BUSINESS COGNATE SBA WORKSHOPS FOR STUDENTS OF CSEC

BUSINESS COGNATE SBA WORKSHOPS FOR STUDENTS OF CSEC POB & POA 2018

SBA Guidelines �SBA report must not exceed 1000 words. �The project is marked out of 40 and worth a total of 20% of your overall mark. �Students doing more than one subject in the business group i. e POA & POB should submit one SBA report that will be based on a topic relevant to the subjects being taken.

ORDER OF SBA REPORT � Cover page � Table of Contents � Topic, Issue or Problem, � Objectives / Research Questions � Background � Methodology � Presentation and Analysis of Data � Conclusion � Recommendations � Bibliography � Appendices : questionnaire, source documents, diagrams, charts, interview questions and statistical data

COVER PAGE Research Topic An assessment of an increase in growth through sales and the effect on profitability for the stationery store at Bright School during the period, January to December 2017. Include image here Student Name Toby Gill Business Cognate Subjects POB, POA School St. James Secondary School Centre Number 000000 Candidate Number 000000 Name of Teacher ……………. .

Table of Contents Table of contents accurately links pages to content 1 Mark TABLE OF CONTENTS • Topic, issue or Problem………………… 1 • Objective of the Project………………… 2 • Background • Methodology • Presentation and Analysis of Data • Conclusion • Recommendations • Bibliography • Appendices : Diagram 1……………………… 22

Table of Contents To insert a table of contents, follow these steps: 1. Start Word, and then open your document. 2. Mark text for table of contents using heading styles on the ribbon Note: If the text that is contained in your document is not marked to be included in a TOC, you will receive the following error message in your document instead of the TOC: Error! No table of contents entries found. 3. Go to page designated for table of contents 4. Select References on the ribbon 5. Select Table of Contents style 6. Format Table of contents – (Font – Times New Roman; Line

Topic/Issue/Problem MARK SCHEME �Topic/issue/problem is clearly stated – 1 mark �Topic/issue/problem accurately describes the project – 1 mark q The Research Topic is the broad subject matter area to be investigated. It must be : • • broad yet specific enough to narrow your research for a specific period eg. for the year 2018 clear and easy to understand. well defined to ensure that it does not convey other ideas.

Topic/Issue/Problem cont’d �The Research Problem : What is the specific issue you want to study and why does it need attention?

Topic/Issue/Problem SAMPLE : Research Topic (restate from cover page): : An assessment of an increase in growth through sales and the effect on profitability for the stationery store at Bright School during the period, January to December 2017. Research Problem (thesis statement) : The stationery store at Bright School is unable to determine the impact of sales growth on the factors of production and its effect on the profitability of a business.

Objectives / Research Questions MARK SCHEME �Objectives are clearly stated and linked to the topic/issue/problem – 1 mark �Objectives are realistic – 1 mark RESEARCH QUESTIONS: § Develop 2 to 3 research questions. § Questions must be clear, focused, concise, arguable and complex. § Must guide your data gathering. § Start your questions with how, what and why.

Objectives / Research Questions cont’d SAMPLE RESEARCH QUESTIONS: 1. To what extent were factors of production utilised by the stationery store at Bright School for expansion during the period Jan to Dec 2017? 2. How was profitability affected by the increased growth in Sales?

Objectives/Research Questions cont’d 1. Re-read your research topic; 2. Determine relevant syllabus objectives for your research topic. Syllabus Objectives: POB Section ____ Obj ____ POA Section _____ Obj _____ The specific purpose and focus of the research project, and therefore what the instruments, activities and report will cover. These must be: � directly linked to the stated topic/issue/problem; and, � realistic/doable especially within the timeframe and

Objectives/Research Questions cont’d SAMPLE OBJECTIVE 1: To determine the impact on the factors of production from sales growth. OBJECTIVE 2: To analyse the impact of sales growth on profitability at the stationery store.

Background MARK SCHEME • Includes a description of the topic/issue/problem - Description includes the history – 1 mark - Description includes the development – 1 mark • Establishes the need for research - Why/how is the topic/issue/problem important to student – 1 mark - Impact of topic/issue/problem on society – 1 mark

Background cont’d The stationery store of Bright School is a sole trading establishment that has been in existence for the past 10 years. It retails paper products inclusive of envelopes, stationery and folders. With the constant increase in demand from 2013 to 2016, the owner decided to expand sales. He noticed that this action caused an increase in costs.

Background cont’d Many businesses face a similar dilemma as owners seek to expand, additional cost is incurred which can affect profitability. In order to increase sales additional factors of production must be acquired. The owner has to ensure that the increased cost of production to enable growth can be covered by the increased profitability. According to Maverick (2015), both profitability and growth are important and necessary. However, while some studies show a positive relationship between growth and profitability (Coban, 2014) others show a negative relationship (Yoo and Kim, 2015). Some studies also show that profitability has a positive relationship with growth but growth can have either a negative or positive relationship with profitability (Kouser, 2012). The negative relationship tends to occur more in the short run and the positive relationship in the long-

Background cont’d It is important to study the relationship between growth and profitability as all firms will want to expand if it will lead to maximisation of profits. This study seeks to determine the relationship between growth and profitability and as a young entrepreneur I am interested in what this study will reveal as the findings will guide my actions for my own business.

