Introduction to Business

Equipment such as phones, fax machines, and computers are all examples of the ________________ element of the business environment

technological

climate change can be defined as the movement of the ________________ of the planet up or down over time

temperature

What is the definition of the standard of living?

the amount of goods and services people can buy with the money they have

The resources of land, labor, capital, entrepreneurship, and knowledge are?

the factors of production

Managers today must be sensitive to differing cultural backgrounds because?

the workforce is increasingly diverse, with workers around the world

Business owners will work hard if government minimizes taxes and regulations because?

they can keep more of the profits that they earn

A benefit of globalization is that living standards have improved in many countries such as China and India. A cost of globalization is that?

those countries have become strong competitors to U.S. companies

An important effect of changed communication technology is that?

those with fewer resources are able to compete with large companies through the internet

An entrepreneur risks _______________ and ______________ to start and manage a business

time and money

An entrepreneur risks both _____________ and _____________ in the hope of earning a profit

time and money

Retailers share information about customer preferences?

to reach customers with specific needs and wants

Cell phones and computers are examples of?

tools that make businesses more productive

True or false: it is important to empower front-line workers because they are the ones responding directly to customer needs

true

Business agreements such as contracts and warranties are regulated and enforceable in the United States because of the?

uniform commercial code

Unless there are changes in the system, paying for Social Security in the future will draw huge amounts of money from the ______________ population

working

To be more competitive, companies set a goal of ______________ ______________ in their production processes because it reduces costs due to wasted materials

zero defects

True or false: A company's decision to outsource work may have to balance the competing stakeholder interests of job loss in a community with shareholder profits

True

Why is the standard of living in the United States higher than that of Japan or Germany, although their workers make more on average?

U.S. workers can buy more with their money because the prices of goods and services in the United States are lower

The internet has affected business because the explosion of B2B and B2C transactions means that?

Websites have become as important as stores in our economy

Students today can expect to respond to rapid changes in the business environment by?

continuously educating themselves to meet new job opportunities

Businesses are part of a country's _______________ system that distributes its resources and contributes to the standard of living and quality of life of its citizens

economic

Producing goods and services using the least amount of resources is ____________, but producing the desired result is ____________

efficiency and effectiveness

Giving employees the authority and responsibility they need to respond quickly to costumer needs is known as?

empowerment

Having a plentiful supply of any one factor of production such as labor isn't as important today as a combination of _____ and _____.

entrepreneurship and knowledge

For businesses to succeed and provide social benefits such as good schools and low crime rates, the?

environment must be healthy enough to support job creation and accumulation of wealth

The result of advances in communication and efficient distribution systems using new technologies has been?

globalization of trade

An important difference between goods and services is that a product such as a car is a(n) _______________ and can be touched, whereas a(n) _______________ such as insurance is intangible and cannot

good; service

New technologies that connect people all over the world and the increased amount of information available to institutional, wholesale, and retail consumers have created?

greater levels of competition among businesses than ever before

The trend called _____ is important because it reduces harm to the environment.

greening

Fostering global economic _______________ and independence reduces international tensions

growth

Entrepreneurs risks are decreased by?

having laws that support writing enforceable contracts

As production processes continue to improve, it is no longer enough to provide customers with high-quality products. They also expect?

high-quality service

Businesses have responded to the increase in single-parent households by?

implementing such programs as family leave and flextime

When a foreign company, such as Honda, opens a plant in the U.S., it is an example of?

insourcing

One way to differentiate between goods is that services such as education, insurance, and tourism are ______________, while goods such as automobiles are tangible

intangible

Match the factors affecting business to the correct element of the Global Business Environment in which they are found

*Legal-Contact laws *Technological-the internet *Social-Demographic changes *Competitive-customer service

Expenditures on war and terrorism creates much debate because?

it drains money from the economy

Governments can encourage entrepreneurship by allowing private ownership of businesses and by writing _______________ that support writing enforceable contracts

laws

A country's quality of life includes such elements as?

-education and safety -health care and leisure time -political freedom and natural resources

Incentives that governments can provide to encourage entrepreneurs include?

-encourage free trade -keeping regulations to a minimum -keeping taxes low

The purpose of nonprofit organizations include?

-filling a societal need -filling an educational need

Among the benefits businesses provide to their communities are?

-goods and services -tax payments -jobs

The businesses that will succeed in today's economy will be those that are?

Most responsible to customer wants and needs

Businesses that want to be successful must _____________ to their customers wants and needs and adjust their products and practices to meet them

listen

Entrepreneurs risk their time and money to start a business because they believe it can lead to?

making a profit

When a company contracts with another, sometimes in another country, to do some of the functions, such as production or accounting, it is known as?

outsourcing

The more an employee can ________________ in any given period, the more the employee is worth to a company

produce

Limiting those to whom you give personal information such as your Social Security number, credit cards, and using antivirus software on your computer?

reduces the potential for identity theft

The total amount of money a business takes in during a given period of time by selling goods and services is its?

revenue

Outsourcing a department's work to another country to increase profits requires a business to balance the needs of the _____________ against those of another group of its _____________

shareholders and stakeholders

Consumers today, both B2B and B2C, are able to find huge quantities of information about stores and products through the internet. This is a shift from traditional shopping and personal sales calls because it?

shifts power in the marketplace to consumers from sellers

Entrepreneurs who invest in starting a business do so hoping to receive a reward for?

their investment of time and money

Which of the following are examples of a service?

