Grade 10 Business Studies Master Revision

Comprehensive vocabulary flashcards covering key definitions across all chapters of the Grade 10 Business Studies syllabus.

Public sector

The government-owned part of the economy that provides collective goods and services (e.g., schools, hospitals, and police), funded largely through taxes.

Private sector

The part of the economy owned by private entrepreneurs that aims to meet customer needs and earn a profit, competing through quality, price, and customer service.

Formal sector

Businesses that operate in accordance with legal requirements, including official registration and tax obligations, typically with fixed premises and contributing to measured GDP.

Informal sector

Economic activities operating without formal registration or fixed premises (such as hawkers and home producers) that support livelihoods and indirectly contribute to the economy.

Primary sector

The economic sector involved in extracting and harvesting natural resources, such as farming, fishing, and mining.

Secondary sector

The economic sector that processes raw materials into manufactured goods, including manufacturing and construction.

Tertiary sector

The economic sector that sells goods and provides services to consumers and businesses, such as retail, transport, and entertainment.

Quaternary sector

The economic sector focused on knowledge, information, and intellectual services, including research, consulting, and IT.

Quinary sector

The economic sector comprising the highest levels of strategic decision-making, such as senior government officials and corporate executives.

Productivity

A measure of business performance defined as total output produced relative to the inputs used.

Efficiency

Meeting business and customer needs while using resources, time, and costs wisely to minimise waste.

Micro environment

The internal business environment—including functions, resources, policies, culture, and structure—over which the business has direct or high control.

Market environment

The external environment immediately outside the business—including suppliers, consumers, competitors, intermediaries, and regulators—over which it has limited influence.

Macro environment

The broad external environment—encompassing political, economic, social, technological, legal, and environmental factors—over which a business has little or no control.

PESTLE analysis

A framework used to examine macro-environmental factors: Political, Economic, Social, Technological, Legal, and Environmental.

SWOT analysis

A strategic tool assessing internal factors (Strengths and Weaknesses) and external factors (Opportunities and Threats).

Entrepreneur

A person who identifies an opportunity or market gap, gathers factors of production, accepts calculated risks, and establishes a business venture to earn a profit and grow.

Push factors (entrepreneurship)

Circumstantial pressures that force a person into starting a business out of necessity, such as unemployment, job insecurity, or disagreements with an employer.

Pull factors (entrepreneurship)

Positive motivations and ambitions that attract a person toward entrepreneurship, such as independence, recognition, self-actualisation, and wealth creation.

Techno-entrepreneur

An entrepreneur who develops or uses technology as the core foundation to build and scale a business.

Social entrepreneur

An entrepreneur who establishes a business venture primarily to address social challenges or community needs, often operating as an NGO.

Enviro-entrepreneur

An entrepreneur who creates solutions for environmental problems, dealing in products such as solar energy, biofuels, or organic goods.

Competitive advantage

A distinctive factor—such as superior price, customer convenience, service quality, technology, or unique product features—that makes a business more attractive than rivals.

Incubation stage

The pre-birth stage of a business venture focused on conducting research, developing plans, evaluating feasibility, and securing resources.

Breakthrough stage

The growth stage of a business characterised by rapid expansion and rising sales, with the primary challenge of managing quality, delivery schedules, and cash flow.

Legal persona

A legal status that gives a business entity an identity distinct from its owners, allowing it to enter contracts, own property, and sue or be sued in its own name.

Unlimited liability

A legal condition in which business owners are personally responsible for all business debts, placing their private personal assets at risk.

Sole trader

An unincorporated business owned and operated by one individual who provides the capital, retains all profits, and carries unlimited personal liability.

Partnership

A legal business relationship formed by an agreement between two or more people (conventionally 2 to 20) pooling capital, skills, and expertise to share profits and losses.

Joint and several liability

A legal liability principle in partnerships where each partner can be held personally liable by creditors for the full amount of the business's total debts.

