Business Studies

Financial business objectives: survival, profit, sales, market share, financial security

Non-financial business objectives: social aims, satisfaction, challenge, independence, control

Why business objectives change as a business evolves

Sole traders: key features, pros and cons

Partnerships: key features, pros and cons

Private limited companies: key features, pros and cons

Public limited companies: key features, pros and cons

Public corporations: reasons for and against public ownership

Risk, ownership and limited liability: what they mean in practice

Ownership vs control in different business forms

Stakeholders and shareholders: who they are and why they matter

Choosing the most appropriate form of ownership for a business scenario

Franchises: what they are and why firms use them

Social enterprises: purpose and how they operate

Multinationals: what they are and why firms become multinationals

Primary sector: what it is, typical businesses and examples

Secondary sector: what it is, typical businesses and examples

Tertiary sector: what it is, typical businesses and examples

Location factors: proximity to market, labour, materials and competitors

Location decisions and relocation: how business activity affects the decision

Impact of the internet on location: e-commerce vs fixed premises

Location and the external environment: legal controls and trade blocs

Globalisation: what it is and why it happens

Globalisation: opportunities and threats for businesses

Multinationals: benefits to the business

Multinationals: benefits to a host country/economy

Multinationals: possible drawbacks to a host country/economy

Exchange rates: calculating exchange rates (worked method)

Exchange rates: impact on international competitiveness

Exchange rates: impact on importers and exporters

Government spending: why governments spend and limits on spending

How government affects business activity: infrastructure provision

How government affects business activity: legislation

Trade policy: trading blocs and tariffs

Interest rates: effects on businesses

Interest rates: effects on consumer spending

External factors: social influences on business decisions

External factors: technological influences on business decisions

External factors: environmental influences on business decisions

External factors: political influences on business decisions

Measuring business success: revenue

Measuring business success: market share

Measuring business success: customer satisfaction

Measuring business success: profit

Measuring business success: growth

Measuring business success: owner/shareholder satisfaction

Measuring business success: employee satisfaction

Reasons for business failure: cash flow problems and lack of finance

Reasons for business failure: not competitive

Reasons for business failure: failure to adapt to market changes

Why effective communication matters in business

Internal communication: purposes and examples

External communication: purposes and examples

Communication methods (including IT): choosing the right method

Benefits and limitations of different communication methods

How communication barriers arise

Problems caused by ineffective communication

How to remove communication barriers

Types of employment: full-time and part-time

Types of employment: flexitime and zero-hours contracts

Types of employment: job share

Types of employment: casual, seasonal and temporary

Recruitment documents: job description

Recruitment documents: person specification

Recruitment documents: application form

Recruitment documents: CV/résumé

Internal recruitment: advantages and disadvantages

External recruitment: advantages and disadvantages

Recruitment process: job advertisement

Recruitment process: shortlisting

Recruitment process: interviewing

Legal controls: equal opportunities (protected characteristics)

Legal controls: minimum wage laws and their effects

Why training matters for the business and for workers

Induction training: purpose and examples

On-the-job training: purpose, benefits and limitations

Off-the-job training: purpose, benefits and limitations

Training and compliance with health and safety laws

Motivation: why it matters (attracting, retaining, productivity)

Taylor’s view of motivation (scientific management)

Maslow’s hierarchy of needs (workplace application)

Herzberg’s two-factor theory (workplace application)

Financial motivation: remuneration

Financial motivation: bonus and commission

Financial motivation: promotion and fringe benefits

Non-financial motivation: job rotation and job enrichment

Non-financial motivation: autonomy

Organisational structures: hierarchical vs flat

Organisational structures: centralised vs decentralised

Span of control: what it is and why it matters

Chain of command: what it is and why it matters

Delegation: what it is and when it works well

Functional areas: human resources (what HR does)

Functional areas: finance (what the finance function does)

Functional areas: marketing (what the marketing function does)

Functional areas: production/operations (what operations does)

Why businesses need finance: short-term needs

Why businesses need finance: long-term needs

Finance for start-up vs finance for expansion

Internal finance: personal savings

Internal finance: retained profit

Internal finance: selling assets

External finance: overdrafts and trade payables

External finance: loans (loan capital)

External finance: share capital and stock market flotation

External finance: venture capital

External finance: crowdfunding

Why cash is vital: paying suppliers, overheads and employees

Cash vs profit: spotting the difference in exam questions

Cash-flow forecasts: cash inflows

Cash-flow forecasts: cash outflows

Cash-flow forecasts: net cash flow

Cash-flow forecasts: opening and closing balances

Interpreting a cash-flow forecast to identify problems and solutions

Revenue: what it is and how to calculate it

Fixed costs vs variable costs (with business examples)

