Business

The business world places a high value on entrepreneurial skills.

Studying Business allows students to acquire valuable skills which can be transferred into the workplace such as research skills, the ability to communicate effectively as part of a team, independent working and how to analyse feedback and be self-critical in their work.  Since the courses contain an equal balance of coursework and examined units, students will also learn to be resilient by taking on board constructive criticism and acting upon it. Effective time management is key to achieving in this subject. 

KS3-4 Pathways (Southfield)  
KS4-5 Pathways (Southfield) OCR Cambridge Technicals Level 3 Extended Certificate in Business 05835    
KS5- Higher & Further Education
Pathways		 Business Studies degree, Business, Management and Administration Studies degree, Accounting & Finance degree, Accountancy foundation/degree,  Business Analytics degree, Economics degree
Careers  Marketing, Customer Service, Human Resource Management, Buyer, Project Management, International Business, Accountancy. The variety of topics complement a broad range of job roles, as well as giving a good overview of how businesses tick from both the employer's and employee's perspective
KS4 Specification links  OCR Cambridge Nationals L1/2 Enterprise & Marketing J819:                                                                                                                          https://www.ocr.org.uk/qualifications/cambridge-nationals/enterprise-and-marketing-level-1-and-2-certificate-j819/
KS5 Specification links OCR Cambridge Technicals Level 3 Extended Certificate in Business 05835:                                                                                                https://www.ocr.org.uk/qualifications/cambridge-technicals/business/#level-3
Year 10

Unit 1 -  Enterprise and Marketing Concepts (Part 1: R064)

Key questions/concepts

  • Why do businesses segment the market?

  • Why is it important to use a range of primary and research methods to find out the target market's wants and needs?

  • How/why do businesses get feedback on a product/service from customers?

  • How do businesses decide on the price to charge for their product?

  • Why is it important for a business to know how many products to make in order to start to make a profit?

  • What risks do businesses face from outside the business when making new products?

  • What types of ownership are appropriate for a start up business?

  • Where do new businesses get their money from to cover their start up costs?

  • How can businesses attract new customers and keep existing ones?

  • Why is it important for businesses to plan their future?

  • What are the main functional areas in a business?

Timeframe

  • September - July (external assessment in May/June of Year 11)

Key vocabulary

 Word/phrase  Definition
Market Eegmentation Dividing the market into different categories e.g. by age, so that they can be targeted for a product/service.
Revenue Money coming into the business (income).
Costs Money going out of the business (payments).
Customer Profile A description of your 'ideal' customer by age, gender, location, income, occupation, lifestyle.
Break Even The point where revenue is equal to costs - no profit and no loss is being made.

Wider reading

  • Cambridge National Level 1/2 Enterprise and Marketing, Bayley T et al, Hodder Education 2019

  • www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize

  • Cambridge National Level 1/2 Enterprise and Marketing Student Textbook, Bayley T et al, Hodder Education 2019

 

Unit 2 - Design a Business Proposal (Coursework Based)

Key questions/concepts

  • Designing a product for a specific business idea: How will you decide to segment your market?

  • What primary and secondary market research techniques will you use?  What are the advantages and disadvantages of the different methods?

  • What will your product look like?   How can you use the S.C.A.M.P.E.R model to improve your design?

  • How will you calculate costs of production to suit your chosen product?   What pricing strategies will you use to attract your target market? Do you know how much profit you will make?

  • How many products will you need to make to break even? How will changing price affect the break even point?

  • What risks will your business face when creating your new product?

  • Is your new product idea worth going ahead with from a financial point of view?

Timeframe

  • September - June (External moderation in June of Year 11)

Key vocabulary

 Word/phrase  Definition
 Primary Research   (Also known as Field Research) Research carried out first hand, using questions to meet the needs of a specific business.
Secondary Research   (Also known as Desk Research) Research that has already been carried out by others e.g. Government census.
S.C.A.M.P.E.R Model    The point where revenue is equal to costs - no profit and no loss is being made.
 Pricing Strategies   Ways in which a business can calculate its prices e.g. price skimming (charging a high price initially and then lowering).
Costs or Production   Things that a business has to pay for when making a product.  These can be variable costs e.g. raw materials or fixed costs e.g. rent of a factory.

Wider reading

 

Unit 3 - Market and Pitch a Business Proposal (Coursework Based)

Key questions/concepts

  • What is branding and why is it important for a business to have a brand image?

  • As well as choosing a brand name and designing a logo, what other techniques will your business use for its brand image?

