BUSINESS RESOURCES

Describe the recruitment documentation for a specified job role. Job Description: Job descriptions are written statements that describe the:

duties, responsibilities, most important contributions and outcomes needed from a position, required qualifications of candidates, and reporting relationship and coworkers of a particular job.

Job descriptions are based on objective information obtained through job analysis, an understanding of the competencies and skills required to accomplish needed tasks, and the needs of the organization to produce work. They clearly identify and spell out the responsibilities of a specific job. Job descriptions also include information about working conditions, tools, equipment used, knowledge and skills needed, and relationships with other positions. The best job descriptions are living, breathing documents that are updated as responsibilities change. They do not limit employees, but rather, cause them to stretch their experience, grow their skills, and develop their ability to contribute within their organization.

Job Specification: A job specification describes the knowledge, skills, education, experience, and abilities you believe are essential to performing a particular job. The job specification is developed from the job analysis. Ideally, also developed from a detailed job description, the job specification describes the person you want to hire for a particular job. A job specification cuts to the quick with your requirements whereas the job description defines the duties and requirements of an employees job in detail. The job specification provides detailed characteristics, knowledge, education, skills, and experience needed to perform the job, with an overview of the specific job requirements.

Job Analysis: A job analysis is the process used to collect information about the duties, responsibilities, necessary skills, outcomes, and work environment of a particular job. You need as much data as possible to put together a job description, which is the frequent outcome of the job analysis. Additional outcomes include recruiting plans, position postings and advertisements, and performance development planning within your performance management system. The job analysis may include these activities:

reviewing the job responsibilities of current employees,

doing Internet research and viewing sample job descriptions online or offline highlighting similar jobs,

analyzing the work duties, tasks, and responsibilities that need to be accomplished by the employee filling the position,

researching and sharing with other companies that have similar jobs, and

articulation of the most important outcomes or contributions needed from the position. The more information you can gather, the easier the actual writing of the job description will be b. assess the importance of employability and personal skills to the selected organisation when they are recruiting new staff and attempting to retain existing staff. Employability is not the same as subject knowledge, qualifications or specialist experience. A brilliant first degree, a PhD and a list of published papers on your CV may not be enough to secure a position. You have to be aware of what employers are looking for in any employee. And you have to demonstrate that you are employable as a person, a team member and as a contributing member of the employer organisation. Keeping employability in mind while hiring helps you identify the person who's right for the job or whos up for a promotion from within the organization. It basically helps you recruit the ideal candidate. It also assists in identifying new ways of motivation. This is all done keeping in mind that the bigger picture is to fill the gap in recruitment with the best possible candidate for the organization.

C. Provide additional knowledge and understanding about accounting ratios. [D2] The term "accounting ratios" is used to describe significant relationship between figures shown on a balance sheet, in a profit and loss account, in a budgetary control system or in any other part of accounting organization. Accounting ratios thus shows the relationship between accounting data. Ratios can be found out by dividing one number by another number. Ratios show how one number is related to another. It may be expressed in the form of co-efficient, percentage, proportion, or rate. For example the current assets and current liabilities of a business on a particular date are $400,000 and $200,000 respectively. The ratio of current assets and current liabilities could be expressed as 2 (i.e. 400,000 / 200,000) or 200 percent or it can be expressed as 2:1 i.e., the current assets are two times the current liabilities. Ratio sometimes is expressed in the form of rate. For instance, the ratio between two numerical facts, usually over a period of time, e.g. stock turnover is three times a year. Advantages of ratio analysis: Simplifies financial statements: It simplifies the comprehension of financial statements. Ratios tell the whole story of changes in the financial condition of the business Facilitates inter-firm comparison: It provides data for inter-firm comparison. Ratios highlight the factors associated with with successful and unsuccessful firm. They also reveal strong firms and weak firms, overvalued and undervalued firms. Helps in planning: It helps in planning and forecasting. Ratios can assist management, in its basic functions of forecasting. Planning, co-ordination, control and communications. Makes inter-firm comparison possible: Ratios analysis also makes possible comparison of the performance of different divisions of the firm. The ratios are helpful in deciding about their efficiency or otherwise in the past and likely performance in the future. Help in investment decisions: It helps in investment decisions in the case of investors and lending decisions in the case of bankers etc.

