This ebook explains and explores the essential terms and key concepts in the world of business, finance, and company management.
If you're perplexed by profit margins, confused by cash flow, or baffled by balance sheets, all your questions and many more are answered in this indispensable e-guide. Grasp how companies work, from management to research and development, and sales and marketing to production and distribution.
Eye-catching visual aids give a helpful representation of each and every aspect of business, while the complex subject matter is broken down into clear definitions and concise explanations, expressed in easy-to-understand language. Crammed with essential know-how, How Business Works is perfect for anyone looking to boost their business brain or learn the ropes from the ground to the top.
Author(s): DK
Series: DK How Things Work
Publisher: DK
Year: 2022
Contents
Introduction
HOW COMPANIES WORK
Business ownership
Sole proprietorships and partnerships
Limiting liability
Private and public companies
Multinationals
Franchises
Not-for-profit
Start-ups
Start-ups from concept to launch
Types of start-up
Business plans
Raising money
Business accelerators and incubators
Buying & selling businesses
Mergers and acquisitions
Divestitures
Vertical vs. horizontal integration
Management buy-ins and buyouts
Who’s who
Board of directors
Company hierarchy
Stakeholders
Business cultures
Corporate structure
Functional structure
Divisional structure
Matrix structure
Network structure
Team-based structure
Human resources
The human resources cycle
Recruitment and selection
Evaluating staff
Motivation and rewards
Leadership strategy and styles
Leadership for team building
Employee relations and communications
Project management
Negotiating strategy
Flexible working
HOW FINANCE WORKS
Financial reporting
The accounting cycle
Financial statements
Financial accounting
Profit and loss statement
Balance sheet
Cash-flow statement
Environmental accounting
Depreciation
Amortization and depletion
Management accounting
Cash flow
Budgets
Assets and inventory
Costs
Product costing and pricing
Measuring performance
Key performance indicators (KPIs)
Financial ratios
Forecasting
Tracking fraud
Raising financing
Internal financing
External financing
Going public
Shares and dividends
The capital market
Gearing ratio and financial risk
HOW SALES AND MARKETING WORKS
Marketing mix
Product
Product positioning
Product life cycle
Price
Place
Promotion
Market research
Market segmentation
Marketing approaches
Niche vs. mass marketing
Traditional marketing
Digital marketing
Engagement marketing
Sensory marketing
Relationship marketing
Outbound marketing
Traditional offline advertising
Online advertising
Direct mail
Telemarketing
Inbound marketing
Outbound vs. inbound marketing
Blogging
Social media marketing
Search engine optimization (SEO)
Business development
Branding and rebranding
Lead generation
Lead conversion
Customer retention
Return on marketing investment (ROMI)
Intellectual capital
Information management
Business intelligence
Business analytics
Marketing and IT
Collecting consumer data
Data warehousing
Customer profiling
Big data
Customer relationship management (CRM)
Compliance
HOW OPERATIONS AND PRODUCTION WORK
Manufacturing and production
Job production
Batch production
Flow production
Continuous production
Hybrid processes
Management
Economies and diseconomies of scale
Lean production
Just-in-time
Total quality management
Time-based management
Agile production
Kaizen
Product
New product development
Innovation and invention
Design
Quality management
Product-process matrix
Control
Managing capacity
Inventory
Quality control
Six Sigma
Supply chain
Value chain
Outsourcing
Offshoring
Reverse supply chain
Benchmarking
Corporate social responsibility
Resources
Index
Acknowledgments
