Scotland · SQAQ&A

Business ManagementQ&A by dot point

A short Q&A bank for every Scotland Business Management syllabus dot point. Each question and answer is drawn directly from our worked dot-point page, so you can scan key concepts before opening the long-form answer.

Course Assessment

The structure of the Higher Business Management course assessment (the question paper and the assignment), and what the assignment requires: researching and reporting on a business issue using business-management knowledge and skills.
4Q&A pairs

Management of Finance

Cash budgeting: the purpose of a cash budget, interpreting receipts, payments, net cash flow and closing balance, identifying cash flow problems, and the solutions to a shortfall.
2Q&A pairs
The purpose and content of the main financial statements (the income statement and the statement of financial position), the figures they show, and the users of financial information.
2Q&A pairs
Ratio analysis: the main profitability ratios (gross profit percentage, profit for the year percentage) and liquidity ratios (current ratio, acid test), how to interpret them, and the limitations of ratio analysis.
2Q&A pairs
The sources of finance available to large organisations (share issue, bank loan, debenture, retained profit, government grant, leasing, trade credit) and the factors affecting the choice of source.
4Q&A pairs
The use of technology in managing finance, including spreadsheets, accounting software, online and electronic banking, and electronic payments, with the advantages and disadvantages.
6Q&A pairs

Management of Marketing

The importance of customers and of being market-led, methods of market segmentation, the choice of target market, and the benefits of building customer loyalty.
2Q&A pairs
The extended (seven Ps) marketing mix: the three additional elements of people, process and physical evidence, and why they are especially important when marketing a service.
2Q&A pairs
The purpose of market research, the difference between field (primary) and desk (secondary) research, the main methods of each, and sampling, with their advantages and disadvantages.
2Q&A pairs
The place element of the marketing mix: the main channels of distribution (direct, retailer, wholesaler), the growth of e-commerce and direct selling, and the factors affecting the choice of channel.
2Q&A pairs
The price element of the marketing mix: the main pricing strategies (cost-plus, competitive, penetration, skimming, promotional, premium, destroyer, loss leader and psychological pricing) and the situations in which each is used.
2Q&A pairs
The product element of the marketing mix: the product portfolio, the product life cycle and extension strategies, the Boston Matrix, and the role of branding and packaging.
2Q&A pairs
The promotion element of the marketing mix: advertising and the media used, into-the-pipeline and out-of-the-pipeline sales promotions, public relations and personal selling, and their purposes.
2Q&A pairs
The use of technology in marketing, including e-commerce, websites, social media, e-marketing and the use of customer databases, with the advantages and disadvantages for the organisation.
5Q&A pairs

Management of Operations

Ethical and environmental considerations in operations, including ethical sourcing, fair treatment of workers and suppliers, reducing waste, recycling and pollution, and the costs and benefits to the organisation.
2Q&A pairs
Inventory (stock) management: the costs of holding too much and too little stock, the inventory control diagram with maximum, minimum and re-order levels, and just-in-time (JIT) stock control.
2Q&A pairs
Methods of production (job, batch and flow production) and the difference between labour-intensive and capital-intensive production, with the advantages and disadvantages of each.
5Q&A pairs
The importance of quality and the methods used to ensure it: quality control, quality assurance, total quality management (TQM), quality circles, benchmarking, and quality standards and symbols.
5Q&A pairs
The use of technology in operations, including automation and robotics in production, computer-aided design and manufacture, electronic stock control (EPOS) and online ordering, with the advantages and disadvantages.
2Q&A pairs

Management of People

Employee relations: the role of trade unions, methods of resolving disputes (negotiation, ACAS, arbitration, works councils), and the forms of industrial action and their consequences.
2Q&A pairs
The main areas of employment legislation (equality and anti-discrimination, health and safety, the national minimum and living wage) and the impact of complying with them on the organisation.
3Q&A pairs
Theories and methods of motivation, financial and non-financial incentives, theories of motivation such as Maslow's hierarchy of needs, and the main leadership styles and their effects.
2Q&A pairs
The use of technology in managing people, including e-recruitment, online and e-learning, HR databases, video conferencing and remote or home working, with the advantages and disadvantages.
5Q&A pairs
Training and development: induction, on-the-job and off-the-job training, continuing professional development, staff appraisal, and the costs and benefits of training to the organisation.
5Q&A pairs
Workforce planning, the recruitment process (internal and external, with job description and person specification) and the methods of selecting the best candidate.
2Q&A pairs

Understanding Business

The objectives organisations pursue (profit maximisation, growth, survival, market share, satisfying customers, managerial objectives, social responsibility) and how objectives differ across the private, public and third sectors.
2Q&A pairs
Types of decision (strategic, tactical, operational), the role of the manager, the structured decision-making process (such as POGADSCIE) and the use of SWOT analysis, with the factors that affect the quality of a decision.
2Q&A pairs
The external factors in the business environment, analysed using PESTEC (political, economic, social, technological, environmental and competitive), and their impact on the activities and decisions of an organisation.
2Q&A pairs
The internal factors within an organisation (finance, human resources, technology, existing management and staff, and reputation) and how they constrain or enable its decisions and activities.
4Q&A pairs
The methods organisations use to grow, internal (organic) growth and external growth through horizontal, vertical and conglomerate integration, mergers and takeovers, and methods of contracting such as divestment, demerger and outsourcing.
2Q&A pairs
Types of organisational structure (tall, flat, entrepreneurial, matrix), centralised and decentralised structures, methods of grouping activities, span of control and the effect of structure on the organisation.
6Q&A pairs
The role of business in society, the sectors of industry and the sectors of the economy, and how factors of production are combined to satisfy needs and wants and create wealth.
2Q&A pairs
The internal and external stakeholders of an organisation, their interest in and influence over it, their interdependence, and the conflicts that arise between them.
2Q&A pairs
The features, advantages and disadvantages of organisations in the private sector (sole trader, partnership, private and public limited company, franchise, multinational), the public sector and the third sector.
8Q&A pairs