Unit 1
The Business Environment
BTEC level 3 subsidiary Diploma I am a junior researcher for a business magazine and I have been asked to prepare background material for a reporter who is planning a new feature article. The reporter wants me to focus on two contrasting business organizations with a presence in my local area and I have been asked to provide information on them, the information covering their purpose, ownership and roles of different stakeholders. Task 1
I am going to select two local organizations for my research. The first organization is South Wales fire and Rescue Service and the second is Macey Sports. Describe each business according to its type, purposes and ownership Macey Sports
Macey Sports is a local business which is based in Newport. Its purpose is to sell a large, high quality range of cricket equipment grouped together with the sale of clothes for the local schools such as shirts, jumper’s trousers and ties. This company’s ultimate purpose is to make a profit. The business is a private sector business which means that it is owned by private citizens. It is a sole trader ownership which means that it is owned by one person. Some of the advantages of having a sole trader business are because the owner has full control over the business for daily operations and how large they want to expand their business. As well as this a sole trader does not need to complete many of the forms and accounting information that limited companies need to produce, furthermore there are no staff on hand therefore the owner takes all of the profits made by the business and all financial information is kept private and finally the owners of the shop are generally closer to their customers and they offer a more personalised approach, this gives the company improved customer service as they are the person each customer has contact with. However there are some disadvantages with being a sole trader business and the main one is that you, as the owner of the business, are solely liable for any consequences of business failure or any other liability for example injuring a customer or property damage, as well as this you may also need to think about what would happen if you as the business owner were to become sick or had an accident which would put you out of work. Macey sports are also part of the tertiary sector; the tertiary sector is a sector that provides a service, for example trade, commerce, retailing and doctors.

South Wales Fire and Rescue Service
South Wales Fire and Rescue service’s main purpose is keep the area safe and protected from fires, and ultimately help to save lives. The business is a non profitable business which means that it doesn’t sell anything, as well as this it is a public sector business which means that it has been set up or taken over by the government. The advantages of a public sector business is that any profit made would benefit tax payers by reducing tax, the government is in a strong position to ensure that the essential services are provided therefore people will always be safe, and there are generous benefits and jobs in this sector can he highly rewarding, for example you would feel very good about yourself if you saved somebody’s life by rescuing them from a fire. However some of the disadvantages to this sector are that the government controls and runs every thing therefore individuals are only obliged to give opinions about working matters and then they can only wait for a change or solution to the problem as they couldn’t do anything about it themselves. As well as this staff that work within this organisation could possibly become unmotivated because businesses in this sector don’t often try to make a profit therefore employees could feel as though they are working to no goals. This business is in the tertiary sector which is a sector that aims to provide a service to the public and in this case the service would be to prevent them from fire.

Task 2 – This provides evidence for p2
Stakeholders
Various groups of people have an interest in businesses. These are known as stakeholders. These stakeholders interest in the business will vary according to the nature of their ‘stake’
|Macey Sports |South Wales Fire and Rescue Service |
|Employees – The employees influence the business as they work |Employees – the employees for the fire service are the people who put out |
|and sell the companies products which allow the business to run|the fires (fireman) and the people who do the background work such as |
|successfully. |admin. |
|Customers – A customer is vital to a business such as Macey |Customers – customers don’t provide this business with money as the |
|Sports they provides it with money in the form of sales which |company don’t sell anything as they are a non profitable business. |
|in turn creates a profit to keep the company running | |
|Suppliers – suppliers who supply goods to Macey sports ideally |Suppliers - Suppliers are crucial to this business to ensure that the |
|want a steady and consistent batch of orders |level of equipment that is being supplied is as safe is as possible for |
| |the employees. |
|Local Communities – Macey sports has a impact on the local |Local Communities – this business has a major impact on the community as |
|community |its main objective is keep the community safe from fires |
|Owners – the owners of Macey Sports will be the ones that |Government – the local government plays a large part in South Wales Fire |
|invest money into the business and also work at the business. |and Rescue Service as they fund all of what this company do, the equipment|
|The owners would be the people that started up Macey Sports or |that they have, the premises they have etc. |
|in general terms the people who have bought the business. | |
|Governments – the government won’t play a major part in Macey |Trade Union – these stakeholders represent the interests of groups and |
|Sports becoming a successful business |employees |

