BUSS1 Syllabus CAF

BUSS1 Syllabus CAF

1. Starting a business

   • Enterprise
     • enterprise and entrepreneurs, the importance of risk and rewards such as profit, the notion of opportunity cost, motives for becoming an entrepreneur, government support for enterprise and entrepreneurs
   • Generating and Protecting Business ideas
     • sources of business ideas, the identification of a product or market niche, franchises, copyright, patents and trademarks.
   • Transforming Resources into Goods and Services
     • inputs, outputs and the nature of the transformation of resources into finished products, adding value
   • Conducting Start-up Market Research
     • methods of primary and secondary market research, qualitative and quantitative research, size and types of samples, factors influencing the choice of sampling methods.
   • Understanding Markets
     • the nature and types of markets, the importance of demand, types of market segmentation, market size, growth and share.
   • Choosing the Right Legal Structure for the Business
     • sole traders, partnerships, private limited companies and public limited companies, not-for-profit businesses.
   • Raising Finance
     • sources of finance available to start businesses.
   • Locating the Business
     • factors influencing start-up location decisions
   • Employing People
     • types of employees used in small businesses,using consultants and advisors.

2. Financial Planning

   • Calculating Costs, Revenues and Profits
     • fixed, variable and total costs, price, total revenue and profit.
   • Using Break-Even Analysis to Make Decisions
     • contribution and contribution per unit, calculation of break-even output, construction of break-even charts, analysing the effects of changing variables on break-even charts.
   • Using Cash Flow Forecasting
     • the nature of cash flow, how to forecast cash flow, the structure of a cash flow forecast, why businesses forecast cash flow.
   • Setting Budgets
     • income, expenditure and profit budgets, the process of setting budgets, problems in setting budgets.
   • Assessing Business Start-ups
     • objectives of business start-ups, strengths and weaknesses of a business idea and/or plan, why start-ups can be risky, why start-up businesses may fail.