The Effects of the Environment on [your business name]
Assignment C&D writing frame
“The Effects of the Environment on [your business name]”
Before you start:
- Add a header with your full name
- Add page numbers
- Add the title The effects of the environment on [your business name]
- Add contents page
- Add bibliography at end
Sources of information to help you with the assignment (including case studies on businesses that some of you have chosen!)
Websites
The BBC provides news on the UK economy
The government portal for government departments and policies
The Times provides up-to-date information and cases.
P4 - ‘Internal, external and competitive factors affecting [your business name]
This is the biggest section as it has three sub-sections within it that you must complete (at least one large detailed paragraph for each of the following):
External factors (PESTLE)
1)Political issues:
Does the business receive any subsidies, grants? Do their competitors?
Is the business part of any industry bodies or trade associations (look for EU ones not just UK ones.
How does EU membership affect the business – how is it good, how is it bad.
2)Economic issues:
How does the economy growing or a recession influence the business?
How does Government fiscal policy – their spending and taxation influence the business?
How does the Bank of England’s monetary policy influence the business?
How does exchange rates influence the business?
3)Social issues:
How do social changes / the need for social responsibility influence the business?
How do changes in society (fashions, trends, lifestyles, population changes etc) influence the business?
How do attitudes to saving, debt, spending etc influence the business?
4)Technology issues:
How has e-commerce influenced the business?
How have new developments the like gig and sharing economy influenced the business?
How have robotics/automation/production technology influenced the business?
5)Legal issues:
How does employment law influence the business (e.g. EU Working Time Regulations, Minimum Wages, Discrimination legislation etc).
How does consumer protection legislation influence the business (e.g. Trade Descriptions Act, Consumer Protection Act etc)
How does competition law (e.g. Competition Act, EU Competition law etc) influence the business.
6)Environmental issues:
How does carbon emissions and global warming (e.g. new Paris Agreement) influence the business?
What waste / recycling issues are there?
What other pollution issues are there (e.g. noise, visual etc).
Internal factors (culture and CSR- corporate social responsibility)
7)Internal factors
- What is the corporate culture of the business?
- How does the business handle CSR issues?
- What is the business’ ethical position/strategy?
Competition factors (5C’s analysis)- there is a powerpoint in shared area for help with this
- 8)Company
- Product image/reputation
- Brand awareness and strength
- Technology – does it adopt/adapt new technology internally?
- Culture and overall aims (mission statements, vision, values, staff etc)
- 9)Collaborators
- Suppliers
- Distributors / retailers
- Joint venture or ‘allies’
Anyone the business works or collaborates with
- 10)Customers
- Demographic factors
- Where, when, how, why they buy?
- Pricing
- Who is the target audience?
- 11)Customers
- Who are they?
- Any new potential customers?
- Strengths and weaknesses of competitors
- 12)Climate
- PESTLE factors
- Overall which are positive for the company?
- Overall which are negative for the company?
P5 - A situational analysis SWOT of [your business name]
- 1)Strengths
- What does the business do well?
- Does the business have a USP, loyal customers, cheap, good quality etc?
- 2)Weaknesses
- What does the business currently do badly?
- Should the business improve marketing, cut costs, improve service etc?
- 3)Opportunities
- What could the business take advantage of in the future?
- Is there anything competitors are doing which this business could also do?
- Will future changes in technology, the economy or laws impact the business in a positive way?
- 4)Threats
- Who are their competitors and what do they do better?
- How could changes in the economy negatively impact the business?
- What could be the downfalls of the business in the future?
M3 Assessing the effects of the business environment on [your business name]
For merit you must comment on the effects of the SWOT and PESTLE analysis of your chosen business. You can either write this as a separate section, or you can add information to the end of the P,E,S,T,L,E and S,W,O,T paragraphs if very clearly signposted. Eg. ‘The strengths discussed have an impact on the business because’ or ‘The political factors outlined above affect the business because…’
Nb. If you are adding information to the end of each paragraph for merit, make sure you clearly add this to the title. Eg. A situational analysis of Cadbury’s becomes A situational analysis of Cadbury’s and discussion of the impacts.
NB. It is best for this section if you just say ONE impact for A FEW factors, as otherwise you will struggle to write anything for distinction- please ask me if confused!
D2 Evaluate the extent to which the business environment affects a given organisation, using a variety of situational analysis techniques
This section builds on M3:
You now need to give an evaluation of how PESTLE and SWOT factors impact your business, but tell both sides of the story. For example, a law in the UK might restrict a business from doing something, but it might also have an advantage, and might have the same impact on all businesses in the market so doesn’t impact them too much.
P6 - Explore how the market structure and influences on supply and demand affect the pricing and output decisions for [your business name]
Different market structures?
• Explain the term Market structures. Explain the difference between perfect competition, imperfect competition.
• Features of different market structures: number of firms, freedom of entry, and nature of product.
Relationship between demand, supply and price?
• Influences on demand, e.g. affordability, competition, availability of substitutes, level of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), needs and aspirations of consumers.
• Influences on supply, e.g. availability of raw materials and labour, logistics, ability to produce profitably, competition for raw materials, government support.
Elasticity: price elasticity of demand.
Pricing and output decisions?
• Impact on pricing and output decisions in different market structures.
• Reponses by business to pricing and output decisions of competitors in different market structures
M4 Assess how [your business] has responded to changes in the market
This section builds on P6:
How does supply and demand affect pricing decisions within your business?
How does the market structure restrict what the business can do, or benefit them?
Describe how supply and demand give the business information on how to price their products, and how much to produce. How does this help them?
D3 Evaluate how changes in the market have impacted on [your business] and how it may react to future changes
This section builds on M4:
How does demand for the product impact your business? Have changes in demand recently impacted your business, put strain on the business or helped them increase sales?
How does the business regulate how much of the product they supply? Are materials always available and affordable? How can this impact the business?
You must discuss how your business can react to future changes. How could they predict these changes and what would they do to survive in that situation?