Teaching guide: Business operations

With a focus on unfamiliar topics, we’ve created this teaching guide to support you in planning your lessons.

This topic works with Production processes

Classroom activities

Efficiencies of Just in Time (JIT)

Students could consider the benefits of having the right amount of stock supplied as it is required for the production process:

• capital is not tied up in stock – it is available for use elsewhere
• storage space is not required – the land and buildings for storage are expensive, yet do not earn anything for the business; again, the capital is available for use elsewhere.

Organisation of a purchasing system

Students should also understand the impact of any occasions when materials so not arrive in time in terms of:

• interruptions to the production process
• problems for the planned production schedule
• loss of profit
• damage to relationship between business and its customers
• damage to relationship between business and the supplier
• damage to the reputation of the business.

Business purchasing decisions

Parallels with consumer purchasing decisions will aid the understanding of business purchasing decisions. For example, get student to look at differences between budget high street shops and more up-market stores in terms of price, quality and reliability.