- •Череповецкий государственный университет
- •Кафедра экономики
- •Современный бизнес
- •Contents
- •Введение
- •Unit 1. The effects of demand and supply on business
- •1.1. Markets
- •Test Questions
- •Case study ‘Understanding the Market’
- •1.2. The Operation of Markets
- •If social costs exceed social benefits, the decision to produce a good or service makes society worse off even if the producers make a profit.
- •If social costs are less than social benefits, the decision to produce a good or service will make society better off. Test Questions
- •Case study ‘Record Industry’
- •1.3. The Effects of Government Policy on Markets
- •Indirect taxes
- •Test Questions
- •Unit 2. The competitiveness of a firm
- •2.1. The Performance of an Industry
- •International Trade
- •International comparisons
- •2.2. Government Action to Improve Competitiveness
- •2.3. Government Action and International Trade
- •2.4. Business Competitive Strategies
- •Test questions
- •Case Study
- •Unit 3. Business Organisations
- •3.1. Types of Business Organization
- •3.2. Organizational Structures
- •3.3. Factors Influencing the Organisational Structure
- •Internal factors
- •Test Questions
- •Case Study ‘Business Organisation & Structure’
- •Unit 4. Administrative systems
- •4.1. The Purpose of Administrative System
- •4.2. Administration Functions in Business
- •4.3. Evaluating Administrative Systems
- •4.4. Information Technology in Administration
- •Test Questions
- •Case Study ‘Satellite Supplies’
- •Unit 5. Communications Systems
- •5.1. Why Do Businesses Need Communications System?
- •5.2. The Objectives of Communication
- •5.3. Verbal Communication
- •Internal communications
- •5.5. Evaluating Communication Systems in Business
- •Test Questions
- •Case Study ‘Can You Communicate?’
- •Unit 6. Information Processing
- •6.1. The Purposes of Information Processing
- •6.2. Types of Information Processing Systems
- •Information Technology: positive and negative effects
- •6.3. Evaluating Information Processing Systems
- •Test Questions
- •Case Study “Information Technologies in Business”
- •Unit 7. The principles and functions of marketing
- •7.1. What is Marketing?
- •7.2. The Objectives of Marketing
- •7.3. Implementing the Marketing Mix
- •Test Questions
- •Unit 8. Market Research
- •8.1. What is Market Research?
- •8.2. Sources of Marketing Information
- •Information requirements
- •Internal sources
- •8.3. Primary Research
- •8.4. Market Changes
- •Information on sales
- •Test Questions
- •Case Study ‘Sun Rush’
- •4M Brits shrug off gloom in sun rush
- •Unit 9. Marketing Communications
- •9.1. Targeting an Audience
- •9.2. How to Reach a Target Audience
- •9.3. Product Performance
- •9.4. Guidelines and Controls on Marketing Communications
- •Test Questions
- •Case Study ‘Marketing Communication’
- •Unit 10. Customer Service and Sales Methods
- •10.1. ‘The Customer Is Always Right’
- •10.2. Placing the Product – Distribution
- •Indirect distribution via intermediaries
- •10.3. Closing the Sale
- •Test Questions
- •Case Study ‘Company Handbook’
- •Unit 11. Production
- •11.1. What is Production?
- •11.2. Just in Time Production and Total Quality Management
- •11.3. Improving the Productivity of Labour
- •11.4. Health and Safety at Work
- •11.5. Reducing Pollution from Production
- •In the working environment
- •In the natural environment
- •Test Questions
- •Case Study ‘Production and Productivity Consulting’
- •11.6. The Costs of Production
- •Identifying business costs
- •Indirect costs
- •Insurance
- •Variable costs
- •Test Questions
- •Case study ‘Waterhouse Waffles’
- •Unit 12. Pricing decisions and strategies
- •12.1. The Pricing Decision
- •12.2. Cost-Based Pricing
- •12.3. Market-Based Pricing
- •12.4. Competition-Based Pricing
- •12.5. Problems with Demand- and Competition-Based Pricing
- •Test Questions
- •Case Study ‘What Price Promotion?’
