SBM -Exam 4

Design patent

A 14-year patent for a new, original, and ornamental design for an article of manufacture.

Utility patent

A 20-year patent covering a process, machine, article of manufacture, composition of matter, or any new or useful improvement of an existing one.

nonprofit corporation

A business form specific to charitable organizations that do not make a profit for their owners

check the box taxation

A choice LLCs can make on their tax returns to be taxed as a corporation or a partnership.

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)

A commission established to enforce the provisions of the equal employment opportunity act

Operating agreement

A contract among LLC members outlining how the LLC will conduct itself.

Exempt

A federal government descriptor of employees who are exempt from fair labor standards act and are generally paid salaries

Nepotism

A management philosophy of selecting and promoting people based on family ties

Meritocracy

A management philosophy selecting and promoting people based solely on their being the most capable person for the job

Flat fees

A method of billing for lawyers in which a fixed amount is paid for a certain task.

articles of partnership

Agreement between the partners of a firm on matters pertaining to the formation and operation of the partnership.

Reconciling

An accounting process that identifies the causes of all differences between book and bank balances.

Rehabilitation Act of 1973

An act of Congress that provides training for workers who are injured on the job.

Age Discrimination in Employment Act

An act of concrete that makes it illegal to discriminate against people who are older than 40 years of age

Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990

An act of congress that requires that businesses make provisions for access for people with disabilities

Joint venture

An agreement between two or more entities to pool resources in order to complete a project

Surety bonds

An agreement by an insurance or bonding company that will pay a specified amount in the event that the entity bonded fails to comply with specified contractual requirements

Deductible

An amount of loss that will not be paid by an insurance company

Grace period

An idea in parent law that says disclosing the idea starts a one year clock for filing a provisional or regular parent, where the disclosure would not count as prior art and disqualify the idea from being patented

Virtual employee

An independent contractor who provides specialized business services or support from a distance, through the internet, telephone, fax, or another method of communication

Employee referral

An underused, low-cost method for finding workers that rewards your employees for recommending potential candidates that would be a great employee fit.

short term debt

Any debt that must be paid in less than one year from the date of the financial statement on which it is reported.

Fidelity bonds

Bonds, also called dishonesty bonds, that repay employers for losses caused by dishonest or negligent employees.

Open-book policy

Concept that key employees should be able to see and understand a firm's financials should have a part in moving the numbers in the right direction should have a direct stake in the strategy and success of the firm.

Trade secret

Confidential information within a company that gives that company a competitive advantage

job description

Defines and discusses all the essential knowledge, skills, and abilities that are needed to fill a position

On the job training

Delivered to employees while they perform their regular jobs; techniques include orientations, job instruction training, apprenticeships, internships and assistantships, job rotation, and coaching

Trademark

Distinctive word, slogan, or image that identifies a product and its origin

Articles of Organization

Document setting forth information about a limited liability company that is filed with the state to establish an LLC.

Pass-through taxation

Earnings of the business are distributed to the business owners and those owners pay individual tax on the earnings.

Single taxation

Earnings of the business are taxed once with the owners paying the taxes.

Double taxation

Earnings of the business are taxed twice with the business as well as its owners being subject to tax.

Key employees

Employees whose experience and skills are critical to the success of a business

Copyright

Exclusive right given to the creator of a literary or artistic work to make use of that work

Buyout insurance

Insurance that provides money to owners of a business to buy the shares of any deceased owner from that owner's heirs.

Regulation of the workplace

Laws and governmental rules that limit the freedom of business owners to manage their businesses as they please.

Tax codes

Laws and regulations that specify the requirements of taxation.

Internet recruiting

Method of recruiting that allows you to search a resume database or post a job description to the web; a small business owner who knows exactly what he or she wants can use filters to search vast numbers of resumes with pinpoint accuracy.

Waiver

Part of a contract in which a party intentionally gives up legal rights or claims.

exculpatory clause

Part of a contract in which a party to the contract states that he or she will not be responsible for certain actions.

Defendant

Person or other entity being sued

psychological contract

Refers to employees beliefs about the promises between th employee and the firm, these beliefs are based on the perception that promises have been made (competitive wages, promotional opportunities, job training) in exchange for certain employee obligations such as giving of their energy, fine, and technical skills

Living wage

The amount needed for a person (or family of a particular size) to meet the basic necessities of life from a single job.

Insurance value

The amount of an asset for which a company will write an insurance policy

Piercing the veil

The dissolution of a corporate form, making it back into a sole proprietorship or general partnership, if the court finds that the owner carelessly mixed up personal and business assets or finances.

Barter

The practice of trading goods without the use of money

probationary period

Trial period in which an employee has temporary status before a formal offer to work full time is presented

Nonexempt

a federal government descriptor of employees under the Fair Labor Standards Act who get an hourly wage and time-and-a-half for overtime

deposits and progress payments

cash payments received before product is completed or delivered

demand deposits

money held in checking and savings accounts

501(c)(3)

refers to the section of the us tax code that specifies the conditions for a nonprofit organization to be certified tax exempt, meaning it does not pay any federal income tax

Plant patent

A 20-year patent that covers new strains of living plant organisms, algae, or macro fungi.

Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)

A government agency created to enforce safety in the workplace

Patent

A grant by the US government to an inventor for an idea that is new, useful, and nonobvious, giving the inventor the exclusive right to make, use, or sell his or her idea

Provisional patent

A preliminary description of your idea submitted to the U.S. Patent Office according to its specifications. It is intended to serve as a sort of placeholder for a full (or regular) patent, which needs to be filed within one year of the filing of the provisional patent.

