BAF Diploma Spec - Level 1 &amp 2 - Princple Learning

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Specification
Edexcel Diplomas
Edexcel Level 1 and Level 2

Principal Learning in Business, Administration and Finance
Issue 3
April 2010
Edexcel, a Pearson company, is the UK’s largest awarding body, offering academic and
vocational qualifications to more than 25,000 schools, colleges, employers and other places of
learning in the UK and in over 100 countries worldwide. Qualifications include GCSEs, AS and
A Levels, NVQs, Diplomas and our BTEC suite of vocational qualifications from entry level to
BTEC Higher National Diplomas, recognised by employers and higher education institutions
worldwide.
We deliver 9.4 million exam scripts each year, with more than 90% of exam papers marked
onscreen annually. As part of Pearson, Edexcel continues to invest in cutting-edge technology
that has revolutionised the examinations and assessment system. This includes the ability to
provide detailed performance data to tutors and students which helps to raise attainment.
This specification is Issue 3. Key changes are sidelined. We will inform centres of any changes
to this issue. The latest issue can be found on the Edexcel website: www.edexcel.com
References to third-party material made in this specification are made in good faith. Edexcel
does not endorse, approve or accept responsibility for the content of materials, which may be
subject to change, or any opinions expressed therein. (Material may include textbooks, journals,
magazines and other publications and websites.)
Authorised by Roger Beard

Prepared by Roger Field
Publications Code DP020652
All the material in this publication is copyright
© Edexcel Limited 2010
Contents
Introduction to Edexcel’s Diplomas 1

What are the Diplomas? 1
How are the Diplomas structured? 2

What do Diplomas include? 3
Principal Learning 3
Generic Learning 3
Functional skills and personal, learning and thinking skills (PLTS) 3
Additional and specialist learning (ASL) 4
Structure and aims of Principal Learning in Business,

Administration and Finance 5
The Edexcel Diplomas in Business, Administration and Finance:
Principal Learning 5
Edexcel Level 1 Principal Learning in Business, Administration and
Finance 5
Edexcel Level 2 Principal Learning in Business, Administration and
Finance 6
Unit format 7
Assessment and grading of the Principal Learning 10
Internal assessment 10
External assessment 12
Calculation of the Principal Learning grade 12
Calculation of the Diploma grade 12
Programme design and delivery 13

Mode of study 13
Applied learning 13
Delivery of applied learning 14
Resources 14
Personal, learning and thinking skills (PLTS) 15

Coverage 16
How personal, learning and thinking skills are used to support formative
feedback 16
Access and recruitment 16

Access arrangements and special considerations 17
Further information 17
Useful publications 17
Professional development and training 18

Level 1 units 19
Unit 1: Business Enterprise 21
Unit 2: Business Administration, Teams and Communication 41
Unit 3: Personal Finance and Financial Services 61
Unit 4: Sales and Customer Service in Business 73
Unit 5: Careers and Employment in Business 93
Level 2 units 111

Unit 1: Business Enterprise 113
Unit 2: Business Administration 135
Unit 3: Personal Finance and Financial Services 157
Unit 4: Business Finance and Accounting 169
Unit 5: Marketing, Sales and Customer Service in Business 189
Unit 6: Teams and Communication in Business 213
Unit 7: Responding to Change in Business 233
Unit 8: Corporate Social Responsibility 245
Unit 9: Careers and Employment in Business 261
List of annexes 279

Annexe A: Qualification codes 281
Annexe B: Personal, learning and thinking skills 283
Annexe C: Wider curriculum mapping 289
Annexe D: Glossary of terms 291
Annexe E: Internal Assessment of Principal Learning Units: Controls for
Task Setting, Task Taking and Task Marking 295
Annexe F: Learning outcomes and assessment criteria for each unit 303
Introduction to Edexcel’s Diplomas
What are the Diplomas?

Diplomas have been developed to provide new and innovative qualifications for 14 to 19 year-
old learners. They are a defined set of qualifications that have been combined according to a set
of rules.
Diplomas are designed to support progression to further study, training or employment.
Learners will have the opportunity to develop and practise work-related skills within a chosen
employment sector.
Diplomas will be developed in 17 ‘lines of learning’ which relate to different employment
sectors. Employers in each sector have been involved in their design.
The 17 lines of learning are:
For teaching from September 2008 For teaching from September 2010
• Construction and the Built • Public Services
Environment
• Retail
• Creative and Media
• Sport and Leisure
• Engineering
• Travel and Tourism
• Information Technology
• Society, Health and Development
For teaching from September 2009 For teaching from September 2011
• Business, Administration and Finance • Science
• Environmental and Land-based Studies • Languages
• Hair and Beauty Studies • Humanities
• Hospitality
• Manufacturing and Product Design
Each Diploma will be available at three levels:

• Foundation – Level 1
• Higher – Level 2
• Advanced – Level 3
Progression – Level 3.
The Foundation Diploma is broadly equivalent to five GCSEs. Similarly, the Higher Diploma
broadly equates to seven GCSEs, whilst the Advanced Diploma broadly equates to three and a
half GCE ‘A’ levels and the Progression Diploma to two and a half GCE ‘A’ levels.
DP020652 – Specification – Edexcel Diplomas Levels 1–2 in Business, Administration and Finance Principal Learning – 1
Issue 3 – April 2010 © Edexcel Limited 2010
How are the Diplomas structured?
Foundation Diploma — 600 Guided Learning Hours (GLH)
Principal Learning * 240 GLH; at least 50 per cent must be applied learning
Generic Learning Work experience (minimum of 10 days);
functional skills * (English, ICT and mathematics)
120 GLH;
project * 60 GLH;
personal, learning and thinking skills (PLTS) 60 GLH
Additional and specialist learning * 120 GLH
Higher Diploma — 800 Guided Learning Hours (GLH)
functional skills * (English, ICT and mathematics)
80 GLH;
project * 60 GLH;
Advanced Diploma — 1080 Guided Learning Hours (GLH)
extended project * 120 GLH;
Progression Diploma (Level 3) — 720 Guided Learning Hours (GLH)
extended project * 120 GLH;
* These components of the Diplomas are also freestanding qualifications in their own right.
2 DP020652 – Specification – Edexcel Diplomas Levels 1–2 in Business, Administration and Finance Principal Learning
– Issue 3 – April 2010 © Edexcel Limited 2010
What do Diplomas include?
As can be seen from the structure diagrams, Diplomas consist of three components:
• Principal Learning
• Generic Learning (including a project and work experience)
• Additional and/or specialist learning.
Principal Learning
Principal Learning is a freestanding qualification which is sector related, focusing on
developing knowledge, understanding and skills that are relevant to the chosen sector and
applying these to work-based situations.
It emphasises learning through the practical application of knowledge, understanding and skills
to relevant work experience and work-related tasks, problems and contexts.
Generic Learning
Generic Learning consists of:
• functional skills in English, ICT and mathematics
• personal, learning and thinking skills (PLTS)
• a project
• work experience.
Functional skills and personal, learning and thinking skills (PLTS)

Functional skills are offered as stand alone qualifications at Level 1 for the Foundation Diploma
and at Level 2 for the Higher and Advanced Diplomas.
Opportunities to develop personal, learning and thinking skills will be embedded throughout the
Principal Learning for the Diplomas, and will be assessed as part of these qualifications.
Generic skills are integrated into and reinforced within the Principal Learning. This means that
the Principal Learning assessments will include opportunities for learners to achieve the
personal, learning and thinking skills.
The Diplomas provide opportunities for learners to develop and apply functional skills and
personal, learning and thinking skills within sector-related contexts. Further opportunities for
learners to demonstrate these skills may also be offered in the project and in the work
experience.
Project and extended project
The project and extended project are offered as stand alone qualifications. As part of the
Foundation and Higher Diplomas learners will complete the project qualification. Learners will
complete the extended project as part of the Advanced Diploma.
They aim to enable learners to:
• develop as inquisitive and independent learners
• be inspired and enthused by new areas or methods of study
• extend their planning, research, analysis and presentation skills
• apply their personal, learning and thinking skills
• use their learning experiences to support their personal aspirations for further and higher
education and career development.
Work experience
Each Diploma has a requirement for a minimum of 10 days’ work experience, related to work-
based activities, to support the programme of study.
Work experience will:
• support the development and recognition of work-related learning
• build on previous work experience
• develop sector skills when set in relevant settings
• develop general employability skills
• enhance the overall learning experience
• allow flexibility around how evidence of attainment is achieved.
It allows learners to draw together, apply and add to their knowledge and enable them to
develop confidence and expertise.
Additional and specialist learning (ASL)

Additional and specialist learning consists of accredited qualifications at the same level as, or
one level above, the Diploma which have been approved under Section 96 of the Learning and
Skills Act 2000. It may include qualifications which are also available to learners not taking the
Diploma, or qualifications specifically developed to be part of the Diploma.
Additional learning is intended to:
• broaden the learning experience by including qualifications from other sectors
and specialist learning is intended to:
• allow learners to specialise further in the sector by undertaking qualifications from the same
sector as the Diploma.
Qualifications for additional and specialist learning must be selected from the ASL catalogue
through the National Database of Accredited Qualifications (NDAQ). The catalogue includes
qualifications which have the approval of the Diploma Development Partnership (DDP) and will
expand over time as more qualifications are approved. To access the catalogue go to
www.ndaq.org.uk and select ‘Browse Diploma Qualifications’.
Structure and aims of Principal Learning in
Business, Administration and Finance
This specification contains the Edexcel Level 1 and Level 2 Principal Learning qualifications in
Business, Administration and Finance.
The Edexcel Diplomas in Business, Administration and Finance: Principal

Learning
The Edexcel Level 1 Principal Learning in Business, Administration and Finance aims to:
• allow learners to develop a range of skills that will be useful both in the workplace and for
future learning
• provide learners with a firm foundation of business knowledge that will help them to enter
the workplace
• be practical and motivating, allowing learners to apply knowledge and skills in relevant
meaningful learning and assessment activities
• facilitate progression to further study
• promote the development of personal, learning and thinking skills.
The Edexcel Level 2 Principal Learning in Business, Administration and Finance aims to:
• allow learners to develop a range of skills that will be useful both in the workplace and for
future learning
• provide learners with essential business knowledge that will help them to enter the
workplace
• be practical and motivating, allowing learners to apply knowledge and skills in relevant
meaningful learning and assessment activities
• facilitate progression to further study
• promote the development of personal, learning and thinking skills.
Edexcel Level 1 Principal Learning in Business, Administration and Finance

All units are compulsory.
Unit Title GLH Assessment

number
1 Business Enterprise 60 Internal
2 Business Administration, Teams and Communication 60 Internal
3 Personal Finance and Financial Services 30 External
4 Sales and Customer Service in Business 60 Internal
5 Careers and Employment in Business 30 Internal
All units are compulsory.
Unit Title GLH Assessment

number
1 Business Enterprise 60 Internal
2 Business Administration 60 Internal
3 Personal Finance and Financial Services 30 External
4 Business Finance and Accounting 60 Internal
5 Marketing, Sales and Customer Service in Business 60 Internal
6 Teams and Communication in Business 60 Internal
7 Responding to Change in Business 30 External
8 Corporate Social Responsibility 30 Internal
9 Careers and Employment in Business 30 Internal
Unit format
All units in Edexcel Principal Learning qualifications have a standard format which is designed
to provide clear guidance on the requirements of the qualification for learners, tutors, assessors
and those responsible for monitoring national standards.
Each unit is set out in the following way:
Unit title The unit title is accredited by QCDA and this form of words will
appear on the learner’s Notification of Performance (NOP).
Level This is the level of study of the qualification.
Internal/external Further details of the mode of assessment are given later in the unit.
assessment
Guided learning hours In the Principal Learning qualifications each unit consists of 30, 60
(GLH) or 90 guided learning hours depending on the level.
Guided learning hours is ‘a notional measure of the substance of a
unit’. It includes an estimate of time that might be allocated to
direct teaching, instruction and assessment, together with other
structured learning time such as directed assignments or supported
individual study. It excludes learner-initiated private study.
Centres are advised to consider this definition when planning the
programme of study associated with this specification.
About this unit This section is designed to give the reader an appreciation of the
value of the unit in the vocational setting of the qualification as
well as highlighting the focus of the unit.
It provides the reader with a snapshot of the aims of the unit and
the key knowledge, skills and understanding developed while
studying the unit. The unit abstract also emphasises links to the
sector by describing what the unit offers the sector.
Learning outcomes Learning outcomes state exactly what a learner should ‘know’,
‘understand’ or ‘be able to’ do as a result of completing the unit.
What you need to learn This section identifies the depth and breadth of knowledge, skills
and understanding needed to achieve each of the learning
outcomes. This is illustrated by the range of subject material for the
programme of learning and specifies the skills, knowledge and
understanding required for achievement to the level required to
comply with all mark bands.
Each learning outcome is stated in full and then expanded with
further detail on the right-hand side. Internally assessed units may
contain ‘egs’ within this section. These are used to show indicative
lists of content only.
Teaching this unit – This section is designed to give tutors additional guidance and
Delivery guidance amplification on the unit in order to provide a coherence of
understanding and a consistency of delivery. This section includes
guidance on, for example:
• links to other units
• explaining the relationship between the content and the
learning outcomes
• guidance about possible approaches to delivery
• possible approaches to employer engagement.
Learning outcomes and This section contains learning outcomes and assessment criteria for
assessment criteria the externally assessed units. Learning outcomes and assessment
criteria for internally assessed units can be found in Annexe F.
Assessment information This section gives information about the assessment activities
for learners – How you required for this unit.
will be assessed
Assessment information This section provides assessors details in the following sub-
for assessors headings:
• Instruction and controls for setting assessment assignments
• Sector relevant purpose
• Evidence structure
• Level of demand
• Assessment duration
• Instructions and controls for taking assessment assignments
• Guidance for assessment.
Marking grid(s) Internally assessed units have a marking grid(s) which contains a
list of assessment foci, with statements ordered into three mark
bands. When work is marked it is judged against these statements
and an appropriate mark awarded.
The marking grids are supported with further information under the
following sub-headings:
• Using the marking grid
• Learner assistance
• Level descriptors.
Delivery of personal, This section identifies where there may be opportunities within the
learning and thinking unit for the generation of evidence to meet the requirements of
skills (PLTS) PLTS.
Assessors should take care to become familiar with PLTS and not
to rely on the contents of this section when presenting evidence for
moderation. The full PLTS framework is included in this document
as Annexe B, but centres should refer to the QCDA website
(www.qcda.gov.uk) for the latest version of the PLTS framework.
Functional skills This section identifies where there may be opportunities within the
unit for the generation of evidence to meet the functional skill
requirements.
Work experience This section includes guidance relating to the use of work
experience within the unit.
Specialist resources This section includes information relating to specialist resources
the centre will require to have access to in order to deliver the unit.
Reference material This section includes information relating to reference material that
will enhance the delivery of the unit and the learning experience.
Note it is not intended to be comprehensive. Examples are given. In
relation to websites, tutors and learners should use website links to
extend their searches.
Assessment and grading of the Principal Learning
The purpose of assessment is to ensure that effective learning of each unit has taken place.
Principal Learning units are assessed either internally by tutors or externally by Edexcel. Each
unit is labelled clearly as internally or externally assessed.
It is essential that tutors familiarise themselves with and follow the guidelines set out in the
document Internal Assessment of Principal Learning Units: Controls for Task Setting, Task
Taking and Task Marking (see Annexe E) when developing assignments for internally assessed
units.
Internal assessment
Internal assessment will be used to facilitate assessment of generic and practical skills. It will be
quality assured through internal and external moderation. It will be supervised and completed
under controlled conditions.
Each unit is assessed through a single assignment which has an overall purpose that reflects the
aim of the unit, and is described in the How you will be assessed section. An assignment may
be broken down into a few separate tasks. Tasks may be further broken down into smaller
activities. The Internal Assessment of Principal Learning Units: Controls for Task Setting, Task
Taking and Task Marking document details the nature of the controls that need to be applied to
each type of task/activity and its outcome.
Where a unit is internally assessed, centres can use the sample assignments provided by
Edexcel, or can design and quality assure suitable assignments. When designing assignments,
centres are required to be aware of the following design principles (see relevant Tutor Support
Materials for further guidance).
Assignments should be:
Fit for purpose They should consist of tasks which are related to the subject matter and
content of the unit. For example, where a unit is centred on IT, the
assessment will use IT at the core of the task.
Manageable They should be designed to be manageable for both the learner and for
the centre.
Secure They should be delivered under controlled conditions, where centres can
guarantee the work produced is truly that of the individual learner.
Reliable They should produce judgements of a similar standard from occasion to
occasion and between different assessors.
Valid They should assess what they are intended to assess in terms of the
learning outcomes.
Transparent They should be expressed in ways that can be readily understood by
learners, tutors and assessors.
Balanced They should fairly reflect the content and associated learning outcomes,
avoiding confusing learning with assessment and not adversely affecting
teaching and learning.
Flexible They should provide opportunities for learners to produce a variety of
different forms of evidence.
Centres are encouraged to use a variety of assessment methods, which might include, for
example, the use of case studies, work-based assessments, projects, performance observation
and time-constrained assessments. Centres are encouraged to place emphasis on practical
application, providing a realistic scenario for learners to adopt, and making maximum use of
practical activities and work experience.
The creation of assignments that are fit for purpose is vital to learners’ achievement and its
importance cannot be over emphasised.
When reading the marking grids and designing assignments, centres should note the following.
• Each internally assessed unit has either 60, 75 or 90 available marks in total.
• In some units the marking grid has been split into two grids – A and B. Marking grid A
contains all of the marking criteria for the unit except those which assess a learner’s
performance in practical activities which are recorded as a learner observation record (see
the Edexcel Diploma website for further information). These make up grid B.
• Centres must ensure that learners undertake appropriate assessment tasks to enable them to
achieve the requirements of each unit’s marking grid(s).
• The basic principle is that this is a ‘best fit’ grid – ie the assessor must match the overall
standard of work for an assessment focus to a band. It is NOT a hurdle approach, whereby
the assessor cannot award marks from the next mark band if one item for an assessment
focus from a lower mark band has been omitted, regardless of the quality of the rest of the
work for that assessment focus.
• If a learner completes all they are asked to do in a band for an assessment focus, they can be
awarded the full marks for that mark band.
• If a learner has clearly done more on one aspect of work for an assessment focus required
by a mark band, the assessor should consider whether the learner can be awarded marks
from the bottom of the next mark band.
• If a learner has completed less than required in any aspect of work for an assessment focus,
or indeed omitted an aspect, then the mark moves down within the mark band.
• Marking is completely separate for each assessment focus – ie a learner can get mark band 3
on one assessment focus, mark band 1 on another etc, then all marks are added together for
the unit total. It may be possible, depending on weighting of an assessment focus for a
learner to pass a unit even if 0 has been given in marks for one assessment focus in the unit.
Relevant Tutor Support Materials may contain further information relating to marking.
• A 0 mark should be used only where a learner provides no valid evidence. Any work that
starts to address the requirements of the grid should normally be awarded at least one mark.
• Evidence generated for marking grid A will be moderated. This must be in the form of hard
evidence which a moderator can reassess, such as learner produced written documents (eg
short question answers, multiple choice question answers, materials from presentations,
research notes), videos (dated) of practical activities or artefacts.
• Marks gained from marking grid A will be reported separately from those gained from
marking grid B.
External assessment
There is a requirement that some units in the Principal Learning will be externally assessed.
These external assessments will be made available by Edexcel on agreed, published dates during
the year.
For the Edexcel Level 1 and Level 2 Principal Learning in Business, Administration and
Finance the following units will be externally assessed:
Level Unit numbers Unit titles

Foundation 3 Personal Finance and Financial Services
Higher 3 Personal Finance and Financial Services
Higher 7 Responding to Change in Business
Calculation of the Principal Learning grade

Performance in each unit of Principal Learning will be assessed against criteria given in the
marking grid, giving rise to unit marks.
Unit marks will be allocated according to marking criteria that do not bear a direct relationship
to grading mark bands; that is, assessors will be clear that they are allocating marks and are not
grading learners directly.
There will be no pre-published unit grade boundaries.
Once units have been completed by learners and marked, they will be graded by Edexcel
through a separate process involving professional judgement of performance and of technical
and statistical data. This will produce unit grade boundaries and hence unit grades which will be
reported.
To permit the calculation of a Principal Learning qualification grade, Principal Learning unit
marks will be converted to points. Points for all Principal Learning units will be added together
to devise a Principal Learning score. Using published thresholds the Principal Learning score
will be converted to a Principal Learning grade.
Calculation of the Diploma grade

The overall grade for the Diploma will be based only on grades obtained from Principal
Learning and the project. However, achievement of all components within the Diploma will be
required in order to gain the Diploma qualification.
Points for Principal Learning units (weighted as appropriate) will be added to points for the
project to derive a Diploma score. Using published thresholds the Diploma score will be
converted into a Diploma grade.
Programme design and delivery
These Principal Learning qualifications consist of units of assessment. Each unit is 30, 60, or 90
guided learning hours in length depending on the level. The definition of guided learning hours
is ‘a notional measure of the substance of a qualification’. It includes an estimate of time that
might be allocated to direct teaching, instruction and assessment, together with other structured
learning time such as directed assignments or supported individual study. It excludes learner-
initiated private study. Centres are advised to consider this definition when planning the
programme of study associated with this specification.
Mode of study
Edexcel does not define the mode of study for the Principal Learning of Diplomas but there is
an explicit requirement that for at least 50 per cent of the time learners will be engaged in
applied learning.
Applied learning
Acquiring and applying knowledge, skills and understanding through tasks set in sector
contexts that have many of the characteristics of real work, or are set within the workplace.
Most importantly, the purpose of the task in which learners apply their knowledge, skills and
understanding must be relevant to real work in the sector.
Reference: The Diploma (Qualifications and Curriculum Authority, 2007)
Centres are free to offer the qualifications using any mode of delivery that meets the needs of
their learners and the requirements of applied learning. For example this may be through a
combination of traditional classroom teaching, open learning and distance learning. Whatever
mode of delivery is used, centres must ensure that learners have appropriate access to the
required resources (see individual units) and to the subject specialists delivering the units.
Assignments based on the work environment should be encouraged. Those planning the
programme should aim to enhance the vocational nature of the Diploma by:
• liaising with employers to ensure a course relevant to the specific needs of the learners
• accessing and using non-confidential data and documents from workplaces
• including sponsoring employers in the delivery of the programme and, where appropriate, in
the assessment
• linking with company-based/workplace training programmes
• making full use of the variety of experience of work and life that learners bring to the
programme.
Delivery of applied learning
It is important that centres develop an approach to teaching and learning that supports the
applied learning requirement of the Diploma. The Principal Learning specifications contain a
balance of practical skill development and knowledge requirements, some of which can be
theoretical in nature. Tutors and assessors need to ensure that appropriate links are made
between theory and practice and that the knowledge base is applied to the sector. This will
require the development of relevant and up-to-date teaching materials that allow learners to
apply their learning to actual events and activity within the sector.
Tutors are reminded that experiential learning techniques are required and that the
opportunities for formative assessment where learners benefit from regular and structured
feedback are a necessary requirement of a Diploma programme.
Where learners are performing an activity by practically applying their knowledge and skills,
they are essentially behaving in the required applied nature of the Diploma. By then reviewing
that learning and considering how improvements can be made and implemented, experiential
learning will take place (see Figure 1).
Do Review
Experiential
learning
Plan
Figure 1: Experiential learning cycle
Resources
One aim of Diplomas is to prepare learners to progress to employment in specific sectors.
Physical resources need to support the delivery of the programme and the proper assessment of
the learning outcomes and therefore should normally be of industry standard.
Staff delivering programmes and conducting the assessments should be fully familiar with
current practice and standards in the sector concerned.
Centres will need to meet any specialist resource requirements when they seek approval from
Edexcel.
Assessment and learning
Summative assessment
Summative assessment serves to inform an overall judgement of achievement, which may be
needed for reporting and review, perhaps on transfer between years in a school or on transfer
between schools, perhaps for providing certificates at the end of schooling.
Although learners are working to satisfy a summative assessment (the marking grids reflect a
final overall judgement) the benefit of formative assessment should be strongly emphasised
throughout the learning.
Formative assessment
Formative assessment is concerned with the short-term collection and use of evidence as
guidance of learning, mainly in day-to-day classroom practice.
In order for formative assessment to occur, the learner must understand what they have learned,
what they have yet to learn and what they need to do to learn it. The responsibility of helping
learners through a process of planning and reviewing their learning lies with the tutor.
Personal, learning and thinking skills (PLTS)

Personal, learning and thinking skills are necessary for work and for general learning. Learners
will have opportunities to develop, apply and assess all the personal, learning and thinking skills
within Principal Learning. Personal, learning and thinking skills consist of the following six
skills:
• independent enquiry
• creative thinking
• reflective learning
• team working
• self-management
• effective participation.
Annexe B contains detailed information relating to each of the six personal, learning and
thinking skills.
Each unit requires learners to demonstrate personal, learning and thinking skills, which are a
mandatory requirement and a key feature of the Diplomas. Personal, learning and thinking skills
are to be used as both a guide on the delivery of each unit and also as a motivating formative
indicator for the learner.
Coverage
All personal, learning and thinking skills are required to be covered and assessed during the
delivery and assessment of the whole Diploma and provide the context for the delivery and
assessment of the programme of learning. A final summary of the coverage is also provided in
Annexe B which collates the coverage of personal, learning and thinking skills throughout the
programme.
Personal, learning and thinking skills are an essential, embedded feature of the delivery and
assessment of the Principal Learning. Learners may also develop and apply personal, learning
and thinking skills within the other components of the Diploma.
Centres should design the programme of study so that approximately 60 GLH will be allowed to
enable learners to develop, plan and review the application of their personal, learning and
thinking skills across their learning programme. Personal, learning and thinking skills will not
be separately assessed as part of the Diploma but all six personal, learning and thinking skills
will be integrated into the assessment criteria for Principal Learning. Each learner’s
achievement of personal, learning and thinking skills will be recorded in the Diploma transcript.
How personal, learning and thinking skills are used to support formative
feedback
Personal, learning and thinking skills provide an excellent structural guide for the tutor when
providing formative feedback to the learner. Tutors will be able to structure assessment and
learning opportunities around personal, learning and thinking skills and should use a pro forma
sheet to indicate to the learner where progress has been made and where the learner needs to
focus further development. A suggested sheet (‘PLTS Performance Indicator’) for this activity
is provided in Annexe B.
The ‘PLTS Performance Indicator’ can be used by the assessor to feed back on work to the
learner showing the level of success that has been demonstrated during each assignment. The
indicator is filled in by the assessor or supervisor to record the learner’s performance at regular
intervals during the course and ideally after every assignment. This informs the learner of their
strengths and weaknesses and illustrates graphically where the learner should concentrate their
efforts in the future.
Access and recruitment

Edexcel’s policy regarding access to its qualifications is that:
• the qualifications should be available to everyone who is capable of reaching the required
standards
• the qualifications should be free from any barriers that restrict access and progression
• there should be equal opportunities for all wishing to access the qualifications.
Centres are required to recruit learners to Edexcel qualifications with integrity. This will include
ensuring that applicants have appropriate information and advice about the qualifications and
that the qualification will meet their needs.
Centres should take appropriate steps to assess each applicant’s potential and make a
professional judgement about their ability to successfully complete the programme of study and
achieve the qualification. This assessment will need to take account of the support available to
the learner within the centre during their programme of study and any specific support that
might be necessary to allow the learner to access the assessment for the qualification. Centres
should also show regard for Edexcel’s policy on learners with particular requirements.
Access arrangements and special considerations

Edexcel’s policy on access arrangements and special considerations aims to enhance access to
the qualifications for learners with disabilities and other difficulties (as defined by the Disability
Discrimination Act 1995 and the amendments to the Act) without compromising the assessment
of skills, knowledge, understanding or competence.
Further information
For further information please call Customer Services on 0844 576 0028 (calls may be recorded
for training purposes) or visit our website at www.edexcel.com.
Useful publications
Further copies of this document and related publications can be obtained from:
Edexcel Publications
Adamsway
Mansfield
Nottinghamshire NG18 4FN
Telephone: 01623 467 467
Fax: 01623 450 481
Email: publications@linney.com
Related information and publications include:
• Accreditation of Prior Learning available on our website: www.edexcel.com
• Guidance for Centres Offering Edexcel/BTEC NQF Accredited Programmes (Edexcel,
distributed to centres annually)
• Operating Rules for Component and Diploma Awarding Bodies (QCA, 2007)
• The Diploma Structure and Standards, Version 2 (QCA, 2007)
• Regulatory Arrangements for the Qualification and Credit Framework (Ofqual, August
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Level 1 units
LEVEL 1 UNIT 1: BUSINESS ENTERPRISE
Unit 1: Business Enterprise
Principal Learning unit
Level 1
Guided Learning Hours: 60
Internally assessed
About this unit Behind every successful business enterprise is a good business
idea, and in this unit you will learn about what makes a good
idea for a business. This means understanding what it is that
makes products and services successful.
You will then use this to come up with your own ideas for a
product or service, choose one and then test it out by carrying out
some simple market research, learning about the main market
research methods in order to choose the best method for you.
You will then present your ideas to an audience.
There can be a big difference between an idea and the realities of
trying to make it work, and there is a lot that can be learned from
this experience. The final part of the unit is about putting the idea
into practice and deciding how successful you think it has been.
Learning outcomes
On completing this unit, a learner should:
LO.1 Understand what makes a product or service successful
LO.2 Be able to generate and develop an idea for a product or service
LO.3 Be able to test an idea for a product or service
LO.4 Be able to present a business idea
LO.5 Be able to implement and review a business enterprise.
What you need to learn

LO.1 Understand Before you develop your own ideas, you need to understand
what makes a what makes a product or service successful. You will need to
product or consider:
service • types of products, eg food, clothing, electrical
successful
• types of services, eg entertainment, transport, insurance
• links between products and services, eg retailing, delivery,
post-sales support.
Things can change quickly in business and businesses need to
innovate in order to keep up with these changes. You need to
understand the different types of change:
• technology
• market needs
• fashion
• the competition.
You will need to understand some of the reasons why a new
product or services is successful. For example, compared with
what was available before, it may do something that is:
• different
• better
• cheaper.
LO.2 Be able to You need to learn about how to generate and develop ideas:
generate and • generating ideas for a product/service:
develop an
idea for a ○ looking for opportunities
product or ○ brainstorming techniques
service
• deciding which ideas are realistic based on:
○ time, money and resources available
○ your knowledge and skills
○ whether there seems to be a market for it
• choosing the best idea and developing it:
○ what it is
○ who it is for
○ why people need it.
LO.3 Be able to test You need to learn about the process of carrying out market
an idea for a research to test an idea:
product or • deciding what you want to find out
service
• choosing a method
• collecting information
• interpreting results
• modifying ideas as necessary.
You need to learn about different methods of carrying out market
research, eg:
• interviews
• questionnaires
• observation
• focus groups.
There are the different sorts of information that you can find out,
eg:
• what the competition is
• numbers of potential customers
• what they are looking for
• what they think of your idea
• how much they will pay.
LO.4 Be able to You need to learn about how to prepare and make a presentation
present a • what information people will need to know
business idea
• what order to put information in
• how to be positive and identify benefits
• anticipating questions you may be asked
• use of supporting materials.
Communication skills:
• use of voice, eg speed, clarity
• body language, eye contact.
LO.5 Be able to You need to learn about the implementation of business ideas:
implement and • deciding on promotional methods and materials, eg leaflets,
review a adverts, notices, demonstrations, door-to-door sales
business
enterprise • agreeing roles within a group
• estimating demand and setting targets, eg number of sales,
money taken
• working out which supplies/raw materials are needed and
quantities
• setting prices
• production and the importance of monitoring: quantity,
quality
• how to decide if the business idea has been successful, eg
whether targets were reached, which decisions worked well.
Teaching this unit