- •Unit 13. Monitoring business performance
- •13.1. Accounting for Business Control
- •13.2. Budgetary Control
- •Variance analysis
- •13.3. Ratio analysis
- •Test Questions
- •Case Study ‘Business Performance’
- •Unit 14. Preparing a business plan
- •14.1. What Is a Business Plan?
- •14.2. The Purposes of a Business Plan
- •14.3. Legal and Insurance Implications
- •Insurance
- •14.4. Business Resources
- •14.5. Potential Support for a Business Plan
- •Some review questions
- •Unit 15. Producing a Business Plan
- •15.1. Business Objectives and Timescales
- •15.2. The Marketing Plan
- •15.3. The Production Plan
- •15.4. The Financial Plan
- •15.5. Conclusion
- •Some Review Questions
- •Case Study ‘Business Plan’
4.3. Evaluating Administrative Systems
Meeting the requirements of the business
Businesses vary so much in terms of size, structure, location, expertise of staff, and levels of technology used, that no one system of administration will be best for all. Instead, each firm is likely to be better served by creating a tailor-made system to suit its individual circumstances. Bigger firms usually have a greater quantity of decisions to make about purchases, sales, production, finance, distribution, etc., and so will need a more structured and formal system of doing things.
Large firms are able to employ specialist staff to carry out administrative tasks, often aided by the use of computers and other telecommunications equipment such as faxes and modems to link computers through the telephone network. In contrast, in a small sole trader enterprise, most tasks can be undertaken reasonably successfully by just one person doing jobs as and when s/he feels they need to be done.
Table 4.1. Administrative procedures in a large PLC
Ordering |
Central on-line computer receives individual orders from shops and generates bulk orders to wines and spirits suppliers. System managed by a specialist staff of purchasing executives |
Stock |
Computerised warehouse using bar code readers keeps a minute-by-minute record of all stock held and alerts central computer when stocks of some products are running low |
Distribution |
Company operates its own fleet of delivery vehicles based at regional distribution depots |
Personnel |
A specialised personnel department places recruitment adverts in the national press and operates a national recruitment and training program from head office |
Accounts |
Computerised accounts section employing credit control and budgeting executives |
|
Mail room employing 10 staff equipped with 5 fax machines receiving 2,000 letters per day |
Written Com-munications |
Word-processed internal communications and electronic mail communications |
Ways of improving administrative systems
A firm may seek to improve the operation of their administration system in a number of ways.
Staff training and re-training. A workforce that does not understand the correct procedures to follow, or cannot use equipment properly, will not operate a cost effective administration system. Organisations are using training to create multiskilled workforces. This refers to training to equip people with a wide variety of skills which they can use to good effect in their organisation. For example, skills in using computers, word processing, writing and presentation, negotiating, letting contracts, information processing and managing resources, as well as improving any special skills they may have as economists, production engineers, or accountants.
Introducing quality standards. In a competitive marketplace, successful firms are those which continuously attempt to improve the quality of their goods and services and production methods. In order to assist firms to improve the quality of their operations, the British Standards Institute (BSI) has introduced quality standards for firms to work towards. The British Standard 5750 provides a ‘kitemark of quality’ similar to the British Standards for Safety, which when demonstrated by firms allow them to display the safety kitemark on their products. For a firm to demonstrate its achievement of BS 5750, it must introduce a series of management systems and procedures covering areas such as training, design control, production, purchasing, inspections, and quality audits. These must be clearly documented and well maintained. External inspectors regularly check that the firm is continuing to follow these documented procedures. The status of BS5750 is recognised internationally and equates with the International Standards Organisation ISO 9000 quality standards, which operate in a similar way to BS 5750; BS 5750 and ISO 9000 standards are interchangeable.
Re-engineering. Business re-engineering or process redesign provides a way of building new administrative systems into a firm and taking advantage of new technology in order to improve on previous practice. Behind the concept of reengineering are two key ideas:
That it is better to re-design all administrative systems in one go rather than to make continual small modifications to an existing system.
That most companies today operate with many thousands of administrative specialists who are judged and rewarded on how well they perform their own specialised tasks, with no concept or interest in how these contribute to the success of the firm as a whole.
By re-engineering and looking at administrative systems from scratch, it is possible to take full advantage of rapid advances in computer technology and falling computer prices in order to build new and better systems.