Business Studies

Department Aims:

• To equip young people with the necessary skills and personal qualities to enter the world of work as independent, reflective, life long learners and well rounded human beings;
• To provide a first class education for every young person through access to a broad, balanced and relevant curriculum which meets the changing demands of life and work in the 21st Century.
• To personalise learning to match  the needs, abilities and aspirations of all students, providing routes of progression into employment, training and further and higher education

Key Stage 4

At GCSE you study the following:-

The Business Environment

'The Business Environment' means

the environment in which all businesses operate and make their
decisions; This includes the interdependence of all businesses and the implication
of this for the way they operate.
Candidates should be able to:

• demonstrate understanding of wants in relation to scarce
  resources, and how they lead to the need for choice and hence the demand for goods and services;
• understand how wants can be satisfied through the supply of
  goods and services;
• demonstrate understanding of the terms specialisation, trade and
  exchange and how interdependence arises from them;
• demonstrate understanding of the concept of opportunity cost;
• understand differences between planned, market and mixed
  economies;
• demonstrate understanding of primary, secondary and tertiary
  sectors and the flow of activity between them;
• demonstrate understanding of the factors that influence the
  location of industry, such as tradition, demography and
  infrastructure;
• demonstrate understanding of the effect of external decisions,
  legislation and policies on business, including the impact of local
  and central government, public ownership and privatisation, and
  the European Union;
• demonstrate understanding of the impact of economic, social,
  environmental and technological effects on influencing business
  decisions;
• demonstrate an understanding of the impact on business of the
  growth of the use of the internet and e-commerce on;
• appreciate the importance of support and advisory services
  available to business, for example, trade associations, Chambers of
  Commerce and government agencies;
• demonstrate how business can be affected by moral, ethical, social,
  cultural and health and safety issues;
• demonstrate an awareness of how business behaviour is influenced
  by the degree of competition in the market.

There are a number of websites that can be accessed to obtain up-to-date
information to support the course. They include:

www.bized.ac.uk . (An excellent general site with some material on
specific businesses);
www.enterprisezone.org.uk . (A gateway site with information on
business legislation and regulations);
www.europa.eu.int . (An extensive site with information on how the
EU affects business);
www.us.kpmg.com/ethics . (Part of the KPMG site dedicated to
business ethics.)

Business Structure,Control and Organisation

'Business Structure,Control and Organisation' means

The various ways in which businesses may be organised and the
appropriateness of each to different circumstances.  it includes the objectives of
firms and the way in which they organise themselves to meet them, and
how the structure and organisation of business affect, and are affected
by, the business environment, eg government policy.

You will be assessed on your ability to:

• demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the aims and
  objectives of business (the criteria for judging success, for
  example, profitability, wealth creation, job creation and market
  share, should be considered from all stakeholders. perspectives);
• demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the different aims,
  objectives, forms of ownership, funding and liability of business
  organisations;
• understand how ownership, finance and control can become
  separated where liability is limited;
• understand the relationship between growth and objectives;
• understand how firms grow, diversification, integration; the effects
  of growth, economies and diseconomies of scale;
• demonstrate understanding of the nature of organisations, eg
  functional, product, geographical, centralised and decentralised;
• demonstrate understanding of the relationship between size, risk
  and profit. Candidates should appreciate the possible impact of
  changes in size on the business and its stakeholders, eg suppliers,
  shareholders, customers and competitors.
          
  Many of the banks have websites on business finance. It is possible to
  download business plans from various locations including
  www.3i.co.uk/ which also has case study material on starting and
  growing a business and the Business Bureau at
  www.u-net.com/bureau (This Includes a section on forming a limited company).
  Another interesting site is www.bnet.co.uk/ with more case studies
  and a free subscription for students.

Organising to Achieve Objectives

This unit focuses on how businesses attempt to realise their objectives in an ever-changing business environment and how the functions of marketing, production
and financial accounting are deployed to assist businesses achieve their
objectives.

Marketing Candidates should be able to:

• appreciate the importance of market research in identifying
  markets and market segments at home and abroad, and evaluate
  the suitability of the method by which the market research is
  undertaken;
• apply techniques of market research within a range of simple
  contexts;
• show understanding of the importance of the marketing mix and
  describe the principal methods of marketing;
• show an understanding of the international dimension, particularly
  in the context of the European Union, and the impact of
  currencies;
• demonstrate understanding of the product life cycle and the way it
  influences marketing strategy;
• understand the role of distribution, in taking the product to the
  consumer, and the changing nature of the channels of distribution.