Delivery guidance
This unit is 60 guided learning hours (GLH) in length. Centres should allocate this amount of
time within the timetable for its delivery and assessment.
Unless otherwise stated, all of the content included in the What you need to learn section needs
to be taught. Sometimes an ‘eg’ or ‘for example’ is included in order to show content that is
indicative: in these cases not all of the examples will need to be covered (for example, because
some may not always apply in a particular situation), and tutors can introduce other examples of
their own that are relevant to particular situations and to the needs of their learners.
There are opportunities to link the delivery of this unit to others, particularly Unit 4: Sales and
Customer Service in Business and Unit 2: Business Administration, Teams and Communication,
so that parts of those units are contextualised within the enterprise that the learners are working
on in this unit: so, for example, the team working activity that learners carry out in Unit 2:
Business Administration, Teams and Communication could relate to an activity connected to
their business idea.
Delivery guidance for LO.1
One way of approaching the subject of success would be to start by encouraging learners to use
their own experiences as a consumer. For example, they could keep a diary of all the money
spent over the course of a week; they could then try to classify each as either a product or a
service. This could then lead on to the reasons why they purchased each: what is it that made
them choose them rather than the alternatives.
A key point in this learning outcome is the role that innovation and creativity play in the success
of new products and services. One problem is that after an idea becomes successful, the idea
then seems obvious to everyone; great ideas often identify needs or desires that nobody even
realised they had. This can make it difficult to think back to what life was like before the idea
had been thought of. One way of addressing this is to take a particular sector, for example
telecommunications or electronic entertainment, and trace innovative developments over a
number of years, such as mobile phones, music storage media, games consoles, etc. It is also
important to emphasise, however, that innovation is not just about ideas that have never been
thought of before: much innovation is about small, incremental improvements, or applying
existing ideas in new contexts.
Learners need to learn about the process of generating ideas. There are different ways of
identifying opportunities, for instance identifying a need that is as yet unmet, or seeing what is
already successful in one situation and considering whether it can be applied in a different
context. Learners should be taught about how to generate ideas in groups. Brainstorming is the
most widely used method, and there are different types and classifications, but it is not
necessary to go into variations. It is important that they learn that all ideas need to be recorded
and that, at the idea generation stage, it is important not to pass judgements in order not to stifle
creativity. Learners could practise using brainstorming techniques in groups to solve any type of
problem.
Before learners are able to develop their own ideas, they will need to have some understanding
of what makes an idea realistic. Time, money and physical resources will be critical, as will
other issues such as any relevant laws, regulations and health and safety considerations. It would
be useful to look at examples of business ideas that have proven to be overambitious and were
not realistic.
Learners will not need to carry out a variety of types of market research, but they do need to
understand what they are in order for them to choose the best method or methods; learners will
benefit from getting hands on experience of different methods. Before they put this into practice
for assessment, they should have opportunities to practise devising questions and carrying out
small-scale interviews and surveys. This may help them to appreciate the importance (and
difficulty) of finding the right questions to ask and the right people to ask. They could then use
this experience to modify their questions and see how this affects the results they get.
Learners will need to be taught about the basic principles of making presentations to stimulate
interest in a business idea: the importance of structure and clarity; how software and handouts
can be used; why it is important to present an idea in a positive light; and what information
potential investors will want to know. However, it is important for tutors to be realistic: learners
at this level will not be expected to be able to provide the detailed financial and practical
information that would be expected in the real world. To prepare for creating a presentation,
learners could practise presenting personal information to each other in small groups.
Learners need to be taught about the decisions and planning that are involved in implementing a
business idea. They need to know about the different promotional methods and materials they
could use, although at this level they will not be expected to justify their decisions. When it
comes to quantifying demand and materials needed and setting targets, they need to know about
why it is important to estimate demand and set targets, but at this level it is not necessary to go
into detail about how this is done. For setting of prices, there is no need to introduce
terminology such as break even, but it is important that learners know how to at least make sure
they cover their costs (assuming that their predictions of demand and targets are met). They also
need to know why it is important to monitor quality (particularly if they are producing anything
tangible) and quantity (production/sales) while the enterprise is running so that they can take
action if required: the actual monitoring methods are less important than the fact that some sort
of monitoring needs to take place.
As part of their learning activities, it would be worthwhile for learners to investigate how a
variety of local businesses do this, if the information is available.
Assessment information for learners

How you will be assessed
This unit will be assessed by an assignment connected to developing and implementing a

business idea.
You will need to:
• Decide on an idea for a product or service and carry out research to test the idea, providing
○ a list of the ideas you thought of; a description of the idea you chose and why [LO.2]
○ background research into an existing product or service: a description of what it is, who
the main market is, why it has been successful [LO.1]
○ the market research carried out to test your chosen idea: method(s) used; key findings;
how you used the results to modify the idea [LO.3]
• Present the idea to potential investors: what the idea is and why it is worth investing in
[LO.4]
• Put the business idea into practice and then write up: what decisions were taken and why,
and how successful the business was [LO.5].
Assessment information for assessors

Instructions and controls for setting assessment assignments
This unit must be covered by a single assignment, which is described in the How you will be
assessed section, and exemplified within the unit sample assessment material (SAM).
Sector-relevant purpose
By its nature, any business enterprise idea can be considered relevant to business, administration
and finance as long as it is for a real product or service, not a simulation. The enterprise must
have some sort a purpose: it is not enough for it to be done in order solely to satisfy the
assessment requirements; rather it must have some other purpose, eg a goal or target.
Evidence structure
Learning Marking Activity/section Evidence

outcome grid
LO.1, A Research and development of Written evidence: ideas,
business idea background research, market
LO.2,
research
LO.3
LO.4 B Group presentation Learner observation record,
supported by hard copies of any
slides, notes, handouts, etc
LO.5(.2, .3) A Implementation of business Written evidence of decisions
idea taken and assessment of success
of business
LO.5(.1) B Learner observation record of
learner’s contribution to the
business
Level of demand
The level of demand is exemplified in the unit sample assessment material (SAM).
It would be appropriate for the final ‘live’ stage of the business in LO.5 to be run over a limited
period of time. This could be done intensively, eg one day’s selling at the school fete or done
over a more extended period, eg one or two hours each day for a week. However, centres may
wish to extend this enterprise activity over a longer period with more hours allowed. This may
make particular sense if centres are contextualising the delivery or assessment of other units
within the learners’ business enterprise; in this case the enterprise activity can also make use of
hours allocated to those units.
Assessment duration
The suggested guided learning hours (GLH) needed to complete this assignment is 14 hours per
learner. Centres can structure this time as they see fit. The suggested GLH for assessment does
not include time spent collecting information for background research in LO.1, collecting the
market research data in LO.3 or on implementing the business idea in LO.5. Centres should note
that the total class assessment time may need to be higher to allow time for separate group
presentations for LO.4.
Instructions and controls for taking assessment assignments
The learners must be provided with full access to study all of the areas identified in What you
need to learn section of the specification.
Controls relating to resources and supervision are contained within Annexe E of this
specification.
Although work that leads up to the creation of the assessment evidence will be done as part of a
group, the learner must produce their own evidence for assessment.
The existing successful business idea that the learners research for LO.1 must relate to their
business idea: this stage is a preparation for the market research carried out in LO.3 to test their
idea.
For LO.4, it will be necessary for groups to collaborate in collating the information together into
a single presentation. Each learner must take responsibility for presenting one part of the
presentation. Learners must be awarded individual marks for their own part of the task. Tutors
must apply the relevant sections for each individual learner, and award marks to the individual,
not to the group. This means that is possible for one group member to score highly on their part
of the presentation while another scores less well on their part.
For LO.5, marks must be awarded not only for the written evidence submitted by the learners
(Marking grid A) but also for the contribution made to the running of the business, as observed
by the tutor (Marking grid B). Tutors will not need to be present at all stages, nor to observe
every activity, but must take a holistic view based on what they see throughout the process
rather than, say, at the beginning or end only. When assessing the contributions made, tutors
must remember that even if the business is not a great success overall, it is possible for any (or
even all) individual team members to make a significant and sustained contribution to the
running of the business. One factor in determining marks for the contribution made by the
learner is the degree of support and guidance required from the tutor. This refers to help
provided by the tutor either because the learner has asked for it or because the tutor can see that
it is necessary to intervene, eg to pre-empt problems or suggest ways forward when problems
are encountered. This does not include more general encouragement or reassurance where
learners merely want reassurance that what they are planning to do is sensible.
Summary of unit controls
Setting Time Resources Supervision Collaboration Marking
Limited Limited Limited Medium Limited Medium
See Annexe E for further information.

Guidance for assessment
It would make most sense for assessment to take place in three separate stages (research and
development of idea; group presentation; implementation) after the relevant learning has taken
place.
Groups should contain between 3 and 6 learners.
Although LO.1 should be taught first as an introduction to the unit, LO.2 should be the first part
of the assignment. For LO.2, learners will need to work in groups. The ideas they come up with
need not be for brand new products or services; they could be improvements or adaptations of
existing ideas or simply taking an existing idea used in one context or location to another, a
different price, etc. Each learner must contribute to the discussion, and will produce their own
written evidence of what was decided upon. This does not mean that each person has to come up
with an idea, but they should make some contribution to the discussion, for example helping to
develop an idea that someone else thought of, pointing out why an idea is not practical, etc.
For assessment for LO.1, the work may be presented in any format. Although learners must
produce individual evidence, they may research the same examples of a successful product; it
would be preferable, however, for them to each choose a different example. The product/service
chosen must be as similar as possible to their own idea in order for them to benefit from looking
at what makes it successful.
When carrying out the market research in LO.3, learners can choose one or more methods and
can choose to find out whatever types of information are relevant to them. This might involve
them coming up with a proposition to test (such as how much would people pay for their
particular product), or research carried out in a more open and hypothetical manner (such as
what features in a generic type of product people value most).
For greater realism, the ‘potential investors’ in LO.4 should preferably involve people external
to the centre, such as a local employer. The investors could also include centre staff and selected
learners. All-learner panels should be used only as a last resort. It could be given added purpose
by being set within a scenario such as BBC’s Dragons’ Den; if so, it would help if the panel
were provided with money (real or imaginary) to invest. The presentation need not be done in a
traditional way; learners could, for example, produce displays and explain the ideas to investors
as they move around the room. However, the tutor will need to observe each learner at least
once and there must be some form of audience with which to interact.
For assessment of LO.5, learners must actually put the idea into practice; it is not enough for
this to be a theoretical exercise. The business idea that they implement should ideally be the
same one that they presented in LO.4. Learners can also make use of feedback received at or
after the presentation. It is quite likely that ideas will have to be adapted as soon as the
practicalities are considered; learners should not be penalised if this is the case. If circumstances
change or unforeseen problems arise, the original plan may need to be abandoned and a new one
put into action. This does not mean that learners will have to re-present their ideas in LO.4.
It is not necessary for each learner to have a distinct role within their group. The evidence for
their decisions taken should be in writing but it could be in any appropriate format. When it
comes to judging success, learners can limit themselves to holistic judgements about the overall
success, rather than being expected to analyse different stages and parts: the judgement of
success may be subjective or it could be linked to something quantitative, such as whether they
have achieved their sales targets.
Marking grid A
Assessment Mark Band 1 Mark Band 2 Mark Band 3 Maximum marks
focus available
LO.1 Brief information about the product A product or service is described, A product or service is described
or service is identified, with limited and there is an explanation for why accurately and in detail, and there is
Understand what
explanation given for its success. it is successful. a clear explanation for why it is
makes a product
successful.
or service
successful
(0–2) (3–4) (5–6) 6
LO.2 The ideas are listed, and a basic The ideas are listed clearly, and the The ideas are listed clearly, and the
description of the idea chosen is idea chosen is described. idea chosen is described in detail.
Be able to
given, although this may lack
generate and
clarity.
develop an idea
for a product or There is an attempt to explain why There is some explanation for why it A clear explanation is given for why
service it has been chosen. was chosen, with some reference to it was chosen, including why it is
what makes it viable. viable.
(0–4) (5–7) (8–10) 10
LO.3 Data is collected, although is likely to Data is collected, and will be Data is collected, and will be
be limited in terms of quantity and adequate either in terms of quality or adequate in terms of both quality
Be able to test an
quality. quantity. and quantity.
idea for a product
or service There is limited evidence of relevant There is some evidence of relevant There is clear evidence of relevant
interpretation. interpretation, showing that the interpretation, showing that the
learner can extract key findings. learner can extract key findings and
apply them to confirm or adapt their
business idea.
(0–4) (5–7) (8–10) 10

focus available
LO.5(.2) As a whole, the information provided As a whole, the information provided As a whole, the information provided
may lack clarity. There is some is reasonably clear in places. There is clear. There is information about
Be able to
information about decisions taken, is information about the decisions the decisions taken, with a clear
implement and
although there is limited rationale taken, with some rationale provided rationale provided as to why.
review a business
provided as to why. as to why.
enterprise
(0–3) (4–6) (7–8)

LO.5(.3) A basic judgement is made about the The learner judges how successful The learner judges how successful
overall success of the enterprise. the enterprise has been overall, with the enterprise was overall, backing
Be able to
some supporting evidence given. this up with good supporting
implement and
evidence.
review a business
enterprise
(0–2) (3–4) (5–6) 14
Total marks 40
Marking grid B
focus available
LO.4 The learner is likely to be hindered The learner may lack fluency, but Even if the learner lacks fluency,
by a lack of fluency. Some general enough specific information is specific information is conveyed
Be able to present
information is conveyed, but may be conveyed for the audience to have a clearly so that the audience has a
a business idea
unclear. reasonable understanding of the good understanding of the business
overall business idea. idea.
An attempt is made to show why the The learner is able to highlight The learner is able to highlight a
idea is worth investing in, but this relevant features that make the idea range of relevant and positive
may not highlight features that are worth investing in. features which make the idea is worth
relevant or positive. investing in.
(0–4) (5–7) (8–10) 10
LO.5(.1) The learner shows some ability to The learner works with others The learner works well with others
work with others towards their goals, towards their goals, showing some towards their goals, showing a good
Be able to
showing a limited degree of degree of commitment and degree of commitment and
implement and
commitment and perseverance. perseverance. perseverance.
review a business
enterprise Frequent support and guidance is Some support and guidance is Only limited support and guidance
required. required. is required.
(0–4) (5–7) (8–10) 10
Total marks 20
Assessment guidance
Using the marking grid
marking grid B.
Level 1 descriptors
Descriptor Meaning
Accurate/accurately Correct, without errors.
Adequate Only just sufficient.
Attempt to Tries, but has no or only limited success.
Basic Limited to the fundamental features, elements or facts.
Brief/briefly Short, lacking detail.
Clear/clearly Well expressed, easy to understand or see.
Describe/description Provide information that includes relevant features, elements,
facts, etc.
Detail/detailed Showing thoroughness.
Explain/explanation Provide reasons for a decision, feature, etc.
Frequent support and guidance The learner relies on the guidance and advice of the tutor to
make progress. The tutor needs to direct significant aspects of
the work to make progress.
General/generalised Vague, lacking specific information, details.
Good/well To a high level or degree.
Identify Mentions the key elements, facts, features, etc.
Lack clarity Not well expressed/not easy to understand.
Limited Showing basic or incomplete knowledge, evidence, ability etc.
Limited support and guidance The learner makes only occasional use of the guidance and
advice of the tutor.
List Provide the information in a list, rather than in continuous
prose.
Positive features Features that show why the idea is a good one.
A range Three or more.
Reasonable Moderate or average.
Reasonably Somewhat, fairly
Relevant features Features that show why the idea is a good one.
Simple Basic, routine, straightforward.
Some At least two; to a certain degree, partial.
Some support and guidance The learner makes use of guidance and advice of the tutor, and
the tutor assists in some aspects of the work, but does not need
to direct it.
Specific Precise, exact, detailed.
Delivery of personal, learning and thinking skills (PLTS)

The following table identifies the PLTS that have been included within the assessment criteria
of this unit.
Skill When learners are …
Independent enquirers Carrying out simple market research on their business idea [IE2].
Creative thinkers Generating ideas for a product or service [CT1].
Reflective learners Assessing how successful the business idea has been [RL1].
Team workers Reaching agreements on which product or service to develop
[TW2]; collaborating with others to work towards the common
goals of implementing a business idea [TW1].
Self-managers Working towards the goal of implementing the business idea,
showing initiative, commitment and perseverance [SM2].
Effective participators Persuading prospective investors of the merits of the business idea,
presenting a case for action [EP2].
Although PLTS are identified within this unit as an inherent part of the assessment criteria, there
are further opportunities to develop a range of PLTS through various approaches to teaching and
learning.

Independent enquirers Identifying questions for their market research to answer [IE1];
analysing the results of their market research, judging its relevance
and value [IE4].
Creative thinkers Connecting their own and others’ preliminary ideas for a product
or service to come up with an inventive idea to develop [CT3];
developing their business idea, trying out alternative approaches
[CT5].
Reflective learners Reviewing progress at the end of the market research in terms of
what they have found out [RL3]; inviting feedback from the
investors to who they have presented the business idea, dealing
positively with praise and criticism [RL4]; evaluating the
experience of implementing a business idea and deciding on how
to follow this up [RL5].
Team workers Showing fairness and consideration while working to choose a
business idea [TW4].
Self-managers Preparing to implement their business idea, organising their own
time and resources [SM3]; dealing with competing pressures when
trying to organise the activities involved in putting a business idea
into practice [SM5]; responding positively to any changes that
need to be made when putting the business idea into practice,
seeking advice and support from the tutor when needed [SM6].

Effective participators Implementing their business idea, proposing practical ways
forward, breaking these down into manageable steps [EP3];
identifying ways in which the product or service they have chosen
will result in improvements for customers [EP4]; trying to
influence others in their group when discussing which business
idea to choose [EP5]; presenting a business idea to investors,
which may represent a group choice of product or service rather
than one that they personally wanted to choose [EP6].
Functional skills — Level 1

ICT — Use ICT systems

Interact with and use ICT systems
independently to meet needs
Use ICT to plan work and evaluate
their use of ICT systems
Manage information storage
Follow and understand the need for
safety and security practices
ICT — Find and select information

Select and use a variety of sources of
information independently to meet
needs
Access, search for, select and use ICT-
based information and evaluate its
fitness for purpose
ICT — Develop, present and

communicate information
Enter, develop and format information Creating a presentation for prospective investors.
to suit its meaning and purpose,
including:
• text and tables
• images
• numbers
• graphs
• records
Bring together information to suit
content and purpose
Present information in ways that are fit Presenting their business idea to prospective investors.
for purpose and audience
Evaluate the selection and use of ICT
tools and facilities used to present
information
Select and use ICT to communicate
and exchange information safely,
independently, responsibly and
effectively
Mathematics
Understand practical problems in
familiar and unfamiliar contexts and
situations, some of which are non-
routine
Identify and obtain necessary
information to tackle the problem
Select and apply mathematics in an
organised way to find solutions to
practical problems for different
purposes
Use appropriate checking procedures at
each stage
Interpret and communicate solutions to
practical problems, drawing simple
conclusions and giving explanations
English
Speaking and listening – take full part Discussing ideas for a business.
in formal and informal
Presenting their business ideas to prospective investors.
discussions/exchanges
Working in groups to implement their business idea.
Reading – read and understand a range
of texts
Writing – write documents to Creating materials to support their presentation for
communicate information, ideas and potential investors.
opinions using formats and styles
suitable for their purpose and audience
Specialist resources
None.
Reference material
Books
Bridge S – Understanding Enterprise, Entrepreneurship and Small Business, 2nd edition
(Palgrave Macmillan, 2003) ISBN 0333984659
Burke R – Entrepreneur’s Toolkit (Burke Publishing, 2006) ISBN 0958239442
Burke R – Small Business Entrepreneur (Burke Publishing, 2006) ISBN 0958239442
Parks S – Start your Business: Week by Week (Prentice Hall, 2004) ISBN 0273694472
Pinson L and Jinnett J – Steps to Small Business start-up (Kaplan Business, 2006)
ISBN 141953727X
Websites
www.businesslink.gov.uk Government site offering information and
advice on starting up and running a business
www.nfte.co.uk Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship
www.scottberkun.com Essays on various topics, including innovation
and creativity
www.young-enterprise.org.uk Young Enterprise
LEVEL 1 UNIT 2: BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION, TEAMS AND COMMUNICATION
Unit 2: Business Administration, Teams and

Communication
Level 1
Internally assessed
About this unit In a lot of popular organisations, the most important thing is to
get a ‘foot in the door’; once you’ve done this, you can start
working your way up the career ladder. One of the most common
ways of getting into an organisation is in a job providing
administrative support. Organisations really value good
administrators – they know that without them, there would be
chaos: information would get lost, people wouldn’t know where
their meetings were taking place, a lot of time would be wasted.
Not only that, but administration skills are transferable across
industries and they come in useful even in the most senior
positions. In this unit you will learn about the importance of
administration, and learn skills that will make you a valuable
employee.
Alongside administration skills, in most jobs you will have to be
able to communicate and work in teams. When you write
something to a customer or colleague, you are representing your
organisation or department, and so you will be expected to know
how to do this well. Teamwork can allow you to get more done
than when everyone works on their own, and this too relies upon
good communication. In this unit you will have the chance to
practise both of these: writing different types of business
communication and working in teams.
Learning outcomes
LO.1 Know administrative processes used in business
LO.2 Be able to produce simple business documents
LO.3 Be able to plan and carry out administrative work safely
LO.4 Be able to work as part of a team.

LO.1 Know You need to learn about the range of day-to-day administrative
administrative activities that need to be undertaken in an organisation:
processes used • dealing with visitors: receiving and welcoming visitors,
in business creating the right image, meeting their needs
• handling mail: receiving, sorting, distributing and
dispatching
• organising and supporting meetings
• managing manual and electronic information: keeping and
updating records; storing information in folders and filing
systems
• dealing with enquiries: providing information orally and in
writing
• using telephone systems to make, receive and transfer calls.
LO.2 Be able to The way that you communicate with colleagues and customers
produce simple can be more or less formal. The choice will depend on:
business • your relationship with them, eg how well you know them,
documents seniority
• what you are communicating about
• the method of communication you are using.
Businesses use a variety of methods of written communications
for different purposes:
• to request information
• to provide information
• to give instructions
• to attract potential customers.
You need to learn about the uses of different types of written
business communication:
• emails
• messages/notes
• letters
• memos
• faxes
• forms, eg invoice, order.
You need to learn about how to produce business documents:

• using standard document conventions: layouts, content and
style suitable for the type of document
• expressing the message clearly
• entering, editing, and formatting text
• combining information
• checking for accuracy, grammar and spelling, and correcting
mistakes
• managing information: using appropriate file names; saving
documents in folders for easy retrieval; saving back up
versions.
LO.3 Be able to plan Providing administrative support involves working with other
and carry out people and to maintain good working relationships you will need
administrative to learn about ways of planning to help you manage your time to
work safely meet deadlines:
• checking deadlines
• deciding which tasks need to be done, eg using ‘to do lists’
• agreeing who will do what
• deciding what order tasks need to be done in
• estimating how long tasks will take and setting yourself time
limits.
Working in an office involves using different office equipment:
• computers
• printers
• photocopiers
• telephones.
When you are working in an office you need to carry out work
safely in accordance with legal and organisational requirements:
• seating: positioning, adjustability and comfort
• using a monitor, mouse and keyboard: positioning and
distance
• regular breaks and exercise
• safe lifting techniques
• following instructions for using office equipment.
LO.4 Be able to Teams make a difference to an organisation’s performance.

work as part of Teamwork involves a group of people with complementary
a team skills, working together to achieve a common goal. Teams can be
classified depending on whether they are:
• temporary, eg project teams, hot groups
• permanent, eg departmental.
An effective team recognises the importance of each team
member’s contribution, whatever their role. This has several
advantages:
• making best use of people’s differing strengths
• shared vision and sense of commitment
• increased efficiency and productivity: less duplication of
tasks, suggestions from team members for improvements
• less risk: if a team member leaves, others can take on their
role and responsibilities.
Communicating in team situations involves the ability to adapt
your behaviour and style of communication depending on the
situation and the people involved. You need to learn about what
makes an effective team member:
• working with others as part of a team to achieve specified
goals
• showing a positive attitude: being committed to the team’s
success; being willing to take collective responsibility
• supporting other team members: being polite and co-
operative; letting others speak, showing respect
• communicating effectively: listening and speaking skills;
body language, eye contact, gestures, facial expression
• being aware of your own contribution to team activities
• responding appropriately to feedback.
Teaching this unit

Delivery guidance
It would be helpful if learners base some learning activities on an organisation they can access
to help them gain a better understanding of the relevance of the administrative job role. This
could be one chosen by the learner or with tutor guidance, and there are advantages in selecting
an organisation with a local presence as any investigations can be achieved through a visit or a
visiting speaker from the organisation. Learners need to understand the role administration plays
in contributing to the effective operation of organisations, irrespective of the size of the
organisation. This can be achieved by investigating the links between different administrative
tasks carried out for functions such as human resources, finance, production, customer service,
etc. Learners could split into groups to investigate a different admin function in the centre, such
as finance, human resources or customer services, and each group could feed back so that the
whole picture emerges (this would also minimise disruption to the administrative staff).
Learners should also be encouraged to observe admin areas of different establishments during
their own time and be aware of the types of tasks undertaken – such as in the reception area at a
hotel or leisure centre, the customer services desk in a department store or a bank.
Learners should be given the opportunity to practise using office equipment, handling mail,
dealing with visitors and managing electronic and manual information (there is no need to
practise organising and supporting meetings, although learners should be given an overview
about what is involved). They could investigate the filing systems used in the centre library and,
if possible, the tutor could show examples of chronological, alphabetic and numerical systems,
with exercises provided to develop practical skills. Much of this unit will require simulated
exercises, but it might be possible to access opportunities in the centre to distribute and dispatch
mail.
It is not intended that this unit will be used to teach word processing, but learners need to
develop skills to prepare simple business documents and are expected to be competent in basic
word-processing skills. Tutors should explain the format of letters, memos and other standard
documents. Examples of standard documentation used in business should be shown. Learners
can work in groups, with each group collecting documentation for a different admin function
(and different from the one they investigated for admin tasks). They could present their findings
to the rest of the learners and describe the purposes of each of the documents. Learners should
have opportunities to practise their word processing skills using different styles and layouts. The
importance of producing well-presented and accurate business documents needs to be stressed,
as this affects the professional image of the organisation. Learners can not only check their own
work for grammar, punctuation and spelling but can check each others’ work also. Storing and
retrieving documents for amending at a later date is important and learners must be encouraged
to keep copies of the original documents.
Learners need to be familiar with the stages of planning: where are you now, where do you wish
to be, how are you going to get there, how will you measure progress. They should be familiar
with the tools and techniques available to make effective use of their time, including to-do lists,
diaries, planning charts, and schedules. Learners could carry out in-tray exercises relating to
estimating time limits for a range of tasks, and case studies could help reinforce the importance
of meeting deadlines and the need to be able to respond to changing work plans and still meet
requirements through taking corrective actions.
Learners will need to be introduced to different types of equipment: computers, printers,
photocopiers and telephones as well as learning their purpose and the importance of following
safety procedures. Relevant printing features will include the different types (laserjet, inkjet,
colour, black and white, whether they are on a network), how to load paper and how to print
documents. Also, demonstrating photocopying equipment can show the wider features (such as
sorting, stapling) that the machine offers. Learners should be aware of problems they are likely
to experience with the equipment and how these should be dealt with. Learners need to learn
how to use telephone systems to make, receive and transfer calls.
Visits to an administrative office such as the centre’s own or a local business would help
learners investigate how the work area is organised and the types of equipment used to support
activities. The health and safety issues relating to workstations and the surrounding work area
should be highlighted, for example the factors to consider when sitting at a computer (chair
height, distance from screen, glare, etc).
Factors that make teams work can be introduced through learners undertaking one of the many
team activities that are available for use in the classroom. Discussion groups can then look at the
benefits of effective teamwork. Tutor input is needed on why businesses use teams to achieve
goals; then learners can work in groups with each group investigating the goals of different
teams in the centre or a local business. Alternatively, learners could use teams they are involved
with outside of class, such as sports teams, cadets, orchestra, drama groups etc. Learners can
present their findings to the rest of the groups and then discuss where they have seen effective
teams and their common features.
Effective communication in teams can be introduced through a group discussion with learners
drawing on their own experiences. The tutor could show videos/DVDs showing examples of
different behaviours and communication styles in team situations, and the importance of body
language and interpersonal skills. Learners should be encouraged to develop teamworking and
communication skills in a supported environment through role-play exercises, and they should
have plenty of opportunities for working in teams and/or groups. Exercises can be given to
highlight advantages and disadvantages of team working, including how to contribute, follow
instructions, adapt behaviour and styles of communication, and how to take into account each
individual team member’s strengths and weaknesses. Role-play scenarios could be used here.

This unit will be assessed through an assignment connected to working in a team and producing
written business communication.
You will need to:
• Work as a team, showing your ability to plan your work as a group and as an individual
[LO.3(.1)] and demonstrating your teamworking skills [LO.4(.1, .2)]
• Produce different types of written business communication [LO.2] while using office
equipment safely [LO.3(.2)]
• Review the team working activity. This will involve: responding to feedback from your
tutor and assessing how well you and your team worked together whilst carrying out
administrative activities [LO.4(.3, .4)] and identifying other activities that need to be carried
out to ensure the smooth running of an organisation [LO.1].

The team activity and the business communication produced must have a relevant purpose
related to an organisation or business. Ideally, the assignment will be based on the learners’ own
enterprise or it could be connected to some other real business or organisation. Alternatively, a
case study could be used.
Evidence structure

outcome grid
LO.3(.1) A Team activity Written evidence: planning
teamwork
LO.4(.1, .2) B Learner observation record:
teamworking and
communication skills
LO.2 A Producing written business Written evidence: information
communication management, documents
produced
LO.3(.2) B Learner observation record: use
of office equipment
LO.4(.3, .4) B Review of teamworking Learner observation record:
activity assessment of team and
LO.1
response to feedback;
identification of administrative
processes
Level of demand
The level of demand appropriate to the assessment of this unit is exemplified in the unit sample
assessment material (SAM).
Assessment duration
learner. Centres can structure this time as they see fit. Centres should note that the total class
assessment time is likely to be higher to allow time for separate one-to-one reviews in LO.4.
Learners must be provided with full access to study all of the areas identified in the What you
specification.
Learners will need to work in groups (of no more than four) to agree how to plan their work.
However, each learner must provide their own separate records of the planning. The planning
must relate to both the group that they are working in and also their own responsibilities within
the group.
They will also need to work individually. Each learner must be required to use more than one
type of written business communication (email, letter, etc). In the course of their work, learners
must be required to use as a minimum the following pieces of office equipment: computer,
printer and photocopier.
The ‘review’ part of the assignment must take place individually in a one-to-one session with
the tutor. When considering the administrative processes that need to be carried out, learners can
make use of any notes made during learning activities in or outside class.

