Business Studies:Single

Course summary

The six AS units are: - Why businesses exist, business objectives and different business forms. - Managers, leadership and decision making – what management do, leadership styles, management decision making and stakeholders. - Performance – marketing objectives, primary and secondary research, segmentation, target markets, the marketing mix. - Decision making to improve operational performance – operational objectives, analysing operational performance, improving quality, increasing efficiency and labour productivity - Decision making to improve financial performance – financial objectives, budgeting, breakeven, cash flow, profitability, sources of finance. - Decision making to improve human resource performance – training, ethical and environmental influences, market conditions, improving motivation. The four other units which students study for the whole A level are: - Analysing the strategic position of a business – SWOT analysis, strategy and tactics, internal and external influences on corporate objectives, assessing short term and long term performance, political and legal issues. - Choosing strategic direction – Ansoff matrix, strategic positioning, and difficulties of maintaining competitive advantage. - Strategic methods: how to pursue strategies – how to manage and overcome problems of growth or retrenchment, assessing methods of growth, assessing innovation, assessing use of digital technology. - Managing strategic change – managing organisational culture, pressures of change, barriers to change, managing strategic implementation, why strategies fail.