English for Business Studies: Units 01–17 Key Vocabulary

Comprehensive vocabulary flashcards covering key concepts across Units 01 through 17 of English for Business Studies.

management

The process used to accomplish organizational goals through planning, organizing, leading, and controlling people and other organizational resources.

Chief Executive Officer (CEO)

The most senior manager responsible for the overall performance and success of a company.

planning

A management function that includes anticipating trends and determining the best strategies and tactics to achieve organizational goals and objectives.

controlling

A management function that involves establishing clear standards to determine whether or not an organization is progressing toward its goals and objectives, rewarding people for doing a good job, and taking corrective action if they are not.

job satisfaction

The enjoyment a worker gets from feeling that they have done a good job.

Theory X

A theory stating that the average person does not like work, workers must be constantly supervised so they will work, and motivation is from external factors (e.g., pay schemes where workers are paid more for increased output).

Theory Y

A theory stating that the average person is motivated by internal factors; to motivate workers, you need to empower employees, fostering an environment where individuals are encouraged to take initiative and collaborate towards mutual goals

Maslow's hierarchy of needs

A theory of motivation which states that five categories of human needs dictate an individual's behavior: physiological needs, safety needs, love and belonging needs, esteem needs, and self-actualization needs.

Herzberg's motivation theory

A theory stating that humans have two sets of needs: basic hygiene factors or needs, and motivational needs or motivators to grow psychologically.

hygiene factors

The factors that must be present in the workplace to prevent job dissatisfaction.

organizational structure

The levels of management and division of responsibilities within an organization.

chain of command

The structure in an organization which allows instructions to be passed down from senior management to lower levels of management.

span of control

The number of subordinates working directly under a manager.

delegation

Giving a subordinate the authority to perform a particular task.

matrix management

A system in which staff may report to both a functional manager and a project manager.

glocalization

A combination of the words 'globalization' and 'localization,' used to describe a product or service that is developed and distributed globally but adjusted to accommodate the user or consumer in a local market.

Lewis Model

A model developed by Richard D. Lewis that divides humans into three clear categories based on behavior: Linear-active, Multi-active, and Reactive.

high-context culture

A culture where the rules of communication are primarily and dominantly transmitted through contextual elements (body language, social status, tone of voice) rather than explicitly written or stated rules.

low-context culture

A culture whereby most communications take place through verbal language and rules are directly written out or stated for all to view.

power distance

The distribution of power among individuals within a culture and how well unequal levels of power are accepted by those with less power.

recruitment

The process from identifying that the business needs to employ someone up to the point at which applications have arrived at the business.

job description

Outlines the responsibilities and duties to be carried out by someone employed to do a specific job.

job specification

A document which outlines the requirements, qualifications, expertise, physical characteristics, etc., for a specified job.

induction training

An introduction given to a new employee, explaining the business's activities, customs and procedures and introducing them to their fellow workers.

primary sector

The sector of industry that extracts and uses the natural resources of Earth to produce raw materials used by other businesses.

secondary sector

The sector of industry that manufactures goods using the raw materials provided by the primary sector.

tertiary sector

The sector of industry that provides services to consumers and the other sectors of industry.

limited liability

A condition where the liability of shareholders in a company is limited to only the amount they invested.

public limited company (PLC)

Businesses owned by shareholders that can sell shares to the public and whose shares are tradeable on the Stock Exchange.

lean production

The production of goods and services with the minimum waste of resources.

just-in-time (JIT)

A production method that involves reducing or virtually eliminating the need to hold inventories of raw materials or unsold inventories of the finished product.

planned obsolescence

Designing products to become outdated or need replacing sooner.

logistics

The business activity that involves planning, implementing, and controlling the physical flow of materials, final goods, and related information from points of origin to points of consumption to meet customer requirements at a profit.

reverse logistics

The area of logistics that involves bringing goods back to the manufacturer because of defects or for recycling.

push strategy

Making or replenishing products based on forecast demand.

pull strategy

Making or replenishing products in response to actual demand.

quality control (QC)

The checking for quality at the end of the production process, whether it is the production of a product or service.

quality assurance (QA)

The checking for quality standards throughout the production process, whether it is the production of a product or service.

Total Quality Management (TQM)

The continuous improvement of products and processes by focusing on quality at each stage of production.

Six Sigma

A method for improving processes by reducing variation and defects.

market segmentation

The act of dividing a market into distinct groups of buyers who have different requirements or buying habits.

marketing mix

The set of all the various elements in a marketing programme, and the way a company integrates them.

market skimming

Charging a high initial price for a new product.

market penetration

Setting a low price to win customers and build market share.

advertorial

A paid-for advertisement which includes editorial content; normally identified in a print magazine with the word "Advertisement" printed across the top of the page.

unique selling proposition / point (USP)

A highlighted benefit of a product which makes it stand out from all rival brands.

product placement

The practice of paying for a branded product to be used by a character in a movie.

liquidity

Available cash, and how easily other assets can be turned into cash.

mortgage

A type of loan used to purchase or maintain a home, land, or other real estate, where the property serves as collateral to secure the loan.

solvency

When banks have enough money to cover potential losses and maintain a sufficient level of capital to avoid failure.

cost accounting

Calculating all the expenses involved in producing something, including materials, labour, and all other expenses.

creative accounting

Using all available accounting procedures and tricks to disguise the true financial position of a company.

balance sheet / statement of financial position

A statement showing the value of a business's assets, its liabilities, and its capital or shareholders' equity.

business cycle model

A model showing the increases and decreases in a nation's real GDP over time, demonstrating long-run increases combined with short-run fluctuations.

creative destruction

The process by which innovations displace older products, companies, or industries.

positive output gap

The difference between actual output and potential output when an economy is producing more than full employment output, operating outside its PPC.

negative output gap

The difference between actual output and potential output when an economy is producing less than full employment output, operating inside its PPC.

corporate social responsibility (CSR)

A company's commitment to improving or enhancing community well-being through discretionary contributions of corporate resources across five dimensions: Environment, Social, Economic, Stakeholder, and Volunteerism.

greenwashing

Creating a misleading impression that a business or product is environmentally responsible.

stakeholder model

The view that companies should consider the interests of all affected groups.

downsizing

Decreasing the number of permanent employees.

redundancy package

All the payments and advantages that a company gives to workers who have lost their jobs because they are no longer needed.

delayering

Removing layers of management from an organization.

protectionism

The economic policy of restraining trade between nations through tariffs, restrictive quotas, and regulations to discourage imports and prevent foreign takeovers.

tariff

A duty (or tax) levied upon goods transported from one Customs area to another, for either protective or revenue purposes, raising the prices of imported goods.

comparative advantage

Inability of a nation to produce a good more efficiently than other nations, but an ability to produce that good more efficiently than it does any other good.

dumping

Selling exports at a price below their normal value.