Applied Business Double Award

This twelve unit course would be appropriate for candidates planning to undertake higher level studies in Business areas such as Marketing, Human Resources or Financial Management.

Therefore this 12 unit award meets the needs of candidates wishing to progress towards higher education in a Business area, to further training, or to employment.

Unit 1

This unit of the specification will give you the opportunity to study a business in order to assess the extent to which you consider it to be enterprising. An enterprising business successfully exploits market opportunities and is progressive and forward looking. It also needs to examine new ways of doing things because if it does not it will become uncompetitive and fail.

You will now have the opportunity to examine 2 businesses that successfully exploit their market opportunities and are progressive and forward looking. Please select the area that you would like to visit.

NOTE you will need windows media installed on your computer to view these files. http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windowsmedia

Video	Mind Mapping	Application
Aims and Objectives In this section you will have the opportunity to see how an enterprising business clarifies and fulfils its aims.
Aims and Objectives 3,716 KB	What key aims and objectives identified in the above video clip show that Emtek is an enterprising business?	Choose a business in your local area. Discuss how its aims and objectives show that it is an enterprising business.
Organisation In this section you will learn about a management structure that is appropriate to an enterprising business.
Organisation 3,298 KB	Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of individuals exercising multiple management roles within a business.	Compare the management structures of a large business with that of a small business in your local area.
Communication In this section you will discover why an enterprising business needs an effective and open communication structure. You will discover the relationship between communication and motivation.
Communication1.14 MB	Discuss the potential effects of not having effective communication within a business.	Think of the last time that you made a purchase and had a bad interaction at the point of sale with that business. How would you advise that business to improve its communication?
Functional Areas In this section you will examine the functional areas of business.
Functional Areas5.78 MB	Choose three different sized enterprises in your area, eg sole trader, partnership and a business employing more than 19 people. Discuss why all functional areas are important to each of these businesses.	What are the consequences for a business of neglecting one or more functional areas? Why might this happen.
Distribution In this section you will examine how enterprising distribution channels support a successful business.
Distribution1.87 MB	Evaluate the distribution channels used by Wilsons.	Select a business in your area that is involved in producing a product. Identify a range of enterprising distribution channels that would be appropriate for this business.
Market Research In this section you will examine how an enterprising business uses market research in order to exploit its market effectively.
Market Research1.76 MB	What additional market research methods could Emtek have used?	What market research would you need to complete having decided to open a contemporary venue for 16 – 19 year olds?
Marketing Methods In this section you will examine how an enterprising business uses the marketing mix to meet its customers’ needs.
Marketing Methods 672 KB	Identify three marketing strategies. Suggest how a business could manipulate aspects of the marketing mix to implement these strategies.	Discuss what a business would need to consider when developing a marketing strategy?
Monitoring and Reviewing In this section you will discover how an enterprising business monitors and reviews its business activities.
Monitoring and Reviewing 2.14 MB	Discuss the consequences of a business failing to monitor and review it's activities.	Demonstrate how an enterprising business would benefit from applying a monitoring and reviewing process to the following: Aims and objectives Communication Marketing methods and Distribution channels.

Unit 2

In this unit you will see the roles, skills, abilities and characteristics of an enterprising manager.

NOTE you will need windows media installed on your computer to view these files. http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windowsmedia

Video	Mind Mapping	Application
Skills and abilities of an enterprising manager In this section you will have the opportunity to see an enterprising manager who is highly motivated to succeed and who demonstrates particular skills.
Skills and abilities of an enterprising manager 3.73 MB	Identify the skills and abilities that a manager needs to be enterprising.	What research could be carried out (apart from speaking to the manager) to find out if a manager has particular enterprising skills and abilities.
Managing People In this section you will see some of the areas of responsibility that an enterprising manager has.
Managing People2.90 MB	Discuss the role recruitment, retention and training has in ensuring that a business remains enterprising.	Write a report for a business in your local area advising them on how they should motivate and develop their staff.
Managing Finance In this section you will see that an enterprising manager is responsible for various areas within the function of finance.
Managing Finance 2.85 MB	What evidence will there be that a manager has been successful in carrying out the following: forecasting cash flow management setting and monitoring budgets profit and break-even analysis.	Discuss the implications for a business of a manager focusing on profit generation and neglecting cash flow management.
Managing Other Resources In this section you will see that an enterprising manager is responsible for a range of other resources.
Managing Other Resources 3.60 MB	Discuss why information systems are important to an Enterprising Business	Select a supermarket in your local area and investigate how they use information systems.
Management Styles
Management Styles 2.66 MB	Evaluate the following styles of management: Autocratic Democratic Laissez-faire	Select a business in your local area. Evaluate the appropriateness of each of the above styles of management for this business.

