WalesBusinessSyllabus dot point

How has technology changed the way businesses operate, and what are the costs of keeping up?

Technology and business: the impact of technology on production, communication and selling, automation and e-commerce, the benefits and drawbacks of new technology, and how technology affects jobs and the way a business operates.

A focused answer to the WJEC GCSE Business content on technology and business, covering the impact of technology on production, communication and selling, automation and e-commerce, the benefits and drawbacks of new technology, and its effect on jobs.

Generated by Claude Opus 4.812 min answerUpdated 2026-06-15

Reviewed by: AI editorial process; not yet individually human-reviewed

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Quick answer

Technology has transformed the way businesses operate, affecting production, communication and selling. In production, automation (using machines and computers to do tasks) makes work faster, more accurate and more consistent, and machines can run for long hours, raising productivity and quality and lowering the cost per unit. In communication, email, video calls and messaging let staff, customers and suppliers communicate instantly across the world. In selling, e-commerce (selling online through a website or app) lets a business trade around the clock and reach customers anywhere, while social media and online adverts reach customers cheaply. The benefits of new technology are powerful: higher productivity and quality, lower long-term costs, faster communication, a wider market and better data on customers. But there are drawbacks: new technology is expensive to buy and install, staff need training, it can replace some jobs (which lowers morale and may harm the firm's local reputation), and a breakdown or cyber-attack can disrupt the business. Technology affects jobs in two ways: it can replace some workers with machines, but it also creates new jobs needing different skills and can make existing jobs easier. Whether new technology pays off depends on whether the long-term savings and gains outweigh the up-front cost, and on how well the business manages the change.

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What this dot point is asking
Technology in production, communication and selling
Benefits and drawbacks of new technology
The impact on jobs
Why this matters
Try this

What this dot point is asking

WJEC wants you to understand the impact of technology on business. You need how technology affects production, communication and selling, the meaning of automation and e-commerce, the benefits and drawbacks of new technology, and how technology affects jobs and the way a business operates. Technology is a fast-changing external influence that touches every function of a business.

Technology in production, communication and selling

Benefits and drawbacks of new technology

The impact on jobs

This is why technology is a sensitive issue for employees and the local community, who are stakeholders in the business.

Why this matters

Technology runs through the whole course: it links to operations (automation and stock systems), to marketing (digital marketing and e-commerce), to human resources (jobs, skills and training), and to the other external influences such as globalisation (the internet drives global trade). It connects to finance because technology needs heavy up-front investment but can cut long-term costs. Exam questions usually ask you to weigh the benefits and drawbacks of new technology for a business, where the balance between long-term gains and the up-front cost and job impact earns the marks.

Weigh up investing in automation

A factory can spend 60,000 on automated machinery. It would cut the workforce needed from 12 to 8 workers (each paid 18,000 a year) and raise output and quality.

step Find the annual labour saving

The wage bill falls from $12 \times 18{,}000 = 216{,}000$ to $8 \times 18{,}000 = 144{,}000$ :

\text{Saving} = 216{,}000 - 144{,}000 = 72{,}000 \text{ a year}.

step Compare the saving with the cost

The machinery costs 60,000 once, while the labour saving is 72,000 every year, so the investment pays for itself in under a year and then keeps saving, on top of higher output and quality.

step Weigh the wider effects and conclude

On the numbers, automation is clearly worthwhile: it saves 72,000 a year against a one-off 60,000, and improves quality. But it also means four job losses, which lowers morale among remaining staff and could harm the firm's reputation locally, and a breakdown would now halt more of production. So the firm should invest but manage the change carefully, for example by retraining or redeploying affected workers. This balance of strong financial gains against the human cost is exactly what a top answer weighs.

Try this

Q1. State two benefits to a business of using new technology. [2 marks]

Cue. Any two of: higher productivity and quality, lower long-term costs, faster communication, a wider market, better customer data.

Q2. Explain one drawback to a business of introducing automation. [2 marks]

Cue. It is expensive to buy and install and can replace some jobs, lowering staff morale and possibly harming the firm's local reputation (a breakdown halting production is also valid).

Exam-style practice questions

Practice questions written in the style of WJEC exam questions on this dot point, with worked answer explainers. The year tag is the paper they imitate, not the source.

WJEC (Unit 1)3 marksExplain how technology has changed the way businesses sell to customers.

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A 3-mark AO1 and AO2 explain question. Reward a developed chain.

Technology, through e-commerce, lets a business sell online via a website or app rather than only in a physical shop, so it can trade around the clock and reach customers anywhere, even abroad. Customers can browse, compare and buy at any time, and the business can use social media and online adverts to reach them. This widens the firm's market and can raise sales, though it brings online competition and delivery costs. Markers reward linking technology to online selling and the wider reach it gives.

WJEC (Unit 1)6 marksAnalyse the benefits and drawbacks to a business of introducing new technology such as automation.

Show worked answer →

A 6-mark AO1, AO2 and AO3 question. Reward developed points on both sides.

Benefit: automation and new technology can make production faster, more accurate and more consistent, and can run for long hours, which raises productivity and quality and lowers the cost per unit over time.

Drawback: new technology is expensive to buy and install, staff need training to use it, and it can replace some jobs, which may lower morale and harm the firm's reputation locally; a breakdown can also halt production.

Chain and judgement: technology can cut long-term costs and raise quality but needs heavy up-front investment and can affect jobs, so it is worthwhile mainly when the long-term savings outweigh the cost and the firm manages the change well. Markers reward developed benefits and drawbacks plus a balanced comment.

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Sources & how we know this

WJEC GCSE Business specification (Wales) — WJEC (2025)
WJEC GCSE Business (Wales) specification (3510) — WJEC (2017)