aqa a level business knowledge book

AQA A LEVEL BUSINESS

Student Name:

KNOWLEDGE BOOK

2 AQA A Level Business Knowledge Book Not to be photocopied

Contents3.1 What is Business?

3.2 Managers, Leadership & Decision Making

3.3 Decision Making to Improve Marketing Performance

3.4 Decision Making to Improve Operational Performance

3.5 Decision Making to Improve Financial Performance

3.6 Decision Making to Improve Human Resource Performance

3.7 Analysing the Strategic Position of a Business

3.8 Choosing Strategic Direction

3.9 Choosing Strategic Methods: How to Pursue Strategies

3.10 Managing Strategic Change

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3-8

9-13

14-22

23-29

30-35

36-42

43-54

55-58

59-67

68-75

About this book The tutor2u AQA A Level Business Knowledge Book provides a comprehensive series of structured, step by step activities designed to equip students with the essential knowledge they need for their AQA A Level Business exams.

By working systematically through the book, students will be able to identify gaps in their own knowledge, whilst building awareness of specialist terminology and familiarity with key concepts, models and theories which are crucial to exam success.

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Section 3.1 WHAT IS BUSINESS? THIS SECTION OF THE SPECIFICATION COVERS: q Understanding the nature and purpose of business q Understanding different business forms q Understanding that businesses operate within an external environment 0 1 GIVE ME THREE…

Business objectives:

1

2

3

Reasons why businesses set objectives:

1

2

3

Reasons why a business has a mission statement:

1

2

3

Examples of variable costs and fixed costs:

VARIABLE COSTS FIXED COSTS

1

2

3


0 2 WHAT IS MEANT BY? Write a definition for the following key terms:

DECISION TREE

UNCERTAINTY

OPPORTUNITY COST

0 3 WHAT’S THE FORMULA?

Write down the formula for calculating:

DECISION TREES: EXPECTED VALUE DECISION TREES: NET GAIN

0 4 BENEFITS AND DRAWBACKS Identify two benefits and two drawbacks of making decisions based on:

DATA (SCIENTIFIC DECISION-MAKING)

BENEFITS DRAWBACKS

INTUITION (HUNCH)

BENEFITS DRAWBACKS


Section 3.3 DECISION MAKING TO IMPROVE MARKETNG PERFORMANCE THIS SECTION OF THE SPECIFICATION COVERS: q Setting marketing objectives q Understanding markets and customers q Making marketing decisions: segmentation, targeting, positioning q Making marketing decisions: using the marketing mix 0 1 GIVE ME THREE…

Marketing objectives:

1

2

3

Internal and external influences on marketing objectives:

INTERNAL INFLUENCES EXTERNAL INFLUENCES

1

2

3

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BOSTON PRODUCT MATRIX

1 4 TELL ME The value to a business of:

BRANDING

PRODUCT PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS

THE PRODUCT LIFE CYCLE

NEW PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT

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0 2 WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE? What’s the difference between:

PROFIT AND PROFITABILITY

PROFIT AND CASH FLOW

CAPITAL STRUCTURE AND CAPITAL INVESTMENT


ADVERSE VARIANCES FAVOURABLE VARIANCES

BUDGET BREAK-EVEN


BUDGETING

BREAK-EVEN ANALYSIS


0 5 LABEL THE DIAGRAM Complete the diagram:

BREAK-EVEN CHART

0 6 WHAT’S THE FORMULA? Write the formula for calculating:

BREAK-EVEN OUTPUT CONTRIBUTION PER UNIT

MARGIN OF SAFETY TOTAL CONTRIBUTION

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0 7 GIVE ME THREE… Ways of reducing the break-even output of a business:

1

2

3

0 8 WHAT’S THE FORMULA?

Write down the formula for calculating:

GROSS PROFIT GROSS PROFIT MARGIN

PROFIT FROM OPERATIONS PROFIT FROM OPERATIONS MARGIN

PROFIT FOR THE YEAR PROFIT FOR THE YEAR MARGIN

RETURN ON INVESTMENT


1 0 GIVE ME THREE… Benefits of having motivated and engaged employees:

1

2

3

1 1 LABEL THE DIAGRAM Complete the diagram for Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs below, AND identify a way in which a business can achieve each level:

MASLOW’S HIERARCHY OF NEEDS


TAYLOR & MASLOW’S APPROACH TO MOTIVATING EMPLOYEES

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HERZBERG’S HYGIENE AND MOTIVATING FACTORS

1 3 TELL ME The value of theories of motivation:

1 4 IDENTIFY Identify three methods of financial and non-financial motivation:

METHODS OF FINANCIAL MOTIVATION

1

2

3

METHODS OF NON-FINANCIAL MOTIVATION

1

2

3


1 5 INFUENCES ON Identify two influences on:

CHOICE OF FINANCIAL MOTIVATION CHOICE OF NON-FINANCIAL MOTIVATION

1

2

1 6 LIST Two ways to manage and improve employer-employee relations:

1

2


TRADE UNION WORKS COUNCIL


GOOD EMPLOYEE / EMPLOYER RELATIONS


1 5 LABEL THE DIAGRAM Label the diagram below of Bartlett and Ghoshal’s Model of International Strategy:

BARTLETT & GHOSHAL’S MODEL OF INTERNATIONAL STRATEGY

1 6 FOUR FUNCTIONAL AREAS Identify one impact of internationalisation on each of the following four functional areas:

MARKETING HUMAN RESOURCES

OPERATIONS FINANCE

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1 7 WHAT IS MEANT BY? Write a definition for the following terms:

E-COMMERCE BIG DATA

DATA MINING ENTERPRISE RESOURCE PLANNING

1 8 TELL ME One reason why a business may be under pressure to adopt digital technology:

The value of digital technology to a business:

1 9 FOUR FUNCTIONAL AREAS Identify one impact of digital technology on each of the following four functional areas:

MARKETING HUMAN RESOURCES

OPERATIONS FINANCE


Section 3.10 MANAGING STRATEGIC CHANGE THIS SECTION OF THE SPECIFICATION COVERS: q Managing change q Managing organisational culture q Managing strategic implementation q Problems with strategy and why strategies fail

0 1 GIVE ME THREE…

Types of change:

1

2

3

Types of flexible organisation:

1

2

3

0 2 WHAT IS MEANT BY? In relation to Lewin’s Force Field Analysis model, define:

DRIVING FORCES RESTRAINING FORCES

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0 3 BENEFITS AND DRAWBACKS Identify two benefits and two drawbacks of:

DELAYERING

BENEFITS DRAWBACKS

FLEXIBLE EMPLOYMENT CONTRACTS

BENEFITS DRAWBACKS


ORGANIIC STRUCTURES AND MECHANISTIC STRUCTURES

KNOWLEDGE AND INFORMATION


0 5 TELL ME The value of change to a business:

The value of a flexible organisation:

0 6 STATE State Kotter and Schlesinger’s four reasons for resistance to change and the six ways of overcoming resistance to change:

REASONS FOR RESISTING CHANGE WAYS OF OVERCOMING RESISTANCE TO CHANGE

1. 1.

2. 2.

3. 3.

4. 4.

5.

6.

0 7 STATE Handy’s 4 classifications of organisational culture:

1

2

3

4

aqa a level business knowledge book

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