Reference no: EM132691998

Unit 1 Business and the Business Environment - Higher National Diploma in Business

Assignment - Business and the Business Environment

Purpose of this assessment

The aim is to develop an understanding of the background knowledge on business and the functions of an organisation and the wider business environments in which organisations operate. Students will examine the different types of organisations (including for profit and not for profit), their size and scope (for instance, micro, SME, transnational and global) and how they operate. Students will explore the relationships that organisations have with their various stakeholders and how the wider external environments influence and shape business decision-making. The knowledge, understanding and skill sets gained in this assessment will help students to choose their own preferred areas of specialism in future studies and in their professional career.

Scenario
You have been employed as a research analyst by an investment company. The company would like to invest in the pharmaceutical industry, operating on the UK market. You are required to choose a company - pharmaceutical manufacturer. You need to critically look at the structure of that business and analyse the current environmental factors that influence or affect the company. You must apply the PESTLE and SWOT models in your analysis.
IMPORTANT NOTE: Your work will fail automatically if you choose a company from a different industry.

Task 1
Section 1
1. Explain different types and purposes of organisations: public, private and voluntary sectors. Examine different legal structures in the Private Sector; identify the legal structure of your chosen company.
2. Evaluate, with reference to your chosen company, how the organisational structure, the size of the business and the scope of the business, can either align, or not, with the overall business objectives, and in particular how they play a role in the creation of products and services sold in markets.
3. Critically analyse the complexities of different types of business structures and the relevance of the interrelationship of different organisational functions.

Section 2
1. Use PESTLE model to evaluate various macro environmental factors that affect your selected business, highlighting the positive and negative impact of external factors.
2. Analyse key strengths and weaknesses of your organisation using SWOT/TOWS method. Examine interrelationships these have with the external factors previously discussed.
3. Suggest and evaluate a course of action for the chosen organisation. Base it on the previous analyses.

This provides evidence for all Learning Outcomes