It is recommended that the entire assignment is done after all teaching for this unit has taken
place. It could, however, be split over a number of different sessions.
The assignment brief provided will need to stipulate a purpose for the business communication.
If the assignment is based on their own enterprise, the purpose could be connected with
planning or setting up their business activities, or possibly a follow up activity after the business
has finished, for example a second, improved enterprise activity (either real or notional). The
assignment could also be based on a case study, based on a scenario created by the centre and
could involve, for example, learners fulfilling the administrative requirements of a business over
a short period of time, such as replying to queries or placing orders.
For the first part of the assignment, learners will be working in groups. They need not be given
distinct roles, but should plan and agree work together. Evidence for planning can be in any
suitable format(s), but must be done in writing. The task that they then carry out should be
linked to the business communication that they will then be producing in the next part of the
assignment (such as finding out information or preparing in some way).
During this part of the task some of the marks are awarded based on the tutor’s observation of
learners’ teamworking skills. Tutors will need to be present in a discreet way for most of the
activities and must take a holistic view based on what they see throughout the process rather
than, say, at the beginning or end only.
In the second part of the task (producing the business communication), the centre may (but need
not) stipulate which types of business communication must be used. The learner’s ‘information
management’ ability will be assessed by records of where documents are saved, and so there
must be a written record which includes full file paths for each document created.
Similarly, at the review stage, even if the learner has not shown particularly good teamworking
skills and the quality of work produced has not been high, it is still possible for them to gain
high marks for their ability to respond to feedback and to assess how well they have performed.
When it comes to assessing success, at this level, learners should be steered towards assessing
how well they worked together rather than, say, assessing different team members’ written
communication skills. Tutors can prompt the learners with general and open questions. Tutors
need not transcribe learners’ answers verbatim, but brief summaries should be recorded.
Marking grid A
focus available
LO.2(.1) Documents are stored, but in a way Documents are stored in a way that Documents are stored in a way that
that could make future retrieval makes future retrieval possible with will make future retrieval
Be able to produce
difficult or time-consuming. some effort. straightforward.
simple business
documents (0–1) (2) (3)
LO.2(.2) The style, content and layout of the The style, content and layout of the The style, content and layout of the
documents conform, to a limited documents conform to some degree documents mainly conform to
Be able to produce
degree, to standard document to standard document conventions. standard document conventions.
simple business
conventions.
documents
(0–3) (4–6) (7–8)
LO.2(.3) The message expressed may be The message is reasonably clear, The message is clear. There are few
unclear, and there are frequent although there may be some errors errors in the use of language and
Be able to produce
errors in use of language, which may in the use of language which may be these are not intrusive. The learner
simple business
be intrusive. The learner has limited intrusive. The learner has has good success in using language
documents
success in using language and tone reasonable success in using language and tone that are suitable for the
that are suitable for the message, and tone that are suitable for the message, recipient and type of
recipient or type of communication. message, recipient and type of the communication.
communication.
(0–5) (6–9) (10–12) 23
LO.3(.1) There is either limited evidence of The learner shows reasonable ability The learner shows good ability to
planning or learners have limited to plan in a way that makes best use plan in a way that makes best use of
Be able to plan
ability to plan in a way that makes of the time available. Tasks are the time available. Tasks are ordered
and carry out
best use of the time available. Tasks generally ordered in a logical way. in a logical way.
administrative
may not be ordered in a logical way.
work safely
(0–4) (5–7) (8–10) 10
Total marks 33
Marking grid B
focus available
LO.1 The learner briefly identifies The learner identifies different The learner clearly identifies
different administrative activities. administrative activities. different administrative activities and
Know the
what these involve.
administrative
processes used in
business
(0–2) (3–4) (5–6) 6
LO.3(.2) The learner uses office equipment The learner uses office equipment The learner uses office equipment
safely but has frequent difficulties safely but with some difficulties safely and with few difficulties,
Be able to plan
which require frequent support and which require some support and requiring limited support and
and carry out
guidance. guidance. guidance.
administrative
work safely
(0–1) (2) (3) 3
Assessment Mark Band 1 Mark Band 2 Mark Band 3 Maximum

focus marks available
LO.4(.1, .2) The learner shows limited The learner shows reasonable The learner shows good teamworking
teamworking skills and makes a teamworking skills, and makes a skills, and makes a good contribution
Be able to work as
limited contribution to the task. They reasonable contribution to the task. to the task. They show good ability to
part of a team
show limited ability to maintain a They show some ability to maintain a maintain a positive attitude, support
positive attitude, support team positive attitude, support team team members, and they
members and to communicate during members and to communicate during communicate effectively throughout
the task. the task. the task.
(0–4) (5–7) (8–10)
LO.4(.3, .4) They listen to feedback provided, They listen to feedback and show They listen to feedback and show
although they may have difficulty some ability to accept and understand good ability to understand and accept
Be able to work as
accepting or understanding it. it. what is said.
part of a team
Their assessment of how well they Their assessment of how well they Their assessment of how well they
performed may not correspond with performed generally corresponds performed corresponds well with
what the tutor has observed. The with what the tutor has observed. In what the tutor has observed. In the
assessment is brief and limited. the assessment they can provide assessment they can provide clear
some support for their opinions. support for their opinions.
(0–3) (4–6) (7–8) 18
Total marks 27
Assessment guidance
performance in practical activities which are recorded as a learner observation record
(see the Edexcel Diploma website for further information). These make up grid B.
marking grid B.
Level 1 descriptors
Descriptor Meaning
Difficult/difficulties Clearly has a problem doing something, may be unable to do
or does so only after a struggle.
Difficult or time consuming There are issues with more than one of the following:
(document retrieval) document format; unclear file names; multiple copies of the
same document; failure to use sub-folders; sub-folders that are
poorly named or not stored in a logical place; other relevant
issues.
Few errors A small number of errors in one or more of the following:
spelling, punctuation, grammar, syntax.
Frequent errors (in use of Numerous errors in one or more of the following: spelling,
language) punctuation, grammar, syntax.
Generally Mostly/or most of the time but not completely or consistently.
Identify Mention the key elements, facts, features, etc.
Intrusive (errors) Errors that stand out prominently and interrupt the flow of the
reader.
Limited To a small and incomplete degree; showing basic or
incomplete knowledge, evidence, ability, etc.
Mainly Mostly but not completely.
Possible with some effort There may be issues with one of the following: document
(document retrieval) format; unclear file names; multiple copies of the same
document; failure to use sub-folders; sub-folders that are
issues.
Reasonably Somewhat, fairly.
Some errors (in use of A number of errors in one or more of the following: spelling,
language) punctuation, grammar, syntax.
Some To a certain degree, partial; not all.
Some support and guidance The learner makes use of the guidance and advice of the tutor,
and the tutor assists in some aspects of the work, but does not
need to direct it.
Descriptor Meaning
Straightforward (document There are no obvious problems with the following: document
retrieval) format; unclear file names; multiple copies of the same
document; failure to use sub-folders; sub-folders that are
issues.
Unclear Vague and poorly expressed – not clear and specific.

of this unit.

Reflective learners Reviewing the teamworking activity, assessing themselves [RL1]
and responding to feedback [RL4].
Team workers Working as part of a team, collaborating with others to work
towards the team goals [TW1] showing fairness and consideration
to others [TW4].
Self-managers Carrying out administrative tasks, organising time and resources
[SM3].
learning.

Independent enquirers Identifying and clarifying which problems have to be resolved in
order to succeed at the teamworking task [IE1]; researching the
administration in an organisation, exploring its value from the
perspective of different parts of an organisation [IE3].
Creative thinkers Working as part of a team, trying out alternative approaches [CT5]
and recognising the need to adapt their behaviour and styles of
communication with different team members [CT6].
Reflective learners Preparing for the team activity, setting goals and success criteria
for the task [RL2]; reviewing progress at the end of the
teamworking task [RL3].
Team workers Reaching agreements and managing discussions while taking part
in a team activity [TW2]; taking responsibility for the team’s
success, showing confidence in themselves [TW5]; working as
part of a team, providing constructive support and feedback to
others [TW6].
Self-managers Showing flexibility when performing reception duties by
responding as circumstances change [SM1]; working as part of a
team, showing commitment and perseverance to achieving the
goals [SM2].
Effective participators Working as part of a team, presenting a persuasive case for action
[EP2], proposing practical ways forward [EP3] and trying to
influence others [EP5].


Manage information storage Creating business documents.
Follow and understand the need for Ensuring organisational procedures are met when using
safety and security practices office equipment and systems.

Select and use a variety of sources of Researching different business roles that require
information independently to meet administrative skills.
needs
Carrying out reception duties.
fitness for purpose

Enter, develop and format information Creating word-processed business documents.
including:
• text and tables
• images
• numbers
• graphs
• records
Bring together information to suit Creating word-processed business documents.
content and purpose
Present information in ways that are fit Creating word-processed business documents.
information
Select and use ICT to communicate Sending faxes.
Sending and receiving emails.
effectively
Mathematics
routine
purposes
each stage
English
Speaking and listening – take full part Taking telephone messages.
Dealing with visitors.
Taking part in a team activity.
of texts
Writing – write documents to Creating word-processed business documents.
communicate information, ideas and
Work experience
Work experience connected to this unit would useful, especially in relation to using office
equipment.
Centres need to have access to a range of office equipment and systems for learners to practise
and develop their administrative skills, which may be in the form of a model office comprising a
desk, computer, printer, telephone. However, centres do not need the more specialist types of
equipment eg scanners, binders etc, which might be available in the centre’s admin office or
through a visit to a local business.
Reference material
Books
Ashley V and Ashley S – Student Handbook Level 1 (Business and Administration Standards)
(Council for Administration, 2006) ISBN 0955092027
Carysforth C and Neild M – Administration NVQ Level 1: Student Handbook (Heinemann,
2002) ISBN 0435451685
Evans-Pritchard J, Bywaters B, Glaser T and Mayer L – GNVQ Foundation and Intermediate
Business (Longman, 2000) ISBN 0582406331
Websites
www.businessballs.com Resource for team activities
www.cfa.uk.com The Council for Administration
www.hse.gov.uk Health and Safety Executive
LEVEL 1 UNIT 3: PERSONAL FINANCE AND FINANCIAL SERVICES
Unit 3: Personal Finance and Financial Services
Level 1
Externally assessed
(29 hours learning time and 1 hour for assessment)
About this unit ‘The art is not in making money, but in keeping it’ – Proverb
Money is often given as one of the main reasons why we work
for a living. We all need to manage our personal finances well,
and this unit shows you how to do this.
‘Personal finance’ is to do with financial decisions that are made
by individuals and families about their money. In this unit you
will learn about money and how it is used.
Learning how to make financial decisions will help you manage
your own money more efficiently. To make these decisions you
will need to obtain advice and information. In this unit you will
therefore learn about ‘financial services’ and how they can help
you make decisions about your finances such as how to make
choices about different bank accounts that suit your needs. This
means that you’ll be well equipped to keep in control of your
money and make it work for you.
Learning outcomes
LO.1 Know the main types, features and sources of money
LO.2 Understand the importance of avoiding debt
LO.3 Know how to plan personal finances
LO.4 Know how to choose and use current and savings accounts.

LO.1 Know the main We use money to buy and sell goods or services. In order for us
types, features to use it efficiently, we need to know what ‘money’ is. You will
and sources of need to learn about:
money • Money as a method of settling payments; the whole and its
parts (eg £1 = 100p); concept of ‘legal tender’; types (cash,
cheque, debit cards, credit cards, credit)
• Money and ‘near money’: key features of cash (watermark,
metallic strip, signature, other security features, portable,
durable); types of ‘near money’ (loyalty cards, vouchers,
travellers’ cheques, e-money, railcards, season and other
prepaid tickets, savings stamps)
• Key features of other types of money: cheques (how used,
relationship to current account); credit cards (how used,
length of credit, statement and payment); debit cards
(contrast with credit cards as a method of purchase, role in
relation to personal accounts); store and other forms of credit
(types, availability, how accessed, typical costs)
• Sources of money: banks and other lenders; state benefits;
personal sources (earned income, inheritance, selling,
borrowing and using savings).
LO.2 Understand You will need to learn about why debt management is important:
the importance • to avoid legal action and/or repossession
of avoiding
debt • to avoid added costs, eg interest payments
• to maintain a good credit rating.
LO.3 Know how to We all have to make financial plans and decisions. Factors that
plan personal affect our financial plans and decisions:
finances • our age, responsibilities and financial commitments
• whether we are earning and, if so, how much we are earning.
There are different sources of information, depending on the
advice we need:
• Citizens Advice Bureau (free financial information and
advice)
• banks and building societies (advice on own products and
services)
• independent financial advisors
• Department for Work and Pensions (advice on benefits and
entitlements)
• publications, telephone and internet sources: eg Which?,
National Debtline, www.moneyfacts.co.uk,
www.moneyexpert.com.
You will need to learn about budgeting to help you manage your
money:
• what a personal budget is, how it is constructed and its key
elements
• recording your income and expenditure, eg using an
expenditure diary, using financial records such as monthly
bills
• handling budget surpluses and budget shortfalls.
LO.4 Know how to More and more of us use ‘high street’ banks and building
choose and use societies to look after our money. These businesses offer many
current and financial services to us, including current accounts and savings
savings accounts. From the point of view of a customer, you will need to
accounts learn about:
• whether to store or save money: at home; in a bank or
building society; investing in property/valuables/other
products
• the main providers: banks and building societies; telephone
and internet banking
• how to choose a provider: individual need, location
accessibility and convenience; interest/borrowing costs and
charges; influence of supporting products (cash/debit card,
cheque and paying-in books, regular statements); availability
of services (local ATM, telephone/internet banking, student
facilities, overdraft)
• current and savings accounts: opening and managing;
features, rewards and benefits; financial calculations of
interest and borrowing charges
• opening a current or savings account: eligibility, eg age;
proof of identity and why proof is needed (fraud/money
laundering); completion of application form; signature and
account identification (bank, branch and account numbers)
• managing, paying and/or withdrawing money: at the counter;
use of direct debits, standing orders and Bacs; use of ATMs
and pin numbers; telephone/internet/postal banking
• protection against fraud and theft: by the organisation, eg
customer verification, secure internet connections using https
protocol; by the account holder, eg keeping pin numbers
secret, secure storage and disposal of documents.
Teaching this unit

Delivery guidance
The purpose of this unit is to allow learners to develop their knowledge and understanding of
personal finance and the main local financial services that will influence them. Although all
learners will be using money in their everyday lives, they will need to understand what ‘money’
is: as a concept, its types or forms, its purpose and sources. Learners will be taught the main
factors that affect personal financial planning, and be introduced to the main sources of
information available to them at home or in their local area.
They will learn the importance of debt avoidance and be introduced to simple financial planning
(budgeting) in order to help them plan their future financial needs. Most learners will either
have a current and/or savings account, or will require one in the near future. As a result, they
will need to be taught about the nature, purposes and differences relating to such accounts, how
they are selected, opened and managed, and their associated costs and benefits. Learners will
also study the basic ways that fraud and theft can be avoided both personally and
organisationally, and the importance of balancing risk against reward when making financial
judgements.
Learners will have experience of money in their everyday lives. To achieve this learning
outcome they will need to (accepting the inevitable constraints of confidentiality) focus on their
own experiences of earning, spending and saving money, and to reflect on their present
understanding of what money is and its characteristics. Case studies of individuals, families and
local organisations will allow learners to relate their learning to their everyday experiences, to
discuss their findings and to appreciate the extent to which individual financial circumstances
and needs differ.
This outcome leads into LO.3 by first establishing why it is important to avoid debt. Of course,
debt is often unavoidable, and is often easily managed, such as when people borrow money to
finance large purchases; the emphasis here is on avoiding debt that cannot be managed, and so
‘debt’ here is interpreted to mean being unable to pay back money that is owed, getting behind
on repayments, etc. This leads naturally into the next learning outcome, where learners find out
about ways of planning their finances to avoid this happening.
Learners will now be in a position to undertake a simple analysis leading to individual financial
decisions, and the factors that affect this planning. To do so, they will need to be introduced to
the different sources of information available locally to individuals, such as banks, building
societies, publications and web-based sources. Visits to, or guest speakers from, these local
financial organisations will allow learners to experience the realities of financial advice.
Research using the internet and paper-based publications is also appropriate: see the ‘Reference
material’ section at the end of this unit. There are substantial opportunities here for developing
communication (in particular, listening and reading) and teamwork skills and for promoting the
use of ICT.
All learners will, in practice, budget, even though they may not be familiar with the term.
Learners can use their own experience of planning as a basis to reflect on the importance of
personal financial planning in terms of, for example, avoiding getting into debt. Figures can be
used to good effect by allowing learners to experience situations that lead to debts being created,
and the related financial effect, so there will be particular opportunity both here and in budget
construction to develop number-based skills. Learners should be introduced to a reasonably
formal budget construction and layout, for example headings of Inflow, Outflow (or Receipts
and Payments), Net inflow/outflow and Balance – and be given a range of situations. It is
important for the learners to be able to draw simple conclusions, based on their calculations,
concerning both deficits and surpluses, the latter acting as a good link to the later consideration
of savings as well as to Unit 1: Business Enterprise.
Many learners will be familiar with banks and building societies from personal experience, but
this experience will need to be strengthened and broadened by investigating a range of such
organisations and the current and savings accounts they offer. Although there is a link with
LO.1, the focus here is more on the ‘mechanics’ of the accounts rather than on the institutions
and the advice they offer. Even if they already have relevant accounts, learners should go
through the experience of comparing and selecting from a range of actual accounts, and then
completing real paperwork (which is usually readily available in bank and building society
literature). There will be a number of opportunities for promoting ICT through research into the
financial institutions’ products, and to develop teamwork and communication skills.
All learners will be familiar with the importance of taking care of their cash, but they are likely
to be less conversant with wider issues of fraud and theft. Existing experience of, for example,
part-time retail employment and how the organisation controls theft and fraud can probably be
discussed to good effect, and a visiting speaker from (say) a bank will act as a suitable
information source.
Learning outcomes and assessment criteria

Learning Learning outcome Assessment criteria
outcome
number The learner should: The learner can:
LO.1 Know the main types, features and 1.1 Identify the types, features and sources of
sources of money money in everyday situations
LO.2 Understand the importance of 2.1 Explain why it is important to avoid
avoiding debt getting into debt
LO.3 Know how to plan personal finances 3.1 Identify how sources of financial
information and advice can be used to help
make financial decisions
3.2 Construct simple budgets for personal use
LO.4 Know how to choose and use 4.1 Outline how to open and manage current
current and savings accounts and savings accounts, taking account of the
account provider’s information
requirements, costs, charges and benefits
4.2 Select an appropriate current account and a
savings account, based on the account’s
features and calculations of interest
4.3 Outline common security measures taken
to protect against fraud and theft

This unit will be assessed by an examination lasting one hour, containing a range of questions.
The mark you achieve for this examination will be your mark for the unit.
Learning outcomes — assessment weighting
Learning outcome Range of weighting (% age)

LO.1 Know the main types, features and 25–35%
sources of money
LO.2 Understand the importance of avoiding 2.5–12.5%

debt
LO.3 Know how to plan personal finances 20–30%
LO.4 Know how to choose and use current 30–40%

and savings accounts
Although PLTS are not identified within this unit as an inherent part of the assessment criteria,
there are opportunities to develop a range of PLTS through various approaches to teaching and
learning. (Annexe B of this document lists the personal, learning and thinking skills and their
elements.)

Independent Exploring debt from the point of view of the consumer of the
enquirers financial institution [IE3]; analysing and evaluating information
about personal finance and financial services, judging its relevance
and value to their own circumstances [IE4].
Creative thinkers Asking questions about financial products and services to extend
their thinking [CT2]; considering the merits of different
products/services in a given situation [CT5].
Reflective learners Reviewing their own progress in becoming more financially aware
[RL3].
Self-managers Organising time and resources when constructing personal budgets
[SM3]; anticipating and managing risks when constructing
personal budgets by building in contingencies [SM4].
Effective participators Discussing issues of concern such as debt management [EP1];
proposing practical ways forward when planning expenditure,
breaking these down into manageable steps [EP3].


Interact with and use ICT systems Researching banks and building societies, current and
independently to meet needs savings accounts.
Use ICT to plan work and evaluate Preparing spreadsheet budgets.
Manage information storage Saving and retrieving text-based and numerical (budget)
information.
Follow and understand the need for Exploring issues relating to electronic fraud and theft;
safety and security practices undertake safe practice when using internet and other
relevant software/hardware.

Select and use a variety of sources of Researching into banks and building societies, current
information independently to meet and savings accounts.
needs
Access, search for, select and use ICT- Selecting current and savings accounts.
fitness for purpose

Enter, develop and format information Constructing budgets.
including:
• text and tables
• images
• numbers
• graphs
• records
Bring together information to suit Bringing together cash inflows and outflows;
content and purpose comparing current and savings accounts.
Present information in ways that are fit
information
Select and use ICT to communicate Obtaining web-based information about current and
and exchange information safely, savings accounts.
effectively
Mathematics
Understand practical problems in Dealing with budgeted figures; calculating interest and
familiar and unfamiliar contexts and borrowing amounts and other charges.
routine
Identify and obtain necessary Obtaining budgeted information from existing spending
information to tackle the problem and income statements; selecting relevant interest
percentages.
Select and apply mathematics in an Constructing budgets; calculating interest and
organised way to find solutions to borrowing amounts.
purposes
Use appropriate checking procedures at Totalling budget columns and rows and cross-checking;
each stage checking the logic of interest and borrowing
calculations.
Interpret and communicate solutions to Interpreting budgeted, interest and borrowing results.
English
Speaking and listening – take full part Discussing and exchanging information about banks
in formal and informal and building societies, current and savings accounts;
discussions/exchanges discussing informally results of research with fellow
learners.
Reading – read and understand a range Reading and understanding literature from banks and
of texts building societies.
Writing – write documents to Completing documents relating to current and savings
communicate information, ideas and accounts; creating budget statements.
None.
Reference material
Book
Lowe J – Personal Finance Handbook, 2nd edition (Child Poverty Action Group, 2007)
ISBN 1906076014
Other resources
Colossal Cards Basic Skills Agency
Financial Products resource pack Basic Skills Agency
Money-go-round CD ROM Basic Skills Agency
Money power CD ROM Basic Skills Agency
Moneytalk CD ROM Basic Skills Agency
Websites
www.adviceonline.co.uk Advice Online: independent financial advice
www.fool.co.uk The Motley Fool: financial advice and
information
www.getsafeonline.org Get Safe Online: government-sponsored site
www.home.co.uk/finance Home.co.uk: information about financial
products
www.moneyfacts.co.uk Moneyfacts Group
www.moneymadeclear.fsa.gov.uk Financial Services Authority
www.moneysavingexpert.com Martin Lewis
www.nationaldebtline.co.uk National Debtline
www.uk250.co.uk/Bank/index.html UK bank websites
www.unbiased.co.uk Independent Financial Advice Promotion Ltd
LEVEL 1 UNIT 4: SALES AND CUSTOMER SERVICE IN BUSINESS
Unit 4: Sales and Customer Service in Business
Level 1
Internally assessed
About this unit Customers are the lifeblood of any business. Businesses need to
ensure that the needs of the customer are paramount in their
organisation. They need to consider both sales and customer
service. The customer should be satisfied by getting the product
that they want at the right price.
Modern businesses seek to add value and attract customers away
from competitors by providing customer service that is second to
none. You will learn about the principles and practice of
customer service. You will investigate why businesses need to
offer good customer service and how they go about doing so, as
well as having a chance to put your own skills into practice when
dealing with customer enquiries. At the same time, you will learn
about, and practise, the skills involved in making a sale.
Learning outcomes
LO.1 Know the role of sales and customer services in a business
LO.2 Know how organisations provide effective service to customers
LO.3 Understand the importance for organisations of providing effective service to customers
LO.4 Be able to interact with customers.

LO.1 Know the role Customers are vital to business. It is important to take care of
of sales and customer concerns and enquiries by providing effective customer
customer service. You need to learn about different roles performed by
services in a people who work in sales:
business • selling a product or service
• communicating product information to customers and
potential customers
• supporting customers through the buying process
• organising sales promotions
• keeping customer records up to date.
You need to learn about some of the different sales methods that
can be used:
• personal selling: face-to-face, in store, door-to-door
• telesales
• online sales
• direct mail.
You need to learn about the roles of people who provide services
to customers and common customer service procedures:
• providing information about products and services
• supporting customers through the buying process
• after-sales care and support, short-term and long-term, such
as replacing damaged goods, arranging repairs
• dealing with enquiries and complaints.
LO.2 Know how In order to satisfy customers’ needs, organisations need to
organisations understand their customers. You need to learn about how
provide customers can vary according to:
effective • whether they are new or repeat customers
service to
customers • individual characteristics: age, gender, income, education
• special needs: disabilities and impairments, speakers of
English as a second language.
Organisations need to know what differentiates between poor,

adequate and excellent customer service and the relevant factors:
• the accuracy of information provided
• the speed of response: time taken to answer emails, phone
calls
• how easy it is to get through to the right person
• how knowledgeable the sales/customer service representative
is, eg about the product, organisational procedures
• how responsive the service is, eg whether a customer service
representative is willing to take responsibility to solve a
problem
• the appropriateness of a product/service for the customer
• how pleasant and friendly the service is.
In order to provide effective service to customers, organisations
need to make sure that they:
• have trained staff that understand the importance of
providing good customer service
• make sure that correct procedures are followed
• have a system that allows them to monitor how effective
their customer service is
• understand and follow their legal obligations towards
customers.
LO.3 Understand You need to learn why it is important to provide good service to
the importance customers:
for • to promote customer loyalty and result in repeat business
organisations
of providing • to attract new customers
effective • to reduce complaints and negative publicity
service to
customers • to contribute to the success of the organisation.
LO.4 Be able to At some point most businesses have to interact with their
interact with customers. You need to learn about different types of routine
customers enquiries that employees have to deal with:
• asking if product or service is available
• asking for information about the performance or
specification of a product or service
• asking the price of a product or service
• asking for directions to the business
• asking opening or closing times
• asking to exchange a product.
Personal selling is important to many businesses. You need to
learn about the basic steps involved in making a sale:
• preparation:
○ understanding the product and pricing
○ preparing the physical environment
○ understanding your potential customers
○ deciding how to approach the customers
• making initial contact with the customer
• finding out what the customer wants
• presenting them with a solution
• closing the sale.
You need to learn about what is required when making a sale or
dealing with customer enquiries:
• a positive attitude: in a sales situation (approachable,
motivated to sell); in a customer service situation (polite,
willing to take responsibility)
• verbal communication skills:
○ listening skills
○ ability to give information in a sales situation, eg
describing a product/service
○ ability to give information in a customer service
situation, eg answering questions, explaining policies,
summarising information; knowing what to do if a query
cannot be answered
○ appropriate tone of voice, pace and clarity
○ ability to adapt your delivery depending on the customer
• non-verbal communication skills
○ effective body language, eg open posture, use of eye
contact
○ ability to adapt your body language depending on the
customer.
Teaching this unit

Delivery guidance
This learning outcome covers sales and customer service activities that occur in any
organisation, not just businesses.
Most learners will have experience of ‘sales’ as a customer, as a witness to a sale, or through
work experience or part-time employment. It is important to emphasise that although sales may
appear to be relatively casual, relaxed, even easy, it will be the salesperson’s skills and
experience that makes it appear so – to put the customer in the right frame of mind for the sale
to take place. Discussion within the learners’ group will elicit a range of different sales
experiences that can be explored, and any sales experiences missing can then be filled in. It
would also be worth inviting a sales manager from a local organisation to give a demonstration
of sales techniques to the learners. Sales managers from retail, estate agency, car showrooms,
manufacturing organisations, etc will each have different experiences but in the main will
follow a relatively standard sales process. Organisations that use online, telesales or direct mail
may also be available locally. Most organisations involved in sales will have someone who is
responsible for sales training. Learners are more likely to gain more practical hints and tips from
a visit if you can manage to get hold of a sales trainer.
Similarly, how customer service is viewed and delivered will be different for different
organisations, and like sales, how it is organised will be down to the needs of the organisation
itself and the market in which it operates. In general terms customer service is usually viewed as
the responsibility of all employees in an organisation, so any employee who learners contact, or
meet as a visiting speaker, should be able to inform learners how they, personally, put customer
service into practice. However, tutors will also find that some organisations have dedicated and
named ‘customer service departments’, having a specific role within the organisation. Staff
employed in these departments or employed in a customer service role are likely to give learners
a more focussed, but also more narrowly-defined, definition of ‘customer service’ than the
average employee.
For all sections in LO.1, personal observation or experience, placed in the context of the
learning, will be of great value. Learners should be able to get useful information and support
from a local organisation where they have a personal contact, eg family member, friend, part-
time employment, etc that they can interview and use as a source of ‘real life’ information.
Personal contact will be key for the learner when working on this unit as learners will be able to
tailor their research to meet the precise needs of the unit. Personal contacts in an organisation
are more likely to be able to provide information and insight into their sales methods, and the
role carried out by their customer service department. In contrast, large national or international
organisations where information is only available from websites are likely to be less useful.
While basic facts such as customer service statements, mission statements, and facts about sales
and the size of teams may be useful background information, the general nature of most
information on company websites is not likely to be sufficient for learners to gain much
knowledge, and they will certainly gain no experience from this source. If learners find it
difficult to make personal contact direct with local organisations, they could make contact with
their local Business Link organisation for advice and support. Business Link organisations will
be in regular contact with local businesses, they will also have contacts with local business
advisers who may also be able to provide additional support for learners.
Delivery guidance for LO.2 and LO.3
It would make sense to integrate the delivery of LO.2 with LO.3, so that learners gain an
understanding not only of the features of good service, but also why this is important.
Understanding how customers, and their needs, can vary can be quite challenging. However, the
point can be illustrated quite explicitly by showing learners how they themselves can be
grouped, or divided, by some of the different criteria used by sales and customer service
operations.
When researching how customers can be grouped, the concept of new customers and repeat
customers is quite straightforward. Recognising individual customer characteristics is a way of
grouping customers so that organisations can identify and build up a picture of which types of
customers they have, which types of customer they would like to have, which are the most
important to their business, and which types are less important. This can help the business in
many ways, including: to provide the products and services that are wanted and expected by the
majority of its customers, to target marketing and advertising more precisely, to train staff to
meet the needs of customers better. The main customer characteristics that an organisation is
likely to use include:
• Age – depending on the organisation this could be as simple as grouping young persons and
older persons; pre-school, school age, over-18, or retired customers. More sophisticated
classification by age could be: under 14s, 14-19s, 20-29, 30-39, 40-50, 50-59, over 60s
years.
• Gender – male or female.
• Income group, to identify high and lower earners, such as: under £10,000 p.a., £10,001 to
£20,000, £20,001 to £30,000, over £30,000.
• Education – this classification usually groups people based on the highest level of education
that they have attained eg GCSE, GCE, university degree.
As well as these individual characteristics, customers can be grouped depending on any special
needs that they may have. Grouping by special need would take into account any disabilities and
impairments, speakers of English as a second language, or any other need that requires expert or
specialist support.
In this unit learners are not expected have a detailed understanding of how customer
characteristics are used. However, they should be able to recognise and describe commonly-
used customer characteristics, and use this knowledge to improve how they handle their own
customer interactions by tailoring their response more precisely to the needs of each customer.
There is a good chance that each learner will have been on the receiving end of customer
service, whether they realise it or not. It would be worth exploring learners’ experiences in a
range of different situations and getting them to discuss and share with others what made the
customer service experience good or bad for them – and whether their experience of customer
service has changed their views about an organisation, whether it has put them off or will
encourage them to use its services again.
How organisations provide customer service can be investigated using remote research, but field
research in the form of visits will make the subject come alive. The obligations of organisations
and employees towards customers may be dictated by industry standard, regulation or
sometimes by an organisation’s mission statement, but it will be consumer protection legislation
in all of its many forms that sets the ultimate standard. Legislation need not be a dry subject.
The Trading Standards organisation produces a wide range of accessible material to put across
the basics of consumer protection legislation, from the point of view of both business and the
consumer. Learners can access this information readily from a Trading Standards website, or
contact local Trading Standards officers who are often willing to share their knowledge and
experience.
As in LO.1, the choice of organisations contacted for information and support on customer
service can have a great bearing on the quality of information provided and, consequently, the
quality of learning that takes place. For organisations that are used for research, the learner will
need to not only investigate what customer services are in place, but to show that they know
what makes each customer service identified effective – from the point of view of the
organisation as well as the customer. How well the learner can do this will again depend on the
relationship they have established with the organisation, which in turn comes back to their
choice of organisation in the first place. The more remote the organisation, the more difficult it
will be to find information about customer service that is not superficial or general. If learners
choose an organisation that is local or has easy access for the kind of research and investigation,
then they will find the task easier. The advice given for LO.1 on how to choose an appropriate
organisation and how to get the most out of the organisation that they choose will apply equally
to the learner’s work for LO.2 and LO.3.
Good preparation is the key to success in this part of the unit. Learners need to understand and
practise the basic steps involved in making a sale. For the sales skills, it may be helpful to
practise with a sales script, something that they can learn and rehearse before being placed in
front of real customers. This will give them confidence. They could work in pairs to practise and
then review how well they have done, drawing lessons from this to apply the next time they
practise, as part of the experiential learning cycle.
Part-time jobs could give learners opportunities to develop their skills at both sales and dealing
with customer enquiries.
Practising a sales script in front of a mirror may sound strange to some learners, but this can be
a good way for them to see how their body language interacts with the verbal language of the
script. The script itself should be one that the learner has developed themselves, one that applies
directly to the product that they have chosen for their sales demonstrations. But what are they
going to sell? Some learners may already be working in a sales situation by virtue of part-time
jobs or family businesses. If not, then a sales situation could be developed in centres using
product from enterprise schemes. An alternative could be to sell the facilities, services or
courses offered by the centre itself. What ever is being sold, the learner will need to be familiar
with and understand the product and the pricing.
Like making sales, success in handling customer service enquiries will come from confidence.
This, in turn, comes from learning and practicing the customer service process, and
understanding the services and standards being operated by the organisation that they are
representing. Role play is a very useful way of allowing learners to practise their customer
service skills before they are assessed. Role-play scenarios could be developed from learners’
own experiences on the receiving end of customer service. If this is not a good source then
learners could be encouraged to investigate classic or stereotypical scenarios that have been
experienced by the customer service team at the centre itself, or at places where learners have
part-time jobs. Another very useful source for examples of customer service scenarios would be
to invite visiting speakers who are work in customer a service role, asking them to provide
classic examples of situations when customer service needs to be provided.

