Notes, summaries, assignments, exams, and problems for Economy

The Quality Management System and the After-Sales Service

The QMS is a management system for a customer-focused organisation that involves all employees in a continuous process of improvement. They integrate quality in all activities of the company. It is necessary to set up quality standards, procedures, and work practices. The goal is to maintain a competitive advantage, evaluate a company's performance, and achieve business excellence. Every company that has passed the quality audit and is registered for ISO9000 gets a certificate. This certificate guarantees a quality standard and transmits confidence in the product and services offered by the companies that use them.

In the After-Sales Service Quality

Internal quality: the technical and operational... Continue reading "Quality Management System and After-Sales Service: Techniques, Tools, and Structure" »

Asset Demand

Money held as an asset (e.g., under the mattress) is influenced by the risks associated with such storage and inflation rates.

Banking

Banking involves various financial institutions transferring funds from lenders to borrowers.

Main Financial Institutions

Primarily commercial banks, but also:

1. Savings and Loan Institutions (SLs): Smaller scale, typically locally focused.
2. Insurance Companies: Life insurance policies involve ongoing deposits, with the insurance company returning funds with interest if the policyholder doesn't die. Thus, insurance companies actively facilitate lending to firms.
3. Mutual Funds: Pool household savings, managed by experts, offering diverse products to different customers.
4. Pension Funds: Supplement social security,

As requested at the meeting of 27 February, here is my report.

How can we improve employee satisfaction?

The purpose of the report is to suggest ways to improve the employee satisfaction and the staff motivation. It is based on the figures in the book showing the percentages. I have decided to divide the report into three sections: background, findings, and recommendations.

Looking at the results (Background)

As can be seen in the table in our notes book, employee satisfaction has been falling over the last year, and employee turnover and guest satisfaction are both being affected. This has led to a situation where it is necessary to encourage the employees.

Keys of the problem (Findings)

The employee turnover is very high. As mentioned above, satisfaction... Continue reading "Improving Employee Satisfaction and Motivation" »

Business Ethics

2) Business ethics (Business corruption/ Tax fraud/ Tax havens, crimes/ Politics and the economy)

Business ethics are moral principles that guide the way of a business behaviour.
Acting in an ethical way involves distinguishing between “right” and “wrong” and then making the “right” choice. As an ethical behaviour, company must avoid the pollution or the use of children for their activities. A measure for solve this is to make codes behaviour in the companies. Another type of business ethics is to pay the taxes and don't avoid it. Tax avoidance could be legal if a businessman finds a legal vacuum in the rules of the tax system, but the question is if it is ethical. Evidently, the answer is negative, as the spirit... Continue reading "The Impact of Business Ethics on Society" »

Ethical Business Practices and Reputation

Businesses should operate ethically to safeguard their reputation, image, and profitability. Benefits include attracting and retaining high-quality workers and customers, generating positive publicity, and fostering strong business relationships.

Political Influences on Business Activity

Government Intervention and Policy

Governments: Utilize legislation and policies to oversee business behavior and influence activity (often referred to as an Interventionist approach).

Policies: Involve the use of taxation and government expenditure (Fiscal Policy), and the manipulation of interest rates (Monetary Policy) to affect the money supply and exchange rate, thereby influencing overall business activity.

• Deregulation:

What Is a Company?

A company consists of individuals or organizations that strive to earn a profit by providing products that satisfy people's needs.

Different Kinds of Products

Products are the outcomes of a company's efforts. They possess both tangible and intangible characteristics that provide satisfaction and benefits. When purchasing a product, consumers acquire the perceived benefits and satisfaction it offers.

Factors for Earning a Profit

Profitability requires effective management skills in planning, organizing, and controlling business activities. It also involves finding and developing employees, creating desirable products, and implementing marketing strategies to manufacture, price, promote, and distribute those products.

Stakeholders

Stakeholders... Continue reading "Understanding Business Fundamentals" »

Levels of Economic Integration

The progression of economic integration levels is as follows:

• Preferential Trade Area
• Free Trade Area (FTA)
• Customs Union (CU)
• Common Market
• Economic Union
• Political Union

What is Dumping?

Dumping is the practice of selling a product at a lower price in an external market than in the domestic market. Two conditions are typically required:

1. Segmentation of markets.
2. Imperfect competition in, at least, one of the two countries.

Sometimes, dumping is defined as selling below cost.

Rules of Origin (ROO)

Requirement and Purpose

Rules of Origin define whether a good is eligible for duty-free treatment based on whether it has sufficiently originated in the partner country. They prevent trade deflection.

Trade Deflection: Redirection of... Continue reading "Economic Integration Levels and Trade Policy Concepts" »

Fiscal policy can be defined as governments' actions to influence an economy through the use of taxation and spending. This type of policy is used when policymakers believe the economy needs outside help to adjust to a desired point. Typically, a government has a desire to maintain steady prices, employment level, and a growing economy. If any of these areas are out of sorts, some type of fiscal policy may be in order.

Fiscal policy can be used to either stimulate a sluggish economy or to slow down an economy that is growing at a rate that is getting out of control (which can lead to inflation or asset bubbles). Fiscal policy directly affects the aggregate demand of an economy. Recall that aggregate demand is the total number of final goods... Continue reading "Understanding Fiscal Policy: Expansionary and Contractionary Measures" »

Distribution Channels

Exclusive Distribution (Lamborghini)

• Intermediary gains exclusive rights to sell product in specific geographic area.
• Limited number of intermediaries.
• Stronger distributor support.
• Greater control over product.
• Enhanced brand image.
• Higher markups.
• Exclusive dealing arrangements.

Selective Distribution (Apple)

• Manufacturer selects limited number of stores to sell product.
• Selection based on objective criteria.
• Maintains relative control.
• Expects above-average sales effort.

Intensive Distribution (Hacendado Products)

• Producer uses as many specialized outlets as possible to provide:
• Maximum brand exposure.
• Consumer convenience.

Extensive Distribution (Kit Kat)

• Producer uses as many outlets as possible (of any category) to provide:
• Maximum