Business Theory

Opportunities in the business environment are those factors that provide possibilities for a business to expand so as to make more sales and profits....

For centuries Britain has been a country that relies on international trade. We purchase goods and services from other countries and in return, we...

Big businesses command a lot of power and are able to choose between working in a way that benefits only the owners, and in...

Consumer protection is the process of defending consumers against unscrupulous practices by producers and sellers. Over time, case law in this country has developed...

Three main sets of decisions need to be made by the economic system - what to produce, how to produce, and how to share...

Businesses operate in an external environment in which as well as competition from rivals businesses have to take into account legal, political, social and...

Two of the most important financial statements for a business are the Profit and Loss Account, and the Balance Sheet. The Profit and Loss...

A budget is a plan, which is set out in numbers. It sets out figures that an organisation like a company hopes to achieve...

Sales of products will eventually decline, as outlined in the four stage product life cycle. Businesses will often attempt to phase out existing products...

Insurance is the business of taking on other people's risks. The UK lies at the heart of the world's insurance market. We were one...

The profit of a business is the difference between its revenues and its costs. It is important to consider two main types of profit: 1.Gross...

An old proverb says 'he who fails to plan, plans to fail'. Although not originally quoted in a business context it certainly holds true....

Market planning is the process of developing and implementing a plan to identify, anticipate and satisfy consumer demand, in such a way as to...

Demand and supply for goods and services The demand for a product is the quantity that buyers will be willing to purchase at a given...

Methods of analysing marketing opportunities involves collecting, recording and making sense of all the available information which will help a business unit to understand...

Marketing and the business environment demand the identification and understanding of target markets. These are highly dynamic: expanding and contracting, shifting in new directions...

A marketing strategy is an overall marketing plan designed to meet the needs and requirements of customers. The plan should be based on clear...

When looking at the marketing model people often get confused between the marketing of a product and the selling of a product. Marketing is...

Technology is the process of applying the finding of science and other forms of enquiry to applied situations. Production technology, therefore, involves applying the...

Production is the functional area responsible for turning inputs into finished outputs through a series of production processes. The Production Manager is responsible for...

The location of a business is where it is situated e.g. in Central London, Silicon Valley, etc. Where to locate a business is a...

Responsible production involves the production of goods and services in an ethical way which involves the minimisation of waste and pollution. In the past...

The chain of production consists of the various stages involved in the production of a particular product. The chain of production for furniture may include...

Operating activities (or operations) are the ongoing activities that a business is involved in - e.g. processing a customer's order in an Argos store,...

Directors, Managers and Supervisors all have responsibilities in the workplace as do grass root operatives. Directors are individuals with a legal responsibility to the...

Disputes between employers and employees (and/or their representatives) usually occur when all the available channels of discussion and negotiation have been tried. Reasons for...

Recruitment is the process of identifying that the organisation needs to employ someone up to the point at which application forms for the post...

Remuneration (pay), incentives (such as bonus payments) and job satisfaction are all important in creating motivation at work. Remuneration and incentives The sum paid for a...

Disputes between employers and employees (and/or their representatives) usually occur when all the available channels of discussion and negotiation have been tried. Reasons for...

Businesses need to make choices when recruiting staff and when choosing staff for training or promotion opportunities. Choosing one potential candidate over another is...

Business activity is focused on the achievement of business aims and business objectives. A business aim is a goal a business wants to achieve. A...

Plans are developed in order to set out a route map to help in achieving objectives. Whilst the plan is made by managers with...

Organisations are structured in radically different ways ranging from relatively fixed structures with positions, rules, and established chains of communication to dynamic structures in...

An organisation is a decision-making unit that sets out to achieve particular business objectives. A business organisation will produce a product or service that...

Management accounting uses financial information in order to enable better decision making within the organisation. The format and content of management accounts will depend...

Businesses require inputs of time, information, people, raw material, premises, capital, labour and paperwork. You can see from this list that considerable managerial skills...