Business Studies

ONLINE COURSE BUSINESS STUDIES

LEARN THE FUNDAMENTALS OF GOOD BUSINESS PRACTICE!

Develop skills in the establishment and/or management of a small business, or a department within a larger organisation. Learn to develop and implement procedures that work as a controlling mechanism for smooth running to virtually deal with problems automatically as they arise. Learn to evaluate performance and implement appropriate responses, whether the business activity is small or large.

Lesson Structure

There are 8 lessons in this course:

1. Establishment Procedures
   • The Business World
   • Ways to Begin a Business
   • Buying or Starting Up New
   • Market, Location, Regulations
   • Risks; emotional, financial
   • Common Reasons for Business Failure
   • Developing a 12 Month Plan
   • Creating a Business Plan
   • Motivation, Planning, Customers, Competitors, Promotion, Sales and Pricing, Employees, Premisis, Tax, Cashflow, Your Skills, etc
   • Legislation and Business Law
   • Legal Obligations
   • Partnerships
   • Contracts
   • Types of Business
2. Management Procedures
   • Management Theory
   • Economic View, Behavioural View, Stakeholder Theory
   • Policies
   • Management Influences
   • Government Intervention
   • Classical School of Management Theory
   • Humanistic Management Theory
   • Scientific or Contingency Approach to Management
   • Systems Management
   • Neo Human Relations Management
   • Organisational Structures
   • "Functional", "Product/Market" and "Matrix" Structures
   • Coordination
   • Office Work
   • Quality Systems
3. Communication in Business
   • Scope of Office Work
   • Business Letters
   • Customer Service
   • Writing Procedures
   • Clarity in Writing
   • Causes of Confusion
   • Concise Wording
   • Examples of Quality Assurance
4. Problem Solving
   • Problem Solving Approaches
   • Non Complience Procedures
5. Staff Management
   • Introduction
   • Interviewing, Recruitment and Staff Induction
   • Advertising
   • Potential Candidates
   • Interviews
   • Job Specifications
   • Management Styles
   • Supervision
   • Communicating with Employees
   • Giving Orders
   • Delegating
   • Motivating Employees
   • Security, ethics, gratitude, belief systems, etc
   • Negative Motivators
   • Space Management
   • Time Management
   • Viscious and Virtuous Cycles
   • Staff Training
   • Dealing with Complaints
   • Workplace Health and Safety
   • Work Sceduling
6. Productivity
   • Introduction
   • Total and Partial Productivity Ratios
   • Foundation Economics
   • Goods, Resources, Performance Criteria
   • Economic Laws
   • Improving Results in Business
   • Profitability Ratios
7. Financial Management
   • Introduction
   • Liquidity
   • Financial Records
   • Steps in the Bookkeeping Process
   • Basic Bookkeeping; Double Entry System, Ledger, Entrries resulting from Transactions, etc.
   • Cash Flow
   • Taxation
   • Financial Assistance
   • Insurance and Types of Insurance
   • Financial Terminology
   • Budgeting
   • Costing
   • Cost of Employing Labour
8. Marketing Techniques
   • Scope and Nature of Marketing
   • Supply and Demand
   • Market ResearchMaking Contact and Communicating with Potential Customers
   • Convincing a Customer
   • Developing an Advertizement or Promotional Message

Each lesson culminates in an assignment which is submitted to the school, marked by the school's tutors and returned to you with any relevant suggestions, comments, and if necessary, extra reading.

Aims

• Select appropriate procedures for the establishment of a small business.
• Select appropriate procedures for the management of a small business.
• Develop procedures for communicating with suppliers and customers of a small business.
• Develop procedures for addressing problems in a small business.
• Plan the management of staff in a small business.
• Develop strategies for managing production in a small business or department within a larger organisation.
• Perform different financial management tasks used in small business or department within a larger organisation.
• Evaluate marketing techniques used in business.

