Business for the Beginner

By Keith G. Parker

This creatively designed handbook, Business for the Beginner: A Resource Guide to Business Ideas and Concepts, is in both English and Chinese. It will help those who want to learn and conduct business to understand basic business terms and their meanings.
Topics covered in this handbook include Public and Private Sector Enterprises, Business Strategies, Decision Making, Marketing, Human Resources Management (HRM), Business Accounting (basic, explainable maths and formulas), Employee Empowerment, Operations Management, and many others.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lulu.com
• Release date: Aug 12, 2014
• ISBN: 9781312430662

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Business for the Beginner

Business for the Beginner:

A Resource Guide to Business Ideas and Concepts

Keith G. Parker

Copyright © 2014, Keith Parker

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored, or transmitted by any means—whether auditory, graphic, mechanical, or electronic—without written permission of both publisher and author. Unauthorized reproduction of any part of this work is illegal and is punishable by law.

ISBN: 978-1-312-43066-2

Introduction

This creatively designed handbook is in both English and Chinese. It will help those who want to learn and conduct business to understand the basic terms and their meanings. It will also advance their knowledge in how business is done.

Every day we encounter some kind of business transaction, whether it is going to the supermarket or interacting at work. Understanding how business works and becoming accustomed to the terminology involved can greatly improve one’s foresight into how business works.

Topics covered in this handbook include Public and Private Sector Enterprises, Business Strategies, Decision Making, Marketing, Human Resources Management (HRM), Business Accounting (basic, explainable maths and formulas), Employee Empowerment, Operations Management, and many others.

In short, this handbook is designed for those aspiring to the kind of business tactics that can help them and their companies to achieve the goals they want.

About the Author

The author, Keith Parker, is the Business Director for LK Business Communication Specialists, Beijing Office. He has over eight years of experience in academic management, teaching and training in the higher education, training and development sectors in the U.S., China and South Korea.

Keith has delivered training courses, workshops, seminars and lectures to learners of all abilities and from varied cultural backgrounds across a broad range of subjects, including both academic and soft skills training. Topics covered include: marketing and consumer behavior, organizational behavior, change management and leadership, human resources management, managing international business, interpersonal skills, and business communication. In addition, he has conducted numerous corporate training courses and workshops to learners from varied professions and industries from multinational companies.

Chapter One: Economic Terms and Activity and the Public Sector

I. Nature of Business and Economic Activities

1. Economic Activity: The purpose of economic activity is to provide for as many of our wants as possible.

The Problem of Choice: Because of the shortage of products and the resources needed to make them, all economic units need to make careful and rational choices by choosing those things of the greatest benefit and leaving out those things of less value.

Opportunity Cost: The cost of a decision expressed in terms of the lost benefit from the next most desired option. It is the benefit that we are giving up.

What is Business Activity? After identifying the needs of consumers or other firms, businesses purchase resources – or factors of production – in order to produce goods and services that satisfy these needs, usually with the aim of making a profit.

Some important business terms:

A. Factors of Production:

Land: Renewable and non-renewable resources of nature, such as coal, crude oil, timber, etc.

Labor

Capital: To finance all man-made resources, such as computers, machines, factories, offices, vehicles, etc.

Enterprise: The driving force, provided by risk-taking individuals that combine the other factors of production into a unit that is capable of producing goods and services. It provides a managing, decision making and coordinating role.

B. Consumer Goods:

These are physical and tangible goods sold to the general public:

Durable Goods: Goods that can be used repeatedly, such as cars, washing machines;

Non-durable Consumer Goods: Such as foods, drinks, sweets, etc, which can only be used once.

C. Consumer Services:

These are non-tangible products that are sold to the general public, such as hotel accommodation, insurance services, train journeys, etc.

D. Capital Goods:

These are physical goods that are used by industry to aid in the production of other goods and services, such as machines, commercial vehicles, etc.

2. Classification of Business Activity:

Primary Sector is the businesses that operate in industries that are concerned with agriculture, fishing and extraction of raw material.

Secondary Sector is made up of industries engaged in manufacturing products or construction.

Tertiary Sector is the business activity that provides services for consumers and other businesses.

Industrialization is the term used to describe the growing importance of the secondary-sector manufacturing industries in developing countries.

Benefits:    GDP and living standards rising

Exports rising, imports falling

Number of jobs rising

Tax rising

Adding value rising

Problems:    Movement of people from country to town, which causes housing and social problems.

Import