Methodology MARK SCHEME � Data collection instrument clearly described – 1– 2 marks � Data collection instrument appropriate for type of data – 1 mark � Included at least two instruments of data collection – 1 mark � Method of data collection clearly described –

Methodology cont’d To collect the appropriate data, an interview schedule – primary (Appendix 1) was designed which included 6 questions. This instrument was used with both the owner and one of the initial employees at pre-arranged interview times. Interviews were conducted to obtain detailed insights about the expansion at Bright School Stationery Store (qualitative info). Interviews allowed clarification of questions and responses. Final accounts, ledgers and journals – secondary (Appendix 2) were used to gauge profitability before and after expansion (quantitative info). One limitation of this process was that some interview questions had to be supported by additional questions so as to obtain direct responses. Also, financial information was not updated regularly. However, source documents

Presentation and Analysis of Data MARK SCHEME • Data is presented in appropriate form using tables, charts, graphs – 1– 2 marks • Data presented are relevant to the objectives of the project • Data is adequately analysed – 1– 2 marks – 1– 2 marks • Data is analysed using appropriate statistics – mean, median, mode – 1– 2

Presentation and Analysis of Data cont’d �Restate research question �Present data �Analyze data

Research Question (RQ) 1 To what extent were factors of production utilised by the stationery store at Bright School for expansion during the period Jan to Dec 2017? To answer RQ 1, Interview questions 2), 3), 4) and 5) and the final accounts, ledgers and journals were utilised. 2) In order to increase sales did you have to acquire more land? 3) What was the effect on employment of workers as a result of expansion? 4) Was it necessary to acquire more capital to increase sales? 5) Was more effort required from you the entrepreneur/employee due to desire to increase sales?

Data Analysis RQ 1 There was an increase in the number of employees by 100% in 2017. Capital was expanded by 20% and the owner was now required to expend more effort in supervising the additional employees and managing the additional risk. There was no change to the factor of production land. Factors of Production Labour 2016 2017 2 employees 4 employees Capital $50 000 Land $20 000 Additional loan from bank for $10 000 Used to purchase additional stock $20 000 Entrepreneurship Managing 2 employees Managing 4 employees Additional risk from new loan Decision to expand

Graph showing % increase in utilisation of Factors of Production (Presentation RQ 1) 250 200 150 100 2016 50 2017 sh ip ita l En t re pr en eu r C ap r La bo u La nd 0

Conclusion MARK SCHEME �Conclusion succinctly summarizes the project – 1– 2 marks �Conclusion is logical and based on findings 1– 2 marks –

Conclusion cont’d 1. There was greater utilisation of factors of production in 2017 than 2016. Utilisation of capital, labour and entrepreneurship all increased while there was no change to land.

Recommendations �Recommendations are realistic and informed by findings – 1– 2 marks �Recommendations contribute to a better understanding of the topic/issue/problem – 1– 2 marks

Recommendations cont’d 1. The firm can continue to expand to meet increasing demand in the short-run until it reaches full capacity. 2. The firm can open another branch at another location.

References • Bibliography contains names of authors, name of publisher(s), names and dates of publication, and are written in alphabetical order – 1 mark

References cont’d APA - www. apastyle. org Websites Author, A. (date). Title of document [Format description]. Retrieved from http: //xxxxx Interviews Informational interviews: If you have interviewed someone for information about your topic and that person has agreed to be identified as a source, cite the source as a personal communication (in text only): G. Fink-Nottle, personal communication, April 5, 2011 Chicago Manual Example Last, First M. Book. City: Publisher, Year Published.

References Chicago Manual - https: //owl. english. purdue. edu/owl/resource/717/2/ Book by One Author 1. William Faulkner, Absalom! (New York: Vintage Books, 1990), 271.

Appendices �Data collection instruments �Financial Statements �Other sources of data �Please remember to include the mark scheme utilized to mark each candidates project

Overall presentation MARK SCHEME �Consistently uses correct spelling and grammar – 1 mark �Expression of ideas logical and unambiguous – 1 mark

Assignments and due dates The listing below is due for September 3 rd 2018. �Cover page �Table of Contents �Topic, Issue or Problem, Research Questions �Objectives of the Project �Background �Methodology �Presentation and Analysis of Data

List of Suggested Topics � The effectiveness of implementing a point of sale system at a school cafeteria: a case study. � An investigation into ways in which ICT affects what people do at home, school and the work environment. � The impact of increasing petrol prices on the taxi operators in the community of Seaside. � The impact of unemployment in my community. � A study of the feasibility of offering a courier service to my community. � An investigation to determine how the employed marketing strategy affects the demand for banana bread at Lue’s Bakery

List of Suggested Topics cont’d � How does the availability of resources affect production on the school farm. � An investigation into the reasons why students prefer to purchase lunch from outside vendors as opposed to the school’s cafeteria. � An analysis of the impact of the implementation of the Property Tax on a named Sole Trader. � An analysis of the impact of an increase in expenditure on productivity and profitability at A & B Limited for the period January 2017 to December 2017. � To investigate how the introduction of ICT has impacted on the sales and profitability of the school’s co-operative.

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