What You Will Do

• Find out what pay & conditions must be supplied for a list jobs.
• Find out about how to register a business name in your state, including procedures and costs.
• Find out the procedure for establishing a company.
• List the legal requirements for the establishment of one of a list of businesses.
• What are the legal rights and obligations of both the customer and the supplier in a legal contract?
• Visit an office in a workplace, and observe the layout of that office, and the way in which the layout affects work performance.
• Draw a sketch plan of an office, showing the arrangement of people, furniture and equipment.
• Contact either (or both) the Standards Association in your country and/or an appropriate government department to find out more about Quality Assurance.
• Compile a resource collection of information on office equipment.
• Interview someone who works in a business involved in selling.
• Investigate three different workplaces, in order to evaluate problems in small businesses.
• Investigate two different small business workplaces, making observations and speaking with some staff,
• Investigate the role of unions within a workplace.
• Contact at least one workplace where enterprise bargaining has been used to establish working conditions for staff.
• Investigate productivity in two different small business workplaces, from the same industry, and which provide the same or similar services or products.
• Investigate changing conditions in the business environment that may affect production or objectives of business.
• Investigate and prepare a management report on a business.
• Investigate investment opportunities with an investment counselor.
• Investigate an established business. Consider how a product is marketed by this business in three different ways.

What qualification will I achieve for completing this course?

This is an individual module course.  The individual module courses are 100 hour long usually and can be taken on their own or as part of a larger program of study. 

If you wish to take an individual module course as a stand alone course, you can elect to sit an optional exam at the end of it. 

If you successfully pass the exam and all assignments, you will receive a Statement of Attainment. You can take examinations at a time and location to suit you.  If you enrol, you will be sent further information on how to arrange examinations at the end of the course. 

If you do not wish to take the exam, you will receive a Course Completion letter when you have passed all assignments. 

There is an assignment at the end of each lesson. So for example, if an individual module course contains ten lessons, you will need to complete ten assignments. Assignments can be sent to us via email, post or fax.

Other qualifications, such as certificates, diplomas etc may require examinations to be taken as part of the overall assessment process.

You can find further information on the examinations process by clicking on the “Enrolment” link above.

You can find further information on other courses by clicking on the “Courses” link above.

More Information on ACS Distance Education and our courses

Who are our tutors?

Our tutors are all highly experienced and professional, knowledgeable in their field of study.  We have staff from around the world, enabling us to gain a wide variety of perspectives.  We have a school in the UK and in Australia. If you would like to have a look at our tutors, then click on the “About Us” in the boxes above and choose “The Staff” option.

Sample Course Notes

Our courses are all written by highly qualified tutors and writers, who also teach on the courses, so know them well.  We strive to update our courses and improve them with new information, methods and knowledge on an ongoing basis.  If you would like to see examples of some of our courses, then choose the “Enrolment” option above, and then click on “Sample Course Notes”.

What learning method should I choose?

We offer three learning methods – e-learning, correspondence and online. If you are not sure which is the right choose for you, then click on the “Learning” box above, then “Learning Methods.”

How Long will it take to complete the course?

This obviously varies from student to student. Some students will have more time for study than others. Some students may work quicker than others, so it is an individual thing.  We estimate that most students will take, for example, 4 – 6 months to complete a 100 hour individual module, but we allow up to 12 months for you to complete it.

Longer courses will obviously take longer.  You can find more information on the length of time required and so on the “Enrolment” box, then selecting “Terms and Conditions of Enrolment.”

What Do Our Students think of us?

If you would like to read comments from our previous students, then choose the “About Us” option above, then “Student Testimonials”.

I don’t think this is the right course for me.

If you’re not sure about this course, then why not look at our wide range of other courses. Click on the “Courses” box above.

You may also wish to design your own course to fit in with exactly what YOU want. To do so, click on the “Enrolment” box, then “Design your Own Course”.

If you would like more advice on a course, then you can contact us and ask a tutor about the courses. You can contact us by calling 0800 328 4723 or +44(0) 384 442752 or emailing info@acsedu.co.uk

Recognition and Accreditation

For more information on our recognition and accreditation, click on “The School”, then “Recognition”.

Who is ACS Distance Education?

If you want to know more about ACS and our history, then please click on “The School”, then “About us.”