TASK 2
a.

What are the main physical and technological resources required for the operation of a selected business. [P3] Tesco's Physical resources include: Premises Plant Machinery Equipment Materials Stock Tesco's Technological resources include: Intellectual Property Accumulated experience and skill Software licensing Patents Copyrights

b.

Show their understanding of how resources are managed by explaining how good management of human, physical and technological resources can improve the performance of the selected organization. We will once again consider the example of Tesco. In their organization, this activity is carried out through a process of crossfunction or cross-departmental working. Staff from different sections of a business come together to identify and address issues related to the company's logistics, employee relations, stakeholder engagement and organisational development. Staff are recruited to meet demands of the organisation and often a team leader is selected to co-ordinate objectives, e.g. to set and meet achievable goals. Team performance is monitored in bite sizes to keep abreast of developments. Team members will liaise with other departments to avoid the silo effect form of

productivity, i.e. to keep in the loop of events in the business environment. Some organisations make a series of strategic senior hires to effect particular objectives, e.g. a company may employ a senior manager to handle IT strategy formulation and implementation. This action is intended to encourage competition and increase productivity. All the data created or generated will be stored up as intellectual property and perhaps legal steps will be taken to protect material, e.g. designs and text. The information will have come from a range of individuals who have come together as a group to provide accumulated experience and skills. For instance members of a Boad may have worked within the organisation over a series of years in different roles. Other areas of physical resource include maintenance of a company's building and facilities, e.g. an organisation may need to employ a policy and/or compliance officer to write and maintain a register of clear concise and easy to use documents as required by service operations of the business and government standards.

c.

Assess the relative merits of the methods of the managing resources and to make judgements on the effectiveness of these methods in improving the performance of the selected business

Distribute resources, including human labor and monetary needs. Keep track of expenses and progress. Have a plan for management to control the processes. Define activities and processes.
Using Small Teams

Project managers are deeply involved in this process. They need to help other areas of the company both see and put into effect simple project management processes. This will allow other areas of the company to consistently account for resources and use those resources realistically.
Roles Are Important

They should come up with a list of roles, and talk to their team. Their team needs to fill these roles, and they don't want to just throw somebody in a role that they are not prepared for. This just sets up the team member for failure and puts undue stress on him or her. They should survey their team. Figure out their strengths and weaknesses. Set them up to be successful with their new responsibilities. Goals also need to be established that will support ever-changing organizations. This will help organizations and managers decide which projects should take priority and help managers deal with problems as they arise. This will help businesses be more flexible and better deal with the current economic crisis.

TASK 3 A. What are the range of internal and external sources of finance?

Financial Resources Financial resources concern the ability of the business to "finance" its chosen strategy. For example, a strategy that requires significant investment in new products, distribution channels, production capacity and working capital will place great strain on the business finances. Such a strategy needs to be very carefully managed from a finance point-of-view. An audit of financial resources would include assessment of the following factors: Existing finance - Cash balances funds - Bank overdraft - Bank and other loans - Shareholders' capital - Working capital (e.g. stocks, debtors) already invested in the business - Creditors (suppliers, government) Ability to raise - Strength and reputation of the management team and the overall business new funds - Strength of relationships with existing investors and lenders - Attractiveness of the market in which the business operates (i.e. is it a market that is attracting investment generally?) - Listing on a quoted Stock Exchange? If not, is this a realistic possibility? Human Resources The heart of the issue with Human Resources is the skills-base of the business. What skills does the business already possess? Are they sufficient to meet the needs of the chosen strategy? Could the skillsbase be flexed / stretched to meet the new requirements? An audit of human resources would include assessment of the following factors: Existing staffing - Numbers of staff by function, location, grade, experience, qualification, resources remuneration - Existing rate of staff loss ("natural wastage") - Overall standard of training and specific training standards in key roles - Assessment of key "intangibles" - e.g. morale, business culture Changes required - What changes to the organisation of the business are included in the strategy (e.g. to resources change of location, new locations, new products)? - What incremental human resources are required? - How should they be sourced? (alternatives include employment, outsourcing, joint

