Term Paper on Business: Top 4 Papers

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Term Paper on Business

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Term Paper # 1. Meaning of Business:

In the literal sense, the word business means what keeps one busy or occupied. But every engagement or occupation will not constitute ‘Business’ strictly in conformity with the business terminology. In economic sense, the word ‘Business’ means work, efforts and acts of people which are connected with the production of wealth.

Alfred Marshall was of the view that the subject matter of economics is the study of mankind in the ‘ordinary business of life’. This ordinary business of life according to him; is that part of individual and social action which is mostly connected with the attainment and with the use of material requisites of well-being.

“Economics is the study of man’s behaviour in earning his living. To earn their living’ men enter into wide variety of occupations connected with the production of goods and services that are needed by the community in which they live. There are innumerable occupations and a man has to choose which one he will follow.” -Thomas Evelyn

Functionally, by ‘Business’ we mean those human activities which involve production or purchase of goods with the object of selling them at a profit. Business includes only those human activities which are directed towards earning money or creating profit. Human activities for creating profit may be in the form of production, extraction or purchase of goods for sale.

“Business like weather is with us every-day. Buying and selling, hiring or firing, producing or financing, these are but a few of the many business activities which daily influence the lives of all of us directly or indirectly.” -Wheeler

“Business refers to a form of activity pursued primarily with the object of earning profits for the benefit of those on whose behalf the activity is conducted.” -L.R. Dicksee

“Business is used to cover the whole complex field of commerce and industry, the basic industries and the network of ancillary services, distribution, banking, insurance, transport and so on, which serve and interpenetrate the world of business as a whole.” -F.C. Hopper

“Business comprises all profit seeking activities and enterprises that provide goods and services necessary to an economic system. It is the economic pulse of a nation, striving to increase society’s standard of living. Profits are a primary mechanism for motivating these activities.” -Boone and Kurtz

To sum up, business may be understood as the organised effort of enterprise to supply goods and services to the consumers and to make profits in the process. Thus, business is a complex of gainful human activities, principle purpose of which is to create exchange and possess wealth in the form of physical output and useful services.

Term Paper # 2. Concept of Business:

The concept of business is changing from time to time and there is no perpetual existence of the business in terms of its fundamental principles.

The different concepts of business may be taken as follows:

A. Old Concept of Business:

In old days, Profit maximisation was considered to be the basic objective of every organisation. The concept was that – “The business of business is to do business” and “They are not in the business for their health.”

In those days every businessman aimed at maximising the profits at any cost, which in turn amounted to concentration of wealth and economic power even at the cost of social justice. Business was regarded as an end in itself. On the basis of this concept, even in today’s business the aim of every businessman is to earn a reasonable amount of profit.

B. Modern Concept of Business:

The old concept of business has undergone a radical change. Now the concept is that the business is not an end in itself but a valuable means to achieve an end viz. human welfare and public good. Today, business is regarded as a social institution forming an integral part of the social system. It touches every aspect of our life.

Peter F. Drucker points out that there is only one definition of business purpose- ‘To Create a Customer’

In modern times profit making is considered as a secondary objective and here we give too much regard to our prospective customer. In modern times, customer is regarded as a king of the market. Business cannot survive without customers.

The modern concept of business has also undergone two stages which are explained as follows:

1. The Concept of Profit-cum-Service:

In the beginning profit maximisation concept was replaced by profit-cum-service concept which means ‘earn profit’ if you can provide best quality products at reasonable prices to your consumers. There should be customer satisfaction and profit to businessman.

2. The Concept of Profit-through-Service:

At present the concept of profit-through-service is the popular and widely
accepted basic or core objective of business. Hence social responsibility of business has assumed considerable importance along with economic objective of profit maximisation. It is logical to regard profit as a motivating force rather than an end in itself.

The modern concept of business is, thus, a very broad one. Business is viewed as a subsystem of the total social system.

“Our modern view of society is an ecological one. Ecology is concerned with the mutual relations of human populations or systems with their environment. It is necessary to take this broad view because the influence and involvement of business is extensive. Business cannot isolate itself from the rest of society.’ —Davis and Blomstorm

Today the whole society is a business’s environment.

Term Paper # 3. Objectives of Business:

Fixing the objectives is like identifying the north-star. The objectives decide where we want to go, what we want to achieve and what is our goal or destination. Objectives are needed in every area where performance and results directly and vitally affect the survival and prosperity of business. Different authors have explained the objectives of business in different ways. A typical business unit seeks to achieve more than one objective and objectives vary with the passage of time.

Objectives common to most contemporary businesses are explained here:

1. Profits:

Profit making is the primary goal of any business enterprise. Profit enables a businessman to realise his other objectives too. Although profit making is the basic objective but it should not be an end in itself. The general outlook of business corporations has undergone a change. As a result of the recognition of social responsibility business objectives have transcended the profit objective.

2. Growth:

Growth is another primary objective of business. Business should grow in all directions over a period of time.

3. Innovation:

To earn market leadership is yet another objective of business. To earn a niche for oneself in the market, innovation is the key factor. Innovation may be in product, advertising, distribution, finance or in any other field.

4. Employee Satisfaction and Development:

The employees working in the business must be sufficiently compensated through fair wages, salaries, bonus, welfare facilities, medical facilities, housing facilities and some other benefits. It is assumed that employees work with great sincerity if they are properly cared-for by the employers.

5. Quality Products & Services:

Providing quality products and services is yet another objective of business. The objective of every business should be to create a customer and to retain a customer. To achieve this objective customer should be provided with quality products at reasonable prices and regular supply of goods and services.

6. Fair Return to Investors:

Another objective of business should be to provide a fair return on investment to the investors. The shareholders in case of companies must get proper return on their investment in the form of dividends.

7. Service to Society:

Service to society is the main objective of Non Profit making enterprise. For profit making enterprises, it is a secondary objective. Business is a part of society and has several obligations towards it.

Some of them are:

(i) To provide safe and quality goods at reasonable prices.

(ii) To provide employment.

(iii) To promote cultural and religious activities

(iv) To maintain and protect ecology.

(v) To help in supporting less privileged sections of people in society.

8. Good Corporate Citizenship:

Another objective of business should be that the business unit complies with the rules of the land, pays taxes to the government regularly, discharges its obligations to society and cares for its employees & customers. Businessman must have a natural and permanent stake in the viability of the country and in the growth and stability of economy of the nation.

The various objectives of the business indicate the profound importance of business in a modern society.

Term Paper # 4. Participation of Business in Cultural Affairs:

Business participation in cultural affairs can be explained in a way that it provides better quality life which further improves recruitment and retention of employees, encourages own cultural growth of every employee and provides a better place for their children to grow into better human beings.

It can also be explained with the help of following two things a business does for culture:

(i) Support to Cultural Activities:

Business helps in encouraging and promoting cultural activities like – Sponsoring cultural programmes through radio & Television, sponsoring awards for excellence, employing artists and musicians, organising exhibitions, sponsoring sangeet samelans etc.

(ii) Beautification of Designs of Buildings:

Beauty of buildings was not considered an important factor in designing and constructing of buildings. But now buildings are constructed for factories keeping in mind the budget along with the ‘aesthetic value’. If factories are aesthetically designed and well beautified then employees feel more satisfied working in such factories and their efficiency also increases besides reducing labour—turnover rate.

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