This unit will be assessed by an assignment connected to sales and customer service, in two
stages.
You will need to:
• Research an organisation. This will involve looking at an organisation which sells a
product/service and outlining the roles of people who work in sales and those who provide
services to customers [LO.1]; identifying the characteristics of its customers and the ways in
which it does/does not provide effective service to its customers [LO.2]; and explaining
why it is important that it provides effective service to its customers [LO.3]
• Show you can deal with customers. This will involve you demonstrating your sales and
communication skills and how well prepared you are when making a sale; and answering
routine customer enquiries face-to-face and over the telephone [LO.4].

Any sales or sales/customer-service setting will provide learners with a sector-relevant purpose
for completing their assignment. The assignment could be based on the learners’ own enterprise
or some other business, real or simulated. (See also below, Guidance for Assessment.)
Evidence structure

outcome grid
LO.1 A Research Written evidence: sales and
customer services roles
performed
LO.2 A Written evidence: customer
characteristics and effectiveness
of service provided
LO.3 A Written evidence: importance of
customer service
LO.4 B Customer interactions Learner observation record:
preparation* and customer
handling skills
* Preparation will be assessed indirectly during the interactions
Level of demand
Assessment duration
learner. Centres can structure assessment time as they see fit. Centres should note that the total
class assessment time may need to be higher to allow time for separate observations of
individuals in LO.4.
The learners must be provided with full access to study all of the areas identified in the What
you need to learn section of the specification.
specification.
Group work is permitted at the research stage. Learners can also work together when interacting
with customers (ie as ‘colleagues’), but evidence must be based on individual learners’
interactions. The review stage must be completed individually.
The customer interactions must involve answering customer enquiries face-to-face and over the
telephone. They must demonstrate their sales skills with at least three customers in total, which
could be done face-to-face, on the telephone or both.

Assessment could take place in two stages corresponding to the two stages of the assessment
process, after the relevant learning has taken place. Alternatively all assessment could take place
at the end of the unit.
The organisation that the learners use in the research stage should be one of sufficient size so
that it has a range of well established customer service procedures. Retailers which rely
primarily on self-service and customer-operated self-scanning checkouts should be avoided
where possible as this will provide limited opportunities to investigate the role of sales and sales
methods. If the organisation sells products/services that are similar to what the learners will be
trying to sell in their customer interactions, then so much the better. Tutors can guide learners as
to the most appropriate way of gathering this information.
Preparation for the sales process should include familiarising themselves with the product and
pricing as well as being ready to deal with routine enquiries they may face.
If the interactions are assessed via a role play (see below), learners could:
• be given information on the product/business, which they will need to use during the
interactions
• find out information, eg about a real product/business
• or, if the product/service being sold is linked to the product/service in Unit 1: Business
Enterprise the information could be decided by the learners themselves, in which case the
learner will need to supply this information to the tutor before the interaction begins.
Evidence of the customer interactions could be gathered during one or several sessions.
The context in which the customer interactions take place could be connected to the learners’
own business enterprise (possibly as an extension to this activity if it has already finished). It
could also be done in a real workplace, for example through a part-time job or on work
experience. Alternatively, a scenario could be developed by the centre and assessed through a
role play based on either a real or imaginary business situation, in which case, the ‘customers’
should not be learners in the same class. Centres could also use other real selling activities,
including courses, qualifications, tuition services, membership to the library/sports clubs etc,
food in the canteen, stationery, tickets for an event, extra-curricular activities, support for
fundraising activities, attendance at meetings, recordings of the choir, items produced by other
courses, such as artwork, food, gifts, etc.
The customer enquiries could be done at the same time as the sales or they could be separate,
but if the latter, the enquiries should relate to the same overall business situation.
Learners should be assessed on their ability to deal with customer enquiries that are routine;
they may in fact, be faced with non-routine enquiries (eg complaints or problems), but at this
level, this should not be assessed. There are six listed in What you need to learn; if any are not
observed, then the tutor should take on the role of customer to ask them.
Similarly, the sales skills that should be assessed at this level are those used in straightforward
selling situations: where the customer is willing, prepared and expecting to make a purchase, but
who need more information to help them decide. Learners may have to deal with customers who
are not willing, prepared and expecting to make a purchase, but they should not be assessed on
those interactions. Learners may find it helpful to use and practise with a sales script, but if so, it
should be one that the learner has developed and prepared themselves.
Marking grid A
focus available
LO.1 The learner briefly outlines some of The learner outlines the roles The learner outlines clearly the roles
Know the role of the roles performed by people who performed by people who work in performed by people who work in
sales and work in sales and people who provide sales and people who provide services sales and people who provide services
customer services services to customers. to customers. to customers.
in a business
(0–3) (4–6) (7–8) 8
LO.2(.1) The learner identifies customers, The learner identifies customers, The learner identifies customers,
Know how listing a few characteristics. describing their characteristics. fully and clearly describing their
organisations characteristics.
provide effective
service to
customers (0–2) (3–4) (5–6)
LO.2(.2) The learner briefly identifies a few The learner identifies, with examples, The learner identifies, with clear and
Know how ways in which the organisation does ways in which the organisation does well chosen examples, ways in which
organisations or does not provide effective service. or does not provide effective service. the organisation does or does not
provide effective provide effective service.
service to
customers
(0–4) (5–7) (8–10) 16
LO.3 The learner states that effective The learner explains briefly why The learner explains why effective
Understand the customer service is important. There effective customer service is customer service is important. Clear
importance for is limited evidence provided to important. Reasons why are given. reasons why are given.
organisations of support this.
providing effective
service to
customers
(0–2) (3–4) (5–6) 6
Total marks 30
Marking grid B
focus available
LO.4(.1) From the way that the learner From the way that the learner From the way that the learner
interacts with customers, it is clear interacts with customers, it is clear interacts with customers, it is clear
Be able to interact
that there has been limited that there has been adequate that there has been good preparation
with customers
preparation for the sale. preparation for the sale. for the sale.
(0–2) (3–4) (5–6)
LO.4(.2, .3) The learner demonstrates limited The learner demonstrates reasonable The learner demonstrates good
communication skills in a sales communication skills in a sales communication skills in a sales
Be able to interact
context. context, and they demonstrate a context, and they demonstrate a
with customers
reasonably positive attitude. positive attitude.
They are able to give basic They are able to give adequate They are able to give detailed
information about a product/service. information about a product/service. information about a product/service.
(0–5) (6–9) (10–12)
LO.4(.4) The learner shows limited ability to The learner shows reasonable ability The learner shows good ability to deal
deal with routine customer enquiries. to deal with routine customer with routine customer enquiries,
Be able to interact
Some of them are answered enquiries, answering them answering them successfully and
with customers
successfully. successfully and with a reasonably efficiently and with a positive
positive attitude. attitude.
(0–5) (6–9) (10–12) 30
Total marks 30
Assessment guidance
marking grid B.
Level 1 descriptors
Descriptor Meaning
Characteristics (of customers) As listed in What you need to learn: individual characteristics,
special needs (if any) and whether customers are new or repeat
(if known and relevant).
facts, etc.
Efficiently (dealing with Able to both understand the customer’s requirements and to
enquiries) satisfy them quickly and with a minimum of effort.
A few One or two.
Full/fully Complete/completely.
Limited Incomplete or having a narrow scope; shows only basic ability
or understanding.
List/listed Provide the information as separate, individual points rather
than in continuous prose.
Outline Set out main characteristics, give an overview of the main
features.
Positive attitude In a sales situation: approachable and motivated to sell; when
dealing with customer enquiries: polite and willing to take
responsibility.
Some Incomplete, not all.
State Assert, make a statement, express in unequivocal terms
without evidence or explanation.
Successfully (answering Dealing with the query or enquiry to the apparent satisfaction
enquiries) of the customer, and the organisation.
Well chosen (examples) Chosen in such a way that it provides support for the
argument; a good example.

of this unit.

Effective participators Trying to influence others while demonstrating sales skills [EP5].
learning.

Independent enquirers Looking at the importance of customer service from different
perspectives: the organisation and the customer [IE3]; considering
the influence of circumstances on the customer service provided
[IE5].
Reflective learners Considering their own experience of receiving customer service
[RL5].
Self-managers Showing commitment and perseverance in dealing with customer
enquiries [SM2].
Effective participators Discussing issues of concern while demonstrating sales and
customer service skills [EP1]; presenting a persuasive case for
action when demonstrating sales skills [EP2].


Manage information storage

needs
fitness for purpose

Enter, develop and format information
including:
• text and tables
• images
• numbers
• graphs
• records
content and purpose
Present information in ways that are fit
information
effectively
Mathematics
Understand practical problems in Learning about pricing information related to a product
familiar and unfamiliar contexts and that they are preparing to sell.
routine
purposes
each stage
English
Speaking and listening – take full part Handing simple customer enquiries.
Demonstrating sales skills.
of texts
Writing – write documents to Writing a report on a sales and customer service
communicate information, ideas and function in an organisation of their choice.
Work experience
There is no requirement for work experience to complete this unit, but learners would benefit
from any experience gained in a sales or customer service environment in terms of finding out
about how these are delivered in the workplace as well as developing their own skills. The
assessment of LO.4 could take place during work experience.
None.
Reference material
Book
Evans-Pritchard J, Hancock M, Jones R, Mansfield A and Gray D – AS Level Applied Business
for Edexcel Double Award (Causeway Press, 2005) ISBN 1405821159
Websites
www.businesslink.gov.uk Business Link provides an easy to use support,
advice and information service for local businesses.
www.instituteofcustomerservice.com The Institute of Customer Service is the professional
body for customer service. Its main purpose is to
lead performance and professionalism in customer
service.
www.mrs.org.uk The Market Research Society, professional body
supporting the market research industry.
www.skillsmartretail.com The Sector Skills Council for Retail.
www.tradingstandards.gov.uk Trading Standards Central – a one stop shop for
consumer protection information in the UK. The site
is supported and maintained by TSI, the Trading
Standards Institute.
LEVEL 1 UNIT 5: CAREERS AND EMPLOYMENT IN BUSINESS
Unit 5: Careers and Employment in Business
Level 1
Internally assessed
About this unit It is important to find a job that you enjoy. Competition for the
best jobs is growing stronger, and the more you understand about
how to get and keep a good job, the better.
But how can you find out more about different jobs? In this unit
you will find out about the sources of careers information, and
use them to research two different types of job. Many people find
themselves a job by using a CV or application form. In this unit
you will practise doing this, and also take this to the next stage
by preparing for and taking part in an interview.
To get and keep a job, you need to understand what skills and
attributes are required in the workplace. You will use this to help
you set goals for your experience in the workplace, which will
enable you to get the most out of your time there. Finally, you
will write up what happened in the workplace and think about
how successful it was in helping you to meet your goals.
Learning outcomes
LO.1 Be able to use sources of job information
LO.2 Know the skills and attributes required in the workplace
LO.3 Be able to prepare for and participate as an interviewee in a job interview
LO.4 Know how to set goals for work experience
LO.5 Be able to record and review experiences in the workplace.

LO.1 Be able to use The employment market is competitive. You need to learn about
sources of job the sources of information about jobs and careers:
information • careers advisers
• company websites and career packs
• agencies and job centres
• newspapers: articles, job advertisements
• careers guidance software.
LO.2 Know the skills You need to know the skills and attributes that will help you
and attributes succeed at work. This will depend on the type of job, eg:
required in the • good timekeeping
workplace
• appropriate self-presentation
• a positive attitude
• the ability to work in a team
• good communication skills
• information technology skills
• the ability to work with numbers.
LO.3 Be able to During your working lifetime you will probably face an
prepare for interview each time that you change jobs. You need to learn
and participate about the preparation and process involved in doing this:
as a an • producing an up-to-date CV and covering letter or
interviewee in application form
a job interview
• following interview protocols, eg dress code, punctuality
• preparing for questions that you may be asked.
You need to learn about the skills that are needed at interview:
• oral communication skills: responding to questions,
listening, voice clarity, tone and pace
• non-verbal communication skills: body language, posture,
eye contact, facial expression.
LO.4 Know how to You need to learn about the process of goal setting for
set goals for experience in the workplace. This involves identifying:
work • a starting point: deciding which skills and attributes are
experience relevant for the job you will be doing, eg:
○ attendance and timekeeping
○ ability to work with other people
○ following instructions
○ being motivated
○ knowing about the organisation/industry in which you
are working
• where you are now: your strengths and weaknesses
• what to concentrate on: which skills/attributes you want to
improve or show you can do
• goals that can help you do this.
LO.5 Be able to You need to learn about ways of recording and reviewing
record and workplace experiences:
review • how, eg simple diary
experiences in
the workplace • when: ongoing/regular updates
• what: recording own activities, experiences, feelings;
collecting and interpreting feedback from others
• reviewing: identifying things that went well and not so well.
Teaching this unit

Delivery guidance
time within the timetable for its delivery and assessment. The time spent on experience in the
workplace, which learners will need to take part in order to complete the assessment (but not the
learning) for LO.4 and LO.5, is not considered to be part of the guided learning hours for this
unit.
Delivery should cover the different types and sources of information that can be used to access
job information. Careers advisors and local employers could provide an introductory overview
on the local job market to encourage learners to think about the jobs that they may wish to do.
A good starting point for gathering information will be the jobs section in local newspapers
where learners could cut out or photocopy current job vacancies. It is important that they can
gather information on local job opportunities which are at the appropriate level. Their own part-
time job or a work placement may be a convenient and accessible source of information,
particularly if they have current vacancies. If practical, visits to the local jobcentre could
provide learners with useful information on pay and conditions on current local job
opportunities. The internet is a rich source of information but learners may need some guidance
and support to ensure that they remain focussed on appropriate vacancies in the local job
market.
A good way to encourage learners to think about the skills and attributes required at work is to
ask a workplace provider to talk to them about what they expect from their employees. This can
be followed up with a worksheet asking the learners to match their skills to those identified by
the workplace provider and to think about themselves in relation to these. Ranking exercises
where learners decide on the relative importance of different skills/attributes in different types
of job can lead to fruitful and interesting group discussions. Another starting point would be to
use fictional representations, such as from television dramas.
Learners will need guidance on the format and content of job application documents, in order to
show how they have the skills and attributes necessary for a job (which links with LO.2). They
should have some practice at completing an application form. For practice purposes, real
examples could be obtained from local employers. As well as using hard copies, it would also
be useful to practise using online application forms that are readily available. An example or a
template of a basic CV and covering letter could be used to provide guidance on what they
should include in their own CV. As a starting point for interview preparation, learners could
work in small groups to come up with basic questions they think they could ask at an interview.
Showing learners a DVD or video of a mock interview and asking them to identify the examples
of good or bad practice can be an effective and fun way of introducing them to the importance
of body language and interview protocols. As a confidence builder, learners should have the
opportunity to practise basic interview techniques prior to the assessed interview; recording
learners’ practice interviews for them to watch afterwards could help. Learners are likely to
require guidance and regular feedback on their progress in order to develop their interview
skills. Local businesses may also be able to help by providing examples of real applications
made for particular jobs (with personal identifying information removed). The delivery of this
can be linked to Unit 2: Business Administration, Teams and Communication, which includes
ways of improving written communication.
At this level, is not necessary to introduce the concept of SMART goal setting, but the concept
of goals being at least realistic is important. To prepare learners to set goals, learners can
practise by setting goals related to other learning experiences in the school or college or
personal goals for the future. Ideally the delivery of this outcome will begin before the
experience in the workplace has started, but if the workplace experience is part time, it can be
done after it has started as long as there is still time for learners to set their goals and have a
realistic chance of achieving them.
Learners will need to be prepared for their workplace experience by learning how to record their
experiences in some way, eg using a diary, for which they will need to be prepared (although
the diary itself will not be assessed) and what to record. It is important that learners understand
that it is much better to keep an ongoing record rather than leave this to the end. Centres can
suggest alternative methods of recording experiences, eg video diaries or blogs. It is useful
preparation if learners can practise the skills of recording experiences by completing a diary of
their learning experiences in school or college so that learners understand which sorts of
information is useful to record.

This unit will be assessed by an assignment connected to job applications and workplace
experience.
You will need to:
• Find out information about two jobs that you would like to do for your workplace
experience, saying which one you would prefer to do and why [LO.1]
• Create job application documents [LO.2, LO.3(.1)], and then prepare for, and take part in, a
job interview [LO.3(.2, .3)]
• Prepare for and reflect on your workplace experience, which will involve:
○ identifying the skills/attributes you want to improve (or show that you have) and setting
goals for your workplace experience [LO.4]
○ assessing your workplace experience after it has finished: what you did; what could
have gone better and why; and what you think about the feedback you received [LO.5].

assessed section, and exemplified within the unit sample assessment material (SAM). The
assignment for part of this unit is connected to experience in the workplace. This could be in the
form of a placement or it could be a part-time job that the learner is starting or is already doing,
but centres will not be able to complete the assessment for this unit without it. The job applied
for in the assessment of LO.3 must not be one that they have practised preparing as part of the
learning for this unit.
The assignment (and by extension the job in which learners will be doing in LO.4) must be
relevant to the Principal Learning in Business, Administration and Finance.
Evidence structure

outcome grid
LO.1 A Job information Written evidence: information
about two jobs
LO.2, LO.3(.1) A Job application: documents Written evidence: CV and
covering letter or application
form
LO.3(.2) A Job application: interview Written evidence: questions
preparation they think they may be asked
LO.3(.3) B Job application: interview Learner observation record:
communication skills
LO.4 A Preparation for, and review Written evidence:
of, workplace experience skills/attributes and goals
LO.5* A Written evidence: review of
workplace experience;
feedback received during
workplace experience (not
assessed but required to back
up learner’s review)
* This part of the assignment is based on learners’ experience at work, but assessment takes
place afterwards.
Level of demand
The level of job-related information in LO.1 is exemplified in the unit sample assessment
material (SAM). The job applied for in LO.3 should be a job that is suited to Level 1 learners.
The job should be one in which learners would be expected to apply knowledge and skills to
compete well-defined routine tasks, managing their own time subject to supervision. Examples
of appropriate jobs include: data entry assistant, junior accounts clerk, mail room assistant.
Assessment duration
learner. Centres can structure this time as they see fit, but it is recommended that the job
interview lasts no longer than 15-20 minutes. The suggested GLH for assessment does not
include time spent in the workplace. Centres should note that the total class assessment time is
likely to be higher to allow time for separate observations of interviews in LO.3.
specification.
For the goal-setting task in the third part of the assignment, learners may use tutors or others,
such as the work-experience provider, as a resource to discuss and agree goals on a one-to-one
basis, eg in a tutorial slot. However, the ideas for the goals themselves must come from the
learner; the tutor may only help with formulating the wording but must not prompt the learner
with ideas.
All work must be completed individually; no group work is allowed.
Although learners will not be under direct supervision when collecting information for the
assessment of LO.5 as it will take place in the workplace, it should be written up under normal
tutor-supervised conditions.

It is recommended that assessment takes place in stages after the relevant learning has taken
place rather than all at the end of the unit. See below for further guidance.
Learners will benefit most from this unit if the assessment for LO.1 and LO.2/LO.3 takes place
shortly before their workplace experience starts (unless this assignment is based around a job
that learners are already doing). This will help prepare them for the workplace and should
maximise the chances that it will be a mutually beneficial experience both learner and the
employer.
The two jobs that they find out about in the first part of the assignment could be related or
unrelated to each other. Although they should be jobs that the learners would like to do as
workplace experience, the jobs do not necessarily need to be those that will be available to
learners for this purpose, for example they could be jobs that are advertised for full time
employment, and so the job-related information will apply to people doing the jobs on a
permanent basis. The learners should be guided to choose entry-level jobs, although there is no
requirement that the jobs are currently accessible to the learners: for example, the jobs might
require further study or the development of other skills before the learners have a realistic
prospect of getting them.
However, the centre may be able to identify a range of jobs that will actually be available for
workplace experience, from which learners could choose and then gather information on; this
would add greater realism to the assessment task. If the workplace experience has already been
arranged and the learner already knows what they will be doing, this job could one of the ones
that they research. Learners do not need to use all of the sources and types of information listed
in the What you need to learn section, only what is relevant.
There are different approaches possible for the job application and interview for the second part
of the assignment. The most coherent approach would be either to use one of the jobs that they
have found out about in the first part of the assignment or the job that the learners are going to
do as workplace experience in LO.4 and LO.5 or for centres to assess LO.3 last, after the
workplace experience has been completed: this would allow learners to make use of what they
have learned and been able to demonstrate during the workplace experience when making their
application, and could be contextualised as being an interview to recruit recent work-experience
participants into a permanent position within the organisation. Alternatively, the job could be
one that learners find for themselves, eg a part-time job from a local newspaper or it could come
from a brief specially designed by the tutor. Whatever approach is taken, tutors will need to
ensure that learners have enough information about the job to make an application.
If the application is made using a CV and covering letter, learners can make use of previous
versions that they have created for practice purposes, but they should customise them for the
specific requirements of the job applied for. Learners are assessed on their ability to show how
they have the necessary skills/attributes for the job applied for (LO.2) as well as the ability to
communicate this information effectively (LO.3).
The job interview can be done as a role play, and the tutor must complete a learner observation
record. Other members of staff, local employers or a work-experience provider could take part
in the interviews in the role of interviewer.
The workplace experience, which forms the context for the assessment of the last part of the
assignment, could be in the form of a placement or it could be a part-time job done over a longer
period. The workplace experience must relate to some part of the Business, Administration and
Finance diploma and therefore allow the learners to apply some of the knowledge and skills that
they have developed or (if the workplace experience takes place early in the course) get a taster
of the knowledge and skills that they will later focus on.
The goals that learners set in the third part may relate not only to what the learner wants to
improve, but also to what learner wants to prove they can do. For example, it may be that a
learner thinks that they are good at time keeping, but they would have difficulty in coming up
with evidence for this; they can therefore use their goal setting and workplace experience to
gather evidence of their existing attributes/abilities which will be useful to them in future.
Learners doing full-time work experience should complete this before they review it. Ideally,
this will also be the case for learners doing part-time work experience, but if this proves
impractical, they may be able to complete this after at least half of the work-experience is
finished. During the workplace experience, they will need to record their experiences in some
way, for example using a diary (although the diary itself will not be assessed) so that afterwards
they have the necessary information to allow them to write up their experiences. They will also
need to collect feedback during their work experience: this is best collected with a pro forma
feedback sheet which is given to the employer with an explanation of how it will be used for
assessment, which must be included with the rest of the learner’s evidence; alternatively, it
could be oral feedback, which the learners summarise for themselves. Reflection on their
experiences in the workplace will be more effective if it is provisionally done verbally on a one-
to-one basis with the tutor using the evidence that the learner has generated before being written
up for assessment.
Marking grid A
focus available
LO.1 The learner provides limited The learner provides information on The learner provides information on
information on two jobs and two jobs and identifies a range of two jobs and identifies a wide range
Be able to use
identifies one or two obvious similarities and differences between of similarities and differences
sources of job
similarities or differences between them. They say which they would between them. They say which they
information and
them. They say which one they prefer, with a brief explanation why. would prefer, with a clear
advice
would prefer. explanation why.
(0–4) (5–7) (8–10) 10
LO.2(.1) The learner shows limited ability to The learner identifies some ways in The learner identifies clearly how
identify ways in which they have the which they have the skills/attributes they have the skills/attributes
Know the skills
skills/attributes required for the job required for the job applied for. The required for the job applied for. The
and attributes
they are applying for. The learner learner shows reasonable learner shows good presentational
required in the
shows limited presentational ability presentational ability in terms of ability in terms of layout and
workplace
in terms of layout and formatting. layout and formatting. Most formatting. Essential information is
LO.3(.1) Some essential information is essential information is included. included. There are likely to be some
Be able to prepare included. There are likely to be a There are likely to be a number of omissions/errors, but few of them are
for and number of omissions/errors and omissions/errors, some of which are intrusive. There is clear evidence of
participate as an difficulties in using appropriate style intrusive. There is some evidence of attempts to use appropriate
interviewee in a and register, which may be intrusive. attempts to use appropriate style/register, even if this is done
job interview style/register, even if this is done inconsistently.
inconsistently.
(0–4) (5–7) (8–10)
LO.3(.2) They make limited preparation for They make some preparation for the They prepare well for the interview,
the interview, identifying a few interview, identifying a range of identifying a range of questions that
Be able to prepare
general questions they think they questions, most of which are are relevant to the job they are
for and
may be asked. relevant to the job they are applying applying for, and basic but
participate as an
for, and basic answers. appropriate answers.
interviewee in a
job interview (0–2) (3–4) (5–6) 16

focus available
LO.4 The learner identifies one or two The learner identifies a range of The learner identifies a wide range
skills/attributes that they would like skills/attributes that they would like of skills/attributes that they would
Know how to set
to improve or show that they have, to improve or show they have, on like to improve or show they have on
goals for work
on which they base the goals they which they base the goals they set. which they base the goals they set.
experience
set.
(0–2) (3–4) (5–6) 6
LO.5 The learner produces a basic The learner produces a description The learner produces a detailed
summary of their workplace of their workplace experience, description of their workplace
Be able to record
experience and identifies things that identifying both things that went experience, identifying both things
and review
went well or things that could have well and those that could have gone that went well and those that could
experiences in the
gone better. better. have gone better, giving reasons to
workplace
support this judgement.
The learner is able to say which parts The learner is able to say which parts The learner is able to say which parts
of the feedback received from the of the positive and negative feedback of the positive and negative feedback
workplace experience are positive received from the workplace received from the workplace
and which are negative. experience they agree with. experience they agree with, and can
give reasons for why they think it is
or isn’t justified.
(0–6) (7–10) (11–14) 14
Total marks 46
Marking grid B
focus available
LO.3(.3) The learner demonstrates a basic The learner demonstrates a The learner demonstrates a good
level of oral communication skills, reasonable level of oral level of oral communication skills,
Be able to prepare
showing the ability to answer simple communication skills, showing the showing the ability to answer simple
for and
questions. ability to answer simple questions questions and some of the more
participate as an
and a few of the more unexpected unexpected or open-ended
interviewee in an
or open-ended questions. questions.
interview for a job
Aspects of non-verbal Some aspects of non-verbal Non-verbal communication skills are
communication skills may be weak. communication skills are likely to be likely to be generally good.
reasonable, but may not be
sustained.
(0–6) (7–10) (11–14) 14
Total marks 14
Assessment guidance
marking grid B.
Level 1 descriptors
Descriptor Meaning
Appropriate Suitable/relevant.
Difficulties Finds it difficult to do or is unable to do.
A few One or two.
Few Not many.
Good/well To a high level.
or understanding.
A number of At least three.
Most The majority with one or two left out.
Obvious Easy to identify.
Open-ended question A question which requires more than a yes/no answer.
A simple question A question that is very straightforward or which requires only
a yes/no answer.
Some At least three; to a certain degree, partial.
Summary/summarise Give a short description of the main facts, features, etc.
Sustained Maintained over a period of time.
Unexpected question A question that is not routine or easy to predict.
Weak Not good.
A wide range Four or more.

of this unit.

Independent enquirers Identifying questions to answer in preparation for the interview
[IE1].
Reflective learners Setting goals for their workplace experience [RL2]; assessing the
success of their workplace experience [RL1].
learning.

Independent enquirers Planning and carrying out research into jobs [IE2]; preparing for
their interview, considering what employers are looking for as well
as what they themselves need from a job [IE3]; concluding which
jobs are suitable for them, supporting these with reasoned
arguments and evidence [IE6].
Creative thinkers Generating ideas for jobs that may be suitable for them and
exploring different possibilities [CT1]; questioning their own
assumptions about suitable jobs [CT4].
Reflective learners Reviewing the progress they have made during the workplace
experience and deciding what to do next [RL3]; inviting feedback
from people involved in their workplace experience and dealing
positively with it [RL4]; evaluating their experiences of the
workplace to inform plans for the future [RL5].
Team workers Rehearsing their interviews, showing fairness and consideration to
others [TW4] when providing feedback afterwards [TW6].
Self-managers Working towards their goals set for their workplace experience,
showing initiative, commitment and perseverance [SM2];
organising time and resources, prioritising actions while preparing
for a job interview [SM3].


Manage information storage Saving documents prepared for their job applications.

needs
Access, search for, select and use ICT- Researching different types of job using IT resources.
fitness for purpose

Enter, develop and format information Completing CVs, covering letters and application
to suit its meaning and purpose, forms, using text and tables.
including:
• text and tables
• images
• numbers
• graphs
• records
Bring together information to suit Using information about themselves to complete CVs,
content and purpose covering letters and application forms.
Present information in ways that are fit Presenting information about themselves in CVs,
for purpose and audience covering letters and application forms.
information
effectively
Mathematics
routine
purposes
each stage
English
Speaking and listening – take full part Participating in a job interview.
Reading – read and understand a range Researching different types of job.
of texts
Writing – write documents to Presenting information about themselves in CVs,
communicate information, ideas and covering letters and application forms.
Work experience
Experience of the workplace is integral to this unit. For further information, see Assessment
information for assessors, above.
This unit can be delivered without specialist resources. However, a number of specialist
resources are useful and relevant, including Cascaid’s Kudos software (www.cascaid.com).
Support material from the Chalkface Project (www.chalkface.com), including Career
Management: Work Experience (2001), which is designed to help students prepare for, go
through and debrief after work experience.
Reference material
Books
Donald V and Grose R – Your First Job, 2nd Edition (Kogan Page, 1993) ISBN 0749410434
Fry R – Your first Interview: for students and anyone preparing to enter today’s tough job
market (Career Press, 2002) ISBN 1564145867
Hitchin P – Getting Your First Job, 2nd Edition (How To Books, 1999) ISBN 1857035496
Linn L – Landing your First Real Job (McGraw-Hill Education, 1996) ISBN 0070380619
Messina E N – Teenwork: Four Teens Tell All: A guide for finding jobs (Goodheart-Wilcox,
2005) ISBN 159070598X
Websites
www.alec.co.uk Alec: employability skills advice
www.support4learning.org.uk Support4Learning
Level 2 units
Unit 1: Business Enterprise
Level 2
Internally assessed
About this unit Behind every successful business enterprise is a good business
idea. However, a good idea alone is not enough – to make it
succeed you need to have the willingness to take risks,
determination and adaptability. In this unit you will look at
successful entrepreneurs and work out what it is that lies behind
their success.
You will then have a chance to put your own ideas into practice,
drawing together skills and knowledge from other units. First of
all, you will come up with your own ideas for a product or
service, choose one that you think will be successful and develop
it, presenting your idea to an audience. Producing a business plan
is next: planning is a key requirement in starting a business as
not only does it help focus the idea and turn it into a reality but
without this, it is very difficult to persuade others that it is a
realistic idea.
After planning your idea you will get the opportunity to put it
into practice, documenting what happened, deciding how
successful you think it has been, and working out what lessons
you have learned from this so that next time it will be even
better.
Learning outcomes
LO.1 Know the features of entrepreneurship
LO.2 Be able to generate and develop an idea for a viable product or service
LO.3 Be able to present a business idea
LO.4 Be able to plan a business enterprise
LO.5 Be able to implement and review a business enterprise.