-A college course -Auto insurance

Which of the following products is classified as a service?

-Life insurance -plane flight to Ireland

A benefit of business expansion to global markets is that it creates new jobs in manufacturing and service businesses. It also?

-Means some jobs have moved to different locations around the world -Creates greater global competition between businesses and for jobs

Farmers are making their farms more productive by using high-tech equipment to?

-calculate how much fertilizer to use -track yields yard by yard -calculate how much seed to use and where to spread it

The global environment of business affects all of the other elements such as the Social, Technological, and Economic environments because?

-changes in technology and distribution have led to interdependence between trading nations -changes in communication systems make it possible to know what is happening around the world instantly -a change in one country, such as a recession, effects others due to globalization

Which of the following statements are true of the ways that war and terrorism affect businesses?

-companies that manufacture uniforms do well -companies that make armaments do well -companies such as airlines pay more for insurance

The elements of the external business environment include the?

-competitive environment -economic and legal environments -technological environment

The increase in the older population by the year 2030 will?

Create many new markets for goods and services

Internet sales between a business and a ____________ are B2C, while sales between a business and another ______________ are B2B

consumer and Business

What is the term for all of the groups that stand to gain or lose by the policies and activities of a business and whose concerns the business needs to address?

Stakeholders

The definition of productivity is?

The amount of output you generate for the amount of input

Businesses can be more successful by responding to their customers needs and wants they track using?

_databases of customer buying preferences -databases that use bar codes to track customer's purchases -databases that track a costumer's specific choices

When a business's expenses are greater than its revenues?

a loss occurs

A benefit of globalization is that it has greatly improved the standard of living?

around the world

An example of a demographic statistic would be the?

average income level of people living in a certain zip code

The _____________ in a country are part of an economic system that contributes to the standard of living and quality of life for everyone

business

The definition of e-commerce is?

buying and selling goods over the internet

Some local governments have changed to accommodate in increase in immigrant populations by?

changing the languages they use on signs

One way to reduce international tensions is to foster global economic growth because?

Businesses work together more profitably in a peaceful environment

Businesses that listen carefully to their customers, believe their "customers are king" and adjust their products and services to meet customer needs are?

customer-driven

Bar codes on products purchased help retailers build a(n) _______________ about consumer preferences

database

The statistical description of a population using characteristics such as age, gender, and income is?

demography

It is important for a government to have a currency that is easily exchanged in world markets because it?

lets you buy and sell goods and services anywhere in the world

An example of the effect of globalization on U.S. consumers is?

many goods and services are provided more cheaply by outsourcing their production to India or China

Freedom of ownership is part of the __________ and ____________ environment

-economic -legal

The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have ___________ some sectors of the U.S. economy such as those that manufacture arms, but has _____________ growth in others such as tourism

-grown; decreased -benefitted; slowed

Examples of the increased organizational costs to businesses caused by wars and terrorism are?

-increased security staff and equipment -increased insurance costs

An increase in the number of retirees in the population in a demographic statistic that affects business because?

-it creates opportunities for new products and services to fill their needs -it increases the need for products and services to serve that population

Incentives that governments can provide to encourage entrepreneurs include?

-keeping regulations to a minimum -keeping taxes low -encouraging free trade

It make take many years for a company to change its culture and structure to one of empowerment because?

-managers often resist giving up some of their authority -employees will have to take on more responsibility

Since white males comprise about 64 % of the workforce, efforts to improve diversity in the workplace now include which of the following groups?

-minority and female employees -seniors and disabled people

businesses improve the quality of life in their communities by?

-providing jobs for workers -paying taxes

Despite laws to prevent it, many companies have acted illegally by using corrupt practices to?

-reduce competition -operate without a permit -bribe officials in other countries

The U.S. governments ability to pay for Social Security in the near future is a problem because?

-the government has been using the Social Security account for other purposes -The ratio of people in the labor force for each retiree will be far lower than when the program started in the 1940s

Which demographic group is currently the richest in the United States?

65 to 74 year-old seniors

Demographic shifts in the population that will affect government's ability to continue to pay Social Security at the same rates as today include?

fewer workers in the workforce to pay for more retirees

The term "factors of travel" refers to the?

natural, human, and financial resources used to produce goods and services

Organizations such as the Red Cross, public school systems, and the United Way are examples of _____________ organizations

nonprofit

One way for government to actively promote entrepreneurship is to allow private ______________ of businesses

ownership

Economic well-being and the quality of life improve when businesses create more jobs because?

people can purchase more goods and services

Starting a business with an innovative idea, such as only selling organic foods, is riskier, but is likely to bring higher?

profit

Skills such as information management, leadership, marketing, and financial management are needed to manage?

profit and nonprofit organizations

The difference between revenues and the expenses needed to operate the business is its?

profit or loss

Employees, suppliers, customers, neighbors, competitors, dealers, and the local government are all among a business's?

stakeholders

A company must balance the needs of its stakeholders. For instance, although the government and environmentalists want pollutants disposed of safely?

stockholders may not want to pay the increased costs