§-Business Management syllabus
VIC · VCAA← Business Management
Business Management syllabus, dot point by dot point
Every dot point in the VIC Business Management syllabus, with a focused answer for each. Click any dot point for a worked explainer, past exam questions and links to related points.
Unit 1: Planning a business
Module overview →Unit 2: Establishing a business
Module overview →Unit 3: Managing a business
Module overview →Area of Study 2: How are workplace relations and disputes managed?
Workplace relations under the Fair Work Act 2009 - the National Employment Standards, modern awards, enterprise agreements, and the role of the Fair Work Commission - and methods of dispute resolution including negotiation, mediation, conciliation and arbitration
Area of Study 1: How are businesses structured to achieve their objectives?
Business objectives - to make a profit, to increase market share, to fulfil a market need, to fulfil a social need, to meet shareholder expectations - and the relationship between businesses and their objectives
Area of Study 2: How is the official and real corporate culture managed to support employees and business objectives?
Corporate culture - the official corporate culture (the formally communicated values, mission, vision, policies and rituals) and the real corporate culture (the actual day-to-day behaviour, norms and beliefs of employees) - and strategies managers use to develop and align both
Area of Study 3: How are operations managed effectively in a contemporary business?
Key elements of an operations system - inputs, processes and outputs; characteristics of operations management within manufacturing and service businesses; strategies to improve operations - facilities design and layout, materials management, quality management, technological developments, global sourcing, waste minimisation, lean management
Area of Study 1: How do managers lead and manage to achieve business objectives?
Management styles - autocratic, persuasive, consultative, participative, laissez-faire - including the appropriateness of each in different situations; management skills - communication, delegation, planning, leading, decision making, interpersonal, time management, problem solving, emotional intelligence
Area of Study 2: How do managers motivate employees?
Motivation theories - Maslow's hierarchy of needs, Locke and Latham's goal-setting theory, and Lawrence and Nohria's four-drive theory; motivation strategies including performance-related pay, career advancement, investment in training, support strategies and sanction strategies; appropriateness of each in different contexts
Area of Study 3: How can operations be improved through quality, materials and lean management strategies?
Strategies to improve operations efficiency and effectiveness - materials management strategies (forecasting, master production schedule, materials requirement planning, Just In Time), quality strategies (quality control, quality assurance, Total Quality Management), and lean management (waste minimisation)
Area of Study 2: How do managers manage employees through training, performance and termination?
Training options - on-the-job and off-the-job - and their benefits; performance management strategies - management by objectives, appraisals, self-evaluation, employee observation; termination management - retirement, redundancy, resignation, dismissal, and the entitlement and transition issues involved
Area of Study 1: How are businesses structured to achieve their objectives?
Types of businesses - sole trader, partnership, private limited company, public listed company, social enterprise, government business enterprise - and their objectives; stakeholders of a business and their interests; corporate culture (official and real)
Unit 4: Transforming a business
Module overview →Area of Study 2: How do managers communicate effectively with employees and stakeholders during change?
Communication during change - the role and purpose of communication, the audiences (employees, customers, suppliers, shareholders, community, regulators), the channels (town-halls, internal newsletters, intranet, direct manager briefings, media releases, customer notices), and the principles of effective change communication
Area of Study 2: How does change affect stakeholders, and what is the role of corporate social responsibility?
The effect of change on stakeholders of a business - including owners, managers, employees, customers, suppliers and the community - and corporate social responsibility considerations when reviewing performance and implementing change
Area of Study 1: What forces drive and restrain change in a business?
Forces for change - driving forces (owners, managers, employees, customers, competitors, suppliers, technology, globalisation, innovation, legislation, societal attitudes, pursuit of profit, reduction of costs) and restraining forces (managers, employees, time, organisational inertia, financial considerations, legislation) - and proactive versus reactive approaches to change
Area of Study 1: How do managers identify the need for change?
Key performance indicators - percentage of market share, net profit figures, rate of productivity growth, number of sales, rates of staff absenteeism, level of staff turnover, level of wastage, number of customer complaints, number of workplace accidents - and their interpretation; Lewin's force field analysis of driving and restraining forces of change
Area of Study 2: How is change implemented in a business using a structured change model?
Lewin's three-step change model - unfreeze, change (transition), refreeze - as a framework for managing a planned organisational change, and the management actions appropriate at each stage
Area of Study 2: Should managers use low-risk or high-risk strategies to implement change?
Low-risk and high-risk strategies for implementing change - the tactics, the contexts in which each is appropriate, and the costs and benefits of each, including manipulation and threat as high-risk strategies
Area of Study 1: How do managers position a business for the future?
Porter's generic strategies - lower cost and differentiation - as approaches to strategic management, and their use in positioning a business to respond to driving forces for change
Area of Study 2: How is change implemented in a business?
Senge's learning organisation - personal mastery, mental models, shared vision, team learning, systems thinking; low-risk and high-risk strategies for implementing change; leadership during change; the importance of leadership styles and management skills in implementing change