LO.1 Know the Entrepreneurs are people who are enterprising, that is they have
features of ideas. They take decisions and risks to make their business
entrepreneur- successful. You will need to learn about the typical
ship characteristics of an entrepreneur:
• willingness to make decisions and take risks
• being motivated, self reliant and dedicated
• awareness of changes in technology, market needs, fashion,
the competition
• creative thinking: ability to see an opportunity for a new,
different, better, or cheaper product/service
• flexibility and ability to adapt
• ability to communicate the idea to others
• organisation and planning ability.
Enterprise and entrepreneurs bring benefits in terms of:
• providing competition
• benefits for consumers
• generating wealth and employment
• setting an example to others.
LO.2 Be able to You need to know about the process of developing a business
generate and idea:
develop an • generating ideas for a product/service:
idea for a
viable product ○ looking for opportunities
or service ○ brainstorming techniques
• comparing the ideas and deciding which ideas are realistic:
○ time, money and resources available
○ your knowledge and skills
○ whether there seems to be a market for it
○ laws and regulations
○ any other obstacles will need to be overcome
• choosing the best idea and developing it:
○ what it is
○ who it is for
○ whether there is any competition. If so, what makes your
idea different/better
○ how you could you sell it.
LO.3 Be able to You need to learn about how to prepare and make a presentation
present a • what information people will need to know
business idea
• what order to put information in
• how to be positive and identify benefits
• anticipating questions you may be asked
• use of supporting materials.
Communication skills:
• use of voice, eg speed, clarity
• body language, eye contact.
LO.4 Be able to plan It has been said that a business that fails to plan is one that plans
a business to fail. You need to learn how to draw up a business start-up and
enterprise implementation plan.
Aims and objectives are designed to help an organisation achieve
its purpose and they provide staff with a focus for what they do.
You need to learn about the functions of different types of
organisation and how their aims differ:
• private sector, eg to provide goods or services, to survive, to
grow, to make a profit
• public sector, eg to provide a service to the community, to
improve service provision
• voluntary sector, eg to provide a service to a target group, to
promote a cause, to survive, to make a surplus.
You need to learn about what a business start-up and
implementation plan needs to include:
• what the business will do and its objectives, including
essential facts about the product or service
• who the target market is
• how the product/service will be promoted and sold
• human resources: who is involved; who will do what
• physical resources, eg premises, equipment, materials
• financial resources, eg start-up costs, what money will be
spent on, sources of finance (eg savings, loans)
• prices and a simple cash budget: estimated revenue and
costs.
LO.5 Be able to You need to learn about the implementation of business ideas:
implement and • putting plans into action, adapting where necessary
review a
business • creating promotional methods and materials, eg leaflets,
enterprise adverts, notices, demonstrations, door-to-door sales
• complying with relevant law and regulations
○ consumer legislation: unfair trading, sale of goods,
weights and measures
○ record keeping: financial record keeping, data protection
○ other regulations: health and safety; planning; fire
• the need to take environmental issues into account, eg
○ waste and recycling
○ energy saving
• production and the importance of monitoring: quantity,
quality, taking action to put problems right
• how to decide if the business idea has been successful, eg
against original aims and objectives, whether targets were
reached, which decisions worked well.
Teaching this unit

Delivery guidance
There are opportunities to link the delivery of this unit to others, particularly Unit 5: Marketing,
Sales and Customer Service in Business, Unit 2: Business Administration, Unit 6: Teams and
Communication in Business and Unit 4: Business Finance and Accounting, so that parts of those
units are contextualised within the enterprise that the learners are working on in this unit: so, for
example, the teamworking activity that learners carry out in Unit 6: Teams and Communication
in Business could relate to an activity connected to planning or running their business enterprise;
Unit 5: Marketing, Sales and Customer Service in Business could be linked to this unit at
several stages: learners could carry out market research on the business idea from this unit; they
could also use it to learn and then demonstrate their personal selling skills. Similarly, it would
be beneficial to link the forecasting and financial planning that is required in LO.3 to Unit 4:
Business Finance and Accounting. Finally, the planning and running of a business idea offer an
ideal context for the meetings that learners are required to organise and support in Unit 2:
Business Administration.
Delivery for LO.1
There is no consensus about what the common features of an entrepreneur: it may be best to
think of the ‘typical’ features as a rough guide rather than a rule, as there are likely to be many
counter examples, and different entrepreneurs will possess these qualities in different
proportions: in some cases, say, their persistence and expert knowledge may have played the
key role; with others it may be their adaptability and ability and creativity. The topic is probably
best contextualised by looking at examples of successful entrepreneurs. This need not just focus
on the nationally or internationally famous; there will be numerous examples of local people
who have started their own businesses, who could be invited to talk to learners about the
qualities they feel are most important, and about their own successes and how they have dealt
with setbacks. It also may be motivating for the learners themselves to suggest business people
who they would most like to focus on; it would help to consider a wide range of business fields,
which may make the similarities and differences their personal qualities more obvious. This
topic would lend itself well to learners researching and presenting what they have found in
small groups.
It is important to recognise the role of being creative and innovative in the success of new
products and services. The topic may be more accessible and fun for the learners if they can
consider their own experience of using a particular product or service: what is it that makes it so
desirable or useful to them? Or what sorts of innovation in the near future would they really like
to see? One problem is that after an idea becomes successful, the idea then seems obvious to
everyone; one reason for this is that great ideas often identify needs or desires that nobody even
realised they had. This can make it difficult to think back to what life was like before the idea
had been thought of. One way of addressing this is to take a particular sector, such as
telecommunications or electronic entertainment, and trace innovative developments over a
number of years, such as mobile phones, music storage media, games consoles, etc. It is also
important to emphasise, however, that innovation is not just about ideas that have never been
thought of before: much innovation is about small, incremental improvements, or applying
existing ideas into new contexts.
Learners need to learn about the process of generating ideas. There are different ways of
identifying opportunities, eg identifying an un-met need, or seeing what is already successful in
one situation and considering whether it can be applied in a different context. Learners need to
be taught about how to generate ideas in groups. Brainstorming is the most widely used method,
and there are different types and classifications, but it is not necessary to go into variations. It is
important that they learn that all ideas need to be recorded and that at the idea-generation stage
it is important not to pass judgements in order not to stifle creativity. Learners could practise
using brainstorming techniques in groups to solve any type of problem.
Before learners are able to develop their own ideas, they will need to have some understanding
of what makes an idea realistic and viable: the time, money and physical resources will be
critical, as will other issues such as any relevant laws, regulations and health and safety
considerations. Tutors should try to steer learners towards ideas that will work in the context of
their surroundings. It would be useful to look at examples of business ideas which looked at
face value as if they would be successful, but which proved to be flawed, for example by being
overambitious, unrealistic or failing to see the potential obstacles in the way. The process of
developing an idea could be linked to work carried out in Unit 5: Marketing, Sales and
Customer Service, particularly the marketing principles and market research.
Learners will need to be taught about the basic principles of making presentations to stimulate
interest in a business idea: the importance of structure and clarity; how software and handouts
can be used; why it is important to present an idea in a positive light; and what information
potential investors will want to know. However, it is important for tutors to be realistic: learners
at this level will not be expected to be able to provide the sorts of detailed financial and practical
information that would be expected in the real world. To prepare learners for creating a
presentation, learners could practise presenting personal information to each other in small
groups.
Learners need to understand the information that needs to go into a start-up and implementation
plan. This type of plan should contain the practical information required to put a business idea
into practice. There is no set format, and learners need not look at a variety of different formats:
the most important thing is that they understand what sorts of information are required. Real
examples (either blank or completed) might help; examples from high street banks are likely to
contain too much information, particularly in terms of financial information, and so may not be
appropriate. It would be beneficial for learners to have already studied budgets in Unit 4:
Business Finance and Accounting and marketing in Unit 5: Marketing, Sales and Customer
Service before they complete their start-up and implementation plan. However, the topics of
budgets and marketing could be dealt with briefly in isolation so that learners know enough for
the purposes of this unit; this knowledge can then be developed further and reinforced when the
other units are delivered. When it comes to quantifying demand and materials needed and
setting targets, they need to know about why it is important to estimate demand and set targets
in order to plan and make effective use of resources. The setting of prices should be linked to
the simple cash budget so that learners attempt to at least cover their costs.
Learners need to be taught about the decisions and planning that are involved in implementing a
business idea before: there is a clear overlap here with LO.4 in that many of them need to be
built into the planning but then executed during delivery. They need to know about the different
promotional methods and materials they could use and why. They also need to know why it is
important to monitor quality (particularly if they are producing anything tangible) and quantity
(production/sales) while the enterprise is running so that they can take action if required: the
actual monitoring methods are less important than the fact that some sort of monitoring needs to
take place.
As part of their learning activities, it would be worthwhile for learners to investigate how a
variety of local businesses do this, if information is available.
Learners need to be taught about the different ways in which success can be measured:
quantitative (such as profits, sales targets) and also more subjective measures such as whether
the team worked well together, lessons learned and skills developed which could be built upon
in future. It would be worthwhile to look at examples of businesses that can be judged
‘unsuccessful’ in some ways, but not in others. Moreover, the experience of running an
unsuccessful business can be very valuable as long as lessons are learned – there are many real
examples of entrepreneurs who have eventually been successful only after failure that could be
used to illustrate this point.

This unit will be assessed by a single assignment connected to developing and implementing a
business idea.
You will need to:
• Decide on an idea for a product or service and present it to potential investors. Your
presentation will include: the range of ideas thought of in your group discussions; the final
idea chosen and why; why you think it will be viable, successful and worth investing in
[LO.2, LO.3]
• Prepare a business start-up and implementation plan for your business [LO.4]
• Put the business idea into practice and then write up: what decisions were taken and any
changes made from the plan; how successful the business was and what you would do
differently next time [LO.5]; how far your team have been able to be show entrepreneurial
characteristics [LO.1].

By its nature, any business enterprise idea can be considered relevant to business, administration
and finance as long as it is for a real product or service, not a simulation. The enterprise must
have some sort a purpose: it is not enough for it to be done in order solely to satisfy the
assessment requirements; rather it must have some other purpose, eg a goal or target.
Evidence structure

outcome grid
LO.2, LO.3 B Group presentation Learner observation record,
supported by hard copies of any
slides, notes, handouts, etc
LO.4 A Start-up and implementation Written evidence: start-up plan
plan
LO.5(.2, .3) A Implementation and review of Written evidence: decisions
business idea taken, assessment of success of
business
LO.1 A Written evidence:
entrepreneurial characteristics
LO.5(.1) B Learner observation record of
learner’s contribution to the
business
Level of demand
It would be appropriate for the final ‘live’ stage of the business in LO.5 to be run over a limited
period of time (eg over a period of two to three weeks), although it could be run over a longer
period. The implementation can be a single block or spread over an extended period of time (eg
a certain number of hours every week for a term). However, centres may wish to extend this
enterprise activity over a longer period with more hours allowed. This may make particular
sense if centres are contextualising the delivery or assessment of other units within the learners’
business enterprise; in this case the enterprise activity can also make use of hours allocated to
those units.
Assessment duration
The suggested guided learning hours (GLH) needed to complete is 15 hours per learner. Centres
can structure this time as they see fit. The suggested GLH for assessment does not include time
spent implementing the business idea in LO.5. Centres should note that total class assessment
time may need to be higher to allow time for separate group presentations for LO.2/3.
Learners must be provided with full access to study all of the areas identified in the What you
specification.
For the first part of the assignment, it will be necessary for groups to collaborate to collate the
information into a single presentation. Each learner must take responsibility for presenting part
of the presentation. Learners must be awarded individual marks for their own part of the task.
Tutors must apply the relevant sections for each learner, and award marks to the individual, not
to the group. This means that is possible for one group member to score highly on their part of
the presentation while another scores less well on their part.
Although work that leads up to the creation of the assessment evidence in the second and third
parts of the assignment will be done as part of a group, the learner must produce their own
evidence for assessment: the group will jointly contribute to discussion of the business start-up
and implementation plan, but each person must write up a plan (see below Guidance for
Assessment for guidance on how this can be managed). The plan must include information about
all of the different categories listed in the What you need to learn section.
For the third part of the assignment, marks are awarded not only for the written evidence
submitted by the learners (Marking grid A) but also for the contribution made to the running of
the business, as observed by the tutor (Marking grid B). Tutors will not need to be present at all
stages, nor to observe every activity, but must take a holistic view based on what they see
throughout the process rather than, say, at the beginning or end only. When assessing the
contributions made, tutors must remember that even if the business has only limited success in
meeting its objectives, it is possible for any (or even all) individual team members to make a
significant and sustained contribution to the running of the business. One factor in determining
marks for the contribution made by the learner is the degree of support and guidance required
from the tutor. This refers to help provided by the tutor either because the learner has asked for
it or because the tutor can see that it is necessary to intervene, for example to pre-empt
problems, suggest ways forward when problems are encountered. This does not include more
general encouragement or where learners merely want reassurance that what they are planning
to do is sensible.

It would make most sense for assessment to take place in three different stages (group
presentation, start-up plan, implementation) after the relevant learning has taken place. Further
guidance about the order in which assessment activities can be carried out is contained below.
Groups should contain between 3 and 6 learners.
Although LO.1 should be taught first as a necessary introduction to the theme of business
enterprise, the assessment of this outcome comes towards the end of the unit, with the learners
relating these traits to their own experiences. Learners could consider not only entrepreneurial
characteristics they have been able to demonstrate but also those they have not.
For the first part of the assignment, learners should be encouraged to choose their business idea
as a group, but these should be checked by the tutor before learners begin work and they may
need to guide them to a suitable choice. The ideas they come up with need not be for brand new
products or services; they could be improvements or adaptations of existing ideas or simply
taking an existing idea used in one context or location to another. This does not mean that each
person has to come up with an idea, but they should make some contribution to the discussion,
eg helping to develop an idea that someone else thought of, pointing out why an idea is not
practical, etc. The idea will need to be developed into a proposition that can be presented to
potential investors. This part of the assignment could be integrated with the delivery and/or
assessment of Unit 5: Marketing, Sales and Customer Service, in particular the marketing
principles and market research. For the purposes of the presentation in Unit 1, however, learners
are not expected to have fully developed marketing plans, nor to have carried out primary
market research or full costings. For the presentation, the ‘potential investors’ should preferably
involve people external to the centre, such as a local employer. The investors could also include
centre staff and selected learners. All-learner panels should only be used as a last resort. It could
be given added purpose by being set within a scenario such as BBC’s Dragons’ Den; if so, it
would help if the panel were provided with money (real or imaginary) to invest.
For the second part of the assignment (the start-up and implementation plan), the learners can be
shown models from which to work, and pro formas could be created for them to use and
complete. As mentioned above in Instructions and controls for taking assessment assignments,
each person must complete a plan. They can continue to discuss the plan while they are writing
it up, using each other as a resource, but tutors must take care to ensure that they are not simply
copying from each other.
Having learners do the start-up and implementation plan takes place after the presentation will
allow them to make use of any feedback received at or after the presentation, which may impact
on the plan they end up producing, and so the plan they produce may be different in some ways
from the idea they have presented. If the idea does not change between presentation and
planning, learners will be able to make use of ideas and initial planning that have already taken
place during the first part of the assignment. As an alternative approach, centres could consider
having learners produce the plan before the presentation: the advantage would be that learners
might have a more clearly developed idea to present. The downside is that they would not be
able to make use of feedback received during or after the presentation, which could result in a
less well developed plan.
For assessment of the third part of the assignment, learners must actually put the idea into
practice; it is not enough for this to be a theoretical exercise. The business idea that they
implement should ideally be the same one that they have already presented and planned.
Although each learner will create their own assessment evidence, it is not necessary for each
learner to have a distinct role within their group. It is quite likely that plans will have to be
altered as soon as learners are faced with the practicalities of implementing them. If
circumstances change or unforeseen problems arise, the original plan may need to be abandoned
and a new one put into action; this does not mean that learners will have to complete another
implementation plan. Credit will be given in assessment for learners’ ability to show why they
had to make changes rather than sticking rigidly to a plan that is not working. The evidence for
their decisions taken should be in writing but it could be in any appropriate format. Notes and
diaries do not need to be submitted for assessment, only the final write up. When it comes to
judging success, at this level, learners can limit themselves to holistic judgements about the
overall success or otherwise, rather than being expected to analyse different stages and parts: the
judgement of success may be subjective or it could be linked to something quantitative, eg
whether they have achieved their sales targets. Decisions about how they measure success
should be left to the learners themselves.
Marking grid A
focus available
LO.1 The learner outlines briefly the The learner outlines the ways in The learner outlines clearly the
ways in which their team have which their team have shown ways in which their team have
Know the features
shown entrepreneurial entrepreneurial characteristics, with shown entrepreneurial
of
characteristics. examples given to support this. characteristics, with convincing
entrepreneurship
examples given to support this.
(0–2) (3–4) (5–6) 6
LO.4 A basic plan is produced, although A plan is produced. Information is A detailed plan is produced.
in several places information may be complete but may not always be Information is complete and clear.
Be able to plan a
incomplete and lack clarity. Parts clear. The plan is generally realistic The plan is realistic, which shows
business
of the plan appear realistic but which shows that that the learner has the learner has a good idea of what is
enterprise
underdeveloped, which shows that some idea of what is required. required.
the learner has a limited idea of what
is required.
(0–6) (7–10) (11–14) 14

focus available
LO.5(.2) Information is given on decisions Information is given on decisions Clear information is given on
taken when implementing the taken when implementing the decisions taken, which shows clearly
Be able to
business, but limited reference to business, which shows how the how the original plan was followed,
implement and
how the original plan was followed original plan was followed or with reasons given where it was
judge a business
or adapted. adapted. adapted.
enterprise
(0–4) (5–7) (8–10)
LO.5(.3) They judge the success of the They judge the success of the They judge the success of the
enterprise, giving limited supporting enterprise, giving some supporting enterprise, giving convincing
Be able to
evidence. They show that they can evidence. They show that they can supporting evidence. They show that
implement and
draw limited conclusions about what draw reasonable conclusions about they can draw well considered
judge a business
they have learned from their what they have learned, with ideas conclusions about what they have
enterprise
experiences. about what they could do differently learned, with justified ideas about
next time. what they could do differently next
time.
(0–4) (5–7) (8–10) 20
Total marks 40
Marking grid B
focus available
LO.2 The learner gives the presentation The learner gives the presentation The learner gives the presentation
with limited fluency. The original with some fluency. The original with good fluency. The original
Be able to
ideas thought of are listed, and the ideas thought of are listed, and ideas thought of are listed, and
generate and
chosen idea outlined in general specific information is given about specific information is given about
develop an idea terms, although it there may be the final idea agreed upon, with the final idea agreed upon, with
for a viable limited reference to viability and some reasons given for why it was reasons given that show clearly why
product or service why it was chosen. Positive and chosen which make reference to its it was chosen in terms of its
relevant features of the final idea are viability. Positive and relevant viability. Positive and relevant
identified. features of the final idea are features of the final idea are
explained. explained clearly.
LO.3 Overall, the audience may find the Overall, the audience can follow the Overall, the audience can follow the
learner’s presentation difficult to learner’s presentation of information learner’s presentation with little or
Be able to present
follow. without much difficulty. no difficulty.
a business idea
(0–4) (5–7) (8–10) 10

LO.5(.1) The learner shows some ability to The learner works with others The learner works well with others
work with others towards their goals, towards their goals, showing some towards their goals, showing a good
Be able to
showing a limited degree of degree of initiative, commitment and degree of initiative, commitment and
implement and
initiative, commitment and perseverance. Some support and perseverance. Only limited support
judge a business perseverance. Frequent support guidance is required. and guidance is required.
enterprise and guidance is required.
(0–4) (5–7) (8–10) 10
Total marks 20
Assessment guidance
marking grid B.
Level 2 descriptors
Descriptor Meaning
Complete Containing information in all main parts of the plan.
Convincing Believable, well argued.
Difficult to follow A considerable effort is required to understand what is being
said, and some parts are not clear.
General/generalised Vague, lacking specific information, details, etc.
Incomplete Missing information in at least one part of the plan.
Justify/justified Give good reasons for something.
Limited Showing basic or incomplete knowledge, evidence, ability etc.
Outline Give a summary of the main points/features.
Positive features Features that show why the idea is a good one.
Realistic Appropriate and practical.
Key features about the business idea which will affect its
Relevant features
success.
Some At least two; to a certain degree, partial.
Some support and guidance The learner makes use of the guidance and advice of the tutor,
and the tutor assists in some aspects of the work, but does not
need to direct it.
Containing only cursory information which provides no more
Underdeveloped
than on overview.
Descriptor Meaning
Well considered Showing good judgement, thoughtful.
With little or no difficulty The presentation is wholly or almost entirely clear and
requires little effort from the audience to understand what is
being said.
Without much difficulty Either: a moderate effort is required to understand what is
being said; or some parts are clear and other parts are less
clear.

of this unit.

Creative thinkers Generating ideas for a product or service [CT1]; putting their plans
into practice, adapting them as required [CT6].
Reflective learners Reflecting on what they have learned from running a business
enterprise [RL5].
Team workers Working in groups to implement their business idea [TW1].
Self-managers Working towards achieving their business goals, showing initiative
commitment and perseverance [SM2].
Effective participators Persuading prospective investors of the merits of the business idea,
presenting a case for action [EP2].
learning.

Independent enquirers Researching possible business ideas [IE2]; exploring the issues of
the benefits of entrepreneurship from the perspective of society
and the individual [IE3]; considering the influence of
circumstances, beliefs and feelings on people’s entrepreneurial
abilities [IE5].
Creative thinkers Connecting their own and others’ preliminary ideas for a product
or service to come up with an inventive idea to develop [CT3];
developing their business idea, trying out alternative approaches
[CT5].
Reflective learners Assessing themselves and others at the end of the business
implementation [RL1]; reviewing progress at the end of the
business implementation in terms of what they have achieved
[RL3]; inviting feedback from the investors to who they have
presented the business idea, dealing positively with praise and
criticism [RL4].
Team workers Reaching agreements and managing discussions to achieve results
[TW2]; showing fairness and consideration to others while
implementing the business idea [TW4].
Self-managers Preparing to implement their business idea, organising their own
time and resources [SM3]; dealing with competing pressures when
trying to organise the activities involved in putting a business idea
into practice [SM5]; responding positively to any changes that
need to be made when putting the business idea into practice,
seeking advice and support from the tutor when needed [SM6].

Effective participators Implementing their business idea, proposing practical ways
forward, breaking these down into manageable steps [EP3];
identifying ways in which the product or service they have chosen
will result in improvements for customers [EP4]; trying to
influence others in their group when discussing which business
idea to choose [EP5]; presenting a business idea to investors,
which may represent a group choice of product or service rather
than one that they personally wanted to choose [EP6].


Select, interact with and use ICT
systems independently for a complex
task to meet a variety of needs
Use ICT to effectively plan work and
evaluate the effectiveness of the ICT
system used
Manage information storage to enable
efficient retrieval
Troubleshoot
ICT — Find and select

information
Select and use a variety of sources of Researching their business idea.
information independently for a
complex task
fitness for purpose

Enter, develop and format information Creating a presentation for prospective investors.
independently to suit its meaning and
purpose, including:
• text and tables
• images
• numbers
• records
Bring together information to suit Writing their business implementation plan.
content and purpose
Present information in ways that are fit Writing their business implementation plan, presenting
for purpose and audience their business idea to prospective investors.
responsibly and effectively including
storage of messages and contact lists
Mathematics
Understand routine and non-routine
problems in a wide range of familiar
and unfamiliar contexts and situations
Identify the situation or problem and Preparing a simple cash budget.
the mathematical methods needed to
tackle it
Select and apply a range of Preparing a simple cash budget.
mathematics to find solutions
Use appropriate checking procedures
and evaluate their effectiveness at
each stage
Interpret and communicate solutions
to practical problems in familiar and
unfamiliar routine contexts and
situations
Draw conclusions and provide
mathematical justifications
English
Speaking and listening – make a range Discussing ideas for a business.
of contributions to discussions and
Presenting their business ideas to prospective investors.
make effective presentations in a wide
range of contexts Working in groups to implement their business idea.
Reading – compare, select, read and
understand texts and use them to
gather information, ideas, arguments
and opinions
Writing – write documents, including Preparing a presentation for prospective investors.
extended writing pieces,
Writing a business implementation plan.
communicating information, ideas and
opinions, effectively and persuasively
None.
Reference material
Books
Bridge S – Understanding Enterprise, Entrepreneurship and Small Business, 2nd edition
(Palgrave Macmillan, 2003) ISBN 0333984659
Burke R – Entrepreneur’s Toolkit (Burke Publishing, 2006) ISBN 0958239442
Burke R – Small Business Entrepreneur (Burke Publishing, 2006) ISBN 0958239442
Parks S – Start your Business: week by week (Prentice Hall, 2004) ISBN 0273694472
Pinson L and Jinnett J – Steps to Small Business Start Up (Kaplan Business, 2006)
ISBN 141953727X
Websites
www.businesslink.gov.uk Government site offering information and advice
on starting up and running a business
http://entrepreneurs.bankofscotland.co.uk/ Bank of Scotland’s Entrepreneur Challenge
challenge/entrepreneur_resources
www.hsbcsme.reedbusiness.co.uk Service offering resources for small business
www.nfte.co.uk Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship
www.scottberkun.com Essays on various topics, including innovation
and creativity
www.young-enterprise.org.uk Young Enterprise
LEVEL 2 UNIT 2: BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION
Unit 2: Business Administration
Level 2
Internally assessed
About this unit Business administration can offer you the opportunity to take
part in a wide range of job roles across all industries and sectors.
Whether you’re a senior manager or an office assistant you’ll be
more and more likely to need good administrative skills, so
learning and then developing these skills now will provide a firm
foundation for success in any job you decide to go into.
Good administrators need excellent personal organisation skills.
Otherwise, tasks don’t get done properly, time is wasted,
information can get lost and the business ultimately suffers. In
this unit you’ll learn why good administration is so important
and about the range of administrative tasks that businesses
depend upon. Meetings provide structure to many organisations
and supporting them is a key task: in this unit, you’ll have the
chance to practise doing this.
Part of being a good administrator is being able to communicate
with colleagues and customers effectively. If you get an email or
letter from someone that is unclear and contains lots of mistakes,
you probably won’t feel very impressed – not just with the
writer, but also with the organisation that they represent. This
unit will help you understand better what is required in different
forms of business communication.
Learning outcomes
LO.1 Know the different administrative roles and processes in business
LO.2 Understand the importance of effective administration
LO.3 Be able to communicate effectively in writing
LO.4 Be able to plan and carry out administrative work safely
LO.5 Be able to organise and support a meeting.

