IEB Business Studies Summary: Chapters 1 to 11

Practice vocabulary flashcards defining key business concepts, legal terms, and governance principles from the IEB Business Studies summary.

Role Overload

A situation occurring when one member of a team takes on more work and responsibility than they can cope with.

Role Conflict

A problem that arises within a team when more than one member wants to occupy a certain role.

Role Ambiguity

A lack of clarity regarding the specific duties and expectations between different roles in a team.

Functional Conflict

Non-aggressive conflict that stimulates creativity, allows ideas to flow through brainstorming, and results in positive outcomes and higher productivity.

Dysfunctional Conflict

Aggressive conflict where individuals refuse to work towards a solution, compromising tasks, reducing productivity, and wasting valuable human capital.

Con-arb Process

A one-step, continuous single-day dispute resolution process combining conciliation and arbitration for unfair labour practices affecting individuals.

CCMA

Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration; an independent dispute resolution body that settles labour-related disputes through conciliation, mediation, and arbitration.

Workplace Forums (WPF)

Organisations established via the CCMA that enable workers at all levels to participate in consensus decision-making with senior management to increase efficiency.

Employers Organisations

Bodies that provide member businesses with labour or industrial relations experts on a contractual basis to handle HR issues, dispute resolution, and negotiations.

Trade Unions

Organisations formed to protect the rights and interests of the members they represent in a particular industry or trade.

Corruption

The misuse of public power for private gain.

Tax Evasion

An illegal practice where a person does not disclose all of their income and lies to the South African Revenue Service (SARS).

Insider Trading

The illegal buying and selling of shares on a stock exchange gained through the advantage of having insider access to confidential information.

Piracy

The unauthorised and illegal duplication of products that are protected by copyright.

Bootlegging

The illegal distribution of a product, such as illicit alcohol.

Counterfeit

The act of copying a product and dishonestly selling or presenting it as an original.

Code of Ethics

An umbrella concept defining the morals, principles, and values under which an organisation operates, denoting its professional responsibility to society.

Code of Conduct

A specific regulatory framework governing expected workplace behaviours for proper business practice, such as honouring contracts and treating staff well.

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)

Management's obligation to protect and promote the welfare of all stakeholders across society.

Corporate Social Investment (CSI)

The actual resources, capital, and investments that are channelled directly into assisting external stakeholders.

Triple Bottom Line

A reporting framework measuring an organisation's performance across economic prosperity, social responsibility, and environmental sustainability.

Extreme Poverty

A condition where an individual struggles for survival, lacking adequate nutrition and medical care while living on $R25.00$ or less per day.

Global Reporting Initiative (GRI)

An independent institution that develops globally accepted guidelines for sustainability reporting focused on economic, environmental, and social activities.

Delphi Technique

A complex problem-solving technique where geographically dispersed experts, who are not in the same room, share ideas and reach consensus globally.

Value Chain Analysis

A strategic tool used to analyse input activities and raw materials to identify where value is added, with the goal of cutting costs and gaining a competitive advantage.

Balanced Scorecard

A strategic management tool assessing business performance across four perspectives: financial, customer, internal processes, and learning and growth.

Market Penetration

A growth strategy designed to secure a bigger percentage of market share using existing products within the same existing market.

Diversification

A growth strategy where a business introduces new or complementary products to new or existing markets, or adds unrelated products to existing markets.

Forward Integration

An integration strategy where a business gains greater control over the distribution of its products, such as purchasing a retail outlet.

Backward Integration

An integration strategy where a business takes control over the supply side of its product inputs, such as buying a farm or component supplier.

Intrapreneur

An employee who operates within an existing organisation using entrepreneurial skills to innovate and improve departments without taking on full business risks.

Transformational Leadership

A leadership style where a leader inspires followers with a strong sense of purpose to meet higher-order needs and exceed performance expectations.

Brand Extension

The practice of using an established, successful brand name to launch a new product within the same broad market segment.

Brand Stretching

The strategy of using an established brand name to introduce products into completely unrelated markets.

Job Specification

A human resources document defining the personal qualifications, abilities, skills, and experience necessary for an individual to perform a specific job.

Job Description

A human resources document detailing the specific roles, tasks, expectations, and responsibilities associated with a given job position.

Protected Strike

A strike that conforms to all procedural requirements of the Labour Relations Act, protecting participating employees from dismissal for striking.

Lock-out

An employer-led industrial action where employees are barred from working until specific management terms or conditions are accepted.

Constructive Dismissal

A situation where an employer makes working conditions so intolerable that the employee has no reasonable choice but to resign.

Preference Shares

Shares that grant holders the right to receive dividends from company profits prior to payouts to ordinary shareholders.

Market Capitalisation

The total market value of a company calculated by multiplying its current share price by the total number of shares in issue.

Blue-chip Shares

Shares issued by solid, reputable companies with large market capitalisation and a steady pattern of growth in share value.

Debentures

Fixed-interest debt securities used by companies to borrow capital, requiring full legal repayment of the principal amount alongside interest.

Indemnification

An insurance principle that restores the insured party to the exact financial position they occupied prior to an insured loss, without allowing profit.

Average Clause

An insurance stipulation stating that if an asset is under-insured, the insurer will pay only the proportion of the loss that was covered by premiums.

Subrogation

An insurance principle that prevents an insured claimant from making multiple claims for the same event to profit from a loss.

Benchmarking

A business practice where an organisation analyses its own internal methodologies and compares them against external industry practices to improve performance.

Total Quality Management (TQM)

An organisation-wide system that plans, measures, and controls operations continuously to maintain high standards and deliver superior customer satisfaction.