Key term
WJEC A-Level Business 601-5238-2
Enterprise and Starting a Business
Markets and Market Research
Topic overviewTypes of marketMarket size, market share and market trendsMarket segmentationThe degree of competition in a marketPerfect competition and monopolistic competitionOligopoly and monopolyConsumer protectionDemand and the demand curveSupply and the supply curveMarket equilibrium and changes in price and quantityPrice and income elasticity of demandInferior, normal and luxury goodsThe value of market researchPrimary market researchSecondary market researchQualitative and quantitative dataSampling and avoiding bias
Marketing
Topic overviewMarket orientation, product orientation and asset-led marketingThe marketing mixProduct and the product portfolioBranding, USP and differentiationThe product life cycleExtension strategiesThe product life cycle and cash flowThe Boston matrixPricing strategiesChoosing the right pricing strategyPromotion: above the line and below the linePlace and distribution channelsThe marketing mix in different contexts and global marketingNew technology in marketing
People in Business
Topic overviewThe flexible workforceNew technology and changing working practicesWorkforce planningThe recruitment process, job analysis and job descriptionsInternal and external recruitmentMethods of selectionTrainingAppraisalLabour productivity, absenteeism and labour turnoverOrganisational design and structuresDelegation, empowerment and delayeringMotivation theoriesFinancial and non-financial methods of motivationManagement and management by objectivesLeadership styles and theoriesEmployment rights, duties and equal opportunitiesTrade unions, conflict and dispute resolution
Operations Management
Topic overviewAdded valueJob, batch and flow productionChoosing the right method of productionProductivityCapacity utilisationNew technology in operationsLean production and kaizenJust-in-time and cell productionQuality control and quality assuranceTotal quality managementStock control and stock control diagramsPurchasing and working with suppliersInnovation, research and developmentInternal economies of scaleExternal economies of scaleDiseconomies of scale and the survival of small firms
Business Finance and Accounts
Topic overviewInternal sources of financeLoans, overdrafts and trade creditShare capital and venture capitalLeasing and debt factoringChoosing an appropriate source of financeFinance for entrepreneurs and SMEs in WalesRevenue, costs and profitTypes of costContribution and break-evenBreak-even charts and the margin of safetyBudgets and budgetingCash flow forecastingImproving cash flowThe income statementGross and net profit margins
Business Analysis and Decision-Making
Topic overviewPrice and income elasticity of demandSales forecasting and its reliabilityMoving averages and time-series analysisCorrelation, scatter graphs and extrapolationPresenting and interpreting data: pie charts, histograms and index numbersQualitative forecasting techniquesBudgets and budget variancesThe balance sheetWorking capital, capital employed and depreciationLiquidity ratios: the current ratio and the acid testReturn on capital employed and gearingInterpreting and comparing company accountsNon-financial measures and vision statementsDecision treesCritical path analysisCost benefit analysis and scientific decision-makingPayback period and average rate of returnNet present value and discounted cash flowSpecial orders and contribution
Strategy and Implementation
Topic overviewAims and objectivesSMART objectivesMission and vision statementsCorporate, divisional and functional strategyStrategy, tactics and corporate plansSWOT analysisPorter's Five ForcesThe Ansoff matrixOrganic growthMergers and takeoversHorizontal and vertical integrationFranchising as a method of growthLocation and relocation decisionsRationalisation and outsourcing production
Managing Change and Risk
Topic overviewInternal and external causes of changePlanned and unplanned changeThe effects of change on a businessManaging change effectivelyStorey's four approaches to managing changeResistance to changeLewin's three step processOrganisational culture and leadership in changeEvaluating the management of changeThe risks a business facesRisk assessment and preventative actionInsurable and uninsurable risksContingency planning and crisis management
The External Environment
Managing Change and Risk
- 13 subtopics
- 39 things to know
- A2 Unit 4
What Managing Change and Risk covers
Managing Change and Risk is examined in Unit 4, Business in a Changing World, which assesses the whole A level content. It covers internal and external causes of change, planned and unplanned change, the effects of change on a business, managing change effectively, Storey's four approaches to managing change, resistance to change, Lewin's three step process, organisational culture and leadership in change, evaluating the management of change, the risks a business faces, risk assessment and preventative action, insurable and uninsurable risks and contingency planning and crisis management.
The 13 subtopics
Each one has its own page.
