitment   selection   training  induction   advice   guidance   workforce planning
• The benefits to business of training employees   including induction training 

Labour and Management Relations

• The role of trade unions and the benefits they provide to both members and employers 

Consumer Laws

• Outline how UK consumers’ rights are protected by the following legislation   sale of goods   trades descriptions and consumer protection

Employment Laws

• Outline how UK businesses and their employees are affected by the following legislation   health & safety at work   equal pay   National
• Minimum Wage and legislation that promotes equal opportunities and protects workers against​

Competition Laws

• Outline how UK businesses are affected by the legislation to promote competition in markets

Business Aims and Objectives

• The nature and purpose of business objectives including the hierarchy of objectives MOST and SMART objectives 
• Consideration of specific business objectives survival   profit maximisation   growth (including market expansion) social responsibility and ethics 
• Factors influencing business objectives such as corporate culture business size legal form age of the business and the industry a business operates 

Business Stakeholders

• The individuals or groups interested in the activities of business e g owners/shareholders employeesb customers suppliers lenders  government and the local community 
• Stakeholder objectives and how these might conflict 
• How stakeholders influence and are influenced by business 

Strategic Analysis

• The nature and purpose of SWOT analysis 
• How the outcome of a SWOT analysis might inform strategic objectives
• How SWOT analysis might be used in a given business situation 
• The nature and purpose of PEST analysis 
• How PEST analysis might be used in a given business situation