  • What is promotion and why is it important for your business to promote its products?

  • What is the difference between traditional and digital promotional methods?  Which will you use to attract your target market to your product?

Timeframe

  • June - July (completion in Year 11)

Key vocabulary

 Word/phrase  Definition
Brand Image/Identity  The way a business comes across to the public (e.g. renowned for good quality/value for money products).
Promotional Campaign A series of advertisements using different tools but the same message to make customers aware of a product or a business.
Promotional Objectives  What your marketing/advertising activities aim to achieve.
Household Name A brand that is so well known that any household, in any street, would have heard of it.
Celebrity Endorsement Asking someone famous to promote yourproduct/service (usually in return for some sort of payment or reward).

 

Year 11

Unit 1 - Enterprise & Marketing Concepts (Part 2)

Key questions/concepts

This year will complete outstanding theory as listed in Year 10 scheme of work.

  • What types of business ownership are available to entrepreneurs?

  • Where do entrepreneurs get their finance from?

  • How can businesses attract new customers and keep their existing customers loyal?

  • Why do businesses need to plan for their future?  What goes into a Business Plan?

  • What are the main functional areas of a business?

Timeframe

  • September - May (External assessment in May/June)

Key vocabulary

 Word/phrase  Definition
Investor   An individual/group of people who put money into a business e.g. a Business Angel
Functional area    A department of a business that has a specific job role e.g. Finance, Marketing, Sales
Incorporated     A business whivh has shareholders who have  limited liability, such as a public limited company (plc), or private limited companuy (Ltd)
 Limited Liability   If a business goes into debt, the shareholders only lose up to the amount of money they have put into the business
 Unlimited liability   If a business goes into debt, the owners are responsible for repaying them.They could lose their personal possessions e.g. their house, as a result

Wider reading

  • Cambridge National Level 1/2 Enterprise and Marketing, Bayley T et al, Hodder Education 2019

  • Strong Woman: The Truth About Getting to the Top Karren Brady. The work and life of a non-conventional business woman in a male industry

  • How I Made It: 40 Successful Entrepreneurs Reveal How They Made Millions Rachel Bridge. Features lots of tips for anyone thinking of starting their own business

  • A Paper Boy's Fable: The 11 Principles of Success, Deep Patel 

 

Unit 2 - Market and Pitch a Business Proposal (Coursework completion)

Key questions/concepts

From September to March, students will focus on completion of R066 (from Year 10)

  • What do you need to consider when planning a promotional pitch? Why is it important to plan?

  • How do you evaluate your performance when pitching to an audience?  What improvements can you make?

  • How successful was your product idea?  What would you improve if you had more time or more knowledge?

Timeframe

  • September - March (External moderation in June)

Key vocabulary

 Word/phrase  Definition
Pitch   Present a product idea to a specific audience e.g. the owners of Perfecta Pizza.
Visual Aid   Ways in which you can help to get your message across using communication such as graphs, presentations, leaflets, flyers, product samples.
Viability    Is a product/service worth going ahead with?  Is it a successful proposition?
Prototype   A partially completed solution to a project e.g. a garment that is tacked together rather than sewn, or a game that is just a mock up.
 Cue Cards/Speaker Notes    Note cards or printouts with words written on them to help presenters remember what they have to say.
Year 12

Unit 1 - The Business Environment

Key questions/concepts

  • What are the four main sectors of industry?

  • How can businesses be owned?

  • How do different stakeholder's expectations differ?

  • Why are organisations structured in a specific way?

  • What are the external factors that influence a business's decisions?

Timeframe

  • September - April  (External assessment in May of Year 12)

Key vocabulary

 Word/phrase  Definition
 Legal structure    The type of ownership the business has
Stakeholder   An individual or group of people who have an interest in, or are affected by, a business
Shareholder   An individual or group of people who have an interest in, or are affected by, a business
Revenue   Where the business gets its money from (its income)
Breakeven    The point at which revenue is equal to costs - the business make no profit and no loss

Wider reading

 

Unit 4 -  Customers & Communication  (Coursework Based)

Key questions/concepts

  • What factors influence customers' behaviour?

  • What are corporate standards and corporate profiles of a specific business?

  • How can written communication be evaluated from the point of view of fitness for purpose/audience?

  • What are the key factors for a business to consider when storing and sharing information?