- Internal and external causes of changeChange in a business context, internal and external causes of change and four internal causes of change.Open →
- Planned and unplanned changePlanned change, incremental change and transformational change and one advantage of incremental change over transformational change.Open →
- The effects of change on a businessWhy change often requires new production methods, why a business must update its equipment as technology changes and financial consequence of having to update equipment.Open →
- Managing change effectivelyWhat is meant by change management, why change needs to be managed rather than simply announced and four features of a well-managed change programme.Open →
- Storey's four approaches to managing changeTwo dimensions on which Storey distinguishes approaches to change, four approaches to managing change identified by Storey and top-down systemic change.Open →
- Resistance to changeWhat is meant by resistance to change, four reasons employees resist change and why fear of redundancy is the strongest source of resistance.Open →
- Lewin's three step processThree steps in Lewin's model of change, what happens in the unfreeze stage and two things a manager does during the unfreeze stage.Open →
- Organisational culture and leadership in changeOrganisational culture, how culture can obstruct change and what is meant by a change-friendly culture.Open →
- Evaluating the management of changeFirst step in evaluating the management of change, three quantitative measures used to evaluate change and three qualitative measures used to evaluate change.Open →
- The risks a business facesBusiness risk, natural disaster that could disrupt a business and risk created by failure of equipment.Open →
- Risk assessment and preventative actionRisk assessment, two factors used to judge the seriousness of a risk and four broad responses available once a risk has been assessed.Open →
- Insurable and uninsurable risksInsurable risk, what public liability insurance covers and what determines the size of an insurance premium.Open →
- Contingency planning and crisis managementContingency planning, crisis management and four elements of a contingency plan.Open →
What you need to know
Answer each one before you reveal it.
Your recallNot started
Evaluation
Explain why a change should be evaluated over a long period rather than immediately.
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What is a risk assessment?
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Distinguish between internal and external causes of change.
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Define planned change.
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Explain why change often requires new production methods.
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Explain why change needs to be managed rather than simply announced.
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Name the four approaches to managing change identified by Storey.
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Explain what is meant by resistance to change.
Process
Name the three steps in Lewin's model of change.
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Define business risk.
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Define an insurable risk.
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Distinguish between contingency planning and crisis management.
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State four internal causes of change.
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Define unplanned change.
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Explain why a business must update its equipment as technology changes.
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State four features of a well-managed change programme.
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Describe top-down systemic change.
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State four reasons employees resist change.
Process
Explain what happens in the unfreeze stage.
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Define organisational culture.
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State the first step in evaluating the management of change.
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Explain why flooding is a significant risk for many businesses in the United Kingdom.
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State the two factors used to judge the seriousness of a risk.
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State four insurable risks.
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State four elements of a contingency plan.
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Explain how a change of leadership causes wider change in a business.
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Give two examples of unplanned change.
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Explain the financial consequence of having to update equipment.
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Explain why employees must understand the reason for a change.
Evaluation
Give one disadvantage of top-down systemic change.
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Explain why fear of redundancy is the strongest source of resistance.
Process
State two things a manager does during the unfreeze stage.
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Explain how culture can obstruct change.
Evaluation
State three quantitative measures used to evaluate change.
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Explain the risk created by failure of equipment.
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Explain why a business spends more on preventing some risks than others.
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State four uninsurable risks.
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What is a contingency fund?
Take Managing Change and Risk further
The same content, four other ways.
Commonly confused
Pairs that lose marks when they are blurred together.
Planned change vs Unplanned change
Planned change: change a business itself chooses and prepares for in advance, with objectives, resources and a timetable agreed beforehand. Unplanned change: Change forced on a business by an unexpected event, which it has to respond to without preparation.
Incremental change vs Transformational change
Incremental change: a series of small adjustments made gradually over time, each one easy for staff to absorb. Transformational change: An alteration to the whole nature or direction of a business, made at once rather than by degrees.
Unfreeze vs Refreeze
Unfreeze: the stage in Lewin's model in which employees are persuaded that the present way of working is no longer adequate, so they become willing to give it up. Refreeze: The stage in Lewin's model in which the new way of working is established as the normal routine, reinforced through procedures, training and rewards so that people do not revert.
Questions from this topic
Each one with the model answer underneath.
- 1
What is meant by change in a business context?
Model answer
Change is any alteration to the way a business operates, is structured or is owned, whether it arises from within the firm or is forced on it from outside.
- 2
Distinguish between internal and external causes of change.
Model answer
Internal causes arise from decisions and events inside the business, while external causes come from the market or wider environment and are largely outside its control.
- 3
State four internal causes of change.
Model answer
A new owner or chief executive, a decision to expand or restructure, the introduction of new technology, and the launch of a new product.
- 4
Explain how a change of leadership causes wider change in a business.
Model answer
A new chief executive brings different priorities and ways of working, and usually reorganises structures, targets and sometimes the senior team to match them.
- 5
Explain how growth in size forces internal change.
Model answer
As a business grows the owner can no longer supervise everything personally, so formal structures, delegation and written procedures have to be introduced.
- 6
State four external causes of change.
Model answer
New competitors entering the market, changes in consumer tastes, new legislation, and shifts in the economy such as recession or inflation.
What is inside Levo
Six ways to work the same material.
Managing Change and Risk revision questions
- What does Managing Change and Risk cover in WJEC A-Level Business?
- 13 subtopics: internal and external causes of change, planned and unplanned change, the effects of change on a business, managing change effectively, storey's four approaches to managing change, resistance to change, lewin's three step process, organisational culture and leadership in change, evaluating the management of change, the risks a business faces, risk assessment and preventative action, insurable and uninsurable risks and contingency planning and crisis management. Each one has its own page with questions and model answers.
- How is Managing Change and Risk organised?
- By the WJEC 601-5238-2 specification, subtopic by subtopic, so it matches the order you are taught it in.
Every question in Managing Change and Risk, 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.
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