Demonstrate economic, business and management issues in relation to planning, decision-making and development of a business.

·         Introduction of your business.

·         What legal form of your business (sole trader, private limited liability company etc.)

·         Description of your products and / or services ideas and their features.

·         Product / service’s Unique selling point(s) (USP)

·         Who are your market / customers?

·         Who will your top five rivals?

·         What strategy do intend to compete against your rivals (price, quality, distribution etc.)

·         How do you intend to finance the business idea?

§  Exploring small businesses and entrepreneurship; market structure and international markets.

§  Strategic planning – what is strategic planning and how does it fit into business development

§  Learning to create a business plan and determining how to use the marketing mix in a new business.

§  The role of marketing in business – the marketing mix from 4Ps to 7Ps and the link to with customers Using the 7Cs.

§  Running a business and managing product development

§  Running a business- operating in the business environment and the influences of cultural differences, legal issues and funding.

§  Running a business – human resource management, identifying required skills in a business, employing and working with people.

· You should refer 8 relevant sources for your report.  Minimum 4 sources should be printed texts.  Please refer to your module handbook for a list of useful resources.

· You must include a Harvard style reference list at the end of your report.

· A full bibliography is NOT required.

Approximately 10 – 15 slides (remember, however, that each group will be allocated approximately 20 minutes’ presentation time)

The following learning outcomes are assessed in this task:

1. Evaluate the key features of the business environment and assess their potential impacts on business activities

2. Demonstrate the use of business analytical tools by assessing examples of internal and external business environments.

3. Demonstrate economic, business and management issues in relation to planning, decision-making and development of a business.

4. Discuss the application, and transfer, of a wide range of business/management skills to a specific business/management situation.

5.  Recognize the challenges of organisation and management in small businesses, European organisations and global businesses.

6.  Demonstrate an awareness of ethical constraints and cultural differences within both organisations and the business environment as a whole.

7.  Reflect on different market structures and their impact on the decisions made by individual firms in terms of price determination and the effect on consumers.