← Business Management syllabus

ScotlandBusiness Management

Understanding Business

9 dot points across 9 inquiry questions. Click any dot point for a focused answer with worked past exam questions where available.

What are organisations trying to achieve, and why do their objectives differ between sectors and over time?

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.
An SQA Higher Business Management answer on business objectives, covering profit maximisation, growth, survival, increasing market share, customer satisfaction, managerial objectives and corporate social responsibility, and how objectives differ across the private, public and third sectors.
11 min answer →

How do managers make decisions, and what tools and limits shape the process?

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.
An SQA Higher Business Management answer on decision-making, covering strategic, tactical and operational decisions, the role of the manager, the structured decision-making process such as POGADSCIE, the use of SWOT analysis, and the factors that affect the quality of a decision.
12 min answer →

What outside forces affect a business, and how do they constrain or create opportunities?

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.
An SQA Higher Business Management answer on external factors, using the PESTEC framework (political, economic, social, technological, environmental and competitive) to explain how outside forces beyond an organisation's control affect its activities and decisions.
11 min answer →

What forces inside an organisation shape and limit its decisions?

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.
An SQA Higher Business Management answer on internal factors, explaining how forces inside an organisation, including finance, human resources, technology, existing management and staff, and reputation, constrain and enable its decisions, in contrast to the external factors of PESTEC.
10 min answer →

How do organisations grow, and what are the benefits and drawbacks of each method?

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.
An SQA Higher Business Management answer on methods of growth, covering internal (organic) growth and external growth through horizontal, vertical and conglomerate integration, mergers and takeovers, as well as contraction through divestment, demerger and outsourcing, with their advantages and disadvantages.
12 min answer →

How are organisations structured, and how does the structure affect communication, control and decision-making?

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.
An SQA Higher Business Management answer on organisational structures, covering tall, flat, entrepreneurial and matrix structures, centralisation versus decentralisation, methods of grouping activities, span of control, chain of command, delayering and how structure affects communication and decision-making.
13 min answer →

Why does business exist, and how does it turn resources into the goods and services society needs?

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.
An SQA Higher Business Management answer on the role of business in society, covering needs and wants, the four factors of production, the primary, secondary, tertiary and quaternary sectors of industry, and the private, public and third sectors of the economy.
11 min answer →

Who has an interest in an organisation, and how do their interests, influence and conflicts shape it?

The internal and external stakeholders of an organisation, their interest in and influence over it, their interdependence, and the conflicts that arise between them.
An SQA Higher Business Management answer on stakeholders, identifying internal and external stakeholders, explaining their interest in and influence over an organisation, how they are interdependent, and the conflicts that arise between different stakeholder groups.
11 min answer →

What types of organisation exist, and how does the choice of legal structure affect ownership, control, finance and liability?

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.
An SQA Higher Business Management answer on types of organisations, comparing private-sector forms (sole trader, partnership, private and public limited company, franchise, multinational), the public sector and the third sector by ownership, control, finance, liability and objectives.
13 min answer →