Key term
OCR A-Level Business (H431) H431
Introduction to Business
Topic overviewEntrepreneurs, enterprise and the value they createLand, labour, capital and enterpriseSectors of industry, forms of ownership and the reach of a marketSole traders, partnerships, companies and limited liabilityChoosing a legal structure and what it means for stakeholdersFranchising and co-operativesThe functions of a business and how they depend on each otherMeasuring the size of a business, and what limits its growthJoint ventures and strategic alliances
Business Objectives and Strategy
Topic overviewAims, objectives and the hierarchy that links themSetting SMART objectivesCommunicating and revising business objectivesStakeholders and their objectivesStakeholder conflict and its managementStakeholder power and influenceMission statements and business purposeCorporate social responsibility and the profit trade-offBuilding and judging a CSR profileStrategy, tactics and implementationThe business plan and the Plan-Do-Review cycleRisk and rewardQuantifiable and unquantifiable riskUncertainty and its causesOpportunity cost in business decisionsContingency planning and crisis managementPorter's Five ForcesPorter's generic strategies and competitive advantageThe purpose of performance measurementFinancial measures of business performanceRatio analysis: profitability, liquidity and efficiencyNon-financial measures of business performanceForecasting and its limitsQualitative forecasting methodsForecasting sales, costs, profit and cash flowTime series analysis and moving averagesCorrelation, extrapolation and index numbersThe business decision-making processDecision trees and expected valuesAnsoff's matrixConflicting results from decision-making toolsCauses, types and barriers to changeChange management models: Lewin, Kotter and 7-SLeading change and using external consultants
External Influences
Topic overviewThe market, its size, growth and shareMarket structures and a firm's decision-making powerDemand, supply and their determinantsEquilibrium, shortages and surplusesMarket forces and the dynamic marketPhysical and non-physical marketsCompetition, and barriers to entry and exitMarket dominance and how it is regulatedGlobalisation and the forces driving itMultinationals, global strategy and global brandsInternational trade, its barriers and its practicalitiesExchange rates and currency conversionFree trade, trading blocs and the European UnionEmerging markets and the changing global environmentPolitical factors and political stabilityThe business cycle and key economic indicatorsTaxation, government spending and subsidiesMonetary, fiscal and supply-side policySocial factors and changing consumer lifestylesTechnology in business and technological changeThe digital revolution and the information ageBusiness ethics and ethical tradingManaging conflicts between ethical and other objectivesLegislation, compliance and the cost of breaking itEnvironmental issues and environmental policySustainability in practiceReading the external environment and the cost of ignoring it
Accounting and Finance
Topic overviewAccounting and finance objectivesSources of finance and the choice between themA true and fair view and the accounting conventionsCosts, revenue and profitCost classification and costing methodsContribution and the break-even pointMargin of safety and target profitBreak-even charts, stepped fixed costs and special ordersPayback period and average rate of returnNet present value and the investment decisionBudgets and variance analysisCash-flow forecasts and cash-flow statementsCash-flow problems and working capitalThe income statement and measures of profitThe statement of financial positionDepreciation and the valuation of assetsLiquidity and solvency ratiosProfitability and efficiency ratiosShareholder ratios and the limits of ratio analysisExternal influences and the finance strategy
Human Resources
Topic overviewHuman resource objectivesChain of command, span of control and delegationTall, flat, matrix and divisional structuresOrganisational culture and what shapes itFormal and informal communication and group normsVerbal, non-verbal and electronic communicationThe communication model and barriers to communicationWorkforce planningFlexible working practicesRecruitment and the choice between internal and external hiringSelection methods: interviews, tests and referencesTraining methods and training needs analysisAppraisal: 360°, peer and self-assessmentMeasuring workforce performance: turnover, absenteeism and productivityRedundancy and fair dismissalUnfair dismissal, grievance procedures and employment tribunalsThe functions of managementLeadership theories and stylesMaslow, Herzberg and the theories of motivationMonetary and non-monetary motivation in practiceEmployee relations and employment legislationTrade unions and employee participationExternal influences on human resourcesThe human resources strategy
Marketing
Topic overviewMarketing objectives and why a business sets themMarketing resources and SWOT analysisPrimary market research and trial marketingSecondary market research and desk sourcesSampling methods and sample reliabilityNormal distribution and standard deviationMarket share and market growthUsing market analysis to make decisionsConsumer buying behaviour and the marketing modelsNiche marketing and mass marketingCustomer orientation, product orientation and customer serviceMarket segmentationCustomers, consumers and business-to-business marketingThe product life cycle and its stagesExtension strategiesThe marketing mix and the marketing strategyProduct, USP, branding and differentiationThe Boston matrix, Ansoff's matrix and portfolio analysisPricing strategiesPrice and income elasticity of demandCross elasticity and advertising elasticity of demandPlace and channels of distributionPromotion above the line, below the line and digitalService marketing and the extended marketing mixExternal influences on marketing
Operations Management
Topic overviewOperations objectives and operations strategyAdded value and how it is measuredInnovation and research and developmentJob, batch, flow and cell productionSpecialisation and the division of labourService provision and customer serviceProject management and Gantt chartsCritical path analysis and network diagramsPERT and the limits of project planningProductivity and how to raise itEconomies and diseconomies of scaleCapacity utilisation and capacity managementStock control charts and reorder levelsReordering systems and the cost of holding stockLean production, just in time and kanbanTechnology in operationsQuality control, quality assurance and TQMExternal quality standards and benchmarkingChoosing a location for a businessLogistics and supply chain managementOutsourcing, offshoring and re-shoringExternal influences on operations
Human Resources
The functions of management
- 2 things to know
- Components 01, 02 and 03
Overview
Recall questions on management and Fayol's five functions of planning, organising, commanding, co-ordinating and controlling, management against leadership, the constraints of budgets, law, culture and trade unions, measures of management success, and why profit alone is a poor measure.
What you need to know
Answer each one before you reveal it.
Your recallNot started
Key term
Why is co-ordination a distinct function of management rather than part of organising?
Questions from this subtopic
Each one with the model answer underneath.
- 1
What is meant by management?
Model answer
It is the process of getting a business' objectives achieved through the work of other people, by planning, organising and controlling the resources available.
- 2
Name the five functions of management identified by Fayol.
Model answer
The five functions are planning, organising, commanding, co-ordinating and controlling.
- 3
What does the planning function of management involve?
Model answer
It involves forecasting what lies ahead and deciding the objectives to be achieved and the actions, resources and timings needed to reach them.
- 4
What does the organising function of management involve?
Model answer
It involves arranging people, money and equipment into a structure of roles and responsibilities so that the plan can actually be carried out.
- 5
What does the controlling function of management involve?
Model answer
It involves measuring actual performance against the plan, investigating any variance and taking corrective action where results fall short.
- 6
Why is co-ordination a distinct function of management rather than part of organising?
Model answer
Departments organised separately will still pull in different directions unless someone keeps their activities in step, so co-ordination is continuous work rather than a one-off arrangement of roles.
Other ways to work this
The same content, four other ways.
What is inside Levo
Six ways to work the same material.
Every question in Human Resources, on a schedule.
Attempt a question from memory, write the correct version, then attempt it again. Levo records the jump between your first attempt and your last, and brings each question back on the day you are due to forget it.
Or £46 a year, about £3.83 a month. Cancel anytime.