Cash receipts budget

A schedule of the amounts and timings of the receipt of cash into a business.

Civil rights act of 1991

A series of acts by congress that prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin

Internal control

A set of rules and procedures that work to limit the opportunity for employee theft or malfeasance.

nonsufficient funds

A situation that occurs when a check is returned to a depositor because the writer of the check did not have a bank available balance equal to or greater than the amount of the check.

Separation of duties

A type of internal control that separates the physical control of an asset from the person accounting for that asset.

Hold harmless

A type of waiver in which a party agrees not to hold another party responsible for certain events.

Contingency fee

Fee paid by a client to an attorney for legal services that is dependent upon the outcome of a case.

Assumed name filing or a fictitious name filing

Filing made with a state(s) in which the business operates disclosing the trade name or assumed name of the business along with the owners of the business.

employee theft

Misappropriation of business property by employees of that business.

Plaintiff

Person or other entity filing a lawsuit

Independent Contractor

Persons working to achieve a certain goal without being subjected to substantial controls by another

intellectual property

Property coming from some sort of original thought; for example, patents, trade secrets, trademarks, and copyrights

Intangible property

Property that has no value of its own but that represents value, such as a stock certificate.

Noncore projects

Revenue-producing tasks and activities related to, but not part of, the primary strategy of a business.

Infringer

Someone who uses intellectual property without the permission of the owner.

Trade name or assumed name or a doing business as (dba)

The name under which a business is operated.

Consignment

The practice of accepting goods for resale, without taking ownership of them and without being responsible to pay prior to their being sold.

bank ledger balance

The sum of deposits and withdrawals recorded in a bank's accounting records.

Insurance

a contract between two parties in which one party agrees, for a fee, to assume the risk of another

Overdraft

a negative balance in a depositor's bank account

receivables

amounts that are owed to a business for merchandise that was sold on credit

money

an accepted medium of exchange

Clearinghouse

an entity that processes checks and electronic fund transfers for banks and other financial organizations

bearer

any person or business entity who possesses a security

cash equivalents

assets that may be quickly converted to cash

factoring receivables

borrowing money secured by a firm's accounts receivable

Cash budget

identifies when, how, and why cash is expected to come into the business, and when, how, and why it is expected to leave

Vicarious Liability

indirect liability imposed on a supervisory party for the actions of another

cash

money that is immediately available to be spent

Commercial paper

notes issued by credit-worthy corporations

Noncompete clause

part of a contract in which a person agrees not to open a certain type of business or seek employment doing certain things in a particular area for a period of time

Trade discounts

percentage discounts from gross invoice amounts provided to encourage prompt payment

cash flow management

planning and tracking the amounts and timing of money to be received and paid during the business cycle

marketable securities

stocks and bonds that are traded on an open market

currency

the bills and coins printed by governments to represent money

Employee fit

the match between the needs, expectations, and culture of the small business with the expectations and the skills of the individual employee

company book balance

the sum of cash inflows and cash outflows recorded in the firm's accounting records

hourly fees

A basis for legal charges in which the rate is based on a price per hour. Often lawyers will charge for fractions of an hour.

Retainer

A fee paid by a client to an attorney to engage the attorney's services.

Noncash incentives

Rewards that do not require payment of cash, such as stock options, compensating time off, or added vacation days.

Protected classes

States of being that are expressly prohibited from suffering discrimination: race, color, religion, sex, national origin, gender, age, or disability.

Bank available balance

The sum of money that has actually been received and paid out of a depositor's account.

Growth trap

a financial crisis that is caused by a business growing faster than it can be financed

Timing purchases

a method of controlling the timing of cash outflows that is invisible to suppliers and vendors

Discounts for prompt payment

a reduction in sales price provided to credit customers for paying outstanding amounts in a timely manner

charge back

a reduction in the bank account of a merchant by a credit card company

opinion of patentability

a report (typically written as a letter) from a patent attorney or patent agent that is his or her professional opinion of the possibility of obtaining a patent for an idea that you have explained. The opinion is based on the attorney's or agent's research of patents for similar or related ideas. Typically the first official step in the patenting process

Comprehensive budget

also often referred to as master budgets, are sets of budgets that detail all projected receipts and spending for the budget period

payables

amounts owed to vendors for merchandise or services purchased on credit

cash to cash cycle

the time that is required for a business to acquire resources, convert them into product, sell the product, and receive cash from the sale. also called the operating cycle

gaming the payment process

using methods to appear to be paying bills on time, when in fact payment is being delayed or avoided

Legal entity

A being, human or nonhuman, such as a corporation, that is recognized as having rights and duties, such as the right to own property.

Subcontract

A contract by which a new party agrees to perform a duty that one of the original parties to a contract was already legally obligated to perform.

Co-insurance

A contract stipulation that requires a policyholder to carry insurance in an amount equal to a stated minimum percentage of the market value of the property insured.

Arbitration

A dispute resolution process held instead of court cases in which both sides present their case to a legal professional

The Sarbanes-Oxley Act (Sox)

A federal law describing the steps publicly traded businesses must take to protect and provide their key financial information

Litigation

A formal dispute resolution method that operates using the court system, typically with a lawyer representing each party

Cash disbursements budgets

a schedule of the amounts and timings of payments of cash out of a business