Timeframe

  • September - April (Externally moderated in June of Year 12)

Key vocabulary

 Word/phrase  Definition
 Customer Service   The range of actions that a business takes to meet the needs of the customer before, during and after sales. 
Internal Customers   Staff and owners of an organisation, usually who are on the payroll.
External Customers    Those who use the goods and services of an organisation, usually in return for payment.
 Corporate Standards    The levels of quality and professionalism that a business consistently applies - used as a benchmark .
Corporate Profile   The way a business portrays itself/its products or services to the wider stakeholders.

Wider reading

  • Cambridge Technicals Level 3 Business, Bayley,T et al, Hodder Education 2016 

  • Wicksteed Park is our Case Study - would be helpful to familiarise yourself with the park's corporate profile - www.wicksteedpark.org

  • The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make A Big Difference,Malcolm Gladwell

Year 13

Unit 16 -  Principles of Project Management (Coursework Based)

Key questions/concepts

  • What skills do you need for the role of Project Manager?

  • How can project planning tools be used to aid project management? - Gantt chart, Critical Path Analysis, Work Breakdown Structure, Stakeholder Communication Plan, Budgets.

  • What constitutes a Project Proposal? - Executive summary, aims and objectives

  • How can influencing factors be monitored within influencing factors of Project Management?

Timeframe

  • September - December (Externally moderated in February)

Key vocabulary

 Word/phrase  Definition
 S.M.A.R.T Objectives    Short term aims which should be Specific, Measurable, Agreed, Realistic and Timely.
Feasibility Study   An analysis of all the factors, internal and external,  to determine whether a project is going to be successful .
Risk Assessment   A process of evaluating all the pitfalls (risks) that a business may face in a project, ranking them from low to high risk and suggesting ways that these could be avoided to reduce that level of risk. 
Project Initiation   The first phase of a project life cycle (the stages a project goes through), identifying reasons for the project going ahead.
 Contingency Plan    A plan of action to follow if the original plan is not able to go ahead (a 'Plan B').

Wider reading

 

Unit 5 -  Marketing & Market Research (Coursework)

Key questions/concepts

  • What is the role of Marketing within Business?

  • What constraints do specific businesses face when marketing their services?

  • What are the best methods of Market Research to gather information in relation to a specific proposal?

  • What recommendations will you make in relation to your chosen business proposal?

Timeframe

  • January - April (Externally moderated in June)

Key vocabulary

 Word/phrase  Definition
 Marketing mix Otherwise known as the 4P's: Ways to attract the customer through Product, Place, Price, Promotion 
A.I.D.A A marketing objective to Attract attention of the target market, sufficient to generate Interest and create Desire so that the potential customer takes Action. 
 Marketing constraints  The factors that a business should consider which may affect a business's ability to follow its marketing plans.
 Marketing strategy An overall plan for reaching potential customers, hoping that they will buy the product/service.
Sampling methods Ways to break your target market into smaller groups for market research e.g. random sampling.

Wider reading

  • www.green-umbrella.biz  - Is a good website to subscribe to to receive frequent emails about digital marketing tips 

  • Buy.ology: Truth and Lies About Why We Buy, Martin Lindstrom

 

Unit 2 -  Working in Business

Key questions/concepts

  • What are business protocols  (i.e. Authority/confidentiality/checking/security/employment) and why are they important?

  • What does a business need to consider when arranging meetings and travel arrangements?

  • What is the purpose of business documents?  What do they contain?

  • What are the methods of payment open to businesses?

  • What is the purpose and importance of meeting documentation?  Why does it need to be checked carefully?

  • How are business tasks prioritised?

  • What are the characteristics of business documentation?

Timeframe

  • September - December (External assessment taken in January)

Key vocabulary

 Word/phrase  Definition
 Protocols A set of rules that an employee is expected to follow once they start the job.
 Prioritisation Of Tasks Putting tasks into a specific order e.g. by order of importance/impact.
 Business Function  A department of a business that has a specific role e.g. Finance, Marketing, Sales.
 Job Description States the tasks.responsibilities involved in a specific position in the business e.g. 
Person Specification Describes the characteristics, skills and experience of the ideal candidate for the job - divided into Essential and Desirable categories.

Wider reading

  • www.business.org would be good for finding out about Finance documents

  • Work Like A Woman: A Manifesto for Change Mary Portas.  A new way of working full of ideas to improve the future for us all

  • Working Hard, Hardly Working: How to Achieve More, Stress Less and Feel Fulfilled, Grace Beverley

  • The Google Story, David A Vise

  • If you have a part time job, being aware of how that business works would be very helpful.

 

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