ventures etc.) Physical Resources The category of physical resources covers wide range of operational resources concerned with the physical capability to deliver a strategy. These include: Production facilities - Location of existing production facilities; capacity; investment and maintenance requirements - Current production processes - quality; method & organisation - Extent to which production requirements of the strategy can be delivered by existing facilities Marketing facilities Information technology - Marketing management process - Distribution channels - IT systems - Integration with customers and suppliers Intangible Resources Intangibles include: Goodwill Reputation Brands Intellectual Property The difference between the value of the tangible assets of the business and the actual value of the business (what someone would be prepared to pay for it) Does the business have a track record of delivering on its strategic objectives? If so, this could help gather the necessary support from employees and suppliers Strong brands are often the key factor in whether a growth strategy is a success or failure Key commercial rights protected by patents and trademarks may be an important factor in the strategy.

B. What are the key elements of the trading and profit and loss account and

the balance sheet, explaining the purpose of each element Investopedia describes the Trading Account as an account similar to a traditional bank account, holding cash and securities, and is administered by an investment dealer. It is held at a financial institution and administered by an investment dealer that the account holder uses to employ a trading strategy rather than a buy-and-hold investment strategy. Though trading accounts are traditionally thought to hold only stocks, a trading account can hold cash, foreign cash, securities and a number of other types of

investments. Investors who use a number of trading strategies or have a number of brokerage accounts may separate their accounts in order to avoid confusion. One account may be a registered account for their retirement savings; another account may be a buy-and-hold account for their long-term stocks; another may be a margin account; and another may be a trading account used for conducting day-trading activities.

Income statement (also referred to as profit and loss statement (P&L), is a company's financial statement that indicates how the revenue (money received from the sale of products and services before expenses are taken out, also known as the "top line") is transformed into the net income (the result after all revenues and expenses have been accounted for, also known as Net Profit or the "bottom line"). It displays the revenues recognized for a specific period, and the cost and expenses charged against these revenues, including writeoffs (e.g., depreciation and amortization of various assets) and taxes. The purpose of the income statement is to show managers and investors whether the company made or lost money during the period being reported. The main objective of businesses is referred to as profit maximisation, whereby the managers or owners of the firm will aim to make as much profit as is possible. The calculation of these profits is one of the most important functions of accounting. The owner will wish to know the profit for various reasons, such as:

Comparing performance - with other firms or with previous periods of time to see if the firm is moving in the appropriate direction Planning ahead - profits will allow the firm to expand Obtaining a loan - most bank managers and other lenders would want to see that the firm is profitable before lending money Income tax purposes - tax payable will usually be based on the profits earned by the firm

The calculation of profit will involve the calculation of both revenue and expenses incurred by the firm over a period of time. In the case of the sole trader, the profit for a firm is calculated in an account known as the trading and profit and loss account.

For a trading organisation it is not only the final profit figure that is important. Managers and owners will also want to know how the profit is made on the actual sales that take place before other general expenses are deducted. So this can be seen, the overall trading and profit and loss account is split into two sections; the trading account, which calculates gross profit and the profit and loss account, which calculates net profit.