Task 3 - Explain the points of view of different stakeholders seeking to influence the aims and objectives of two contrasting organizations

Macey Sports

Employees - At Macey sports the employees would want to try and make as many sales as thy possibly could during the course of the day, this is mainly because they will then be helping the company to make the largest amount of profit, possible but it would also benefit the employee on a personal level to sell a lot of goods because the money each employee receives is based largely on their performance (e.g. selling goods) this is again aimed at guiding the company to a maximum profit. For example if an employee sells lots of cricket equipment then they will get extra money because they have helped the company make a profit. In order for employees to sell goods to customers they would need to provide a good service and be helpful to the customer that came in through the door. The employees at this company seek job security, this is important because the money that the employee makes is what he/she has to live off, as well as job security employees are always looking for opportunities such as promotions and good rates of rewards for their work.

Customers – Macey Sports relies heavily on a consistent amount of customers per day, without customers then Macey Sports wouldn’t be able to run their business because they would have no money coming in. This organization is run on the basis that customers will come into the shop and successfully buy their products, such as cricket goods, trainers or uniform. Although Macey Sports relies on the customers to buy goods to help make a profit, the customers also rely on Macey Sports to produce high quality and value for money products so that they get the most for their money. The companies more regular customers like to see the business improvement which includes sales on the goods so that they get more for their money, however if the company has more sales then it would attract buyers who wouldn’t normally purchase goods from this business. The customers would want to see offers such as a cricket bat that is worth £100 could get reduced to £75.

Suppliers - The suppliers are the company that provide Macey Sports with all of their equipment, as a business that supplies goods they would like to feel valued by Macey Sports, which means that they know the shop will always place an order with that supplier therefore that creates a consistent batch of orders. When a company is placing a consistent batch of orders to a specific group of suppliers then that would create a good relationship between the two and therefore that could lead to products being given to Macey Sports cheaper than normal. However the suppliers themselves also need to make money to keep their business afloat, in order to do so the suppliers would rely on Macey Sports to give them prompt payment for the goods which would then help the suppliers to make profits.

Local community – Macey sports has an impact on the local community, but it isn’t a large one. It impacts on the community because it sells the uniform for the local schools and it supplies them with sports equipment for P.E lessons which in turn keeps the children healthy and active.

South Wales Fire and Rescue Service

Employees – The employees that work for South Wales Fire and Rescue Service are very important, these employees have a large interest in the company because it pays them a salary of which the employees have to live on. Each employee’s job within the business could vary from saving peoples lives to doing the background paper work. The people working for this company seek job security so that they know they will always have a consistent amount of money coming in so that they could provide for family in the best possible way. Employees would also like to think that if they put enough hard work in and performed well at their job then they could gain promotions within the business which would lead to more money and a better lifestyle.

Customers – There are no such thing as customers to the South Wales Fire and Rescue service, this is because they don’t charge money for doing their work, for example if a fire engine gets called to put a fire out in a house, they wont charge the person. For the peoples who call out the fire brigade their main prerogative is that the fire gets put out safely and efficiently with minimum damage.

Suppliers- The suppliers to this company have a massive role to play, this is because they are being relied on to ensure that they are supplying the top of the range equipment and cloths for the firemen to wear in order to protect their lives and to put out the fire as quickly as possible. Furthermore the company who supplies the equipment to the firemen know that they are going to get a consistent, regular request for orders, this is because the equipment that they use (such as a jacket) won’t last for a very long time and the suppliers will also know that once a better piece of equipment comes out that has more of a chance to save somebody’s life then the fire service would want to purchase it as quickly as possible.

Local community – The South Wales Fire and Rescue Service has a massive impact on the local community. Firstly it has a very large image as all people of all ages know what a fireman’s job is, therefore they will know who to call the very first moment they have a fire. Secondly the fire service has a large impact on the local community because they are always sending leaflets out about how to protect yourselves best from fire and smoke; therefore they are making themselves known and reducing the risk of injury. Furthermore there image is large because ultimately they keep communities safe from fire therefore they are looked up to and largely respected.

