Transition Pack for A Level Business Get ready for A Level! A guide to help you get ready for A Level Business, including everything from topic guides to days out and online learning resources.
Transition Pack for A Level Business
Get ready for A Level! A guide to help you get ready for A
Level
Business, including everything from topic guides to days out and
online learning resources.
Who’s business is it anyway? We all have different motivations for
studying business but one thing cannot be ignored - business is all
around us. It is fundamental to our modern lifestyles and by taking
these steps towards mastering an understanding of business, you can
have a piece of the pie.
Use this guide to prepare you and start to take control of your
future with the Business A Level.
Books
Business Stripped Bare Adventures of a Global Entrepreneur - Sir
Richard Branson The autobiography of Britain’s most famous
entrepreneur.
The Google Story - David A. Vise An interesting investigation into
the culture at Google, includes insights into the four day working
week and soft management styles. The questions is; are these the
things that made Google the world’s number one search engine?
The Toyota Way: 14 Management Principles from the World's Greatest
Manufacturer - Jeffrey Liker Covers Japanese Management Techniques
such as Kaizen and TQM.
TV & Movies
Wall Street A young and impatient stockbroker is willing to do
anything to get to the top, including trading on illegal inside
information taken through a ruthless and greedy corporate raider
who takes the youth under his wing
Undercover Boss This is a revealing look into how big company CEOs
rarely know what’s really going on with their business. They
flounder when faced with their employee’s simplest tasks.
“Undercover Boss” always ends up being a great testament to the
opportunity that exists in disrupting the big boys.
TED Talks - search the term above the video
Arianna Huffington “SLEEP”
Roselinde Torres - What it takes to be a great leader
Tim Leberecht - 3 ways to lose control of your brand
1. Divide your page into three sections like this
2. Write the name, date and topic at the top of the page
3. Use the large box to make notes. Leave a space between separate
idea. Abbreviate where possible.
4. Review and identify the key points in the left hand box
5. Write a summary of the main ideas in the bottom space
Images taken from
http://coe.jmu.edu/learningtoolbox/cornellnotes.html
Sample of formulae and key data
Business Concepts Year 1 - Decision making • the importance of the
context of business in relation to decision making • the
interrelated nature of business activities and how they affect
competitiveness • the competitive environment and the markets in
which businesses operate • the influences on functional decisions
and plans including ethical and environmental issues • the factors
that might determine whether a decision is successful eg the
quality of data and the degree of uncertainty • how technology is
changing the way decisions are made and how businesses operate and
compete • the impact on stakeholders of functional decisions and
their response to such decisions • use of non-quantitative and
quantitative data in decision making (including the interpretation
of index numbers and calculations such as ratios and
percentages).
Year 2 - Strategy The study of strategic decision making should
build on the study of decision making in the functional areas.
Students should consider: • the impact of technology on strategic
decision making • the influences of Corporate Social
Responsibility, ethical and environmental issues on strategic
decisions • the difficulties in forecasting future trends • the
importance of assessing feasibility and risk when making strategic
decisions • the impact on stakeholders of strategic decisions and
their response to such decisions.
Places to visit
BANK OF ENGLAND
The Bank of England, formally the Governor and Company of the Bank
of England, is the central bank of the United Kingdom and the model
on which most modern central banks have been based.
The London Metal Exchange (LME)
The London Metal Exchange is the futures exchange with the world's
largest market in options and futures contracts on base and other
metals
Coca Cola Education Centre
The Education Centre is a purpose-built facility attached to the
factory and here we host educational visits for schools, colleges,
and universities, providing opportunities for students to make
connections between classroom work and real life business
practices.
Chelsea Business of Football
Provides an exciting insight into match day and non-match day
operations at the club focusing on merchandise, marketing, finance
and staffing. Students complete a workbook during the visit with
answers provided by an experienced guide
Barcelona Business Trip
The biennial Business trip to Barcelona is now well established and
continues to prove popular. Sign up early to avoid
disappointment.
Online resources
Bee Business Bee http://www.beebusinessbee.co.uk/
St Phil’s Business Site https://goo.gl/E8utfL
Do this now 1. Bookmark this site (click this hyperlink if you're
not sure
how). 2. Buy the school stationery pack - you will need a
calculator
although this does not need to be scientific. 3. Subscribe to
Philip Allan Business Review. You can do this
either online or a traditional magazine. This is ESSENTIAL
reading.
4. Bookmark the BBC Business News pages - you should try to read
this a few times a week at least to stay on top of current
affairs.
5. Follow @bbckamal to stay up to date on the latest business news
from the BBC's Business News Editor.
6. Follow @tutor2ubusiness and bookmark their site. 7. Follow some
of the accounts here. 8. Follow these business leaders on
Instagram:
Kevin Systrom (Instagram CEO) Sheryl Sandberg (Facebook COO)
Richard Branson Michael Acton Smith (Moshi Monsters creator) Jack
Dorsey (Twitter founder) More here
Summer activity: Task 1 Your task is to create a blog or scrapbook
about a business of your choice. Use Pinterest to find lots of
ideas and information along with http://businesscasestudies.co.uk/.
Try to find out as much as you can about the following: 1. What is
their main line of business? 2. Roughly how many people do they
employ and in what positions/roles? 3. How do they market
themselves? 4. Who are their main competitors? 5. What is their
market share? 6. Who are they owned by? 7. What is their legal
structure? 8. Product/service range and prices? 9. Location/areas
of operation?
10. Share value (if applicable)? 11. Recent news stories (most
important element to come back with) You will need to track this
business over the next two years and provide regular updates as to
the activities of the business as reported in the news. When you
see a relevant news story have a look to see if this has impacted
the share value and record this in your blog.
Task 2 Write a report on your business with a minimum of 500 words
(1 side of A4 font size 12)
Task 3 Using your report from Task 2 you must then create a
presentation in which you summarise your findings. This could be on
PowerPoint or another programme should you wish. You are not to
merely copy across the report! You will present this to your class
in the first 2 weeks back. Issues to consider could include
challenges they face, legal structures, growth rates, whether they
export and so on. Both pieces of work must be complete by your
first lesson with me. This will be your first work at A-Level
standard. It is vital that you create a good first impression and
set your high own standards for you to carry through the
course.