Trading account - to calculate gross profit (the profit earned on the buying and selling of goods - before all other expenses have been deducted) Profit and loss account - to calculate net profit (the profit after all overhead expenses have been deducted from the gross profit - this is the overall profit earned by the firm) A balance sheet or statement of financial position is a summary of the financial balances of a sole proprietorship, a business partnership, a corporation or other business organization, such as an LLC or an LLP. Assets, liabilities and ownership equity are listed as of a specific date, such as the end of its financial year. A balance sheet is often described as a "snapshot of a company's financial condition".Of the four basic financial statements, the balance sheet is the only statement which applies to a single point in time of a business' calendar year.

C. Present with a budget that has not been managed properly and identify

the problems and suggest remedies

A budget is a financial plan and a list of all planned expenses and revenues. It is a plan for saving, borrowing and spending. In summary, the purpose of budgeting is to: Provide a forecast of revenues and expenditures, that is, construct a model of how our business might perform financially if certain strategies, events and plans are carried out. Enable the actual financial operation of the business to be measured against the forecast. Establish the cost constraint for a project, program, or operation. To control resources To communicate plans to various responsibility center managers.

To motivate managers to strive to achieve budget goals. To evaluate the performance of managers To provide visibility into the company's performance The benefits of budgeting must outweigh the drawbacks. A budget can be advantageous because it: It Links objectives and resources. Communicates to managers what is expected of them. Any problems in communication and working relationships are identified. Resources and requirements are identified. It establishes guidelines in the form of a road map to proceed in the right direction. It improves managerial decision making because emphasis is on future events and associated opportunities. Encourages delegation of responsibility and enables managers to focus more on the specifics of their plans and how realistic the plans are, and how such plans may be effectively achieved. It provides an accurate analytical technique. It provides better management of subordinates. For example, a manager can use the budget to encourage salespeople to consider their clientele in long-term strategic terms.

A budget can be disadvantageous because: A budget promotes gamesmanship in that those managers who significantly inflate requests, knowing they will be reduced, are in effect rewarded by getting what they probably really wanted. A budget may reward managers who set modest goals and penalize those who set ambitious goals that are missed There is judgment and subjectivity in the budgeting process Managers may consider that budgets redirect their flexibility to adjust to changing conditions. A budget does not consider quality and customer service. Recommendations for improving budgets: . Know how much you make. Before you can begin any planning it's a good idea to know how much money you make. Even if you are an hourly employee try to determine how much money you make during a given time period. Most people think in terms of months, but if you are paid every two weeks you may choose to think otherwise. Write this number down and remember it.

2. Make a list of all your expenses. Write down every single thing that you pay for every month. Write the item down and how much it costs. For items that might vary such as utilities try to make a good estimate. I would recommend simply writing these down. Try to stay away from any fancy computer program in the beginning. 3. Decide on extras. Once you've listed the things you must do decide on what extras you need to calculate. This could include entertainment, savings, gym memberships or 'blow money.' List these categories on your budget along with the amount you plan to put in that category. 4. Give every dollar a name. Make sure all of your money is accounted for. If you are going to have money simply to blow decide how much that will be. If you're going to save money, decide how much. If you're going to apply money towards debt write down how much. Leave no dollar unaccounted for.

D. Use accounting ratios to show the financial state of a given business [P7]

E. .

E.

F. The problems that can arise if costs are not controlled to budget. [M4] If you budget and do not control the spending then how do you know what is received and spent. If the receipts and spending of the receipts are not controlled then you have uncontrolled spending and since money spends faster than it is earned in most instances one would find themselves without the resources needed for the budget, the project or the results desired in the budgeting process. If you do not monitor and control your budget, costs on whatever project or business you are running could skyrocket, eating away the profits and causing you to have less for your employees. An example of what can happen if you do not control your costs: Your team members end up wasting $60 worth of paper, but your budget only asks for $40, so you have to pull the $20 from somewhere else. Controlling budget: You find that the pencils are $5 more expensive than you have had planned, so you have to tailor the budget to allow that extra $5. G. evaluate the problems they have identified from poorly controlled budgets by looking at the potential consequences for organisation arisingfrom the budget variances