VCE Business Management Units 3&4 (2024)

Agreements

are legal documents that outline the wages and conditions of employees and are applicable to a particular business or group of businesses.

Arbitration

involves an independent third party hearing arguments from both disputing parties and making a legally binding decision to resolve the conflict.

Artificial intelligence (AI)

involves using computerised systems to simulate human intelligence and mimic human behaviour.

Autocratic management style

involves a manager making decisions and directing employees without any input from them.

Automated production lines

involve machinery and equipment that are arranged in a sequence, and the product is developed as it proceeds through each step.

Awards

are legal documents that outline the minimum wages and conditions of work for employees across an entire industry.

Business change

is the alteration of behaviours, policies, and practices of a business.

Business objectives

are the goals a business intends to achieve.

Career advancement

is the upwards progression of an employee's job position.

Change step

involves moving a business towards its desired state.

Communication

is the skill of effectively transferring information from one party to another.

Communication as a low-risk strategy

involves managers openly and honestly transferring information to employees, and listening to their feedback so that employees are fully aware of the reasons for, and impacts of an upcoming change.

Computer-aided design (CAD)

is digital design software that aids the creation, modification, and optimisation of a design and the design process.

Computer-aided manufacturing techniques (CAM)

involve the use of software that controls and directs production processes by coordinating machinery and equipment through a computer.

Consultative management style

involves a manager seeking input from employees on business decisions but making the final decision themselves.

Corporate culture

is the shared values and beliefs of a business and its employees.

Corporate social responsibility (CSR)

is the ethical conduct of a business beyond legal obligations, and the consideration of social, economic, and environmental impacts when making business decisions.

Cost cutting

is the process of reducing business expenses.

Customers

are individuals or groups who interact with a business by purchasing and utilising its goods and services.

Decision-making

is the skill of selecting a suitable course of action from a range of plausible options.

Delegation

is the skill of assigning work tasks and authority to other employees who are further down in a business's hierarchical structure.

Dismissal

involves the involuntary termination of an employee who fails to meet required work standards or displays unacceptable or unlawful behaviour.

Dispute resolution process

is a series of steps that disputing parties follow in order to resolve a disagreement and reach a resolution

Drive to acquire

is the desire to achieve rewards and high status.

Drive to bond

is the desire to participate in social interactions and feel a sense of belonging.

Drive to defend

is the desire to protect personal security as well as the values of the business.

Drive to learn

is the desire to gain knowledge, skills, and experience.

Driving forces

are factors affecting the business environment that promote and support business change.

Effectiveness

is the extent to which a business achieves its stated objectives.

Efficiency

is how productively a business uses its resources when producing a good or service.

Employee observation

involves a range of employees from different levels of authority assessing another employee's performance against a set of criteria.

Employees

are individuals who are hired by a business to complete work tasks and support the achievement of its objectives.

Employer associations

are advisory bodies that assist employers in understanding and upholding their legal business obligations.

Empowerment as a low-risk strategy

involves managers providing employees with increased responsibility and authority during times of change.

Entitlement considerations

are legal obligations an employer owes to its employees following the termination of their employment contract.

Esteem needs

are an individual's desires to feel important, valuable, and respected.

Fair Work Commission (FWC)

is Australia's independent workplace relations tribunal that has a range of responsibilities outlined by the Fair Work Act.

Force Field Analysis

is a theoretical model that determines if businesses should proceed with a proposed change.

Forecasting

is a materials planning tool that predicts customer demand for an upcoming period using past data and market trends.

Four Drive Theory

is a motivational theory that suggests that people strive to balance four fundamental desires.

General community

is the individuals and groups who are impacted by a business's operations and decisions, often because they are located in close proximity to the business.

Global outsourcing

involves transferring specific business activities to an external business in an overseas country.

Global sourcing of inputs

involves a business acquiring raw materials and resources from overseas suppliers.

Goal Setting Theory

is a motivation theory that states that employees are motivated by clearly defined goals that fulfil five key principles.

Government business enterprise (GBE)

is a business that is owned and operated by the government.

High-risk strategies

are autocratic management approaches used to influence employees to quickly accept and follow a business change.

Human resource management

is the organisation of employees' roles, pay, and working conditions.

Human resource managers

are individuals who coordinate the relationship between employees and management within a business.

Incentives as a low-risk strategy

involves managers providing financial or non-financial rewards to encourage employees to support change.

Innovation

is the process of altering and improving or creating new products or procedures.

Inputs

are the resources used by a business to produce goods and services.

Interpersonal

is the skill of creating positive interactions with other employees, to foster beneficial professional relationships.

Investment in training

is allocating resources to improve employee skills and knowledge.

