Meaning of Business Studies 

The study of business is about how individuals and groups of people organize, plan, and act to create and develop goods and services to satisfy customers. Business is influenced by and impacts on the cultural, ethical, environmental, political, and economic conditions of the day.

Business Studies will help you to make more informed decisions in the everyday business of living. It gives you a better understanding of the world of work. It encourages you to think about how and why people start up in business and why you too might also consider starting a business.

As well as developing the essential transferable or ‘soft’ skills that employers demand, the following strengths are also cultivated through business studies: To learn more, click here 

Week 3

Topic: The Office

Meaning of an office

An office is generally a room or other area where administrative work is done. An office can also be defined as a place set aside for performing clerical and administrative duties in an organization.

Every organization, whether government or private has a place called an office, it could be a room or a whole building. An office is very important in any organization.

Qualities of a good office layout

The qualities of a good office layout are the following

• A good office must allow for easy control and supervision of staff
• The office should be well laid out to prevent waste of time on unnecessary movement of staff
• A good office should have enough light and adequate ventilation and the environment should be constantly kept clean.
• A good office must be suitably equipped with office machines , telephone, stationary etc to ensure good performance
• An office should be laid out in such a way that will make it possible for work and free flow of information between all members of the stafF. To learn more, click here 

Week 4

Topic: The Office staff

Contents: 

• Meaning of office staff
• Grades of office staff
• Functions of a office staff
• Personal qualities of a office office
• Job qualities of a office office
• Confidentiality of office information

Meaning of office staff:  is a person who performs the ordinary work that people do in an office i.e a person who performs the function of receiving information, recording information, arranging information, giving out information, protecting, safeguarding information and assets of an organization is a clerical staff.

Clerical staff includes the secretary, receptionist, typist, computer operator’s clerk etc. To learn more, click here 

Week 5

Topic: The right attitude to work

Meaning of attitude to work

Attitude is someone’s opinion or feeling about something usually shown by the person’s behavior. Attitude can be positive/right or negative/wrong. A right attitude will lead to increase in productivity and good working environment. 

Attitude involves feelings, values, beliefs and disposition that make individuals to act or behave in a certain way.

Attitude to work is therefore a person’s feelings, values and disposition towards their work. To learn more, click here 

Week 6

Topic: Departments in an office organization

Contents:

1. Why departments in an organization
2.  Various departments in an organization
3. Functions of department in an organization

Reasons for department in an organization

• The departments take care of the different aspect in an organization
• Departments helps the workers of different aspect to be well coordinated by the department heads
• Functions of various department in an organization aims towards achieving the organizational goals. To learn more, click here 

Week 7

Topic: Introduction to Commerce

A. Meaning of Commerce

Commerce can be defined as human activities that deal with buying and selling of goods and services. It occurs with supporting activities like as transportation, warehousing, banking, insurance etc. All these supporting activities are called aids to commerce.

B. Commercial Activities

A commercial activity involves the production of goods and provision of services. For example; the productions of milk, biscuit, a television set in their factories which are sold to wholesalers. The wholesalers then sell the goods to retailers, the retailers then sell the goods to the final consumer.

Commercial activities then involve the acts of buying and selling of farm and manufactured products. It also involves the activities of lawyers, accountants, teachers, musicians, hairdressers etc. The buying and selling of goods and services are called trading. Trading is therefore divided into:

Home Trade: It is the trade carried out within a country; it is made up of the wholesaler and retailer.

Foreign Trade: It is the trade with other countries of the world. It is made up of import and export. To learn more, click here 

Week 8

Topic: Division of Commerce

A. Meaning and classification of Commerce 

Commerce is concerned with buying, selling and distribution of goods and services, which are produced by industry. James Stephenson has defined commerce as ” an organized system for the exchange of commodities and distribution of finished productions:” It signifies a process of exchange, which is the foundation of modem economic life Commerce helps in transforming the goods from the place of production to those places where it is scarce. Hence it is concerned with the supply of goods and services to the consumers at the right place, at the right time and condition.

Commerce deals with the processes which are engaged in the removal of hindrances of persons (trade), hindrances of exchange (banking and finance), hindrances of place (transport, insurance), hindrances of time (warehousing), and hindrances of information (adverting and salesmanship ). In the modern era, commerce includes all the functions which are required to buy and sell the product. Commerce provides a link between producer and consumer. Commercial occupation deals with the buying and selling of goods, the exchange of commodities and distribution of the finished goods. To learn more, click here 

Week 9

Topic: Production

A. Meaning of Production

Production can be defined as the transformation of raw materials into finished goods. It is concerned with all legal activities which are directed towards the satisfaction of human wants.

Human wants are many, but they can be divided into material wants and non-material wants. The material wants are referred to as goods while the non material wants are called services.

Production involves the conversion of raw materials and semi finished goods into tangible goods that can satisfy the needs of the people. Examples of tangible goods are: yam, rice, clothes, cars, radio etc. To learn more, click here