What does fairness mean when a firm deals with a client?

Fairness means treating every client even-handedly and charging a reasonable fee for the work done. A fair firm never exploits a client's lack of expert knowledge.

Give an example of unfair treatment of a client by an accountancy practice.

An accountancy practice might bill a small client for hours that were never worked. The client cannot check the time recorded, so the overcharge exploits its trust.

Define integrity in professional work.

Integrity means being honest and straightforward in every professional dealing. A consultant with integrity will not put their name to misleading work.

How could an accountant's integrity be tested when preparing a client's accounts?

A client might press the accountant to overstate profit before applying for a bank loan. Integrity requires the accountant to refuse to sign misleading figures.

CCEA A-Level Professional Business Services 3210

The Business Environment

Topic overview Primary, secondary, tertiary and quaternary production Private, public and voluntary sector objectives Sole traders and partnerships Private and public limited companies Stakeholder interests and conflicts Factors of production

The Professional Business Services Sector

Topic overview The nature of professional business services The range of consultancy services Tangible goods and intangible services Local, national and global firms Why businesses use consultancy services

The Consultancy Process

Topic overview The consultancy process and the entry phase The diagnosis phase The action planning phase Implementation and termination phases

Understanding the Client's Market

Topic overview Market size, market share and market growth Reasons for market research and using its findings Primary market research methods Secondary market research and choosing a method Sampling methods in market research Market segmentation

Client Relationships

Topic overview Why client relationships matter Communication, personal contact and client needs Business culture and professionalism Trust, ethical behaviour, intellect and ideas

Business Ethics

Topic overview Fairness, integrity and freedom from bias Trust, confidentiality, transparency and openness The benefits of an ethical code

Persuading, Negotiating and Influencing

Topic overview Persuasion techniques for consultants Negotiation stages and strategies Influencing clients and stakeholders

Business Planning and Risk Management

Topic overview Strategic planning and cost–benefit analysis SWOT and PESTEL analysis in strategic planning The Ansoff matrix and the Boston matrix Assessing and managing business risk

Government Regulation

Topic overview The purpose of business regulation Regulators and compliance in Northern Ireland Codes of conduct versus external regulation

Organisational Structure and Culture

Topic overview Human resources and effective HR management Tall, flat, centralised and decentralised structures Roles, chain of command, span of control and delayering Changing and comparing organisational structures Culture, Schein's model and the McKinsey 7S framework

Recruitment and Selection

Topic overview Internal and external recruitment methods Job descriptions and person specifications Interviews and psychometric testing Competency profiling, situational judgement tests and EI questionnaires Contracts of employment and effective recruitment

Learning and Development

Topic overview Why learning and development matters to a business Induction, on-the-job, off-the-job training and CPD Outcomes of learning and development

Employee Well-Being and Motivation

Topic overview What employee well-being is and why employers value it Methods of supporting employee well-being Causes of low workplace well-being Maslow and Taylor on motivation Herzberg and Mayo on motivation Financial and non-financial methods of motivation

Managing Conflict

Topic overview Functional and dysfunctional conflict Causes of conflict at work Effects of conflict on performance, motivation and behaviour Improving employer–employee relations

Business Research Methods

Topic overview Research aims, objectives and literature searches Questionnaires, interviews and designing research tools Sampling, reliability, validity and research ethics Presenting, analysing and evaluating research findings

Sources of Finance

Topic overview Financial decision making in a client business Internal sources of finance Loans, overdrafts and share issues Leasing, hire purchase and trade credit Choosing the right source of finance

Cash Flow

Topic overview Types of budget and why firms set them Adverse and favourable variances Cash flow, profit and why firms forecast Constructing and analysing a cash flow forecast

Financial Statements

Topic overview Revenue, cost of sales and gross profit Expenses and net profit Assets on the statement of financial position Equity and liabilities

Ratio Analysis

Topic overview Profit margins and return on capital employed The current ratio, liquidity and gearing Trade receivables and trade payables days Earnings per share and return on equity Using and evaluating ratio analysis

Investment Appraisal and Financial Decisions

Topic overview The payback method Net present value and discounting Average rate of return and choosing a method Appraising an investment for a client Using financial data for growth and staffing decisions

IT Systems and Communication Technology

Topic overview The role of technology in business Management information and performance management systems Choosing and integrating IT systems Email, messaging, telephone and text Websites, document sharing, conferencing and social media

Technology for People and Operations

Topic overview Performance management software HR information systems Customer relationship management software Transaction processing technology Inventory management technology

Technology for Finance and Disaster Recovery

Topic overview Spreadsheets for financial decisions Databases and accounting software Data security principles and cyber threats SSL, HTTPS and two-factor authentication Legislation on data and technology Disaster recovery planning and backup strategies

Big Data and the Ethics of Technology

Topic overview Big data, data analytics and KPIs Data storage systems Automated decisions, censorship and monitoring Personal data, the digital divide and acceptable use

