Assignment 2- Preparation
Mr. Barry
Business BTEC Year 12
The Task
• Your manager at the Financial Times newspaper was
impressed with your articles. She has asked you to
write a report in two parts on:
1. How two businesses are organised and in particular,
what style of organisation do they adopt
2. The challenges within the economic environment
 The two contrasting businesses she has asked you to
investigate are Marks and Spencer and the Battersea
Dogs and Cats Home.
Mr. Barry
Business BTEC Year 12
Introduction
• Describe the purpose of your report and give
an outline of what you will be describing (P3)
Mr. Barry
Business BTEC Year 12
Organisational Structure
• How is the work divided within both
organisations? (P3)
• Describe the lines of control and
communications within each organisation (P3)
• Describe the structure of each organisation –
include the functional organisation, the
geographic organisation, the different product
structures and types of customers (P3)
Mr. Barry
Business BTEC Year 12
Functional areas
• Describe the functional areas in each of your
chosen organisations – finance, marketing,
production, customer service, sales, HR. (P3)
• Explain each functional areas role in the
business and how it helps to achieve the aims
and objectives. (P3)
Mr. Barry
Business BTEC Year 12
Strategic Planning
For each business describe the:
• Mission statement, aims, objectives, planning
process, use of SMART and explain how these
help them fulfil their purpose. (P4)
Mr. Barry
Business BTEC Year 12
Influencing factors
• Describe and explain the three influencing
factors on the organisation’s aims and
objectives (P4)
Mr. Barry
Business BTEC Year 12
Aims
• Use at least two sources of information to
back up my opinions about the stakeholders. I
must reference these. (P4)
Mr. Barry
Business BTEC Year 12
Economic Environment
• Describe the influence of two contrasting
economic environments on business activities
within a selected organisation (P5)
• Compare the challenges to selected business
activities within a selected organisation, in
two different economic environments (M2)
Mr. Barry
Business BTEC Year 12
• However looking at the list we have just produced things could
get confused. To avoid this problem organisations use PESTEL
analysis. This is an expansion of the original PEST analysis
This stands for:
Political
Economic
Social
Technological
Environmental
Legal
Mr. Barry
Business BTEC Year 12
Political:
e.g. Government Policies, war, political changes etc
Economic:
e.g. Trends in the economy, disposable income
levels, employment, pay levels, competition,
taxation etc
Social: e.g. Consumer attitudes and opinions, demographics, living
standards, hosting a major sporting event etc
Technological: e.g. Consumer buying mechanisms, information
technology, telephony developments etc
Environmental: e.g. Climate change, energy conservation etc
Legal:
Mr. Barry
e.g. Employment law, smoking ban, competition
policy etc
Business BTEC Year 12
Methods used by the
Government to control markets
Beyond fiscal and monetary policy
Mr. Barry
Business BTEC Year 12
The Use of Legislation
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To control monopolies
To promote competition
To establish standards
Consumer protection
To ensure rights of
employer/employee
• The Environment
Mr. Barry
Business BTEC Year 12
Governments can take over:
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Whole industries
Potential monopolies
Vital services
Important employers
National security issues
THIS IS CALLED…
Mr. Barry
Business BTEC Year 12
Nationalisation
• Supporting arguments
– Prevents exploitation of vital resources
– Protects vulnerable industries
– Preserves employment
• Detracting arguments
– Promotes inefficiency
– Suppresses competition
– Public expense burden
Mr. Barry
Business BTEC Year 12
Privatisation
• Also called De-nationalisation
• Promotes competition
• Releases public funds
• Widens share ownership
Mr. Barry
Business BTEC Year 12
Regulation
• Imposing controls on Business activity
– propose and examine justifications
• Offer examples of regulatory bodies
– (OFWAT, OFTEL, OFGAS).
Mr. Barry
Business BTEC Year 12
Deregulating and contracting out
• “Contracting out”
• Competitive tendering
• Market forces  efficiency & VFM
– The theory of the internal market
• More local control of budgets
– (Academy Status for Schools)
Mr. Barry
Business BTEC Year 12
Main areas of economic concern
Inflation
Unemployment
Economic Growth
Government Spending
Business Confidence
Mr. Barry
Business BTEC Year 12
Examine at least two pieces of
Government economic policy
• Reasons why
• Arguments for and against each
policy
• Assess the impact of the policies
on:
–levels of taxation, prices,
employment
Mr. Barry
Business BTEC Year 12
The choices
1. Fiscal policy
2. Monetary policy
3. Trade policy
Mr. Barry
Business BTEC Year 12
What governments are trying to
control is…
Mr. Barry
Business BTEC Year 12
Why spend money on building new
houses?
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What benefits will be gathered?
What costs will be incurred?
Who will gain?
Who might lose?
Moral arguments?
Mr. Barry
Business BTEC Year 12