Business syllabus, dot point by dot point

Business planning for a new venture - the purpose and components of a business plan (executive summary, business description, market analysis, marketing plan, operations plan, financial plan), feasibility analysis, and the role of planning in reducing the risk of business failure

Topic 1: Business fundamentals - how does planning support successful business creation?

Business structures - sole trader, partnership, company (Pty Ltd, Ltd), trust - and the implications of each for liability, taxation, capital raising, regulatory compliance and ownership transfer

Topic 1: Business fundamentals - how do business structures affect business creation?

Sources of finance for a new business - internal and external, debt and equity (owner equity, retained profits, loans, overdraft, trade credit, leasing, venture capital, government grants) - and the matching of finance source to purpose, cost, risk and control

Topic 1: Business fundamentals - how is a new business financed?

External business environments and the PESTEL framework - political, economic, social, technological, environmental and legal factors - and their influence on business creation in Australia

Topic 1: Business fundamentals - how do business environments influence business creation?

Ethical and socially responsible business practice - the distinction between legal compliance and ethical responsibility, corporate social responsibility (CSR), the triple bottom line, stakeholder management, and the implications of ethical or unethical practice for the business

Topic 2: Ethical and socially responsible business practice

Unit 2: Business growth

Marketing mix strategies for a growing business - the 7Ps (product, price, promotion, place, people, process, physical evidence) - and the integration of the elements to support growth objectives

Topic 1: Marketing strategies for a growing business

Target market segmentation - demographic, geographic, psychographic and behavioural variables - the selection of target markets, and positioning the business in the chosen segments

Cash flow management for a growing business - the cash flow statement and the distinction between profit and cash, working capital management (current assets and current liabilities, the cash conversion cycle), and strategies to manage cash flow gaps during growth (overgrowth/overtrading risk)

Topic 2: Financial management of a growing business

Operations processes for a growing business - the transformation of inputs into outputs, the role of operations in adding value, productivity and efficiency, quality management (quality control, quality assurance, total quality management), and the influence of technology and economies of scale on operations during growth

Topic 2: Operations and the management of growth

Human resource management for business growth - recruitment and selection strategies, induction and training, employee retention strategies (rewards, career development, workplace culture, flexibility), and the role of HRM in supporting business growth

Topic 2: Human resource management for a growing business

Unit 3: Business diversification

Competitive markets - the structure of markets (perfect competition, monopolistic competition, oligopoly, monopoly); Porter's five forces (industry rivalry, bargaining power of suppliers, bargaining power of buyers, threat of new entrants, threat of substitutes); and the implications of competitive intensity for diversification

Topic 1: Competitive markets and the rationale for diversification

Growth and diversification strategies - the Ansoff matrix (market penetration, market development, product development, diversification), related and unrelated diversification, organic v inorganic growth (mergers, acquisitions, takeovers), and horizontal, vertical and conglomerate integration - and the risk-return profile of each

Topic 1: Strategies for growth and diversification

Financial ratio analysis to inform diversification decisions - profitability ratios (gross profit, net profit, return on equity), liquidity ratios (current, quick), efficiency ratios (asset turnover, accounts receivable turnover) and gearing ratios (debt to equity); interpretation of ratios in context

Topic 2: Entering global markets - using financial analysis for diversification decisions

Market entry strategies for global diversification - exporting (direct and indirect), licensing, franchising, joint venture, foreign direct investment (greenfield and acquisition) - and the risk-return profile of each

Topic 2: Entering global markets

Unit 4: Business evolution

Globalisation as a driver of business evolution - global supply chains, offshoring and outsourcing, the influence of trade agreements and exchange rates, the opportunities and threats of globalisation, and the implications for how an Australian business evolves and competes

Topic 1: Globalisation as a driver of business evolution

Drivers of repositioning - changing consumer trends, technological disruption, sustainability expectations, competitive pressure, regulatory change - and strategies for repositioning (rebranding, product portfolio change, market re-segmentation, channel shift)

Topic 1: Repositioning a business in response to changing market conditions

Leadership styles during change (transformational, transactional, servant); stakeholder management during transformation including employee consultation, customer communication, supplier relationships and community engagement; the role of corporate communication

Topic 2: Leadership and stakeholder management during transformation

Business transformation strategies, innovation (incremental and disruptive, product and process innovation), risk management during transformation (identification, assessment, treatment, monitoring) and the role of corporate social responsibility in transformation decisions

Topic 2: Transformation, innovation and managing risk during change