Understanding business 11th by mchugh nickels CHAPTER 1

Making Profits within the Dynamic Business Environment Copyright © 2015 by the McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.. 1-9 • Quality of Life ­­ The general well­being of a society in terms of it

Making Profits 

within the  Dynamic Business 

Environment

Copyright © 2015 by the McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc All rights reserved McGraw-Hill/Irwin

CHAPTER 1

1-3

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• Quality of Life ­­ The general well­being of a society 

in terms of its political freedom, natural environment,  education, healthcare, safety, amount of leisure and  rewards that add to personal satisfaction.

• Who are Stakeholders?

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OUTSOURCING  and INSOURCING

NONPROFIT ORGANIZATIONS

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• Nonprofit Organization ­­ An organization whose  goals do not include making a personal profit for its 

owners or organizers.

in the UNITED STATES

United Way American Heart AssociationSalvation Army American Cancer Society

American Red Cross

• What is risk? How is it related to profit?

• What do the terms stakeholders, outsourcing and 

insourcing mean?

of ENTREPRENEURSHIP

The freedom to succeed The freedom to fail Make your own decisions No paid vacations.

High possibility of wealth No health insurance.

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Source: Bloomberg Businessweek, accessed October 2014.

• Entrepreneurs use what they’ve learned to grow 

their businesses and increase wealth

TEST PREP

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• What are some of the advantages of working for others?

• What benefits do you lose as an entrepreneur, 

and what do you gain? 

• What are the five factors of production? Which 

ones seem to be the most important for creating wealth? 

WHAT is the BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT?

CORRUPTION WORLDWIDE

• Productivity ­­ The amount of output you generate  given the amount of input (example: hours you work).

• 29% of security breaches are hackers pretending to 

be you and resetting your passwords.

DATABASES  and IDENTITY THEFT

PROTECT YOURSELF  from IDENTITY THEFT

to COMPETE in TODAY’S MARKET

• Customers want quality products at a good price with excellent customer service

• Because business is more customer­driven, some managers give frontline employees more decision­making power

• Empowerment ­­ Giving frontline workers the 

responsibility, authority, and freedom to respond 

Source: U.S Census Bureau, www.census.gov, accessed October 2014.

WHO WILL SUPPORT 

SOCIAL SECURITY?

Number of Workers per Retiree

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• The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission  prohibits laws discriminating against:

TAKE FLIGHT

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• Airport restaurants have more regulations than traditional spots

• People are likely to spend more when travelling

• This has led to more gourmet restaurants popping up in airports

• Climate Change ­­ Movement of the temperature of  the planet up or down over time.

Agriculture Era Manufacturing Era

Service Era Information­Based Era

The INFORMATION  TECHNOLOGY ERA

• IT affects: 

- Agriculture

- Industry 

- Service