Unit 4 - E-Commerce

Video	Mind Mapping	Application
Introduction
Introduction 1.13 MB
Basics of E-Commerce In this section you will be introduced to E-Commerce in the context of a local business.
Basics of E-Commerce 1.11 MB	Produce 2 lists of products. One list should consist of products and services that lend themselves to being bought and sold online. The other should consist of products and services that do not lend themselves to being bought and sold online. What factors have you considered before making a judgment as to whether a product or service should be sold online?	What implications does E-Procurement have on supply chain management?
Advantages of E-Commerce In this section you will see that on-line trading has many advantages for business
Advantages of E-Commerce 1.32 MB	Discuss the reasons why a business may fail to adopt E-Commerce.	Chose a local business in your local area not involved in E-Commerce. Produce a report for this business outlining the benefits that E-Commerce could offer their business.
Costs to Business In this section you will discover the sorts of costs associated with a business going on-line
Costs to Business 3.80 MB	There are two approaches to introducing an E-Commerce dimension to business: Doing it in-house; Contracting the project out to a specialist company. Evaluate each method of introduction.	Cost the introduction of setting up E-Commerce for a specialist local retailer.
Business Website In this section you will experience one business’s approach to web site development.
Business Website 1.66 MB	Based on your on-line experiences, identify websites that are: Effective Ineffective. Why do you think this is so?	Evaluate the following approaches to web design: Do it yourself in house Buy in the expertise of a web development company to design the web site.
Legal Aspects of E-Commerce In this section you will experience the legal aspects of a business trading on-line.
Legal Aspects of E-Commerce 4.92 MB	What does a business like bike dock need to do in order to protect its trademarks?	Investigate where businesses can go for advice on the legal aspects of E-Commerce.
Marketing the E-Commerce Business In this section you will see how a local business markets its E-Commerce business.
Marketing the E-Commerce Business 1.64 MB	Explore the advantages and disadvantages of the following marketing strategies for an E-Commerce business: Search engine optimisation Linkage campaign E-mail marketing Banner advertising Offline campaigns	Write a report to Bike Dock outlining how they could evaluate the marketing strategies that they have adopted for promoting their E-Commerce business.

Unit 5 - Customer Service

This unit will help you to understand that in this highly competitive world of business there are many organisations providing similar products or services. Consequently, it is often the quality of customer service that distinguishes one business from another and influences customers about their choice of purchase. In this section you will see a real business in action that sells its very successful customer service along side its products.

NOTE you will need windows media installed on your computer to view these files. http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windowsmedia

Video	Mind Mapping	Application
The importance of customer service In this section you will see how a high standard of customer service offers a business a number of benefits.
The importance of customer service 3.50 MB	Discuss the benefits to Bavarian of providing excellent customer service.	Discuss the likely implications for a business of failing to meet the needs of its customers.
Personal presentation and communication In this section you will see how important it is that an organisation presents the right image to its customers.
Personal presentation and communication 2.21 MB	Discuss the importance of good personal presentation and communication to a business such as Bavarian.	Develop a set of guidelines relating to personal presentation and communication for a business in your local area.
Types of customers In this section you will see how Bavarian goes about satisfying the wide range of needs that its different types of customers have.
Types of customers 2.65 MB	Discuss how Bavarian provides excellent service to different types of customers.	Evaluate the approach taken by Bavarian in providing excellent service to a range of customers. Demonstrate how this approach can be applied to a business in you local area.
Selling skills In this section you will see how important good selling skills are to Bavarian. You will have the opportunity to see the AIDA technique being applied in Bavarian.>
Selling skills 1.22 MB	Discuss how the selling techniques used by the finance department could be applied to the car sales department.>	Identify a business in your local area. Discuss the importance of employees within this business of developing good selling skills.
Customer service In this section you will see that Customer service does not always involve selling customers something. This term covers a wide variety of activities.
Customer service 1.66 MB	Customer service does not always involve selling. Discuss what other services Bavarian offers its customers. Evaluate how these services add value to the Bavarian experience.	Investigate a business in your local area. Draw up a staff development programme that outlines good practices that employees should adopt when providing services to customers that do not directly relate to selling.
Dealing with Complaints In this section you will see how the team at Bavarian use different procedures to deal with complaints.
Dealing with Complaints 2.08 MB	Discuss what needs to be considered when developing a customer complaints procedure.	Produce a staff development programme that addresses good practice for employees when dealing with complaints.
Evaluating the quality and effectiveness of customer service In this section you will discover how Bavarian continuously monitors and evaluates the quality and effectiveness of the service that they provide.
Evaluating the quality and effectiveness of customer service 1.73 MB	Evaluate how Bavarian measures and evaluates the quality of its customer service.	Investigate a business in your local area. Discuss how it determines that its customers are satisfied.