Total costs: how to calculate and interpret

Profit and loss: calculating profit and understanding losses

Break-even: what it means for a business

Break-even output: calculating using a formula

Break-even output: finding it from a break-even diagram

Interpreting break-even charts: margin of safety and profit/loss areas

Break-even changes: impact of changing revenue

Break-even changes: impact of changing costs

Limitations of break-even charts: why results aren’t always reliable

Statement of comprehensive income: what it is used for

Income statement features: sales, cost of sales and gross profit

Income statement features: expenses and operating profit

Using an income statement for decision making (no construction)

Profit: what it is, why it matters, and how it differs from revenue

Statement of financial position: what it is used for

Balance sheet features: current and non-current assets

Balance sheet features: current and non-current liabilities

Capital employed: what it represents

Interpreting a statement of financial position (no construction)

Gross profit margin: calculating and interpreting

Operating profit margin: calculating and interpreting

Markup: calculating and interpreting

ROCE: calculating and interpreting

Current ratio: calculating and interpreting

Acid test ratio: calculating and interpreting

Liquidity: what it means and why it matters

Comparing ratios over time and against other businesses

Using financial documents to assess performance and make decisions

Why businesses do market research: needs, gaps, risk reduction, decisions

Primary research: surveys

Primary research: questionnaires

Primary research: focus groups

Primary research: observation

Primary research: test marketing

Secondary research: internet sources (benefits and risks)

Secondary research: market reports

Secondary research: government reports

Qualitative vs quantitative data in market research

Using social media to collect market research data

Reliability of market research data: bias, sample size, outdated data

Why marketing matters: satisfying customer needs

Building customer relationships and customer loyalty

Market orientation vs product orientation

Market share: meaning and basic analysis

Niche marketing vs mass marketing

Responding to changing customer needs

Responding to changing customer/consumer spending patterns

Responding to increased competition

Market segmentation: why businesses segment markets

Segmenting by location: geographic segmentation

Segmenting by demographics

Segmenting by lifestyle: psychographic segmentation

Segmenting by income

Segmenting by age

Targeting: choosing a segment and justifying the choice

Product: developing a new product or service

Goods vs services: key differences for marketing decisions

Packaging: why it matters (protection, branding, information)

Product life cycle: the main stages

Product life cycle: extension strategies (how firms extend sales)

Managing a product portfolio: Boston Matrix basics

Price: cost-plus pricing

Price: penetration pricing

Price: competition pricing

Price: price skimming

Price: promotional pricing

Place: distribution channels and choosing methods of distribution

Retailers as a distribution channel

E-tailers and e-commerce as a distribution channel

Promotion strategies: advertising

Promotion strategies: sponsorship

Promotion strategies: product trials and special offers

Promotion strategies: branding as promotion

Above-the-line vs below-the-line promotion

Public relations: improving company image and brand

Technology in promotion: targeted online advertising

Technology in promotion: viral advertising via social media

Technology in promotion: e-newsletters

Brands: why branding is valuable to a business

Economies of scale: what they are and why average costs fall

Internal economies of scale: examples (purchasing, technical, managerial, financial)

External economies of scale: what they are and examples

Diseconomies of scale: what they are and why growth can create problems

Limits of growth: when bigger stops being better

Production methods: job production

Production methods: batch production

Production methods: flow production

Labour-intensive vs capital-intensive production: how to tell the difference

Choosing a production method: impact on cost, quality and flexibility

Productivity: what it is and how to calculate it

Productivity improvements: how higher productivity affects a business

Lean production: what it is and why it matters

Just-in-time (JIT): how it works and risks

Kaizen: continuous improvement in practice

Using resources effectively: reducing waste and improving efficiency

Technology in production: robotics and automation

Balancing cost, productivity, quality and flexibility in operations decisions

Factors of production: enterprise (role of the entrepreneur)

Factors of production: land, labour and capital (roles and examples)

Changing relationships between enterprise, capital, land and labour

Quality: what “quality” means for goods and services

Quality control: how it works and when it’s used

Total quality management (TQM): whole-business approach to quality

Quality and competitive advantage: why quality can help win customers

What Paper 1 tests: investigating small businesses (using context)

What Paper 2 tests: investigating large businesses (using context)

Using data and information sources to support analysis and judgement

Command words: calculate, analyse, discuss, evaluate (what each needs)

Building strong evaluation: balanced arguments and justified decision

Full marks on calculations: show workings, state units, clear answers