Just in Time (JIT)

is an inventory control approach that delivers the correct type and quantity of materials as soon as they are needed for production.

Key performance indicators (KPIs)

are criteria that measure a business's efficiency and effectiveness in achieving its different objectives.

Laissez-faire management style

involves a manager communicating business objectives to employees and giving them freedom to make decisions independently.

Leadership

is the skill of motivating others in order to achieve a business's objectives.

Leadership in change management

is the ability to positively influence and motivate employees towards achieving business objectives during a transformation.

Lean management

is the process of systematically reducing waste in all areas of a business's operations system whilst simultaneously improving customer value.

Learning organisation

is an organisation that facilitates the growth of its members and continuously transforms itself to adapt to changing environments.

Level of staff turnover

is the percentage of employees that leave a business over a specific period of time and must be replaced.

Level of wastage

is the amount of inputs and outputs that are discarded during the production process.

Lewin's Three-step Change Model

is a process that can be used by a business to implement change successfully.

Low-risk strategies

are measured management approaches that gradually encourage employees to accept and participate in a business change.

Management by objectives

involves both managers and employees collaboratively setting individual employee goals that contribute to the achievement of broader business objectives.

Managers

are individuals who oversee and coordinate a business's employees and lead its operations to ultimately achieve the business's objectives.

Manipulation as a high-risk strategy

involves influencing employees to support a proposed change by providing incomplete and deceptive information about the transformation.

Manufacturing businesses

use resources and raw materials to produce a finished physical good.

Market share

is a business's percentage of total sales within an industry.

Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs

is a motivational theory that suggests people have five fundamental needs, and their sequential attainment of each need acts as a source of motivation.

Master production schedule (MPS)

is a plan that outlines what a business intends to produce, in specific quantities, within a set period of time.

Materials requirement planning (MRP)

is a process that itemises the types and quantities of materials required to meet production targets set out in the master production schedule.

Mediation

involves an impartial third party facilitating discussions between disputing parties to help each side of the conflict reach a resolution themselves.

Mental models

are existing assumptions and generalisations that must be challenged so that learning and transformation can occur in an organisation.

Motivation

is the willingness of an individual to expend energy and effort in completing a task.

Net profit figures

are calculated by subtracting total expenses incurred from total business revenue earned, over a specific period of time.

Number of customer complaints

is the number of customers who notified the business of their dissatisfaction over a specific period of time.

Number of sales

is the total quantity of goods and services sold by a business over a specific period of time.

Number of website hits

is the amount of visits that a business's online platform receives for a specific period of time.

Number of workplace accidents

measures the amount of injuries and unsafe incidents that occur at a work location over a specific period of time.

Off-the-job training

involves employees improving their knowledge and skills in a location external to the business.

Official corporate culture

involves the shared views and values that a business aims to achieve, often outlined in a written format.

On-the-job training

involves employees improving their knowledge and skills within the workplace.

One-piece flow

is a lean management strategy that involves processing a product individually through a stage of production and passing it onto the next stage of production before processing the next product, continuing this process throughout all stages of production.

Online services

are services that are provided via the internet.

Operations management

involves coordinating and organising the activities involved in producing the goods or services that a business sells to customers.

Outputs

are the final goods or services produced as a result of a business's operations system, that are delivered or provided to customers.

Overseas manufacture

involves a business producing goods or services outside of the country where its headquarters are located.

Owners

are individuals who establish, invest, and have a share in a business, often with the goal of earning a profit from its operations. In public listed and private limited companies, owners are known as shareholders.

Participative management style

involves a manager sharing information with employees so that employees can participate in decision-making.

Partnership

is a business structure that is owned by two to 20 owners.

Percentage of market share

measures the proportion of a business's total sales, compared to the total sales in the industry, expressed as a percentage figure.

Performance appraisals

involve a manager assessing the performance of an employee against a range of criteria, providing feedback, and establishing plans for future improvements.

Performance-related pay

is a financial reward that employees receive for reaching or exceeding a set business goal.

Personal mastery

is the discipline of personal growth and learning, aligned with one's values and purpose.

Persuasive management style

involves a manager making decisions and communicating the reasons for those decisions to employees without their input.

Physiological needs

are the basic requirements for human survival, such as food, water, and shelter.

Planning

is the process of determining a business's objectives and establishing strategies to achieve these aims.

Porter's differentiation strategy

involves offering unique services or product features that are of perceived value to customers, which can then be sold at a higher price than competitors.

Porter's lower cost strategy

involves a business offering customers similar or lower-priced products compared to the industry average, while remaining profitable by achieving the lowest cost of operations among competitors.