LO.1 Know the You need to learn about the different jobs that require good
different administration skills:
administrative • receptionist
roles and
processes in • personal assistant
business • sales or marketing assistant
• finance officer
• customer services assistant
• human resources assistant.
You need to learn about the range of different administrative
tasks that need to be undertaken in an organisation:
• dealing with visitors: receiving and welcoming visitors,
creating the right image, meeting their needs
• organising travel and accommodation
• organising and supporting meetings
• managing time: working to timescales; managing own and
other people’s diaries
• managing manual and electronic information: keeping and
updating records; storing information in folders and filing
systems in accordance with confidentiality requirements
• using telephone systems to make, receive and transfer calls
• providing information to internal and external customers
• managing routine financial transactions: processing orders,
invoices, expenses.
LO.2 Understand Effective administration is important for a number of reasons:
the importance • to ensure consistency
of effective
administration • to make effective use of time
• to provide support for managers, teams, colleagues and
departmental processes
• to provide effective service to internal and external
customers.
LO.3 Be able to You need to learn about the different methods of communication
communicate methods used in business:
effectively in • written communication: emails; presentations;
writing messages/notes; memos; business letters; agendas; minutes;
reports
• oral communication, eg telephone conversations, face-to-
face conversations and meetings.
Electronic communication has advantages and disadvantages:
• advantages: speed; convenience (sending, storage); cost;
resourcing/environmental benefits
• disadvantages: information overload; technological and
computer literacy requirements for users; risk of sending
information to the wrong person; hidden costs, eg data
storage.
The style of communication used in business can vary in terms
of how formal or informal it is. Some communication methods
are more suited to formal or informal communication, which
depends on:
• who you are communicating with, eg close colleague,
manager, customer
• what and why you are communicating, eg to give or ask for
information/opinions, to ask someone to do something, to
give instructions, to apologise, to complain.
Effective communication involves:
• choosing an appropriate method and style of communication
• using an appropriate format and accepted conventions in a
way that creates a positive impression
• knowing why you are communicating and what you want to
say
• expressing the message clearly
• making it clear what action, if any, you want the other person
to take
• entering, editing, and formatting text
• checking for accuracy, grammar and spelling, and correcting
mistakes
• managing information: using appropriate file names; saving
documents in folders for easy retrieval; saving back-up
versions.
LO.4 Be able to plan Providing administrative support involves working with other
and carry out people and to maintain good working relationships you will need
administrative to learn about ways of helping you manage your time and
work safely prioritise your work to meet deadlines:
• checking deadlines
• deciding which tasks need to be done, eg using ‘to do’ lists
• deciding what order tasks need to be done in
• estimating how long tasks will take and setting yourself time
limits
• identifying which are urgent and which are important tasks.
Working in an office involves using different office equipment:
• computers
• printers
• photocopiers
• telephones.
When you are working in an office you need to carry out work
safely in accordance with legal and organisational requirements:
• seating: positioning, adjustability and comfort
• using a monitor, mouse and keyboard: positioning and
distance
• regular breaks and exercise
• safe lifting techniques
• following instructions for using office equipment.
LO.5 Be able to In everyday business, meetings are an important communication

organise and method providing an opportunity for information to be
support a exchanged, ideas to be put forward and discussed, problems
meeting solved and decisions taken. Different types of meeting which
have different purposes:
• formal, eg annual general meeting, board meeting
• informal, eg team meetings, sales meetings
• external meetings, eg with customers, suppliers.
The administrator plays a key role in the success of meetings,
and you will need to learn about the different administrative
activities required to organise and support a meeting:
• organising meetings:
○ preparing an agenda
○ arranging a venue
○ inviting people to attend
○ arranging equipment and resources to support meeting
• supporting meetings by:
○ checking the room is set out properly and equipment is
working
○ ensuring copies of agenda and any other necessary
documentation are provided
○ taking an attendance list
○ taking accurate records of meeting
• carrying out follow-up activities:
○ preparing an accurate record of the list of attendees,
apologies for absence, action points, date of next
meeting
○ circulating record of meeting within defined timescale.
Teaching this unit

Delivery guidance
These learning outcomes are best delivered together, so that learners can appreciate the
administrative activities that typically need to happen in an organisation together with the
reasons why they are important.
Learners will need to look at real examples of administrative functions within one or more
organisation. It would be useful to use examples from both local and national organisations to
show how they differ in terms of tasks and responsibilities. For example, a large organisation
may cover a range of different administrative roles to support specialist functions such as
reception, diary management, or processing orders, whereas a smaller organisation may have
just one secretarial function to cover all the administrative needs of the organisation. Learners
can also research administrative pathways to provide an insight into career progression
opportunities. It would be useful for learners to share with each other any prior experience or
knowledge of different types of administrative roles.
At least one of the organisations that are studied must be one to which the centre has access.
This could be one chosen by the learner or with tutor guidance, and there are advantages in
selecting an organisation with a local presence as any investigations can be achieved through a
visit or a visiting speaker from the organisation. Learners need to understand the role
administration plays in contributing to the effective operation of organisations, irrespective of
the size of the organisation. This can be achieved by investigating the links between different
administrative tasks carried out for functions such as human resources, finance, production,
customer service, etc. Learners could split into groups to investigate a different admin function
in the centre, eg finance, human resources, customer services, and each group could feedback so
that the whole picture emerges (this would also minimise disruption to the administrative staff).
Learners need to develop their skills and knowledge of ways to process, store and retrieve
information. They could investigate filing systems used in the centre library and if possible, the
tutor could show examples of chronological, alphabetic and numerical systems, with exercises
provided to develop practical skills. In order to organise business travel and accommodation
learners need to be directed where to research information, such as on the internet for train
timetables, flight times, etc.
It is not intended that this unit will be used to teach word processing, but learners need to
develop skills to prepare routine business documents and are expected to be competent in basic
word-processing skills. Tutor input will be required to explain the format of letters, memos and
other standard documents. Examples of standard documentation used in business should be
shown. Learners can work in groups with each group collecting documentation for a different
purpose, for example to give or ask for information/opinions, to ask someone to do something,
to give instructions, to apologise or to complain. They could present their findings to the rest of
the group and assess the effectiveness of each of the documents in terms of the suitability for
message, recipient and type of communication.
Learners should have opportunities to practise their word processing skills using different styles
and layouts. The importance of producing a well-presented and accurate business document
needs to be stressed, as this is the professional image of the organisation. This learning outcome
lends itself well to applying the principles of experiential learning. With external
communication, in particular, planning is important, even if this only involves learners having
thought about what they want to say before they start writing. Learners should be encouraged to
review written communication before it is sent. Learners can check their own work for
grammar, punctuation and spelling and can also check each others’ work also and have the
opportunity to improve their work through rewriting. This will help them develop group skills
of communication and working with other people. Storing and retrieving documents for
amending at a future date is important and learners must be encouraged to keep copies of the
original documents.
In an office environment handwritten notes and messages are common and it is important for
learners to develop their handwriting skills. Learners could practise taking notes to pass
messages on, checking the message has been clearly understood. This will then provide tutors
with the opportunity to introduce the pros and cons of electronic communication, and raise
awareness of the growth and use of media such as blogs, personal messaging, text messaging
and email.
Learners need to be familiar with the stages of planning: where are you now, where do you wish
to be, how are you going to get there and how will you measure progress. They should be
familiar with the tools and techniques available to make effective use of their time including to-
do lists, diaries, planning charts and schedules. Learners could carry out in-tray exercises
relating to estimating time limits for a range of tasks, and case studies could help reinforce the
importance of meeting deadlines and the need to be able to respond to changing work plans and
still meet requirements through taking corrective actions.
Learners should be able to determine their own strengths and weaknesses in relation to time
management in terms of organising and planning their course work, or activities outside of their
learning programme. They can carry out a time log activity over a period of a week and analyse
the results of this to examine the most frequent reasons for reduced effectiveness in the
workplace.
Learners will need to be introduced to different types of equipment, (computers, printers,
photocopiers and telephones), learn what they are used for, and the importance of using them
safely. Relevant printing features will include the different types (laserjet, inkjet, colour, black
and white, whether they are on a network), how to load paper, how to print documents. Also,
demonstrating photocopying equipment can show the wider features (such as sorting, stapling)
that the machine offers. Learners should be aware of the kinds of problems they are likely to
experience with the equipment and how these should be dealt with. Learners need to learn how
to use telephone systems to make, receive and transfer calls. Learners could role play telephone
scenarios to practise the different communication skills needed when making and receiving calls
and projecting a positive image both of themselves and the organisation.
There are many different types of office equipment used for the administrative function, which
is why only an exemplar range is mentioned in this unit, but this could be supplemented by
more specialised equipment such as scanners and binders.
Learners need to know the importance of following procedures when using equipment, and
know the types of resource faults they are likely to experience with the equipment and how
these should be dealt with. Visits to an administrative office such as the centre’s own or a local
business would help learners investigate how the work area is organised and the types of
equipment used to support activities. The health and safety issues relating to workstations and
surrounding work area need to be highlighted, for example the factors to consider when sitting
at a computer (chair height, distance from screen, glare etc).
Providing case study material may be beneficial to learners as it could give them the opportunity
to plan for a mock meeting. Role-play scenarios would give learners the opportunity to practise
conducting meetings in class and for other learners to give feedback on the organisation of the
meeting. At all times learners should be encouraged to give constructive and positive feedback.
It would be useful to show the learners video/DVD clips of meetings’ protocol and then let them
practise recording information. The use of video clips would also provide the opportunity for
discussion. Discussion may include identifying the meeting’s key points and planning
considerations. Learners will need to be given opportunities to practise taking minutes of
meetings by recording the proceedings and then word processing the notes. Tutors can provide
examples of different formats for presenting minutes.

This unit will be assessed by a single assignment connected to business meetings,

documentation and administrative skills.
You will need to:
• Plan the activities needed for a meeting [LO.4(.1)], and then organise and support the
meeting [LO.5], creating an agenda and minutes for the meeting [LO.3] and using office
equipment safely [LO.4(.2)]
• Create other business communication [LO.3], using office equipment safely [LO.4(.2)]
• Review administrative skills required in business: identify administrative processes that
need to be carried out in an organisation and who carries them out [LO.1] and explain why
effective administration is important [LO.2].

The meetings and business communication produced must be created for a relevant purpose(s).
This could be based on the learners’ own enterprise or it could be connected to some other real
organisation. Alternatively, a case study could be used.
Evidence structure
Learning Marking grid Activity/section Evidence

outcome
LO.3(.1, .2) A Organising and supporting Written evidence: meeting
a meeting documents (agenda and
minutes)
LO.4(.1) A Written evidence: plan of
activities needed before
meeting
LO.4(.2) B Learner observation record:
use of office equipment*
LO.5 B Learner observation record:
organising, support and follow
up for a meeting
LO.3(.1, .2) A Creating other written Written evidence: (an)other
business communication business document(s)
LO.4(.2) B Learner observation record:
use of office equipment*
LO.1, LO.2 A Review Written evidence:
administrative processes and
roles; importance of effective
administration
* Only one learner observation record should be completed to cover both activities/sessions
Level of demand
Assessment duration
learner. Centres can structure this time as they see fit. Centres should note that the total class
assessment time will need to be higher to allow time for each individual to take a turn at
organising and supporting a meeting.
specification.
Learners will need to work in groups in order for the meetings to take place. Each learner must
take a turn at doing this. They must work individually to make the arrangements and to create
the meeting documentation (agenda and minutes), and record non-documentary activities in
some way, such as a diary or log.
They should work individually to create the other business document(s), which can be related to
organising the meeting or activities that happen after the meeting has finished. Each learner
must create at least one further document (in addition to any emails sent): the communication
method should be chosen by the individual or the group, not specified by the tutor.
In the course of their work, learners must be use must be required to use as a minimum the
following pieces of office equipment: computer, printer and photocopier.

The meetings will need to be held for a purpose, and could be linked together (for example in
the form of regular team/update meetings) or each meeting could have a different but related
purpose. If the assignment is based on their own enterprise, the purpose could be connected with
planning or setting up their business activities, or possibly follow-up activities after the business
has finished, for example a second, improved enterprise activity (either real or notional). The
assignment could also be based around a case study provided by the tutor, based on a scenario
created by the centre. Using a real organisation would have the advantage that the meetings can
be linked more easily to the review activity for LO.1 and LO.2.
It would make most sense for the meetings to be spread over a period of days or weeks in order
to make the assessment task of organising and supporting meetings more realistic, eg one or two
meetings per week. If that is not feasible, then the organisation and arrangement-making (but
not the meetings themselves) could be done simultaneously. To keep the assessment
manageable, it is recommended that each group contains no more than four learners.
The ‘other business communication’ could include documents that are produced for discussion
at one of the meetings, eg a draft of a letter; the tutor could, if necessary, provide the stimulus
for this, eg a series of letters from ‘customers’ that need to be replied to. Other possibilities
include presentation slides or a report which will be discussed at the meeting, or documents
created as a result of actions agreed at the meeting. If the meeting is connected to their
enterprise activities, documentation could include a business plan.
Evidence for learners’ ability to manage time effectively (LO.4, Marking grid A) comes from
their up-front planning of the activities needed, eg lists of tasks, ordering and estimated time
required. This evidence can be in any suitable format(s), but must be done in writing. Marks for
LO.5 are awarded in Marking grid B based on the tutor’s observation of learners’ ability to
organise and support the meetings, but supporting evidence will come from the documentation
produced during the course of this activity (copies of emails, agendas, minutes, etc). Tutors will
need to be present for most of the activities and must take a holistic view based on what they see
throughout the process rather than, say, at the beginning or end only. Tutors will not need to be
present for the duration of the meetings, but should see at least part of each meeting. If the tutor
is unable to judge the completeness of the meeting records as they were not there for the whole
meeting, they can check with other meeting participants. The ‘agreed timescales’ referred to in
Marking grid B could be those that are set by the centre and/or those agreed amongst the groups.
Centres can specify the essential activities required for the organising and supporting the
meeting, but learners should have some flexibility about what else needs to be done so that have
scope to make genuine decisions. It is important that the frequency of meetings is decided so
that the meeting organiser is clear about what timeframe they have to work within both for
organising/supporting the meeting and for carrying out the follow up activities. The frequency
of the meetings can either be set by the centre or (within defined parameters) by the learners.
The review, covering LO.1 and LO.2, can be presented in any appropriate written format and
must be done individually. This should be based on an organisation that the learners have
studied; if the meetings organisation has been contextualised within an organisation, then this
should be the same organisation used in the review.
Marking grid A
focus available
LO.1 The learner identifies administrative The learner identifies administrative The learner identifies administrative
roles and can briefly identify roles and can identify different roles and can clearly identify
Know the
different administrative activities that administrative activities that are different administrative activities that
different
are carried out. carried out. are carried out and what these
administrative
involve.
roles and
processes used in
business
(0–2) (3–4) (5–6) 6
LO.2 The learner states that effective The learner explains why effective The learner explains convincingly
administration is important, but administration is important, focussing why effective administration is
Understand the
shows limited awareness of why. on staff members affected. important both to staff members
importance of
affected and to the organisation as a
effective
whole.
administration
(0–2) (3–4) (5–6) 6

focus available
LO.3(.1) The types of document chosen may The types of document chosen are The types of document chosen are
not always be appropriate for their appropriate for their intended appropriate for their intended
Be able to
intended purpose. The style, content purpose. The style, content and purpose. The style, content and
communicate
and layout of the documents layout of the documents conform to layout of the documents mainly
effectively in
conform, to a limited degree, to some degree to standard document conform to standard document
writing
standard document conventions. conventions. conventions.
(0–2) (3–4) (5–6)
LO.3(.2) The message may be unclear, and The message is reasonably clear, The message is clear. There are few
there are frequent errors in use of although there may be some errors errors in the use of language and
Be able to
language, which may be intrusive. in the use of language, a few of these are not intrusive. The learner
communicate
The learner has limited success in which may be intrusive. The learner has good success in using language
effectively in
using language and tone that are has reasonable success in using and tone that are suitable for the
writing
suitable for the message, recipient or language and tone that are suitable message, recipient and type of
type of communication. for the message, recipient and type of communication, in such a way that it
the communication. would create a positive impression on
the reader.
(0–6) (7–10) (11–14) 20
LO.4(.1) There is either limited evidence of The learner shows reasonable ability The learner shows good ability to
planning the activities connected to to plan the activities connected to plan the activities connected to
Be able to plan
organising and supporting a meeting organising and supporting a meeting organising and supporting a meeting
and carry out
or learners have limited ability to in a way that makes best use of the in a way that makes best use of the
administrative
plan in a way that makes best use of time available. time available.
work safely
the time available.
(0–3) (4–6) (7–8) 8
Total marks 40
Marking grid B
focus available
LO.4(.2) The learner uses office equipment The learner uses office equipment The learner uses office equipment
safely but with some difficulties. safely with few difficulties. safely, and without difficulty.
Be able to plan
and carry out
administrative
work safely
(0–1) (2) (3) 3
LO.5 Overall, the learner shows limited Overall, the learner shows Overall, the learner shows good
organisational ability. The meeting is reasonable organisational ability. organisational ability. The meeting is
Be able to
arranged, with some relevant The meeting is arranged, with arranged, with relevant and efficient
organise and
preparations made. Some of the relevant preparations made. The preparations made. The necessary
support a meeting
necessary documentation before and necessary documentation before and documentation before and after the
after the meeting is produced and after the meeting is produced and meeting is produced and distributed
distributed. distributed to the relevant people. to the relevant people, within
agreed timescales.
(0–5) (6–8) (9–11)
Records of the meeting may be Records of the meeting are Records of the meeting are complete,
limited in terms of completeness, reasonably complete, with most key with key points recorded.
with some key points recorded points recorded.
(0–2) (3–4) (5–6) 17
Total marks 20
Assessment guidance
marking grid B.
Level 2 descriptors
Descriptor Meaning
Agreed timescales Timescales set by the centre and/or the group.
Convincing/convincingly Believable, well argued, well chosen.
Efficient/efficiently Done well and in a timely manner, and without unnecessary
effort.
A few One or two.
Few Not many.
Few errors A small number of errors in one or more of the following:
Frequent errors Numerous errors in one or more of the following: spelling,
punctuation, grammar, syntax.
Intrusive (errors) Errors that stand out prominently and interrupt the flow of the
reader.
Limited To a small and incomplete degree; showing basic or
incomplete knowledge, evidence, ability etc.
Mainly Mostly but not completely.
Relevant people The attendees of the meeting and the tutor; not people who do
not need to see the documents.
Some errors A moderate number of errors in one or more of the following:
Some To a certain degree, partial; not all.
State Assert, make a statement without evidence or explanation.

of this unit.

Self-managers Prioritising and planning the meeting tasks [SM3].
Although PLTS are identified within this unit as an inherent part of the assessment criteria,
there are further opportunities to develop a range of PLTS through various approaches to
teaching and learning.

Independent enquirers Identifying and clarifying which activities need to be completed in
order for the meeting to take place successfully [IE1]; planning
and carrying out research into administration within an
organisation [IE2]; researching the administration in an
organisation, exploring its value from the perspective of different
parts of an organisation [IE3].
Reflective learners Prioritising the administrative tasks by setting goals for what they
need to do before the meeting takes place and afterwards [RL2];
reviewing progress after the meeting has taken place [RL3];
inviting feedback after the meeting from other participants on how
well they have done [RL4]; evaluating their administrative skills
after the reception and business travel tasks [RL5].
Team workers Carrying out the administrative tasks to support the meeting,
collaborating with others [TW1]; adapting their behaviour
depending on whether they are participating in, or supporting, a
meeting [TW3]; taking responsibility for organising the meeting
and ensuring it take place [TW5]; providing feedback to others on
how well they organised and supported the meeting [TW6].
Self-managers Showing flexibility when performing reception duties by
responding as circumstances change [SM1]; showing commitment
and perseverance in organising and supporting the meeting [SM2];
dealing with competing pressures while carrying out
administrative tasks [SM5].
Effective participators Proposing practical ways forward when organising the meeting,
breaking down the necessary stages into manageable steps [EP3].


Use ICT to effectively plan work and Using electronic diary systems for planning work.
system used
Manage information storage to enable Using electronic information management systems while
efficient retrieval organising business travel and accommodation.
Follow and understand the need for Using office equipment and systems in a safe and secure
safety and security practices manner.
Troubleshoot

information
Select and use a variety of sources of Researching different business roles that require
information independently for a administrative skills.
complex task
Access, search for, select and use ICT- Using folders to store and retrieve email messages and
based information and evaluate its documents.
fitness for purpose

Enter, develop and format information
purpose, including:
• text and tables
• images
• numbers
• records
Bring together information to suit Researching business roles that require administrative
content and purpose skills.
Present information in ways that are fit Researching business roles that require administrative
for purpose and audience skills.
Evaluate the selection and application
of ICT tools and facilities used to
present information
Select and use ICT to communicate Using electronic diary systems and emails while
and exchange information safely, planning and prioritising tasks and while organising and
responsibly and effectively including supporting a meeting.
Mathematics
Identify the situation or problem and
tackle it
Select and apply a range of
each stage
situations
English
Speaking and listening – make a range Taking part in meetings.
Organising business travel and accommodation.
range of contexts
and opinions
Writing – write documents, including Preparing meetings documentation.
Work experience
Work experience connected to this unit would useful, especially in relation to using office
equipment.
Centres must have access to a range of office equipment and systems for learners to practise and
develop their administrative skills, which may be in the form of a model office comprising a
desk, computer, printer, telephone. However, centres do not need the more specialist types of
equipment eg scanners, binders etc, which may be available in the centre’s admin office or
through a visit to a local business.
Reference material
Books
Burton S – Office Procedures for the 21st Century and Student Workbook, 7th Edition
(Prentice Hall, 2007) ISBN 0132343436
Carysforth C – NVQ Level 2 Business and Administration – Student Handbook
(Heinemann, 2006) ISBN 0435463330
Fleming I – Time Management (Management Pocketbooks, 2003) ISBN 1903776082
Foster P – Business Administration Level 2 (Pearson Education, 1999) ISBN 0582368642
Gutman J – Taking Minutes at Meetings (Kogan Page, 2004) ISBN 074943564
Websites
www.cfa.uk.com The Council for Administration
www.hse.gov.uk Health and Safety Executive: information on health and safety
rights and responsibilities
Unit 3: Personal Finance and Financial Services
Level 2
Externally assessed
About this unit ‘Money is only a tool. It will take you wherever you wish but it
will not replace you as the driver’ – Ayn Rand, writer.
Personal finances need to be managed. Some people can afford
to employ their own accountant to take care of their finances, but
most people need to know how to do this for themselves.
In this unit you will learn about different types of money and the
factors that affect personal financial planning. To manage money
efficiently you will need to obtain advice and information, and so
you will also study ‘financial services’, which include the main
local and national sources of financial advice. You will learn
how such advice can help you take appropriate financial
decisions. You will also construct personal budgets, which will
help you plan your future income and expenses, and explore how
and why different people have different views about money.
You’ll be introduced to the main types of financial products and
services, and who provides them. The knowledge you gain will
help you to make appropriate decisions when deciding to spend,
save or borrow, to ensure you balance the risks you will face
with the rewards that you will receive.
Learning outcomes
LO.1 Know the main types, features and sources of money
LO.2 Understand how sources of financial information and advice differ
LO.3 Know how to plan and manage personal finances
LO.4 Understand the main features of common financial products and services.

LO.1 Know the main People and businesses earn, spend and deal with money. If
types, features people are to handle money appropriately, they need to
and sources of understand what it is. You need to learn about the:
money • concept of money: whatever can be used in order to settle
payments; the whole and its parts (eg £1 = 100p); concept of
‘legal tender’
• types of money and ‘near money’: cash and its properties
(portable but durable); cheques; debit cards and credit cards;
credit; other types (loyalty cards, vouchers, travellers’
cheques, e-money, season and other prepaid tickets, savings
stamps)
• key features of money: cash (watermark, metallic strip,
signature, other security features, right to refuse damaged/old
notes); cheques (how used, relationship to current account);
credit cards (how used, length of credit, statement and
payment); debit cards (contrast with credit cards as a method
of purchase, role in relation to personal accounts); store and
other forms of credit (types, availability, how accessed,
typical costs)
• sources of money: banks and other lenders; state benefits;
personal sources (earned income, inheritance, selling,
borrowing and using savings).
LO.2 Understand People use different sources of information according to the
how sources of financial advice they need:
financial • Citizens Advice Bureau (free financial information and
information advice)
and advice
differ • banks and building societies (advice on own products and
services)
• independent financial advisors
• debt counsellors and Individual Voluntary Arrangements
(advice and agreements on how to repay large debts) and
bankruptcy
• Department for Work and Pensions (advice on benefits and
entitlements)
• publications, telephone and internet sources: eg Which?,
National Debtline, www.moneyfacts.co.uk,
www.moneyexpert.com
• HM Revenue and Customs (advice on personal taxes)
• Financial Services Authority (advice to help consumers get a
fair deal through the ‘Money made clear’ website).
People have to decide whether such advice is suitable for them.
To do so, they need to consider factors such as:
• advice published or online: the objectivity, quality and
degree of detail of the advice.
LO.3 Know how to Going into debt is one risk associated with personal finance.
plan and People must be able to plan financially, including taking into
manage account their income and basic tax liability. You will need to
personal learn about:
finances • the benefits of planning personal expenditure: to avoid
getting into debt; to control costs; to avoid legal action
and/or repossession; to maintain a good credit rating
• personal budgets (with regular and irregular income and
expenditure), their construction and key elements: recording
personal income and expenditure in an expenditure diary and
using financial records such as monthly bills; handling
budget surpluses and budget shortfalls, and having a simple
contingency plan
• taxes: types – indirect and direct; current rates of personal
taxes (income tax and national insurance); why governments
levy personal taxes and how tax income may be used; the
payslip with PAYE and other deductions and tax codes.
You need to learn about the different factors that affect ways that
personal finances are managed:
• personal circumstances: age, employment status, personal
responsibilities, existing and expected financial
commitments
• personal and cultural attitudes: personal consumer behaviour,
eg necessities versus luxuries, ‘pay for the name’ or ‘value
for money’; personal attitudes towards risk and reward and
influence on borrowing, spending and saving; ethical beliefs,
eg ethical investments, ethical banking; cultural factors, eg
religious views on interest
• storing versus saving money: at home; in a bank or building
society; investing in property/valuables/other products;
influences on choice (safety/security, access, incentives
offered, availability of information).
LO.4 Understand More and more people now use businesses such as high street
the main banks and building societies to help them keep and control their
features of money. These businesses offer many financial services to the
common public. You will need to learn about:
financial • current and savings accounts: opening and managing;
products and features, rewards and benefits; types of savings accounts and
services interest rates; calculations of interest and borrowing charges;
paying and/or withdrawing money (at the counter; use of
direct debits, standing orders and Bacs; use of ATMs and pin
numbers; telephone/internet/postal banking)
• rewards and risks associated with using the main providers
of financial products and services (banks and building
societies; mortgage specialists; retailers, eg store cards,
personal loans)
• judging risk and probability of loss against likelihood of
reward for common financial products, eg premium bonds,
fixed/variable/tiered interest rates, non-interest based
investments such as Stock Exchange, property and
‘valuables’
• obtaining foreign currency: dominant currencies (Euro, US
dollar, symbols and denominations); key phrases eg
‘cambio’ and ‘bureau de change’, exchange rates and their
effects; ways to obtain foreign currency and related costs, eg
commission; calculating costs and amounts.
Teaching this unit

Delivery guidance
The purpose of this unit is to allow learners to develop their knowledge and understanding of
personal finance and the main financial services that will influence them. Although all learners
will be using money in their everyday lives, they will need to understand what ‘money’ is:
money as a concept, its types or forms, its purpose and sources. Learners will be taught the main
factors that affect personal financial planning, and be introduced to the main sources of
information available to them at home, in their local area and nationally.
They will learn the importance of planning finances (budgeting) in order to help them plan their
future financial needs. Most learners will have experience of banks and/or building societies (for
example, by using a current or savings account) or will need to use them in the near future. As a
result, they will need to be taught about the nature, purposes and differences relating to such
accounts, how they are selected, opened and managed, their associated costs and benefits, and
the other financial products and services that may be important to them in the future. Learners
will also study the basic ways that fraud and theft can be avoided both personally and
organisationally.
Learners will have experience of money in their everyday lives. To achieve this learning
outcome they will need to (accepting the inevitable constraints of confidentiality) focus on their
own experiences of earning, spending and saving money, and to reflect on their present
understanding of what money is and the characteristics that it has. Although there is a focus on
personal finance, it may be beneficial also to consider their experience of how organisations
with which they are familiar are affected by financial matters, such as selling goods, paying
wages and salaries, and expansion through undertaking capital expenditure. There are potential
links here to the Business Enterprise, Business Finance and Accounting, and Marketing, Sales
and Customer Service in Business units. The wider their research, the broader their
understanding will be. Actual case studies of individuals, families and known local and national
organisations will enable learners to relate their learning to their everyday experiences, to
appreciate that different features and sources of money vary according to circumstances, to
discuss their findings and to appreciate the extent to which individual financial circumstances
and needs differ.
Learners will need to be introduced to the different sources of information available to

individuals, such as banks, building societies, publications and web-based sources. Visits to, or
guest speakers from, these financial organisations will allow learners to experience the realities
of financial advice. Group work and presentations – for example, where different groups present
their findings on different sources – are likely to be valuable techniques to use. Research using
the internet and paper-based publications is also appropriate: see ‘Reference material’ at the end
of this unit. There are substantial opportunities here for developing communication (in
particular, listening and reading) and teamwork skills and for promoting the use of ICT, and
developing the skills of reflection and analysis because the learners are asked to decide the
degree of appropriateness of information obtained.
All learners will in practice ‘budget’, even though they may not be familiar with the term.
Learners can use their own experience of planning as a basis to reflect on the importance of
personal financial planning in terms of, for example, avoiding getting into debt. Figures can be
used to good effect by allowing learners to experience situations involving spending, saving and
borrowing – in particular, those that lead to debts being created – and the related financial
effect, so there will be opportunity both here and in budget construction to develop number-
based skills. Many learners will have part-time jobs, and others may aspire to become employed
part-time: as a result, the information used should be linked with the realities of paying tax and
receiving net payments, by for example considering the main types of pay and the typical
contents of a simple payslip. Learners should be introduced to a reasonably formal budget
construction and layout – for example, headings of ‘Inflow’ ‘Outflow’ (or ‘Receipts’ and
‘Payments’), ‘Net inflow/outflow’ and ‘Balance’. It is important for the learners to be able to
draw conclusions, based on their calculations, concerning both deficits and surpluses, the latter
acting as a good link to the later consideration of savings as well as to Unit 1: Business
Enterprise.
Decisions on financial services are influenced by the concepts of risk and reward, as well as by
factors such as personal circumstances, ethics and culture. A discussion-based or case-study
approach will be appropriate here to encourage personal views to be considered, discussed and
shared.
Many learners will know banks and building societies from personal experience, but this
experience will need to be strengthened and broadened by investigating a range of these
organisations and additional providers of financial services, and the financial products they all
offer. Even if learners already have relevant accounts, they should go through the experience of
comparing and selecting from a range of actual products, and then completing real paperwork
(which is usually readily available, for example in bank and building society literature).
Decision-making skills can be developed effectively through, for example, comparing the
features of different accounts. There will be a number of opportunities for promoting ICT
through research into the financial institutions’ products, and to develop teamwork and
communication skills.
All learners will be familiar with the importance of taking care of their cash, but they are likely
to be less conversant with wider issues of fraud and theft. Existing experience of, for example,
part-time retail employment and how the organisation controls theft and fraud can probably be
discussed to good effect, and a visiting speaker from (say) a bank will act as a suitable
information source.
Many learners may also have actual experience of foreign holidays, and therefore of using
foreign currency. This experience can be used, together with appropriate case studies and/or for
example websites dealing with overseas flight and hotels, to provide a meaningful personal
experience for the learners.
The consequences of borrowing could be considered within this learning outcome in order to
more fully contextualise the main features of financial products. One suitable approach is to
outline existing borrowers’ terms, conditions and costs, and use this information to explore the
consequences of undertaking a major (but realistic) first capital purchase such as a car.

outcome
LO.1 Know the main types, features 1.1 Identify the types, features and sources of
and sources of money money in everyday situations
LO.2 Understand how sources of 2.1 Compare different sources of financial
financial information and advice information and advice
differ
LO.3 Know how to plan and manage 3.1 Outline benefits of planning personal
personal finances expenditure
3.2 Construct personal budgets that take
account of personal remuneration
3.3 Identify the purpose, types and current
rates of personal taxes
3.4 Identify factors that influence attitudes to
risk and reward
LO.4 Understand the main features of 4.1 Describe ways of managing current and
common financial products and savings accounts, taking account of costs,
services charges and benefits
4.2 Assess the risks and rewards associated
with different types and providers of
financial products and services
4.3 Choose between different sources of
foreign currency based on exchange rates
and related costs

This unit will be assessed by an examination lasting one hour, containing a range of questions.
The mark you achieve for this examination will be your mark for the unit.

LO.1 Know the main types, features and 10–20%
sources of money
LO.2 Understand how sources of financial 2–10%

information and advice differ
LO.3 Know how to plan and manage 30–40%

personal finances
LO.4 Understand the main features of 30–40%

common financial products and
services
elements.)

Independent Exploring debt from the point of view of the consumer of the
enquirers financial institution [IE3]; analysing and evaluating sources of
financial advice available, judging their relevance and value [IE4];
considering the influence of cultural background on attitudes to
debt [IE5].
Creative thinkers Considering the merits of different products/services in a given
situation [CT5].
Reflective learners Reviewing their own progress in becoming more financially aware
[RL3]; evaluating their existing financial experience to inform
their learning [RL5].
Self-managers Organising time and resources when constructing personal budgets
[SM3]; anticipating and managing risks when constructing
personal budgets by building in contingencies [SM4].
Effective participators Discussing issues of concern such as debt management [EP1];
proposing practical ways forward when planning expenditure,
breaking these down into manageable steps [EP3].


Select, interact with and use ICT Researching into financial organisations, products and
systems independently for a complex services.
Use ICT to effectively plan work and Preparing spreadsheet budgets.
system used
Manage information storage to enable Saving and retrieving text-based and numerical (eg
efficient retrieval budget) information.
Follow and understand the need for Exploring issues relating to electronic fraud and theft;
safety and security practices undertake safe practice when using internet and other
relevant software/hardware.
Troubleshoot

information
Select and use a variety of sources of Researching into (eg) internet-based financial
information independently for a organisations, products and services.
complex task
Access, search for, select and use ICT- Researching into financial organisations, products and
based information and evaluate its services, eg exchange rates, for the purposes of
fitness for purpose spending, saving and borrowing money.