Production Candidates should be able to:

• demonstrate understanding of the relationship between marketing,
  product development and production and the importance of
  quality and quality assurance;
• understand the distinction between market and product
  orientation;
• demonstrate understanding of the main ways in which production
  may be organised, including specialisation and the division of
  labour and how production may be improved through lean
  production techniques, automation and new technology;
• demonstrate awareness of how production can influence
  companies. location.

Accounting and Finance Candidates are assessed on their ability to:

• demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the sources, uses
   and management of finance;
• demonstrate understanding of the nature and importance of
  financial and budgetary control, for example, stock control, cash
  flow forecasting.

There are various sites that can be accessed to provide material to
support teaching and research in these sections of the specification.

For Example
There are many on-line company reports accessible via
www.carol.co.uk and through www.bized.ac.uk which allow students
to analyse sources of company finance and accounts. There is also
Interactive Finance and Accounts CD ROM which allows students to
construct their own simple accounts.

There is a wealth of
material on marketing: a useful source of up-to-date material is
www.mad.co.uk/mw which is the Marketing Weekly magazine
on-line. Other sites include www.marketingcouncil.org and
www.dit.gov.uk/ots/emic for information on marketing overseas.

People in Organisations

'People in Organisations' examines
the different roles, aspirations and vested interests of people who
represent companies. stakeholders. How businesses attempt to
reconcile the conflicts of interest between groups to ensure the
efficient operation of the organisation.
You will be assessed on your ability to:

• distinguish between different types of roles in an organisation, for
   example, employee, manager and shareholder;
• demonstrate understanding of internal organisation structures,
  organisation trees, layers of management, hierarchies; delegation
  the span of control; channels of communication; the
  interdependence and specialisation of departments and why
  structures reflect the objectives of the business and facilitate
  decision-making;
• demonstrate knowledge and understanding of roles, relationships
  and management in business; (Where appropriate, such knowledge
  and understanding should be related to the structure, organisation
  and control of the main forms of business. Suitable subjects for
  investigation include recruitment, motivation, training and
  communication.)
• understand the process of personnel recruitment and appointment;
• understand the different forms and methods of remuneration,
  financial and non-financial motivators and benefits, working
  conditions and job satisfaction;
• demonstrate a basic awareness of motivation/management
  theorists, such as Maslow, Mayo and Taylor;
• understand the reasons for training and the benefits of training to
  employers and employees, the role of government in training and
  retraining;
• demonstrate awareness of the impact of groups that are able to
  influence business decisions, for example, consumers, pressure
  groups, trade unions;
• demonstrate awareness of the impact of consumer protection and
   health and safety regulations;
• demonstrate understanding of the need for effective
  communication in business;
• demonstrate understanding of the various methods of
  communication and suitable methods for internal and external
  situations;
• evaluate the ways in which developments in modern technology
  have affected the stakeholders of an organisation, for example, its
  impact on communication and employment.

There are a number of websites that can be accessed for information
on People in Organisations. The site
www.peoplemanagement.co.uk has links to many sites on human
resources issues, www.iipuk.uk is the site for Investors in People
with several case studies on its work in business organisations and
www.ipd.co.uk is the site for the Institute of Personnel and
Development. Many trade unions also have their own sites, which can be
found by entering their names into a search engine such as Excite or
Yahoo.

Key Stage 5

The following units are studied in GCE Applied Business Studies:-
 
Unit 1: Investigating People at Work

Unit aims

The main aim of this unit is to introduce students to the world of business and to the world of work. It focuses on how and why people work in all forms of business, public and private sector, primary secondary and tertiary, profit and none-profit. The unit aims to help students appreciate the nature and variety of what we call 'business' in the UK economy and how this variety has been created and extended as a result of the many different aims and objectives that businesses have in practice. The unit also seeks to encourage learners to explore the business world as represented by the range of local, national and international businesses with which students come into contact.

Many learners will already have some experience of employment and will therefore be partly aware of the procedures involved in obtaining work and in developing their work-related skills. The unit aims to explore the relationship between and the interdependence of, people and businesses. It examines how businesses obtain appropriate staff and how they motivate these staff. The unit, by recognising that there are other influences on people at work, aims to explore these other issues.

The unit is assessed by examination.

Unit Topics

Business Aims, Objectives and Organisation;
How Businesses Obtain Employees;
How Businesses Motivate Employees;
How People are Influenced at Work.

Unit 2: Investigating Business

Unit aims

The main aim of this unit is for students, individually and in groups, to explore how businesses plan their activities and manage their resources. The unit is designed to help students to develop a clear understanding of how and why businesses operate in different ways and how effective these businesses are in using their financial, ICT and other resources to achieve their aims and objectives.

