Unit 1 The Business Environment
Pass Criteria 1 and 2
P1 – Describe the type of business, purpose and ownership of two contrasting businesses
The two businesses I have selected are Marks and Spencer (M&S) and the National Health
Service (NHS).
Marks and Spencer (M&S)
M&S is an international company and is part of the tertiary sector. An international business
is a business that operates and sells products/services around the world, M&S trades in
Europe, the Middle East and Asia1. M&S is a public limited company, the public part of it
means that shares can be brought by the public and the limited company part means that it
has limited liability. Having limited liability has many advantages as it protects a shareholder
from being responsible for more than their share of the company so they wouldn’t be
accountable for the liabilities resulting from the bankruptcy. Being part of the tertiary sector
means that M&S provides services in the form of selling groceries, clothing and home
products.
The purpose of M&S is to supply products; M&S also offers services but that isn’t their
primary way of doing business. M&S is driven by profit meaning that they make sure that
their sales cover all of their running costs and more (in order for them to make a profit).
Running costs include anything that the organisation needs to spend money on in order for
the company to operate (salaries, utilities and rent2). When M&S was founded the main goal
was to only sell British made goods that were of a high quality, this started to change in the
1990s but they continue to aim to offer high quality food at a fair price.
M&S is a private company meaning that it is owned by its shareholders, the shareholders do
not run the business, instead they have a senior management team. The current chairman
of the company is Robert Swannell who has been in the position since 2011, he ensures that
all the board meetings run smoothly and helps to achieve a consensus in all the boards
decisions3. The shareholders put capital into the business by buying shares they then receive
a dividend payment depending on how many shares they own.
National Health Service (NHS)
The NHS is a national not-for-profit organisation and is part of the tertiary sector. The NHS is
a public company meaning that it is owned by the government, it was set up in 1948 by the
labour government. The NHS is a not-for-profit business it is run mainly using money from
taxation. The NHS is part of the tertiary sector meaning that it provides a service to the
general population.
The purpose of the NHS is to provide high quality care for all4. The NHS employs doctors,
nurses and other healthcare professionals so even though it is a not-for-profit organisation
it is not comprised out of volunteers. Money from taxation is used to pay for all the running
costs – staff wages, medicines, equipment, buildings etc.
The NHS is owned by the government, the department of the government that is
responsible for the NHS is the Department of Health which is led by the Secretary of State
for Health (Jeremy Hunt). The NHS is part of the public sector and as it a not-for-profit
organisation they try to make the service as efficient as possible.
Pass Criteria 1 and 2
P1 – Describe the type of business, purpose and ownership of two contrasting businesses
The two businesses I have selected are Marks and Spencer (M&S) and the National Health
Service (NHS).
Marks and Spencer (M&S)
M&S is an international company and is part of the tertiary sector. An international business
is a business that operates and sells products/services around the world, M&S trades in
Europe, the Middle East and Asia1. M&S is a public limited company, the public part of it
means that shares can be brought by the public and the limited company part means that it
has limited liability. Having limited liability has many advantages as it protects a shareholder
from being responsible for more than their share of the company so they wouldn’t be
accountable for the liabilities resulting from the bankruptcy. Being part of the tertiary sector
means that M&S provides services in the form of selling groceries, clothing and home
products.
The purpose of M&S is to supply products; M&S also offers services but that isn’t their
primary way of doing business. M&S is driven by profit meaning that they make sure that
their sales cover all of their running costs and more (in order for them to make a profit).
Running costs include anything that the organisation needs to spend money on in order for
the company to operate (salaries, utilities and rent2). When M&S was founded the main goal
was to only sell British made goods that were of a high quality, this started to change in the
1990s but they continue to aim to offer high quality food at a fair price.
M&S is a private company meaning that it is owned by its shareholders, the shareholders do
not run the business, instead they have a senior management team. The current chairman
of the company is Robert Swannell who has been in the position since 2011, he ensures that
all the board meetings run smoothly and helps to achieve a consensus in all the boards
decisions3. The shareholders put capital into the business by buying shares they then receive
a dividend payment depending on how many shares they own.
National Health Service (NHS)
The NHS is a national not-for-profit organisation and is part of the tertiary sector. The NHS is
a public company meaning that it is owned by the government, it was set up in 1948 by the
labour government. The NHS is a not-for-profit business it is run mainly using money from
taxation. The NHS is part of the tertiary sector meaning that it provides a service to the
general population.
The purpose of the NHS is to provide high quality care for all4. The NHS employs doctors,
nurses and other healthcare professionals so even though it is a not-for-profit organisation
it is not comprised out of volunteers. Money from taxation is used to pay for all the running
costs – staff wages, medicines, equipment, buildings etc.
The NHS is owned by the government, the department of the government that is
responsible for the NHS is the Department of Health which is led by the Secretary of State
for Health (Jeremy Hunt). The NHS is part of the public sector and as it a not-for-profit
organisation they try to make the service as efficient as possible.