Enter, develop and format information Constructing budgets; constructing exchange rate tables;
independently to suit its meaning and creating records of financial products and services.
purpose, including:
• text and tables
• images
• numbers
• records
Bring together information to suit Bringing together cash inflows and outflows; creating
content and purpose records of financial products and services.
Present information in ways that are fit Presenting individual budgets.
present information

Select and use ICT to communicate Obtaining web-based information about financial
and exchange information safely, products and services.
Mathematics
Understand routine and non-routine Dealing with budgeted figures; calculating interest and
problems in a wide range of familiar borrowing amounts; calculating commission on foreign
and unfamiliar contexts and situations exchange; interpreting simple taxation information.
Identify the situation or problem and Obtaining budgeted information from existing spending
the mathematical methods needed to and income statements; selecting relevant interest,
tackle it commission and taxation percentages.
Select and apply a range of Constructing budgets; calculating interest, commission
mathematics to find solutions and borrowing amounts and costs.
Use appropriate checking procedures Totalling budget columns and rows and cross-checking;
and evaluate their effectiveness at checking the logic of interest, commission and
each stage borrowing calculations.
Interpret and communicate solutions Interpreting budgeted, interest, commission and
to practical problems in familiar and borrowing results.
situations
Draw conclusions and provide Using interest, commission and borrowing calculations
mathematical justifications to justify decisions budgeted, interest, commission and
borrowing results
English
Speaking and listening – make a range Discussing and exchanging information about financial
of contributions to discussions and organisations, products and services; discussing
make effective presentations in a wide informally results of research with fellow learners
range of contexts concerning issues such as differing personal and cultural
views of money.
Reading – compare, select, read and Reading and understanding literature from financial
understand texts and use them to organisations.
and opinions
Writing – write documents, including Completing documents relating to financial products and
extended writing pieces, services; creating budget statements.
None.
Reference material
Book
Lowe J – Personal Finance Handbook, 2nd edition (Child Poverty Action Group, 2007)
ISBN 1906076014
Other resources
Money-go-round CD ROM Basic Skills Agency
Money power CD ROM Basic Skills Agency
Moneytalk CD ROM Basic Skills Agency
National Debtline factsheets (downloadable) National Debtline
Websites
www.adviceonline.co.uk Advice Online: independent financial advice
www.astute-investor.co.uk Astute Investor
www.firsttrustbank.co.uk First Trust Bank (personal finance)
www.fool.co.uk The Motley Fool: financial advice and
information
www.ft.com/yourmoney Financial Times
www.getsafeonline.org Get Safe Online: government-sponsored site
www.home.co.uk/finance Home.co.uk: information about financial
products
www.moneymadeclear.fsa.gov.uk Financial Services Authority
www.moneysavingexpert.com Martin Lewis
www.moneyfacts.co.uk Moneyfacts Group
www.nationaldebtline.co.uk National Debtline
www.pfeg.org Educational charity
www.uk250.co.uk/Bank/index.html UK bank websites
www.unbiased.co.uk Independent Financial Advice Promotion Ltd
LEVEL 2 UNIT 4: BUSINESS FINANCE AND ACCOUNTING
Unit 4: Business Finance and Accounting
Level 2
Internally assessed
About this unit Finance is important to us, and also to organisations. They need
to record money received and paid, control their costs, buy
equipment and other items, and to deal efficiently with all
finances. Businesses use accounting to help them carry out these
tasks.
In this unit you will discover that differences exist between our
personal finance and the finance of business. You will learn
about jobs in finance and accounting, the sources of finance
available to businesses, the importance of recording financial
transactions accurately and efficiently.
It is important for a business to try to forecast what is going to
happen in the future and then to set targets. One technique used
is to construct budgets. You will learn about the purpose and
types of budgets, and explore the techniques used to construct
them.
This unit will show you how business people calculate key
figures and construct financial reports. You will learn how
computerised accounting systems and other ICT software is used
to construct these reports and to help make financial decisions.
Learning outcomes
LO.1 Know the nature of business finance and accounting
LO.2 Be able to budget for a product or service
LO.3 Be able to manage transactions
LO.4 Be able to report on financial performance.

LO.1 Know the No one can set up or run a business without adequate finance.
nature of Finance plays a key role in business, and is the foundation for the
business accounting function. You will need to learn about:
finance and • finance and accounting-related jobs, eg director of finance,
accounting cashier, finance clerk, financial accountant, management
accountant, accounts clerk
• roles carried out in finance and accounting: obtaining and
managing finance; recording, analysing and communicating
financial information as an aid to managing a business.
Businesses use financial information for different purposes:
• purposes: forecasting; financial reporting; to interpret
profitability and liquidity; to meet legal requirements; to help
save costs; for investment.
LO.2 Be able to In order to be successful, finances need to be planned. You need
budget for a to learn about:
product or • calculating the cost of a product or service: direct costs, eg
service raw materials, related labour costs; indirect costs/overheads,
eg rent and rates
• the purpose of budgeting: to plan, control, motivate
• types of budget: sales, production, materials, labour,
overheads; creation of master budget
• budgeting techniques: preparing budgets; variances and
reasons for, eg overtime, absenteeism, wastage, price
changes.
As part of their budgeting, business draw on different sources of
business finance, which can originate either from inside the
business or from outside. You will need to learn about:
• internal sources of business finance: trading income; profits;
sale of assets; share or other capital from the owner(s)
• external sources of business finance: borrowing; trade credit;
debt factoring and invoice discounting; hire purchase and
leasing; grants and subsidies; venture capital.
LO.3 Be able to A key role in business finance and accounting is to record

manage financial information and then use it to create documents and
transactions records that are accurate and complete. You need to learn about:
• financial transactions: the types of financial transactions in
business; the role of financial documents in the sequence of
recording and paying for goods and services
• creating accurate financial documents: invoices, receipts;
trade and cash (settlement) discount; standard VAT and its
calculation
• recording business transactions in the cash book:
components (sales and other receipts, eg capital introduced,
long-term loans, rent received; payments, eg to suppliers,
overheads and other expenses, loan repayments, purchase of
fixed assets; opening balance, closing balance); construction
of columnar cash books.
Although some businesses produce financial documents and
business reports by hand, many others use computerised
accounting systems and other ICT software to automate some or
all parts of this process:
• manual and electronic methods for recording and processing
financial information efficiently: accounting software;
spreadsheets that record costs and revenues, cash receipts
and payments, income statements and balance; advantages
and disadvantages of electronic methods compared with
manual methods.
LO.4 Be able to Businesses need to be able to review financial performance over
report on time and take corrective action if necessary. You need to learn
financial about:
performance • constructing financial reports: profit and loss
statement/income statement; balance sheet
• factors that need to taken into account: layout; corporation
tax.
Teaching this unit

Delivery guidance
The purpose of this unit is to introduce business finance and give an understanding of the role of
accounting in business. Learners will explore key roles within business finance and accounting,
the main documents and processes used by business and the range of uses to financial
information is put. This will equip learners with skills needed to record simple business
transactions, perform simple business calculations and prepare financial documents and basic
financial reports.
There will be opportunities to use real financial information. Although much of this information
remains confidential, there are sources: for instance, published financial statements (which
sometimes appear in an abbreviated simplified form, or which can be simplified). Although
learners will meet key accounting and financial terms, concepts and ideas in the unit, the
purpose is not to train them as accountants and therefore the ‘language’ of accounting needs to
be introduced with that in mind.
Accounting and finance involve communication and administrative skills, which link to the
units in Unit 6: Teams and Communication in Business and Unit 2: Business Administration.
There are very close links with Unit 1: Business Enterprise, in which learners need to persuade
potential investors of the merits of a business idea. Delivery of this unit should be made in such
a way as to acknowledge fully, and to utilise, the knowledge and understanding gained by
learners from their study of the Business Enterprise unit. Wherever possible, therefore, this unit
should be delivered in the context of Business Enterprise.
It is important to note that if the assignment will make use of the learner’s own business
enterprise, then during the teaching of the unit, where learners are practising financial plans,
reports, etc, different examples are used.
This learning outcome acts partly as a theoretical basis for the other learning outcomes. It
introduces learners to actual work roles in finance and accounting, and therefore the use of
outside speakers (possibly from their own centre, such as a finance officer) is a suitable
approach. Learners should discuss their own experiences of the influence of finance on
organisations, for example through selling goods and paying staff.
The learners’ centre, in terms of its financial and economic environment, might act as one
suitable source for study. The centre can be used effectively in delivering the learning outcome,
since there is likely to be easy access to non-confidential financial information such as the main
accounting and finance-based roles.
This learning outcome requires understanding of how businesses use financial information.
Because of the variety of this information, using a range of businesses will give an overview of
the use of information when forecasting and planning, reporting, meeting legal requirements,
investing and cost saving. Individual or group research and presentations are effective methods
for this.
This outcome introduces learners to simple business budgets and the main sources of finance.
They will need to learn how to categorise costs as either direct or indirect. To do so, specific
products or services should be used, and the product or service from Unit 1: Business Enterprise
can act as a key source for learning here. External influences on product costs, such as VAT,
should be considered and accounted for in the calculations.
Learners will have some personal experience of budgeting, and this is a logical starting-point for
the topic of budgeting. The purpose of budgeting can therefore easily be established through
(for example) class discussion, and then placed firmly in a business context by providing an
overview of the likely or actual budgets operated by the learners’ centre. In order to meet a full
range of budgets, learners should explore a range of businesses to discover how budgets vary in
nature, coverage and complexity.
Learners need to consider how differences that exist in organisational structures and
environments create different financial needs and situations. As a result, they should study a
range of different businesses, for example, own centre (tertiary), large multinational
(secondary), local council (tertiary), garden centre (primary/tertiary), local sole trader electrician
or plumber (tertiary) in order to illustrate the key internal and external sources of finance and
why these vary from business type to business type. It can be beneficial for learners to be set
either individual or small group research tasks into a business’s sources of finance and to
present findings to the whole class, giving the opportunity to further develop communication
and ICT skills.
This outcome requires learners to consider financial transactions and documents. This should be
taught bearing in mind the practical nature of this unit, and the requirement to prepare a simple
invoice and receipt for this learning outcome. There are several issues for learners to consider:
the purpose and content of each document; the extent to which the layout and content of a
document can vary (and why); the importance of accuracy in words and figures, and the
associated calculations; and requirements for completion. Real business documents should be
used wherever possible, to illustrate these issues. There will be scope for learners to work as a
team in identifying and selecting relevant documents.
This learning outcome requires learners to create simple (but accurate) financial documents.
There is likely to be some existing knowledge of invoices and receipts from work experience,
and close links exist with Unit 5: Marketing and Sales in Business given the importance of
documents when selling. One possible delivery method is to set up small groups acting as
various businesses, the groups trading with each other and controlling their own documents. The
importance of accuracy in calculation needs to be reinforced, and can be supported by
discussions concerning the extent to which errors in documents affect the future of a business.
Learners also have to learn how to record transactions in a cash book. This should be columnar,
and learners therefore need to consider the influence of settlement/cash discount (allowed and
received) and VAT. Learners should also be made aware of the range of cash receipts and
payments – capital and revenue income and expenditure – and balancing techniques.
For learners’ cash books and own documents, appropriate software such as Word, Excel or
equivalents should be available. Group or teamwork on specific software is an effective learning
method, because it will encourage discussion and review.
This learning outcome requires the construction of income statements and balance sheets. The
use of actual business examples (simplified where necessary) will benefit learners by for
example illustrating the differences in layout and content, and influences such as taxation on
amounts and layout.
Learners must understand the difference between ‘liquidity’ and ‘profitability’, profit and
profitability, and cash and liquidity. These key features of any successful business link well with
Unit 1: Business Enterprise and also Unit 5: Marketing, Sales and Customer Service in
Business, for example when exploring the relationship between size of profit margin, price,
market segment and advertising. Although they are not required to calculate ratios, it is
suggested that an introduction to current and acid test, net profit margin and return on capital
employed, will help learners more fully understand and more easily interpret given information.
It also provides the opportunity to develop further ICT skills, by, for example, using spreadsheet
calculations.

This unit is assessed by an assignment based around a new product or service that a business
wants to start selling. The business you use could be your own business enterprise, or a case
study based on a real or imaginary business. You will need to discuss this with your tutor, who
will – if your assignment is not based on a real business – provide you with the data you need.
You will need to:
• Plan for the selling of a new product or service. This will involve: calculating the cost of the
product/service; identifying two relevant internal and two relevant external sources of
finance that the business could use; preparing a simple cash or other type of budget [LO.2];
choosing a manual or electronic method for processing and storing financial information,
giving your reasons [LO.3(.1)]; identifying the different finance/accounting jobs that the
business will need and describing what roles they perform [LO.1(.1)]
• Manage transactions. This will involve: preparing an invoice and receipt; and recording
transactions in a columnar cash book [LO.3(.2, .3)]
• Report on financial performance. This will involve: creating a balance sheet and either an
income statement or profit and loss statement; commenting upon financial performance,
making any necessary recommendations [LO.4]; identifying how this information on
financial performance could be useful to the business [LO.1(.2)].

The three parts must be linked together so that the financial report is based on the plan and
transactions. Any type of business and any type of product or service could provide learners
with a sector-relevant purpose. Ideally, the product or service on which the assignment is based
will relate to the learners’ own business enterprise or some other real business. Alternatively a
case study could be used. See Guidance for assessment below for further information.
Evidence structure

outcome grid
LO.2 A Financial plan Written evidence: cost calculations,
sources of finance, budget
LO.3(.1) A Written evidence: method of
processing/storing information
LO.1(.1) A Written evidence:
finance/accounting roles
LO.3(.2, .3) A Transactions Written evidence: cash book,
invoice, receipt
LO.4 A Financial report Written evidence: balance sheet;
income statement or profit and loss
statement; comments and
recommendations
LO.1(.2) A Written evidence: uses of financial
information
Level of demand
Assessment duration
The suggested guided learning hours (GLH) required to complete this assignment is 12 hours
per learner. Centres can structure this time as they see fit.
Any financial data provided to learners on which they base their calculations, budgets, etc, must
be included with their assignment.
specification.
All assessment evidence must be produced individually. More than one learner may, however,
work on the same business, and if this is the case, can work together at the preparatory stages,
for example deciding what information to put into the budget.
The learners must demonstrate accurate and appropriate calculations in context. This means that
the selected product or service, and budget, should be of sufficient complexity to allow an
appropriate range of business-influenced calculations to take place. The learner will therefore
need to identify, quantify and use all key financial information in relevant categories (for
example, direct and indirect costs for the product cost exercise), consider how these costs and
other financial information impinges on and affects the calculations, and indicate clearly that
financial information which has been excluded from the calculations together with the reasons
for the exclusion.

Assessment can take place in three different stages (financial plan, transactions, financial report)
after the relevant learning has taken place. Alternatively all of the assessment can all take place
at the end of the unit.
There are three main parts to the assignment: the plan; the transactions; and the report on
financial performance. The different parts of the assignment could be done in a single format, or
different parts could be broken into different stages and could be done in different ways, for
example paper-based documents for the first and second parts, with presentation slides and
notes for the third part. If a presentation is done for any part of the assignment, for moderation
purposes, it is important to note that the written evidence created (slides, notes, etc) must by
itself provide sufficient evidence of the learner’s knowledge and understanding; oral
communication/presentation skills are not assessed in this unit.
The business on which this assignment is based could be their own business enterprise or it
could be a case study based on a real or imaginary business; if it is a simulation, then the data
for recording and financial reporting will have to be provided to learners along with the case
study. If the assignment is based on their own business enterprise and assessment takes place
before any transactions can take place, then the second and third parts could be based on
simulated information provided by the tutor.
The business chosen could be a real business, such as a local employer who is thinking of
selling a new product or service and has commissioned learners to produce a financial plan in
order to decide whether to go ahead with the product or service.
For the first part of the assignment, it should be emphasised that learners need to both calculate
costs and identify sources that are relevant to the particular business. The same principle of
relevance should also apply to selection and construction of the budget: for example, whilst a
cash budget is likely to be one of the most important and relevant budgets for any business,
other budgets (such as capital expenditure, production, labour cost) will feature for some
business situations only. When giving a choice of recording method, learners should concentrate
on a method that can be used for one recording or processing function, eg cost recording.
Stronger learners will be able to give some justification in terms of advantages or disadvantages
which make reference to the alternatives. The accounting/finance roles that they need to identify
will be both those involved in managing transactions and in reviewing performance.
For the second part of the assignment, learners should take care when creating an invoice to take
account of VAT. The documents will need to contain real (or, if necessary, realistic) financial
information.
For the third part of the assignment, the choice of profit and loss account or alternative income
statement will depend on the type of business. If it is a limited company, then it should include
corporation tax. The recommendations will depend on the performance: if a product/service has
proved to be profitable, the recommendations will be different from those that might be made if
this has not been the case. The report should explore the actual or potential use of this financial
information from key business perspectives such as decision-making regarding factors such as
the need for further investment or the review of business liquidity.
Marking grid A
focus available
LO.1(.1) In the financial plan, the learner In the financial plan, the learner In the financial plan, the learner
states finance and accounting jobs identifies finance and accounting identifies finance and accounting
Know the nature
that the chosen business might need. jobs the chosen business needs, and jobs the chosen business needs, and
of business finance
describes briefly the roles describes fully and accurately the
and accounting
performed by these jobs. roles performed by these jobs.
(0–2) (3–4) (5–6)
LO.1(.2) In the financial report, the learner In the financial report, the learner In the financial report, the learner
describes briefly and in general describes the specific uses of describes clearly the specific uses
Know the nature
terms the uses of financial information, showing reasonable of financial information, showing a
of business finance
information in the chosen business, understanding of its uses. good understanding of its uses.
and accounting
showing limited understanding of
its uses.
(0–2) (3–4) (5–6) 12
LO.2(.1, .2) In the financial plan, the learner In the financial plan the learner In the financial plan the learner
calculates the cost of a product or calculates the cost of a product or calculates the cost of a product or
Be able to budget
service to a limited level of service to a moderate level of service to a high level of accuracy
for a product or
accuracy and completeness. Major accuracy and completeness. and completeness. Relevant major
service
sources of possible finance are Mostly relevant major sources of sources of possible finance are
identified. possible finance are identified and identified and classified accurately
classified accurately as internal or as internal or external.
external.
(0–5) (6–9) (10–12)
LO.2(.3) The learner attempts to construct a Using a suitable format and Using a suitable format and
cash or other budget for the chosen techniques, the learner constructs a techniques, the learner constructs a
Be able to budget
business, which shows a limited cash or other budget for the chosen cash or other budget for the chosen
for a product or
level of accuracy and business, showing a moderate level business, which is presented clearly
service
completeness. of accuracy and completeness. and showing a high level of
accuracy and completeness.
(0–2) (3–4) (5–6) 18

focus available
LO.3(.1) The learner selects an appropriate The learner selects an appropriate The learner selects an appropriate
method for processing and storing method for processing and storing method for processing and storing
Be able to manage
financial information in the chosen financial information in the chosen financial information in the chosen
transactions
business. business, with some justification business, with clear justification
provided for choice of method. provided for the choice of method.
(0–2) (3–4) (5–6)
LO.3(.2, .3) The learner creates a cash book, The learner creates a cash book, The learner creates a cash book,
invoice and receipt, presenting the invoice and receipt which contain invoice and receipt, which contains
Be able to manage
information to a limited level of generally relevant financial only relevant financial
transactions
clarity, accuracy and information, presenting the information, and presents the
completeness. information to a moderate level of information to high level of clarity,
clarity, accuracy and accuracy and completeness.
completeness.
(0–5) (6–9) (10–12) 18
LO.4(.1) The learner creates financial The learner creates financial The learner creates financial
statements for the chosen business statements for the chosen business statements for the chosen business
Be able to report
which demonstrate a limited level which demonstrate a moderate which demonstrate a high level of
on financial
of accuracy and completeness. level of accuracy and accuracy and completeness.
performance
completeness.
(0–2) (3–4) (5–6)
LO.4(.2) The learner comments on financial The learner comments on specific The learner comments in detail on
performance in general terms. Any aspects of financial performance. specific aspects of financial
Be able to report
recommendations are limited and Clear recommendations are made, performance. Well considered and
on financial
generalised. with some justification given. clear recommendations are made,
performance
with clear justification given.
(0–2) (3–4) (5–6) 12
Total marks 60
Assessment guidance
marking grid B.
Level 2 descriptors
Descriptor Meaning
Accurately Without errors.
Appropriate Suitable/relevant to the organisation.
Attempts to Tries to do something but is only partially or not at all
successful.
Consistently Throughout.
facts, etc.
Fully Completely.
(in) general terms Characterised by general statements which lack depth and not
related to specific uses.
Generally Mostly, but not completely.
High level of accuracy/ Without no more than a few errors/omissions, and these can be
completeness considered minor, eg an error of addition (in a cash book);
minor arithmetic errors in costing, rather than errors based on
inaccurate cost assumptions.
High level of clarity Consistently easy to read, understand and interpret.
Justify/justification Give reasons for something.
Limited Shows only basic ability or understanding.
Limited (level of) accuracy/ Containing a number of errors or omissions, some of which
completeness may be significant, eg inaccurate classification (in position and
performance statements); calculating costs based on wrong
assumptions; omitting a substantial cost (in a budget).
Limited clarity Poorly presented and difficult to read and interpret.
Moderate (level of) accuracy/ Largely accurate, but containing some errors/omissions, which
completeness may occasionally be significant, eg omitting an expense
category or recording a fixed asset as a current asset (in a
budget); inaccurate classifying of direct/indirect costs.
Moderate (level of) clarity Quite well presented, can be read and interpreted with some
effort; likely to be inconsistent with some parts clear and
others less so.
Descriptor Meaning
Relevant Applicable to the organisation.
Relevant financial information Financial information that is relevant to the chosen business,
eg VAT for invoices, corporation tax in profit and loss
statements.
Some To a certain degree, partial.
Specific uses Including details about the method and how it is used.
Suitable format and Appropriate for the organisation and intended purpose.
techniques
Well considered Showing good judgement, thoughtful.

elements.)

Independent enquirers Considering the influence of circumstances on the methods used
for recording financial information [IE5].
Creative thinkers Asking questions about business financial documents, statements,
sources and techniques to extend their thinking [CT2]; trying out
alternative calculations and figures when creating financial
statements, and following ideas through [CT5].


Select, interact with and use ICT Researching into financial organisations, sources,
systems independently for a complex documents and information.
Use ICT to effectively plan work and Preparing business financial statements.
system used
Manage information storage to enable Saving and retrieving text-based and numerical (eg
efficient retrieval business financial statement) information.
Follow and understand the need for Exploring issues relating to electronic storage of
safety and security practices business financial information; undertake safe practice
when using internet and other relevant
software/hardware.
Troubleshoot

information
Select and use a variety of sources of Information from research into (eg) internet-based
information independently for a financial organisations, sources, documents and
complex task information.
Access, search for, select and use ICT- Researching into financial organisations, sources,
based information and evaluate its documents and information, eg business tax rates,
fitness for purpose company reports, for the purposes of interpretation.

Enter, develop and format information Constructing business financial documents and
independently to suit its meaning and statements, displaying numerical financial information
purpose, including: such as functional budgets.
• text and tables
• images
• numbers
• records
Bring together information to suit Bringing together business financial information;
content and purpose comparing business financial performance.
Present information in ways that are fit Presenting individual research findings on business
for purpose and audience financial organisations, sources, documents and
information.
Evaluate the selection and application Judging the approaches used when presenting
of ICT tools and facilities used to organisational financial information.
present information

Select and use ICT to communicate Obtaining web-based information about business
and exchange information safely, financial organisations, sources, documents and
responsibly and effectively including information.
Mathematics
Understand routine and non-routine Dealing with business financial figures; calculating
problems in a wide range of familiar amounts and balances; calculating simple financial
and unfamiliar contexts and situations report figures and budgets.
Identify the situation or problem and Obtaining financial information from (eg) existing
the mathematical methods needed to business income statements.
tackle it
Select and apply a range of Constructing business financial statements.
Use appropriate checking procedures Totalling plan columns and rows and cross-checking;
and evaluate their effectiveness at checking the logic of cash, profit and budget
each stage calculations.
Interpret and communicate solutions Interpreting results shown by statements and budgets.
situations
English
Speaking and listening – make a range Discussing and exchanging information about financial
of contributions to discussions and organisations; discussing informally results of research
make effective presentations in a wide with fellow learners concerning issues such as differing
range of contexts personal and cultural views of sources of finance.
Reading – compare, select, read and Reading and understanding literature from financial
understand texts and use them to organisations.
and opinions
Writing – write documents, including Completing financial documents relating to business;
extended writing pieces, creating financial statements.
Work experience
from any experience gained in finance or accounting, for example to gain an insight into the
roles that they play within an organisation, accounting methods, etc.
Access to the following generic packages is required in order that candidates can appreciate
their role in displaying, calculating and interpreting finance in business:
• internet
• word processing software
• spreadsheet software
• database software.
Access to specialist accounting software is not required for this unit, although centres might
consider providing access in order for learners to experience, at first hand, how such software
supports business finance and accounting.
Reference material
Books
Barrow P – The Bottom Line: Business Finance Your Questions Answered (Virgin Business
Guides) (Virgin Books, 2005) ISBN 0753509989
Cinnamon B and Helweg-Larsen B – How to Understand Business Finance (Creating Success
series) (Kogan Page, 2006) ISBN 0749446684
Day J et al – An Introduction to Accounting and Finance in Business (Open University, 2006)
ISBN 0749213132
Meckin D – Naked Finance: Business Finance Pure and Simple (Nicholas Breasley, 2007)
ISBN 1857883942
Websites
www.bized.co.uk Educational website including
information about business finance and
accounting, use of relevant software,
breakeven analysis
www.blandon.co.uk/finance/topic2/t2tut1.htm Tutorial on accounting ratios
www.carol.co.uk Online company reports website
www.companieshouse.gov.uk Companies House
www.osbornebooks.co.uk/pdf/layouts_and_ratios.pdf Guide to accounting layouts and ratios
LEVEL 2 UNIT 5: MARKETING, SALES AND CUSTOMER SERVICE IN BUSINESS
Unit 5: Marketing, Sales and Customer Service in

Business
Level 2
Internally assessed
About this unit Marketing is one of the most exciting and high profile business
functions in which to work. The creative output from the
marketing team, such as advertising and promotion, is often seen
and experienced before the product itself, and remembered long
after a product has been used. But behind the glamour of
marketing lie sound business principles which influence the look
and performance of the product, how much it sells for and how
much profit it generates for the business, how and where it is
sold, and how it is promoted. This unit will introduce you to all
these aspects of marketing, and to the way that market research is
used to provide the marketing team with valuable information.
But marketing alone does not guarantee success – sales and
customer service are other important functions that help a
business to succeed, that produce income and make sure that
customers keep coming back to your business rather than the
competition. This unit will give you the chance to see how sales
and good customer service can be achieved as well as practising
your sales and customer handling skills with different customers.
Making sales can be a challenge as potential customers can often
find a good reason not to buy; this unit will give you a chance to
learn how to get past this and make that all important sale.
Learning outcomes
LO.1 Know the principles of marketing
LO.2 Be able to carry out market research
LO.3 Understand how effective customer service is achieved
LO.4 Be able to handle customers effectively in a sales situation.

LO.1 Know the You need to learn how organisations use the four elements of the
principles of marketing mix in their marketing plans to position their products
marketing and services to meet customer needs:
• product: what it is; how to make it appealing to customers
• price: how much to charge
• promotion: how to tell people about it (advertising, publicity,
sales promotion)
• place: where it is going to be sold, (through
distributors/agents/direct to the customer); method, eg via
the internet, face-to-face, telephone.
You need to learn about the decisions that need to be made when
creating promotional materials:
• type of promotional materials, eg poster, leaflet,
advertisement, signage
• nature of the promotional materials, eg colours, visual
features, text
• name of the product/service and company
• branding or logo.
LO.2 Be able to A key responsibility of the marketing function in a business is to
carry out carry out market research in order to understand:
market • the market: size, trends, other quantitative measures
research
• customers: current or potential; who they are; where they
are; what they want
• competitors: who they are; what they are doing.
You need to learn about different methods of market research:
• primary research, collecting new information: interviews,
surveys, questionnaires, focus groups, observations
• secondary research, using information that is already
available: published reports, sales figures.
The process of carrying out market research involves:
• deciding what you questions you want your research to
answer
• choosing a method you will use to find out these answers and
deciding who you are going to ask
• planning how long it is going to take you
• collecting information
• interpreting results and identifying key findings
• using results to modify ideas as necessary.
LO.3 Understand Effective customer service brings a number of benefits:

how effective • promoting customer loyalty and resulting in repeat business
customer
service is • attracting new customers
achieved • reducing complaints and negative publicity
• contributing to the success of the organisation.
You need to learn about the difference between internal and
external customers:
• internal customers: team members, staff in other
departments, line managers
• external customers: people outside the business who buy
your products or services
• the connection between internal and external customers: how
internal customer service can impact on levels of satisfaction
of external customers.
Customers can be grouped in different ways according to:
• whether they are new or repeat customers
• individual characteristics, eg age, gender, income, education
• special needs, eg disabilities and impairments, speakers of
English as a second language.
You need to learn about the aspects of customer service that are
important to customers:
• customer services policies meet their needs and expectations
• employees have a good knowledge of the products and
services
• employees are responsive when dealing with queries
• employees are sensitive to diverse customer needs
• employees take responsibility for delivering effective
customer service
• customers receive their statutory and contractual rights.
Organisations manage their customer service policies and
procedures in different ways. Employees need follow customer
service policies and procedures where they work in order to
meet:
• customer expectations
• the aims, objectives and ethos of the organisation
• budgets
• industry standards
• competitor standards
• codes of conduct and legislation.
LO.4 Be able to Thorough preparation is one of the keys to successful selling.

handle You need learn about what this involves and the steps involved
customers in making a sale:
effectively in a • being familiar with the product:
sales situation
○ what it is, what it does, how customers and consumers
use or experience the product
○ its features and benefits
○ the pricing
○ the distribution method
○ after-sales support and services
• knowing who your customers are
• common types of objections you may face:
○ price
○ timing
○ features of the product itself
○ brand or manufacturer
• knowing the basic steps in making a sale:
○ making initial contact with the customer
○ finding out what the customer wants
○ presenting them with a solution
○ overcoming objections
○ closing the sale.
You need to learn what is required when making a sale:
• a positive attitude: approachable, motivated to sell
• making the customer feel comfortable
• ability to overcome objections and close a sale
• verbal communication skills:
○ listening skills
○ ability to give information, describing a product/service
○ appropriate tone of voice, pace and clarity
○ ability to adapt your delivery depending on the customer
• non-verbal communication skills:
○ effective body language, eg open posture, use of eye
contact
○ ability to adapt your body language depending on the
customer.
Teaching this unit

Delivery guidance
Whether they know it or not, most learners will be customers and consumers of a wide range of
organisations, products and services. As such, they will be targeted by these organisations and
will have marketing mixes specially created to appeal to them as consumers. It may be worth
exploring this approach to help learners understand the marketing mix is not just a list of four
criteria to be learned, but the starting point for the construction of marketing plans – some of
which will be targeted at them. This can be developed by getting learners to describe, using the
variable elements of the marketing mix, products or services that they buy and consume, and
identifying what it is about the product, as they perceive it, that appeals to them and has resulted
in their purchase and consumption – what elements of the marketing mix have influenced their
choice. Another approach would be to deconstruct a product, aiming to identify how the
variables within each of the elements of the marketing mix have been brought together to arrive
at the product being studied. When creating a marketing mix for a service, some businesses find
it helpful to use an ‘extended marketing mix’, incorporating Ps for People, Process and Physical
evidence. These are not necessarily additional, but a development of the P for Product,
emphasising elements that are particularly relevant to a service. Centres may choose to
introduce this topic to learners, but it is not a requirement and learners will not get additional
credit for using this when completing their assignment.
Learners need to be taught about different types of promotional materials. But what is meant by
the term ‘promotional materials’? It can be anything that has been designed to support the
promotion, advertising or marketing of a product of service, including posters, leaflets, signage
and advertisements. Centres can also introduce learners to other promotional materials as
appropriate, for examples, press releases, show-cards and other display materials used to
promote product in retail stores, etc. Learners should be encouraged to collect as many
examples of promotional material that they can find, especially that which relates to promoting
products from exemplar organisations that sell a product or service similar to the one that the
learner has chosen for their own assignment. Once a good collection of promotional material
has been collected, it can be analysed to see how and why it has been developed. It can be by
grouping type, by the kind of message, by the products that it is promoting, by the type of
promotion, etc. Learners could also consider how effective they perceive the promotional
material to be – does it appeal to them, or are there barriers that prevent the message from
getting across to them? In this way learners should start to see that promotional materials can
take many different forms – depending on the objective it is designed to achieve.
Market research is a subject that could easily take up an entire course of study. It would not be
realistic to expect that, as a result of their studies and investigations for this unit, learners will
become professional market researchers. Learners need to understand why organisations
conduct and use market research, how they go about obtaining market research information and
data, and what they do with the results of the market research. It is important to identify and
understand why market research is being done – there needs to be an objective, a question to be
answered, information that needs to be found so that the business can make plans, move forward
with better products and services, or avoid potential problems. Whilst anyone can make a guess
at these, by conducting market research, and interpreting the findings in the right way, a
business can be more confident that they have data or information to help make the right
decisions.
Learners should be made aware that primary research is not a game. It is usually carried out by
professional researchers and interviewers with a serious job to do. When carrying out their
research, learners must also be aware that market research should not be used as a guise for
selling. This is very bad practice and it undermines the integrity of the industry and makes
respondents less helpful and more reluctant to take part in research. Even inexperienced market
researchers should follow professional standards for conducting research. All marketing
research should be carried out within the professional and ethical standards and guidelines of the
Market Research Society.
There is a good chance that each learner will have been on the receiving end of customer service
– whether they realise it or not. It would be worth exploring learners’ experiences in a range of
different situations and getting them to investigate what made the customer service experience
good or bad for them – and whether their experience of customer service has changed their
views about an organisation, whether it has put them off or will encourage them to use its
services again. How organisations provide customer service can be investigated using remote
research, but field research in the form of visits will make the subject come alive. Learners
should be encouraged to investigate the customer services provided by a range of different
exemplar organisations. In this way they should be able to identify good practice and pick up
ideas that will inform and improve their own understanding of customer needs and expectations,
and how to satisfy these through good customer service. Exemplar organisations that sell a
products or services similar to the one that they have chosen for their own selling activity should
be included, so that they can discover the reality of customer service in the area that they have
chosen. While the idea of being an external customer may be relatively obvious, the concept of
internal customers can be quite challenging to some learners. To help understanding, start by
focusing on the learner and trying to identify in which situations they have internal customers –
at home, in the centre, in their leisure activities. Having got this far, extend the concept of
internal customers to different organisations where external customers are apparent, and
investigate how the two relate and how the performance of internal customers can impact on the
overall satisfaction experienced by external customers.
Understanding how customers, and their needs, can vary can also be quite challenging.
However, the point can be illustrated quite explicitly by showing learners how they themselves
can be grouped, or divided, by some of the different criteria used by sales and customer service
operations. This approach, using the learners themselves, could be extended to investigate
which aspects of customer service are important to them as customers. Organisations manage
their customer service policies and procedures in different ways. The more different
organisations the learners can see and experience the better their understanding of the most
common, and the relatively specialised customer services that are being offered today.
The obligations of organisations and employees towards customers may be dictated by industry
standard, regulation or sometimes by an organisation’s mission statement, but it will be
consumer protection legislation in all of its many forms that sets the ultimate standard. Learners
are not expected to know the names and dates or have explicit knowledge of every piece of
legislation designed to protect consumers – the objective should be that all learners understand
that any organisation dealing with customers and consumers has obligations under the law.
Legislation need not be a dry subject. The Trading Standards organisation produces a wide
range of accessible material to put across the basics of consumer protection legislation, from the
point of view of both business and the consumer.
Good preparation is the key to success in this part of the unit. Learners need to understand and
practice the basic steps involved in making a sale. It may be helpful to learners to practise with a
sales script something that they can learn and rehearse before being placed in front of real
customers. This will give them confidence. They could work in pairs to practise and then review
how well they have done, drawing lessons from this to apply the next time they practise, as part
of the experiential learning cycle.