The unit is assessed through students investigating the setting up of a small business. Through undertaking this assessment task, students are will be able to demonstrate their knowledge and understanding of the unit topics of business planning, managing and resourcing. They will link and integrate these topics and will also have the opportunity to reflect on and assess their own (individual and/or team) performances.

Unit Topics

• Business Planning
• Managing Business Activities
• Financial Management in Business
• The Use of Software to Aid Decision-Making.

Unit 3: Investigating Marketing

Unit aims

The main aim of this unit is for students to unsderstand the importance of marketing in the success of modern organisations. The unit covers the basic established theoretical concepts underpinning marketing management. It looks at how theory is applied in practice, focusing on the commercial (private) sector. The unit also looks at the role of marketing theory in planning and methods of collecting marketing research data.

At the end of this unit, the students should be able to analyse a given market situation and apply that analysis to an assessment of the effectiveness or otherwise of particular marketing campaigns.

Unit topics

Identifying Marketing Aims and Objectives
Using Appropriate Methods of Market Research
Choosing an Appropriate Marketing Mix
Other Factors Influencing the Marketing Mix.

Unit 8: Business Development

Unit aims

The main aim of this unit is for the learners to understand the importance of planned development for continued success. It allows learners to examine how a business idea can be managed through the various planning and development stages into a workable form with a realistic chance of future growth.
It encourages students to think carefully about issues such as competition, legal status and quality as well as requiring a full consideration of human resources. Financial considerations underpin the unit and students will need to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of all aspects from raising initial capital through budgeting to cash flow forecasts, projected profit and loss accounts and start-up balance sheets. A major element concerns the feasibility and realism of the intended development and students learn how to evaluate and examine the longer-term prospects for the intended business.

Unit Topics

• The business idea;
• Resource and quality issues;
• Financial resources;
• Feasibility and evaluation.

Unit 9: Managing and Developing People

Unit Aims

The main aim of this unit is to investigate the management, training, development and motivation of individuals within organisations. A well-managed, trained and motivated workforce is more likely to be effective and ensure the long-term success of a business. Students research and comment upon factors that motivate individuals and the appropriateness of different management styles dependent upon the circumstances. The work of relevant motivational theorists is examined and applied both to case study material and to businesses of which the student has personal knowledge, either through their own work experience or research. Conflicts of objectives between those of management and those of individuals arise in all aspects of the business process. This has particular impact on motivation, in terms of the conflict between meeting a business objective, such as cutting costs, and those of the individual in terms of, for example, job security, status, maintaining favourable working conditions or career progression. The effectiveness of team and group working in different situations is looked at. Students encouraged to understand that training and development methods necessarily vary according to the skills being developed and existing levels of expertise are encouraged to apply their knowledge of training methods appropriately. The vocational nature of this unit will be developed through learners' own experiences in the workplace and their career aspirations.

Unit Topics

• Motivation; 
•  Teams;
• Managing People;
• Developing People;
• Personal Development Plan;
• Skills Audit.

Unit 10: Marketing Decisions

Unit aims

This unit aims to introduce learners to the way that businesses establish their marketing strategy, how they plan and measure marketing activity and to the business decisions that need to be made as part of the planning process.

Students learn about the type of decisions that have to be made to bring a product to market and how these decisions contribute to overall marketing plans. In addition to being introduced to a range of different marketing strategies and marketing planning tools, students are encouraged to use these tools to investigate real marketing campaigns and draw conclusions about the effectiveness of the underlying marketing decisions.

This unit provides students with an understanding of marketing research, how it can inform the decision-making process, how it can be undertaken and how research can provide an objective measure of the effectiveness of marketing activity.

This unit encourages students to look at as many and as wide a range of real marketing campaigns as possible and to draw conclusions about the effectiveness of the underlying marketing decisions based on what they will be learning from this unit. This unit encourages students to make contact with real businesses engaged in marketing activities. By doing this students should be able to see how the principles and processes they have learned from this unit are applied to the real world.

The main aim of this unit is to prepare students for the external assessment which will relate directly to what they should have learned as a result of the activities they have carried out as part of their work for this unit.

Unit Topics

• Influences on marketing decisions;
• Marketing decisions and the planning process;
• Research to inform marketing decisions;
• Investigating marketing campaigns.

Department Staff

Miss J Siddall - Curriculum Leader ICT and Business Studies

Miss F Wilkinsion - Assistant Curriculum Leader

Mr E Williams