Leadership and Management

Topic overview Leadership, management and emotional intelligence Fayol's functions and Mintzberg's roles The Tannenbaum–Schmidt continuum and leadership styles Transformational and transactional leadership The Blake Mouton grid and Adair's Action-Centred Leadership Performance management and review

Managing Teams

Topic overview Team working and Tuckman's stages Belbin's nine team roles Using and evaluating Belbin's model

Managing Change

Topic overview Reasons for change in the business environment Resistance to change Lewin, Kotter and Galbraith's change models Benefits and challenges of managing change

Project Management and Feasibility

Topic overview What a project is and why project management matters Project roles and responsibilities Project documents, plans and registers Client needs and feasibility research The business case and the project brief

Project Initiation and Planning

Topic overview The initiation stage and the project initiation document Project tolerances for time, cost, quality and risk The planning stage: scope, objectives and deliverables Resources, roles, quality and financial plans Gantt charts, risk plans and the stage review

Project Closure and Evaluation

Topic overview Monitoring and reviewing a project during execution Closing a project Evaluating a project and gathering stakeholder feedback

Business Ethics

3 subtopics
9 things to know
AS 1

What Business Ethics covers

Business Ethics is examined in Unit AS 1, Introduction to Professional Business Services. It covers fairness, integrity and freedom from bias, trust, confidentiality, transparency and openness and the benefits of an ethical code.

Where it is assessed

AS 1

Introduction to Professional Business Services — a written examination.

Check the CCEA specification ↗

The 3 subtopics

Each one has its own page.

What you need to know

Answer each one before you reveal it.

Your recallNot started

Evaluation

Evaluate whether a small Belfast consultancy should turn down work from a rival of an existing client.

Evaluation

Why should a consultancy tell a client about the limitations of its advice?

Key term

Analyse how a breach of confidentiality could affect a Belfast law firm.

Evaluation

Evaluate the importance of transparency over fees for a management consultancy.

Key term

Analyse how an ethical code could help a Northern Ireland accountancy practice win consultancy work from a public body.

Evaluation

Evaluate the benefits of an ethical code for a new technology consultancy.

Key term

What is business ethics in a professional business services firm?

Key term

Why do ethical responsibilities matter more for a professional services firm than for many other businesses?

Key term

What is an ethical code?

Take Business Ethics further

The same content, four other ways.

Commonly confused

Pairs that lose marks when they are blurred together.

Confidentiality vs Transparency
Confidentiality: keeping a client's private information from anyone not entitled to see it. Transparency: being clear with a client about fees, methods and the basis of advice.
Integrity vs Objectivity
Integrity: being honest and straightforward in every professional dealing. Objectivity: judging matters on the facts alone without bias or outside pressure.
Conflict of interest vs Information barrier
Conflict of interest: a clash between the firm's own gain, or a rival client's, and its duty to advise impartially. Information barrier: an arrangement keeping teams that act for rival clients completely separate.

Questions from this topic

Each one with the model answer underneath.

1
What is business ethics in a professional business services firm?
Model answer
Business ethics are the moral principles that guide how a firm treats clients, staff and the public. An ethical firm does what is right, not just what is legal.
2
Why do ethical responsibilities matter more for a professional services firm than for many other businesses?
Model answer
A client buys expert advice that it cannot easily check for itself. The client must rely on the firm acting honestly and in the client's interest.
3
What does fairness mean when a firm deals with a client?
Model answer
Fairness means treating every client even-handedly and charging a reasonable fee for the work done. A fair firm never exploits a client's lack of expert knowledge.
4
Give an example of unfair treatment of a client by an accountancy practice.
Model answer
An accountancy practice might bill a small client for hours that were never worked. The client cannot check the time recorded, so the overcharge exploits its trust.
5
Define integrity in professional work.
Model answer
Integrity means being honest and straightforward in every professional dealing. A consultant with integrity will not put their name to misleading work.
6
How could an accountant's integrity be tested when preparing a client's accounts?
Model answer
A client might press the accountant to overstate profit before applying for a bank loan. Integrity requires the accountant to refuse to sign misleading figures.

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The Business Environment

The Professional Business Services Sector

The Consultancy Process

Understanding the Client's Market

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AA firm might move its staff to a new office.

BA firm might install a new client database.

CA firm might run a graduate recruitment campaign.

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Assemble a full-mark answer from its marking points, in the order an examiner wants them.

Equity means the owner's investment in the business.

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Spot the fault in a statement. The traps are the mistakes students actually make.

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Business Ethics revision questions

What does Business Ethics cover in CCEA A-Level Professional Business Services?: 3 subtopics: fairness, integrity and freedom from bias, trust, confidentiality, transparency and openness and the benefits of an ethical code. Each one has its own page with questions and model answers.
How is Business Ethics organised?: By the CCEA 3210 specification, subtopic by subtopic, so it matches the order you are taught it in.

Every question in Business Ethics, on a schedule.

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