Sleeping partner

A partner who invests capital and receives a share of profits but does not take an active part in the day-to-day management of the business.

Continuity

The legal capacity of a business to continue operating without dissolution when an owner dies, retires, or changes.

Data

Raw, unprocessed facts, numbers, or observations that lack context and do not explain the underlying causes of a situation on their own.

Information

Data that has been organised, processed, and interpreted into a meaningful structure to guide business decisions.

Primary research

First-hand, original information gathered directly by an enterprise or researcher for a specific purpose using methods such as interviews, surveys, or observations.

Secondary research

Existing research data already compiled and published by outside entities, such as government agencies, trade bodies, or market-research firms.

3 P model of creativity

A conceptual framework explaining creativity through three interrelated components: the Person (who generates ideas), the Process (how ideas develop), and the Product (the resulting innovation).

Intrapreneur

An employee who uses entrepreneurial thinking and creativity to develop innovative ideas, products, or projects within an established business.

5W and H technique

A structured creative questioning method that asks Who? What? Where? When? Why? and How? to thoroughly dissect a problem.

Association technique

A creative thinking technique that finds connections and links between related or seemingly unrelated concepts, objects, or ideas to discover novel solutions.

Problem reversal technique

A creative technique that examines the exact opposite of a problem statement and reverses the negative findings to generate positive solutions.

Patent

A legal protection granted for a limited time that gives an inventor exclusive rights over qualifying new inventions, products, or technical manufacturing processes.

Trademark

A registered, legally protected distinctive name, logo, slogan, or sign used to distinguish a company's goods or services from competitors.

Copyright

Legal protection granting exclusive reproduction rights to creators of original literary, musical, dramatic, or artistic works, such as books, films, and illustrations.

Indigenous thinking

Traditional knowledge, production methods, and crafts passed down across generations within a specific local community or culture.

Organisational culture

The collective set of beliefs, standards, and values shared by employees that determines acceptable workplace behaviour and ethics.

Contract

A legally binding agreement entered into verbally or in writing between two or more parties, creating enforceable duties and rights in court.

Contractual capacity

The legal qualification and ability of an individual (ordinarily requiring a minimum age of 18 and sound mental health) to enter into a valid, enforceable contract.

Johari Window

A self-awareness and communication model divided into Open, Blind, Hidden, and Unknown panes to analyse personal perception and disclosure.

Delegation

The management practice of assigning specific tasks and appropriate authority to employees while retaining final responsibility and oversight.

Assertiveness

A balanced communication approach between passivity and aggression that expresses thoughts and opinions calmly, clearly, and confidently.

Teamwork

The cooperative combination of skills, knowledge, and experiences of different individuals working collectively toward a common business goal.

Synergy

A phenomenon where individuals or resources collaborate so effectively that their collective output is greater than the sum of their individual contributions.

Groupthink

A team pitfall in which members prioritise agreement and harmony over critical thinking, suppressing opposing viewpoints and ignoring poor decisions.

Contributor

A Raymond Ackerman team role primarily focused on completing technical tasks, enforcing high work standards, and using resources efficiently.

Collaborator

A Raymond Ackerman team role focused on the big picture and overall vision, keeping members aligned with long-term goals and project schedules.

Communicator

A Raymond Ackerman team role focused on maintaining positive interpersonal relationships, mediating conflict, and ensuring all members participate.

Challenger

A Raymond Ackerman team role that questions assumptions, encourages constructive risk-taking, and pushes the team to remain honest and accountable.

GAP analysis

A planning tool used to measure the difference between a team or business's current performance and its desired target, outlining steps to close the shortfall.

Functional conflict

A constructive form of disagreement that stimulates healthy debate, reveals new viewpoints, and leads to improved decision-making and relationships.

Dysfunctional conflict

A destructive form of interpersonal conflict that damages trust, delays tasks, lowers staff morale, and impedes goal achievement.