Adverse variance A difference between actual and budgeted amounts which Is bad news – e. G. Higher than budgeted costs Advertising Paid-for communication, aimed at informing or persuading Assessment centers Where a recruiting firm runs a series of extended selection procedures, each lasting one or two days or sometimes longer Automation The replacement of workers with machines to perform task in production Boston Matrix A model which analyses the product portfolio of a business Into four categories (stars, cash cows, problem children and dogs) Branding
The use of a trade name, symbol, logo or other device to differentiate a product or service Budget A detailed plan of Income and expenses expected over a certain period of time Business to business Abbreviated to BIB, business-to-business involves the selling or products and services by one business directly to another Capacity utilization The proportion of total capacity that Is used (expressed as a percentage) Communication The process of exchanging information or ideas between individuals or groups Competition The businesses that compete for a share of a market
Competitiveness The ability of a business to offer a better product than competitors (as measured by customers) Cost reduction Actions taken by a business aimed at reducing total costs, or lowering average unit costs Customer expectations What customers expect to receive as a result of buying a good or service; influenced by perceptions of factors such as quality and price Customer service The ways in which a business meets the needs and wants of its customers Delegation Where responsibility for carrying out a task or role is passed onto someone else in the business.
Direct selling A method of distribution which involves a business transacting with a customer without the use of Intermediaries Distribution channel How a business gets Its products to the end consumer (with or without the use of intermediaries) Empowerment Delegating power to employees so that they can make their own decisions External recruitment Where candidates for a Job vacancy come from outside the organization Factoring A source of finance where a business receives a proportion of the amount owned by trade debtors from a specialist finance-provider Favorable variance Han budgeted revenue Flexible working Where a business uses a number of different working practices in order to suit the job in hand and the needs of employees Hierarchy The structure and number of layers of management and supervision in an organization Induction training Training aimed at introducing new employees to a business and its procedures Internal recruitment Where candidates for a Job vacancy come from within the organization Interview Part of the recruitment process where a candidate is met face-to-face Job description A summary of the main duties and responsibilities of a Job Job design The way in which tasks are combined to form a Job Job enlargement Giving employees more tasks of a similar level of complexity. Job enlargement expands the number of tasks completed by an employee Job enrichment Making a Job more interesting or varied so that is more rewarding Labor productivity The output produced per employee over a given time period Loss leader Where a price is set deliberately below the cost of production in order to attract customers who will buy other, more profitable products Market research