Government – The government plays a large part to the South Wales Fire and Rescue Service as it provides it with the funds for items such as fire engines, cloths for the firemen to wear and equipment to put the fire out. This business is run by the government therefore its aim isn’t to make a profit; its aim is to provide a service. However for a business that the government doesn’t fund its aim is to be successful, and to create jobs which pay people money who then in turn have to pay taxes to the government. The government also likes to see small businesses rise and fulfil their potential and take full responsibility in looking after society.

Trade union – The trade unions aim is to try and up employee’s salaries, improve working conditions and generally improve working conditions for anyone who is a member of a trade union. As well as this the trade union aim to negotiate; work rules, complaint procedures, rules governing hiring, firing and promotion of workers, benefits, workplace safety and policies. This is all done to improve an employee’s job by making them feel as though they are being treated correctly and fairly.

Task 4

The business that I am going to concentrate on is the South Wales Fire and Rescue Service;
The main stakeholder with the biggest influence on this company is the government, this is mainly because it provides this business with money and it helps it to run efficiently and successfully. Other stakeholders that have an influence on this company could possibly force the Fire Service to change ideas and do things that they don’t ideally want to do, were as the majority of the ideas come from the government and they are relevant to the Fire Service without having to change much within the business. The reason that the government has such a strong say within this organization is due to the fact that they provide it with money and backing therefore they can practically do what they want, within reason, to it. The government can make decisions and influence what employees the Fire Service takes on, who they fire, the way in which people are able to access the service, the companies suppliers and the way the company is run. The government basically has the power to overrule anything that the business structure suggests. All of this happens so that the business runs as efficiently and smoothly as possible. It is an advantage for the government that the business runs smoothly because it is in there interest for the business to expand, therefore creating more jobs which will in turn make less people unemployed.
The effect that the government has on the employees is that of a large one, this is because they have nobody to consult to if they feel that somebody is doing a bad job and not having a positive effect on the company, this is because the government choose the people that get hired and fired. However this normally happens at the higher end of the business as they don’t have any people above them to consult to. If the employees that are towards the bottom of the service and they aren’t happy about the organization as they think that the buildings aren’t safe or that a piece of equipment isn’t working properly then they can get their point across to the government, when this action is taken place and employees feel strongly about it then the employees opinions would be listened to in large by the government and they could often be influenced to do what the employee wants. However the employees that are towards the top of the service have more control to make decisions themselves. For example managers have the authority to make changes within their section of the organization and then from here the government doesn’t really over rule it, they just check it to see that the manager isn’t making the wrong decision. The reason for this is because managers are meant to be listened to, therefore if the government over ruled every decision they made then it would be pointless having managers. However the government still has the final decision on everything, if they didn’t like what the manager was doing then ultimately they could over rule it, due to the fact they put money into the business they would want it run as close to their way as possible. Trade unions also have a impact on this business, this is because their role is to make sure the business is treating employees correctly, ensuring working conditions are good, if the employees are being paid a relevant wage, the hours that they work and just generally if the employee feels happy within his role, and if the trade union feels that this isn’t happening within the business then they will report back to the managers, who will then go to the government to make the final decision on what is to happen. Possibly the biggest impact towards this company is bought by the local community, this is because they are almost like the companies customers, and if the service that they are being given isn’t good then they will complain. If a member of the public complained then they could complain to the managers, chief fire officer or if they feel its relevant then they could go straight to the government. On the other hand the public think highly of the Fire Service as they are there to protect lives and they appreciate the business hugely. As well as this is the local community give the Sire Service a high recommendation then it may attract more people to live in the area as they will feel safe. The suppliers have a major role within this business; this is because they are supplying goods to the Fire Service that is crucial for what they do. Without these suppliers then there would be no fire service to keep the firemen safe. These suppliers are so important that if they make their prices higher on the goods, such as a fire jacket, then the service will have to buy them, or alternatively find a new supplier. However if the prices did go up dramatically this wouldn’t effect the amounts of equipment the fire service could get as it is funded by the government. Overall I know that all of the stakeholders have a massive impact on the business, the government has the biggest say, and ultimately the last say on almost all of the matters. Without the government the Fire Service may not be able to afford as many employees which would lead to less firemen, the company may not be able to afford all of the buildings that they have throughout South Wales and consequentially the Fire service would shrink therefore putting members of the general public in more danger. So without the government South Wales fire Service wouldn’t be able to go on.