Danish Ball Bearings Definitions Flashcards
Pressure groups
A group that tries to influence public policy in the interest of a particular cause.
Job security
Assurance (or lack of it) that an employee has about the continuity of gainful employment for his or her work life.
Job security usually arises from:
- the terms of the contract of employment,
- collective bargaining agreement, or
- labour legislation that prevents arbitrary termination, layoffs, and lockouts.
It may also be affected by general economic conditions.
Technological disaster
Catastrophic event caused by humans that results in the toxic contamination of the environment.
Flow production
Streamlined distribution
based on customer ‘pull’ (demand or requirements)
instead of on sales ‘push.’
CFD is an integral component of lean production
Batch production
A manufacturing process in which components or goods are produced in groups (batches) and not in a continuous stream.
(Hundreds / thousands of the same product are manufactured over a period of time. )
Corporate social responsibility
A company’s sense of responsibility towards the community and environment (both ecological and social)
in which it operates.
Companies express this citizenship
(1) through their waste and pollution reduction processes,
(2) by contributing educational and social programs, and
(3) by earning adequate returns on the employed resources.
Note:
Ethics concern actions which can be assessed as right or wrong by reference to moral principles
CSR is about the organisation’s obligations to all stakeholders – and not just shareholders
Social Contract
Unwritten and tacit agreement said to exist among the members of a community or group
that guides individual behaviour and establishes personal rights and responsibilities.
Social contract is deemed essential for any organised group behaviour and, in democratic societies, is embodied in the national constitution.
Global identity
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Brand Awareness
Extent to which a brand is recognised by potential customers, and is correctly associated with a particular product.
- Usually expressed as a percentage of target market,
- Primary goal of advertising in the early months or years of a product’s introduction.
Cell production
A lean method of producing similar products using cells, or groups of team members, workstations, or equipment, to facilitate operations by eliminating setup and unneeded costs between operations.
Just in Time Production
Just-in-time is a system which operates on the scheduling of stocks in a precise, coordinated way, so minimising the quantity needed to be held.
Stocks are only ordered a short time period before they are needed for the actual production of the final good.
This technique helps to minimise stocks and therefore reduce the costs of holding stocks.
Just-in-time production requires a close relationship with suppliers to ensure that stocks are available exactly when they are needed.
Downsizing
Associated with delayering.
This happens when the size of the core workforce is reduced.
This can further reduce a firm’s costs because there are fewer core staff who are numerated on full benefits.
Downsizing can lead to more flexible working practices as businesses hire more peripheral and contractual workers. These people are not entitled to the same remuneration as core full time staff.
Globalisation
Globalisation is the integration of the world’s economies in terms of economics, sociology and politics. For businesses, this means that trade is now being conducted on ever widening geographical boundaries. Countries now trade across continents and companies also trade all over the world.
Offshoring
Expanding business by using an overseas firm in another country as the sub-contractor.
Artificial Intelligence
The theory and development of computer systems able to perform tasks that normally require human intelligence,
such as visual perception, speech recognition, decision-making, and translation between languages
Unique Selling Point
A unique selling point (USP) is any aspect of or characteristic of a product that differentiates it from the competition.
Firms will often want to stress the USP of their product in their marketing to persuade consumers of the superiority or desirability of their product.
Autocratic Leadership Style
- Autocratic leadership is a form of leadership where the leader makes decisions and sets objectives independently of the others in the firm without involving them in the decision making process.
- This style of leadership can often lead to dissatisfaction as employees do not feel involved in the process of decision-making.
One off Special Order
A One off Special Order is an order that is carried out by a business once, by special request.
Corporate Culture
The corporate culture is all the attitudes, beliefs and values which are a part of the business and the way in which they operate.
It is the culture that is created in the business and forms a part of their day to day operations.
Democratic Leadership style
- Democratic leadership is a style of leadership where a leader encourages others to be involved in the decision making process.
- It is felt that this style of leadership will help to motivate employees as they will feel more involved in the decision-making process,
- requires leaders who are skilled at communication.
Narrow Span of Control
The span of control is the number of people in an organisation for whom one person is responsible.
Wide Span of Control
A wider span of control means that each person is responsible for more people below them and tends to be associated with firms with a flatter hierarchy of management. It is argued that this will give more responsibility to the workers and therefore motivate them to work harder.
Organisational Structure
The hierarchy of a firm from top to bottom into different levels of management.
Tall Organisational Structure
A tall hierarchy is one with a lot of levels of management, while a flat hierarchy is one with few levels of management.
Contingency plans
Plans designed to enable a business to recover from a disaster or crisis.
Collective bargaining
A method of determining conditions of work and terms of employment through negotiations between employers and employee representatives.
Business Angels
People looking for investment opportunities for their unused income.
They are individuals who invest between £10,000 and £100,000, often in exchange for an equity stake.
Benchmarking
Initiating the standards of an established leader in quality and attempting to better them.
Joint venture
Two firms sharing the cost, responsibility and profits of a business venture.
Total Quality Management
A managerial approach which focuses on quality and aims to improve the effectiveness, flexibility and competitiveness of the business.
Industrial Park
A site which includes lots of different businesses in one area
Economies of scale
The reductions in cost gained by firms as they grow.
