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Business Fundamentals
first Edition
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Business Fundamentals

by Global Text Project
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Business Fundamentals was developed by the Global Text Project, which is working to create open-content electronic textbooks that are freely available on the website http://globaltext.terry.uga.edu. The goal is to make textbooks available to the many who cannot afford them.

Front Matter
1. The business eco-system: Your path to finding the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow!
1.1. The business eco-system: Your path to finding the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow!
1.2. The business eco-system: The business eco-system
1.3. The sun rise of your new business Accessing market opportunity: the initial rim of the wheel
1.4. Sales: the essential rim of the wheel
1.5. Strategy: the tactical rim on the wheel
1.6. Branding will make your blossoms bloom!
1.7. Stakeholders: the connective rim on the wheel
1.8. Ethics: the authentic rim on the wheel
1.9. Operations: the logistical rim on the wheel
1.10. New product: the tangible rim on the wheel
1.11. Let the fruits of your labor blossom: the new product/service launch event plan
1.12. Public relations: the sensational rim on the wheel
1.13. Mentor insights: the “Where the Rubber Meets the Road” spokes on the wheel
1.14. About this author and acknowledgements
2. The mind of the entrepreneur: Your entrepreneurial journey begins by embarking on your own hero’s journey!
2.1. Introduction
2.2. Entrepreneur assessment survey
2.3. Entrepreneurial mindset enhancing activities
2.4. Chapter summary
3. Business models and marketing: an overview
3.1. Learning Objectives
3.2. What is a business model?
3.3. Success factors
3.4. Consumer marketing models
3.5. The marketing model
3.6. Identifying market needs
3.7. Business to business marketing models
3.8. Chapter summary
3.9. Market research to determine the potential market for funeral services in Monterrey, Mexico
3.10. Discussion questions
3.11. References
4. How to organize and lead an entrepreneurial venture
4.1. Learning objectives
4.2. Introduction
4.3. Organizational issues
4.4. Organizational stages of growth
4.5. Flat versus tall organizations
4.6. Centralized versus decentralized organizations
4.7. Chapter summary
4.8. Discussion questions
4.9. References
5. Selecting and managing your team
5.1. Learning objectives
5.2. Competitive advantage through human resource management
5.3. Providing employee voice and influence
5.4. Recruiting workers
5.5. Evaluating recruiting policies
5.6. Employee training
5.7. Aligning employee career development with organizational growth
5.8. Performance appraisal
5.9. Determining base pay
5.10. Meaningful job design
5.11. Termination
5.12. Discussion questions
5.13. Exercise
5.14. References
6. Marketing on a global scale
6.1. Learning objectives
6.2. Defining marketing
6.3. The role of marketing in the firm: a basis for classification
6.4. Defining international marketing
6.5. The international marketing plan
6.6. The international marketing environment
6.7. Discussion question
6.8. References
7. Operations management
7.1. Learning objectives
7.2. What is operations management?
7.3. The input/output transformation model
7.4. Operations decisions
7.5. Chapter summary
7.6. Special topic: Total Quality Management
7.7. Special topic: supply chain management
7.8. Special topic: just-in-time and lean systems
8. Securing and managing external relationships
8.1. Learning objectives
8.2. Introduction to external relationships
8.3. Marketing exchanges and partnerships
8.4. Choosing the right relationship
8.5. Strategies for external relationships
8.6. Chapter summary
8.7. Exercises
8.8. References
9. Financial and managerial accounting; financing your organization
9.1. Learning objectives
9.2. Introduction
9.3. Why an accounting system is important
9.4. Basic types of accounts
9.5. Chart of accounts
9.6. Basic financial statements
9.7. A short history of accounting and double-entry bookkeeping
9.8. Ledgers
9.9. Advanced reports and analyses
9.10. Budgets
9.11. Chapter Summary
9.12. Discussion Questions
9.13. References
10. Leveraging with information technology
10.1. Learning Objectives
10.2. Introduction
10.3. IS tools for the Start-Up Organization
10.4. Moving Forward With Information Systems
10.5. Know What Your Customers Want
10.6. Using Information Technology Competitively
10.7. What is IS Risk Management
10.8. Chapter Summary
10.9. Discussion questions
10.10. References
11. Competitive intelligence
11.1. Learning objectives
11.2. Introduction
11.3. Definition
11.4. Importance and goals of competitive intelligence
11.5. Information collection methods
11.6. The industry environment
11.7. Porter's 5 forces and the analysis of competitors
11.8. Methods of evaluating competitors
11.9. Chapter summary
11.10. Reference
12. Business ethics in a nutshell
12.1. What is ethics
12.2. Management: the meta profession
12.3. Corporate social responsibility
13. Adding products and services
13.1. Learning objectives
13.2. Introduction
13.3. Where does innovation come from?
13.4. Innovation through business models
13.5. Evaluating new products
13.6. When innovation fails: deleting products
13.7. Chapter summary
13.8. Discussion questions
13.9. Case: “Apples: Newton and Pippin”
13.10. References
14. International business for the entrepreneur
14.1. Introduction
14.2. Globalization: opportunities and threats to developing country business
14.3. Harnessing technology for global business success
14.4. Doing business across cultures
14.5. Political and legal risk in international business
14.6. Global marketing: Assessing potential markets overseas
14.7. Global finance: initial considerations
14.8. Organizational structure and human resource management
14.9. Corporate Social Responsibility and sustainable development in the global environment
14.10. Case: Built to Last by Jim Collins
14.11. Chapter summary
14.12. References
15. Growth strategies for start-ups
15.1. Learning objectives and overview
15.2. Definition and models
15.3. Growth problems
15.4. Chapter summary
15.5. References, and further literature
16. Attributions

The Global Text Project (GTP) is a not for profit organization dedicated to the creation, translation, and distribution of free open content textbooks over the Internet. It is an Open educational resources project focusing on reaching university students mainly in developing countries, where textbooks are often expensive and not affordable.

Textbook content produced by Global Text Project is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License 3.0 license.

Under this license, any user of this textbook or the textbook contents herein must provide proper attribution as follows:

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            Global Text Project, Business Fundamentals. OpenStax CNX. Aug 16, 2011 http://cnx.org/contents/d6db603c-cd31-4ca4-be19-d29734673b90@4.3.

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