Unit 6 - Project Management

This unit will help you develop the skills needed to plan and carry out projects. It will show you the roles and responsibilities of people involved in running and managing projects. In this section you will observe a real project manager who will introduce you to the practicalities of setting up, running and managing a project.

NOTE you will need windows media installed on your computer to view these files. http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windowsmedia

Video	Mind Mapping	Application
Introduction
Introduction 1.36 MB
Before a project begins In this section you will have the opportunity to experience a series of processes that happen before a project begins.
Before a project begins 2.52 MB	National Australia Group has a series of processes to decide on the feasibility of a project before it begins. Discuss how their approach to feasibility can be applied to a small business in Northern Ireland.	Apply the processes and techniques you have experienced above to help you decide on a project that is feasible for your assignment.
Identifying intended outcomes In this section you will have the opportunity to examine the National Australia Group’s approach to identifying intended outcomes. This will give you good guidance on the approach that you should take when identifying intended outcomes for you own project.
Identifying intended outcomes 2.69 MB	What are the consequences of not taking a SMART approach when identifying intended outcomes of a project?	Applying the approach taken by National Australia Group, identify the aims and objectives for your own project.
Planning for potential barriers to success In this section you will discover how to plan for potential barriers to the successful completion of a project.
Planning for potential barriers to success 2.37 MB	Discuss the consequences of not identifying and planning for potential barriers to the successful completion of a project.	Consider the approach taken by National Australia Group to plan against potential barriers to the successful completion of projects. Identify potential barriers to the successful completion of your own project. Draw up contingency plans in response to these.
Sub dividing a project and allocating roles In this section you will see how a project is divided up and how roles are allocated.
Sub dividing a project and allocating roles 1.03 MB	Consider the approach taken by National Australia Group to sub dividing a project and allocating roles. Discuss how this approach can be applied to a small business project.	Identify and provide a rationale for the sub groups that you will need for the successful completion of your project. Allocate roles and responsibilities to these sub groups.
Allocating and controlling resources In this section you will see how to allocate and control resources successfully.
Allocating and controlling resources 2.44 MB	Consider how project resources are allocated and managed by the National Australia Group. Discuss how these principals can be applied to a small business project..	Decide and document how you are going to allocate, manage and control the resources that are available for your own project.
Scheduling and time management In this section you will discover how to schedule and manage the time of your project.
Scheduling and time management 1.49 MB	Evaluate the following tools: Schedules Gannt Charts Flow diagrams	Decide on which tools you will use to manage scheduling and time in your project. Provide a rationale for you choice.
Ongoing review and final evaluation In this section you will discover how to carry out an ongoing review and a final evaluation of your project.
Ongoing review and final evaluation 2.80 MB	Discuss the potential consequences of failing to carry out: Ongoing review Final evaluation	Consider how National Australia Group carries out ongoing reviews and a final evaluation. Decide how you are going to review your project at various stages and how you will complete a final evaluation.

Unit 10 - Investor in People

In this unit you will have the opportunity to examine the fact that investing in people makes sound business sense. You will discover that a modern, enterprising business organisation realises that the people who work for it are the most valuable resource that it has.

NOTE you will need windows media installed on your computer to view these files. http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windowsmedia

Video	Mind Mapping	Application
Introduction
Introduction 920 KB
Importance of investing in people In this section you will see a business perspective on the importance of investing in people
Importance of investing in people 1.04 MB	Discuss the benefits to a business of investing in its people.	Discuss the implications for a business of not investing in its people.
Factors that influence investment in people In this section you will see a range of factors which determine the decisions on people investment planning for Heat.
Factors that influence investment in people1.15 MB	Select a business in your local area. Discuss the factors which will influence the decisions made about investment planning for people.	Write a short report advising a business of your choice on how to successfully succession plan.
Planning for investing in people In this section you will see how Heat plan for people investment
Planning for investing in people 1.76 MB	What are the benefits to a business of carrying out a training needs analysis?	Write a report advising a business of your choice on how the plan for future skills shortages within their organisation.
Employee motivation In this section you will see how Heat successfully motivates its staff.
Employee motivation 1.84 MB	Discuss the benefits to a business of having a motivated team.	Evaluate how Heat satisfies the needs of its employees by applying Maslow’s hierarchy of needs.
Employee training In this section you will see the strategies that Heat employ in order to ensure that they have a highly trained, top class workforce
Employee Training 2.01 MB	Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of the following: On-the-job training Off-the-job training	Heat has a very innovative apprenticeship programme. Discuss the benefits that this programme has for: employees the business itself
Taking care of staff In this section you will see how Heat looks after it's staff.
Taking care of staff 2.79 MB	Discuss the benefits to a business of having: work life balance models Job share Family friendly policies Private health insurance	Choose a business in your local area. Evaluate how they look after their staff. You should refer to statutory and non statutory provisions.

Applied Business Double Award

Managing People

Managing Finance

Managing Other Resources