Retrenchment
A decision by a business to reduce its size of its operations in an attempt to improve them.
Budget
A quantitative economic plan prepared and agreed in advance.
Trading blocs
Countries that join together to restrict trade from countries outside the bloc.
Synergy
Where the activities of two or more businesses when brought together create more value than they do separately.
Paternalistic leadership style
Similar to autocratic leadership but cares more about the well-being of subordinates.
Multinational company
– A company which owns production facilities outside of the country in which it is based (e.g. Baskin Robbins)
Primary sector
– Involves the extraction of raw materials and/ or the growth of food (e.g. mining, fishing etc.)
Secondary sector
– Involves the manufacturing, processing and construction of raw materials into goods (e.g. car production)
Gross profit
Turnover less cost of sales, It is the profit generated prom sales not taking other expenses into account.
Net profit
Profit on ordinary activities before taxation
Internal/ organic growth
Occurs when a business grows internally, using its own resources to increase the scale of its operations
External/ inorganic growth
Growth through mergers and acquisitions
Kanban approach
A method of product development with emphasis on just-in-time production.
A queue of work is displayed which can have tasks pulled from it at the right time by the right person.
Kaizen approach
(or ‘Continuous Improvement’)
Bettering the company’s practices by constant evaluation and change with a focus on absolute quality
Supply chain management
Management of material and information flow in a supply chain
to provide the highest degree of customer satisfaction at the lowest possible cost.
Global workforce
The international labour pool of immigrant workers or those employed by multinational companies and connected through a global system of networking and production.
Homogenous environment
A working environment consisting of similar and like-minded employees in a workplace with little to no presence of diversity
Working Capital
- An indication of the short-term liquidity position of business.
- It shows the money available for the daily running of the business.
working capital = current assets - current liabilities.
Going Public
Allowing the public to buy and sell shares in the company in a stock exchange.
Innovation
The process of commercially pioneering ideas and creation in the production process.
Shareholders
- owners of a company,
- shares in a company,
- can be held by individuals and other organisations.
Redundancy
Occur when the employee can no longer afford to hire the worker or when the job ceases to exist.
External Stakeholders
Do not form part of the business but have a direct interest or involvement in the organisation.
Internal Stakeholders
Members of the organisation that have an internal influence on the business.
Outsourcing
The practice of transferring internal business authorities to an external firm as a method of reducing costs.
E-commerce
Trading of goods and services via the internet.
Relocation
Reap benefits from being relocated in another position.
Democratic Leadership
Focus of power is more with the group as a whole
- Leadership functions are shared within the group
- Employees have greater involvement in decision-making – but potentially this slows-down decision-making
- Emphasis on delegation and consultation – but the leader still has the final say
- Perhaps the most popular leadership style because of the positive emotional connotations of acting democratically
- A potential trade-off between speed of decision-making and better motivation and morale?
- Likely to be most effective when used with skilled, free-thinking and experienced subordinates
B2B
Refers to e-commerce related to the needs of another business.
B2C
Refers to e-commerce directly catered for the end user.
Public-private enterprise
Occur when the government creates commercial partnerships with the private sector to provide certain goods or services.
Business Plan
A report detailing how a business sets out to achieve its aims and objectives, a useful planning tool.
Primary Research
Market research involves gathering new data first hand for a specific study.
Secondary Research
Involves the collection of second hand data and information that exists in another form
Types of corporate culture
Cultural Type ** ** Most Suitable Leadership Style
Power Autocratic
Control radiates from the centre
Concentrates power among a few
Few rules and little bureaucracy
Swift decisions are possible
Frequently found in smaller, entrepreneurial organisations
Role Autocratic or Patermalistic
People have clearly delegated authorities within a highly defined structure Hierarchical bureaucracy Power derives from a person's position Little scope exists for expert power
Task Paternalistic / democratic
Teams are formed to solve particular problems Power derives from expertise as long as a team requires expertise No single power source Matrix organisation Team may develop own objectives (a risk)
Person Democratic
People believe themselves to be superior to the business
Business full of people with similar training, background & expertise
Common in firms of professionals – e.g. accountants & lawyers
Power lies in each group of individuals
Leadership styles
Paternalistic Leadership
- Leader decides what is best for employees
- Links with Mayo – addressing employee needs
- Akin to a parent/child relationship – where the leader is seen as a “father-figure”
- Still little delegation
- A softer form of authoritarian leadership, which often results in better employee motivation and lower staff turnover
- Typical paternalistic leader explains the specific reason as to why he has taken certain actions
Authoritarian leadership
- Autocratic leaders hold onto as much power and decision-making as possible
- Focus of power is with the manager
- Communication is top-down & one-way
- Formal systems of command & control
- Minimal consultation
- Use of rewards & penalties
- Very little delegation
- McGregor Theory X approach
- Most likely to be used when subordinates are unskilled, not trusted and their ideas are not valued
Laissez-faire Leadership
Laissez-faire means to “leave alone”
- Leader has little input into day-to-day decision-making
- Conscious decision to delegate power
- Managers / employees have freedom to do what they think is best
- Often criticised for resulting in poor role definition for managers
- Effective when staff are ready and willing to take on responsibility, they are motivated, and can be trusted to do their jobs
- Importantly, laissez-faire is not the same as abdication
