1.1 Nature of Business Activity

Functions of Business Marketing Finance Human Resource Management Operations Management Relationships between them

Marketing Responsible for Market research and analysis Pricing Promotion How to sell and distribute

Finance Monitors the flow of finance in and out of the business Keeps and analyzes financial accounts Provides financial information to management

Human Resource Management Identifies the workforce needs of business Recruits Selects and trains Creates motivational systems Handles employment contracts Deals with redundancy or redeployment of staff

Operations Management Responsible for adequate resources being available for production Maintains production levels Maintains quality levels In charge of production efficiency

Business Sectors 3 types of business sectors Primary Secondary Tertiary As economies develop in countries, business sectors tend to gravitate from primary to tertiary changing the economic structures of countries.

Primary Sector Extraction oriented activities Fishing, farming, oil drilling

Secondary Sector Manufacturing and processing industries Baking, clothing, construction, assembly

Tertiary Sector Service oriented industries Retailing, transportation, banking, tourism

Changes in Economic Structure Industrialization The growing importance of the secondary sector on the economy. When did this occur in our country? What was the impact on our society? What benefits have we enjoyed?

Did you say: Increase standard of living Reduced imports into our country and increased exports to other countries More jobs More profits to companies, so more taxes to governments Raw materials worth more to other countries because they have been processed

What are potential problems?

Did you say: Creates depopulation in rural areas as people gravitate towards jobs in manufacturing Stresses on farming and agriculture Difficult to find enough qualified workers Imports may increase to satisfy needs of raw materials Pollution

Deindustrialisation Decline in secondary sector Increase in tertiary sector

Reasons for Deindustrialisation Rising incomes lead to extra income being spent on services. Growth in tourism, hotels, restaurant services, etc. Competition from cheaper labour in developing countries. Chang in employment patterns.