This unit will be assessed by an assignment based on the marketing and sale of a product or
service of your own choice.
You will need to:
• Produce sample promotional materials based on market research you have carried out. This
will involve:
○ creating samples of promotional materials and a plan that includes: a description of the
product or service based on how it is positioned in the market using the four elements of
the marketing mix [LO.1]
○ providing market research to support your choice of promotional materials: research
method chosen and why, questions, data and analysis [LO.2]
• Study a business/organisation. This will involve: describing its typical customers and their
needs and expectations, and assessing the effectiveness of the customer service it provides
and explaining how it does or would benefit from providing good service [LO.3]
• Show you can deal with customers. This will involve you demonstrating your sales and
communication skills and how well prepared you are [LO.4(.1, .2, .3)]; then assessing your
performance and identifying things that you would do differently next time and why
[LO.4(.4)].

Ideally, the marketing and sales activities in this assignment will be based on the learners’ own
enterprise. Alternatively the product/service could be one that already exists. (See also below,
Guidance for Assessment.) It would be best if the product/service which is being sold in the
customer interactions is the same one on which the learners have created their promotional
materials. (The customer interactions could also be assessed in the workplace, in which case the
use of their own promotional materials will probably not be possible.)
Evidence structure

outcome grid
LO.1 A Promotional materials and Written evidence: sample
market research promotional materials and
accompanying plan
LO.2 A Written evidence: market
research method, data and
analysis
LO.3 A Study of an exemplar Written evidence: needs and
business/organisation expectations of customers;
assessment of service; benefits of
good service
LO.4(.1, .2, .3) B Customer interactions Learner observation record:
preparation* and customer
handling skills
LO.4(.4) A Written evidence: assessing own
ability/things to do differently
next time
* Preparation will be assessed indirectly during the interactions
Level of demand
Assessment duration
learner. Centres can structure assessment time as they see fit. This does not include time spent
collecting market research data in LO.1 or information on a business/organisation in LO.3.
Centres should note that the total class assessment time may need to be higher to allow time for
separate observations of individuals in LO.4.
specification.
For the first part of the assignment, learners may work in groups to decide on the product or
service and to agree on the market research to be carried out. They can also work in groups for
the market research survey but each learner must collect some of the group’s data and write it
up individually and draw their own conclusions. They can work in groups to discuss the
promotional materials that they will produce, but must work individually to produce them. In
any one group individual learners may produce the same or different types of material. Learners
may, if they wish, produce more than one example, but submit only one for assessment.
In the second part of the assignment (studying a business/organisation), more than one learner
can work on the same business/organisation, but work must be written up individually.
Learners can work together when interacting with customers (ie as ‘colleagues’), but evidence
must be based on individual learners’ interactions. The review stage must be completed
individually.
The customer interactions can take place face to face or on the telephone. Learners must
demonstrate their sales skills with at least two customers. To provide sufficient evidence for
assessment, the interactions must involve the learners overcoming objections.

Assessment could take place in three different stages after the relevant learning has taken place:
firstly the assessment for LO.1 and LO.2; then the assessment for LO.3; finally the assessment
for LO.4. Alternatively, all of the assessment could take place at the end of the unit, but it
should be carried out in the same order.
Before learners begin the first part of the assignment, it is important that they and the centres
decide whether the market research, plan and promotional materials they create in the first part
of the assignment will be the same one that will be used for their customer interactions (see
below for more detailed information on the context in which the interactions could take place).
The plan that the learners create can be presented in any appropriate format(s). If a presentation
is done for any part of this, for moderation purposes, it is important to note that the written
evidence created (slides, notes) must by itself provide sufficient evidence of the learner’s
knowledge/understanding; oral communication/presentation skills are not assessed in this unit.
If the assignment is based on the learners’ own enterprise, then they may need to confirm
together how the product/service is positioned before they can start on the assignment. If it is a
product or service created by someone else, then they should not attempt to change its
positioning. If the assignment is based on a service, learners may choose to use, or incorporate
elements, from the extended marketing mix when describing how it is positioned (see Delivery
guidance), but this is not a requirement, and marks should be awarded only to the aspects of the
marketing mix covered as required content in What you need to learn.
The aim of their market research is to produce data that can inform their development of
promotional materials. Learners are not expected to become professional market researchers
overnight. However, they should conduct their market research in ways that reflect professional
methods and standards. Even if the results or conclusions that they draw from their research are
weak or naive, their methods should be sound. The findings being assessed should focus on the
promotional material that is developed as a result of the research. Learners need to make
decisions about the development of promotional materials, and they should use the findings
from the market research that they conduct to help them make those decisions and inform them
as to the most suitable and appropriate materials to produce: one approach is to use the market
research simply to help them generate ideas; another is to take this opportunity to test ideas and
trial draft materials. The analysis of the market research should indicate how the results will
inform the decisions made about the message, medium and presentation of the promotional
materials. If this assignment is using learners’ own enterprise, then they may use the results of
the market research to adjust the product/service’s positioning. The promotional materials may
be in any form that is appropriate for the product or service chosen, within the resources
available. Learners should be advised to concentrate on using information that they have
produced through the analysis of the results of their market research, rather than trying to
produce something that is a highly creative flight of fancy, but is not based on their research
findings. To prepare them, it may be helpful to get learners to review existing promotional
material that has been produced for their chosen product, or for an exemplar
business/organisation that sells a product or service similar to the one that they have chosen so
that they get some kind of idea of what is being used currently in the market.
The business/organisation that the learners use in LO.3 should be one that sells products or
services that are the same as, or similar to, those that they will be trying to sell in their customer
interactions in LO.4.
The preparation for selling should be relatively straightforward if the product/service should be
the one on which they have worked in the first part of the assignment. At this stage, they may,
however, need to decide on additional information that was not included previously, such as
firming up information about pricing. If the product/service to be sold is not linked to the first
part of the assignment, then it should be one about which there is clear information available,
and this information will need either to be provided to the learners or found by them. The
learner’s preparation will not be assessed directly, but rather during the interactions themselves:
in other words, through the way they perform it should be clear how well prepared they are.
The customer interactions could take place during one or several sessions. The context in which
they take place could be connected to the learners’ own business enterprise (possibly as an
extension to this activity if it has already finished). Alternatively, a scenario could be developed
by the centre and assessed through a role play based on either a real or imaginary business, in
which case, the ‘customers’ should not be learners in the same class. In either case, learners can
make use of the promotional materials created earlier on. Centres could also use other real
selling activities, including courses, qualifications, tuition services, membership to the
library/sports clubs etc, food in the canteen, stationery, tickets for an event, extra curricular
activities, support for fundraising activities, attendance at meetings, recordings of the choir,
items produced by other courses, such as artwork, food, gifts, etc. It could also be done in a real
workplace, for example through a part-time job or on work experience.
The sales skills that should be assessed at this level are those used in routine sales situations:
where the customer is expecting to make a purchase, but is uncertain about whether the
product/service is the right one for them and so has objections that need to be overcome.
Common types of objections that the learner could have to deal with include: price (too high);
timing (not available soon enough or when the customer wants it); features of the product itself
(performance, colour, shape, size etc); brand or manufacturer (customer has a preference for
products with a particular brand or from a particular manufacturer). Learners may have to deal
with customers who do not have objections, but they should not be assessed on those
interactions. Learners may find it helpful to use and practise with a sales script, but, if so, it
should be one that the learner has developed and prepared themselves. If objections do not arise
naturally, then the tutor can play the role of customer.
The review can be presented in any appropriate format or formats, but must be in writing.
Marking grid A
focus available
LO.1(.1) The plan includes a basic description The plan includes a clear description The plan includes a clear and
of the product or service chosen. of the product or service chosen. detailed description of the product or
Know the
There is limited information on how There is reasonable information on service chosen. There is good
principles of
the four elements of the marketing how the four elements of the information on how the four elements
marketing
mix have been used to position the marketing mix have been used to of the marketing mix have been used
product or service. position the product or service. to position the product or service.
(0–2) (3–4) (5–6)
LO.1(.2) The promotional materials are limited The promotional materials are The promotional materials are
in terms of suitability and reasonable in terms of suitability suitable and appropriate of medium,
Know the
appropriateness of medium, message and appropriateness of medium, message and presentation and are
principles of
and presentation. message and presentation and are consistent with the market research.
marketing
generally consistent with the market
research.
(0–2) (3–4) (5–6) 12
LO.2(.1) The market research methods used are The market research methods used are The market research methods used are
identified in general terms. identified, with some explanation identified, with a clear explanation
Be able to carry
Questions to be answered are written given for the choice of method. given for the choice of method.
out market
but may not be clear. Questions to be answered are written Questions to be answered are worded
research
and are reasonably clear. effectively.
(0–2) (3–4) (5–6)

focus available
LO.2(.2, .3) Data is collected, although is likely to Data is collected, and is generally Data is collected, and is sufficient in
be limited in terms of quantity and sufficient either in terms of quality or terms of both quality and quantity.
Be able to carry
quality. Results of the market quantity. Results of the market Results of the market research include
out market
research include limited analysis of research include reasonable analysis good analysis of data with well
research
data, with limited conclusions drawn of data with reasonable conclusions argued conclusions drawn about the
about the nature of the promotional drawn about the nature of the nature of the promotional materials
materials required. promotional materials required. required.
(0–4) (5–6) (7–8) 14
LO.3(.1) The learner gives a basic description The learner gives a description of The learner gives a detailed
of typical customers, with their needs typical customers, with a reasonable description of typical customers,
Understand how
and expectations listed. description of their needs and linking characteristics together, with a
effective customer
expectations. clear description of their needs and
service is achieved
expectations.
(0–2) (3–4) (5–6)
LO.3(.2, .3) The learner comments briefly on the The learner comments on how The learner comments in detail on
customer service without judging its effective the service provided was, how effective the service provided
Understand how
effectiveness. The learner briefly providing examples which generally was, providing good supporting
effective customer
explains some of the ways that the support their judgement. The learner examples. The learner explains
service is achieved
business/organisation does or would explains how the business/ clearly how the business/organisation
benefit from providing good customer organisation does or would benefit does or would benefit from providing
service. from providing good customer good customer service, giving clear
service. evidence to support their explanation.
(0–2) (3–4) (5–6) 12

focus available
LO.4(.4) The learner is able to provide a basic The learner is able to assess their The learner is able to assess their
and general assessment of their performance at different stages of performance well at different stages
Be able to handle
performance. They have limited the process. They are able to identify of the process. They are able to
customers
success in identifying things that they specific things they could do identify specific things they could do
effectively in a
could do differently next time. differently next time, with some differently next time, with a clear
sales situation
explanation of the benefits. explanation of the benefits.
(0–2) (3–4) (5–6) 6

Total marks 44
Marking grid B
focus available
LO.4(.1) From the way that the learner From the way that the learner From the way that the learner
interacts with customers, it is clear interacts with customers, it is clear interacts with customers, it is clear
Be able to handle
that there has been limited that there has been reasonable that there has been good preparation
customers
preparation for the sale. preparation for the sale. for the sale.
effectively in a
sales situation
(0–2) (3–4) (5–6)
LO.4(.2, .3) The learner displays a positive The learner displays a positive The learner displays a positive
attitude. They demonstrate limited attitude. They demonstrate attitude. They demonstrate good
Be able to handle
communication skills. They can find reasonable communication skills communication skills. They can find
customers
out the basics of what the customers They can find out what the customers out what the customers need and can
effectively in a
need and can communicate the main need and can communicate the main communicate the features and the
sales situation
features of the product/service. They features and some of the benefits of benefits of the product/service. They
find it difficult to overcome the product/service. They show are good at overcoming objections,
objections and have difficulty closing reasonable ability to overcome and can close the sale confidently and
the sale. objections and show reasonable effectively.
confidence when trying to close a
sale.
(0–4) (5–7) (8–10) 16
Total marks 16
Assessment guidance
marking grid B.
Level 2 descriptors
Descriptor Meaning
Appropriate Acceptable and relevant in a given context, is likely to have
the desired effect.
Assess/assessment Judge the extent or degree of something.
Confidence/confidently Remaining positive and not showing doubts.
Consistent (with research) Not contradicted by to the analysis and conclusions of the
market research.
Convincing Believable, well argued, well chosen.
facts, etc.
Difficult/difficulties Clearly has a problem doing something, may be unable to do
or does so only after a struggle.
Different stages (of the sales Making initial contact with the customer; finding out what the
process) customer wants; presenting them with a solution; overcoming
objections; closing the sale.
Effectively (closing sales) Able to find a solution to any problems, in an efficient and
professional manner.
Effectively worded (questions) Questions that are well worded and likely to produce
unambiguous answers.
(in) general terms Characterised by general statements which lack depth and not
related to specific examples.
Generally Mostly/or most of the time but not completely.
Identify Name or otherwise characterise, mention the key elements,
facts, features, etc.
or understanding.
List Provide the information in separate, individual points.
Main (features) The most important features.
Descriptor Meaning
Quality How good the data or information collected is.
Quantity How much data or information is collected.
Some Incomplete, not all; partial.
Suitable/suitability Technically adequate to perform a role, meets the
requirements of a brief.
Unclear Vague and poorly expressed – not clear and specific.
Well argued Showing the ability to construct a convincing argument.

of this unit.

Independent enquirers Carrying out market research [IE2].
Reflective learners Assessing their own contribution to achieving customer
satisfaction, and identifying areas for improvement [RL1].
Effective participators Trying to influence customers when demonstrating sales skills
[EP5].
learning.
Skill When learners are…

Independent enquirers Looking at the importance of customer service from different
perspectives: the organisation and the customer [IE3]; presenting
the results of their market research using evidence to support their
conclusions [IE6].
Creative thinkers Generating ideas for ways to promote their product [CT1]; using
their market research to question people’s assumptions [CT4].
Reflective learners Setting goals with success criteria for the market research they are
carrying out in terms of what answers they want to find out [RL2];
reviewing progress during the market research, making changes if
necessary [RL3].
Team workers Working together to carry out market research, collaborating to
work towards common goals [TW1]; reaching agreements on
which methods of market research to use [TW2].
Self-managers Showing commitment and perseverance in a sales situation [SM2].
Effective participators Discussing issues that concern a potential buyer while
demonstrating sales and customer service skills [EP1]; presenting a
persuasive case for action when demonstrating sales skills [EP2];
identifying improvements for the customer in terms of a product’s
benefits when demonstrating sales skills [EP4] and acting as an
advocate for views that may differ from their own [EP6].


system used
efficient retrieval
Troubleshoot

information
complex task
fitness for purpose

Enter, develop and format information Carrying out and analysing their market research.
purpose, including:
• text and tables
• images
• numbers
• records
Bring together information to suit Analysing the market research results.
content and purpose
Present information in ways that are fit Presenting the results of their market research.
present information

Mathematics
tackle it
Select and apply a range of Analysing market research data.
Use appropriate checking procedures Entering and storing their market research data.
each stage
situations
Draw conclusions and provide Analysing market research data.
English
Speaking and listening – make a range
range of contexts
and opinions
Writing – write documents, including Preparing promotional materials for their product or
extended writing pieces, service.
Work experience
from any experience gained in a sales or customer service environment in terms of finding out
about how these are delivered in the workplace as well as developing their own skills. The
assessment of LO.4 could take place during work experience.
None.
Reference material
Books
Evans-Pritchard J, Hancock M, Jones R, Mansfield A and Gray D – AS level Applied Business
for Edexcel Double Award (Causeway Press, 2005) ISBN 1405821159
Fardon M, Nuttall C and Prokopiw J – GCSE Applied Business (Osborne Books, 2002)
ISBN 1872962327
Johns T – Perfect Customer Care (Arrow Business Books, 1999) ISBN 0099406217
Websites
www.businesslink.gov.uk Business Link provides an easy to use support, advice
and information service for local businesses.
www.instituteofcustomerservice.com The Institute of Customer Service, the professional
body for customer service.
www.marketingteacher.com Marketing resources for tutors and learners.
www.mrs.org.uk The Market Research Society, professional body
supporting the market research industry.
www.skillsmartretail.com The Sector Skills Council for Retail.
www.tradingstandards.gov.uk Trading Standards Central – a one stop shop for
consumer protection information in the UK. The site is
supported and maintained by the Trading Standards
Institute.
LEVEL 2 UNIT 6: TEAMS AND COMMUNICATION IN BUSINESS
Unit 6: Teams and Communication in Business
Level 2
Internally assessed
About this unit It’s sometimes said that a ‘team’ stands for Together Everyone
Achieves More – by working together on something, you’re
likely to do it better, and more quickly, than if you all work on
your own. This is true in all sorts of fields, and the chances are
that when you find a job you will find yourself in some sort of
team. Employers recognise the importance of teamwork and you
should, too. Knowing how to work together will be important in
your future career, and in this unit you’ll get the chance to learn
more about team working and practise working together.
Part of the skills of being able to work together is being able to
communicate, and communication in teamwork is particularly
important for the success of the team and the business. You will
also learn about the other ways in which individuals can
contribute in different ways to the success of a team.
Learning outcomes
LO.1 Understand the benefits of teamworking
LO.2 Know how individuals and team leaders contribute to teamworking
LO.3 Be able to plan and monitor team work
LO.4 Be able to work and communicate effectively in a team.

LO.1 Understand Teams make a difference to an organisation’s performance.
the benefits of Teamwork involves a group of people with complementary
teamworking skills, working together to achieve a common goal. There are
different types of team:
• independent or inter-dependent
• temporary or permanent
• directed or self-managed
• real or virtual.
You need to learn about the benefits of team working
organisations, eg:
• making best use of people’s differing strengths
• increased motivation: shared vision and sense of
commitment
• opportunities for creativity and initiative
• opportunities to stretch talents and take on new
responsibilities
• better internal communication
• increased efficiency and productivity: less duplication of
tasks, suggestions from team members for improvements
• less risk by sharing work
• opportunities for a more flexible workforce.
LO.2 Know how You need to learn about ways in which team members can
individuals and contribute to overall effectiveness of the team:
team leaders • knowing their responsibilities within the team
contribute to
teamworking • knowing the responsibilities of others
• being committed to the team’s success
• being willing to take collective responsibility
• supporting each other and respecting each other’s views
• being able to give and receive constructive feedback.
Different people contribute to teams in different ways. You will
need to learn about:
• Belbin team roles.
Not all teams have leaders, but teams can benefit from effective
leadership. The team leader’s role involves leading by example
and often includes:
• assigning work and delegating responsibilities
• setting objectives
• managing resources
• building relationships
• managing conflict
• mentoring and motivating
• monitoring performance and providing feedback
• helping the team/solving problems.
LO.3 Be able to plan Planning and monitoring teamwork often involves dealing with
and monitor problems/issues. You need to know about ways of doing this:
team work • understanding the problem/situation, eg:
○ what you know and don’t know about it
○ its complexity
○ constraints, eg time, resources, laws
• coming up with possible ways of tackling it, eg:
○ considering different ways of dealing with it
○ using techniques such as root/cause analysis, lateral
thinking
○ finding how other people have dealt with similar
problems/issues
• deciding what action to take
• taking action
• checking whether or not you have been successful
• learning from the experience.
In order to work effectively in a team situation, you need to learn

how to plan and prioritise work and manage your time
effectively:
• how plan teamwork and monitor performance:
○ understanding instructions and work requirements
○ setting/understanding team objectives
○ agreeing roles and responsibilities, sharing out work
○ setting individual goals that contribute to team objectives
○ monitoring performance: ongoing monitoring;
adjustment of plans; use of milestones
• methods of prioritising work, such as categorising tasks:
○ in a 2x2 matrix as urgent/non-urgent and important/not
important
○ as high/medium/low priorities
• techniques that help you manage your time effectively, eg:
○ making daily/weekly ‘to do’ lists
○ using electronic and manual diary systems and calendars
○ estimating how long tasks will take and setting time
limits
○ dealing with interruptions to planned work
○ anticipating problems and making contingency plans
○ negotiating deadlines.
LO.4 Be able to You need to learn about the skills and attributes that are needed
work and when working in a team:
communicate • showing a positive attitude: being committed to the team’s
effectively in a success; being willing to take collective responsibility
team
• being willing to participate: taking on a fair share of the
work
• supporting other team members: being polite co-operative;
letting others speak, showing respect
• communicating effectively: listening and speaking skills;
non-verbal communication, eg body language, eye contact,
gestures
• recognising and dealing with any conflict that arises, using
appropriate strategies, eg:
○ active listening
○ trying to understand the issues from the other person’s
point of view
○ focusing on the issues rather than the person
○ negotiating compromises and win-win solutions
• giving feedback to other team members:
○ focusing on what is important
○ being constructive, supportive and tactful
○ focusing on actions/behaviour not personality
• receiving feedback:
○ being willing to accept advice
○ listening to the message
○ avoiding defensiveness
○ accepting praise.
Teaching this unit

Delivery guidance
Factors that make teams work can be introduced through learners undertaking one of the many
team activities that are available for use in the classroom. Discussion groups can then look at the
benefits of effective teamwork. Tutor input is needed on the importance of goal setting and
objectives; then learners can work in groups with each group investigating a different team and
identify their purpose and structure. The teams could be from a local business or in the centre.
Alternatively, learners could use teams they are involved in outside of studying, such as sports
teams, cadets, orchestra, drama groups etc.
Learners can present their findings to the rest of the groups and then have a group discussion on
where they have seen effective teams, and agree their common features. Learners should also
explore the characteristics of different team leaders, and this could be through activities such as
identifying the attributes and qualities of well known leaders as well as the everyday
responsibilities such as assigning tasks and handling conflict. It is important that the tutor
stresses that an effective team needs to be a mix of capabilities and not just consist entirely of
those with leadership skills.
Learners need to understand the relevance of different team roles. Tutors can use Belbin’s Team
Role Theory model to illustrate that in order to achieve the task a combination of team roles
needs to be present, although a team member may display characteristics of more than one team
role. This theory determines allowable strengths and weaknesses of each role and their
contribution to the team. It would be useful for learners to undertake a ‘Belbin Team Role
Analysis’ exercise so that they can identify their preferred roles – and this might be helpful
when allocating tasks for the team activity.
Teams often work together to solve problems. ‘Problem solving’ here should be understood in
its broadest sense as any issue or situation which requires action to be taken and where decisions
need to be taken about what action to take, rather than simply following a set procedure.
Examples could be given of bounded and unbounded problems together with systematic
approaches to problem solving, for example define the problem, gather relevant information,
look at the possible causes, identify possible solutions, work out the solution and monitor the
results. Learners can practise this skill by applying techniques to a personal problem they may
have such as money or relationship issues and produce a Fishbone diagram to help with problem
diagnosis and identify which causes of the problem can be addressed.
Learners need to be familiar with the stages of planning and the tools and techniques available
to make effective use of their time in team activities. These include diaries, planning charts, and
schedules, and tutors must ensure that learners have plenty of opportunities to develop these
skills by practising the processing, amending and cancelling diary entries for both manual and
electronic systems. Learners could carry out in-tray exercises relating to the prioritising of team-
related tasks according to urgency and importance. Case studies could help reinforce the
importance of meeting deadlines and the need to be able to respond to changing work plans and
still meet team and individual requirements through taking corrective actions and negotiating a
new agreement.
In addition, learners should be able to determine their own strengths and weaknesses in relation
to time management in terms of organising and planning their course work, or activities outside
of their learning programme. They can carry out a time log activity over a period of a week and
analyse the results of this to examine the most frequent reasons for reduced effectiveness in the
workplace.
The delivery undertaken in LO.1 and LO.2 will provide the knowledge and understanding
required when developing their skills in LO.4. It is important for learners to have plenty of
opportunities for working in teams and/or groups. Exercises can be given to highlight the
advantages and disadvantages of teamworking, including how to contribute, following
instructions, and dealing with difficult people. Role-play scenarios could be used here. At the
end of one a group activity, learners can be asked to review how they have performed. They can
try to identify something that they would like to do differently next time.
Conflict within teams can be introduced through a group discussion on ‘What is conflict?’ with
learners drawing on their own experiences. The tutor could highlight that not all conflict is
negative, and provide examples of instances when it could have a positive effect. It would be
useful for learners to be able to have a guest speaker to explain how they prevent and diffuse
conflict situations within teams. The guest speaker should be briefed to give examples of
different sources of conflict (organisation based and team member based) and how they were
resolved. In order to gather information, learners can prepare a checklist or questionnaire and
participate in a question and answer session with the guest speaker. It is important that learners
are able to identify situations where conflict may arise and give reasons why this has occurred.
As well as case studies, learners can practise role-play exercises to develop their conflict-
resolution skills. Tutors should introduce the key features of the main types of behaviours which
contribute to conflict within a team, including aggressiveness, assertiveness, avoidance,
submissiveness. Emphasis should be focused on body language, in particular what to look for in
other people’s body language (gestures, facial expressions, posture, eye contact), discover how
to use body language to respond to other people, and look at effective and ineffective use of
body language in different situations. Videos can be used which show examples of different
behaviours and the interpersonal skills used to diffuse conflict. They could then work in groups
to research articles and case studies of inappropriate behaviour in the workplace, and discuss the
cause of the conflict.
It is envisaged that within a classroom situation learners will be encouraged to develop
teamworking skills to provide constructive and positive feedback on their peers’ communication
skills. Different communication scenarios should be provided so that the learner can practise
adapting the way they communicate to meet the needs of others. If learners are to give feedback
to one another, care should be taken to ensure that they are fully versed in the types of feedback
(positive, negative, constructive, destructive) and the art of giving constructive feedback before
they are permitted to practise on one another. Learners should be encouraged to identify
potential improvements in their own use of the communication techniques and team skills.
Video clips and DVDs can show examples of good and bad communication skills when
working in teams.

This unit will be assessed by an assignment connected to a business-related activity.

You will need to:
• Plan teamwork together. This will involve demonstrating your teamworking skills [LO.4],
setting individual goals that contribute to the team objective, and planning and prioritising
tasks [LO.3(.1, 2)]
• Work towards the team’s objectives. This will involve: demonstrating your teamworking
skills [LO.4], managing your time using appropriate techniques and monitoring your own
work [LO.3(.3, .4)]
• Review your teamworking activity. This will involve: assessing how effective you and your
team were, including your own contribution to the activity and how you might have
benefited from having a team leader [LO.2]; explaining organisations can benefit from
organising work in teams, with reference to your own experience of the teamworking task
[LO.1].

The team activity must have a business-related purpose. Ideally, the assignment will be based on
the learners’ own enterprise or it could be connected to some other real organisation.
Alternatively, a case study could be used. (See also below, Guidance for assessment.)
Evidence structure

outcome grid
LO.3(.1, .2) A Planning teamwork Written evidence: individual
objectives; plan
LO.4(.1, .2, .3, .4) B Learner observation record*:
teamworking skills; giving and
receiving of feedback
LO.3(.3, .4) B Teamworking activity Learner observation record: time
management and monitoring,
backed up with written evidence
LO.4(.1, .2, .3, .4) B Learner observation record*:
teamworking skills; giving and
receiving of feedback
LO.1, LO.2 A Review Written evidence: benefit of
teamworking; team and own
effectiveness
* Only one learner observation record should be completed which covers both
activities/sessions
Level of demand
Assessment duration
learner. Centres can structure this time as they see fit, but to provide adequate scope for
assessment, the teamworking activity must be one that takes more than one session to resolve.
If assessment of the teamworking skills is integrated into assessment activities of another unit,
the above time will only relate to the assessment of Unit 6; the activity itself can continue for
the purposes of assessing the other unit(s).
specification.
Although learners will need to work in groups at the planning stage and teamworking stages,
each learner must present individual evidence relating to the goals, planning, time management
and ongoing monitoring.
The ‘teamworking activity’ could be a discrete problem or issue it or could be a number of
tasks, which should be linked in some way (eg all being connected to a single purpose or
forming a sequence of activities). To give the activity a meaningful purpose, learners must find
for themselves how to meet the team objective(s); the team objective(s) could be set by the
centre, by the learners or through a combination of the two.

Groups should ideally consist of between four and six team members.
Activities that involve research and organisational tasks (such as gathering information and
making arrangements with clear deadlines) would lend themselves well to this sort of approach.
If the assignment is based on their own enterprise, the purpose could be connected with
implementing their business. The assessment for this unit could be integrated into the delivery
and assessment of Unit 1: Business Enterprise. Failing that, it could still be contextualised
within the same enterprise on which the learners have been working, even if assessment and
delivery of these two units does not take place at the same time.
Although unofficial ‘leaders’ may emerge during the activity, it is envisaged that the
teamworking activity is not set up with a formal ‘team leader’ role. Learners may choose to
agree individual responsibilities or they could be shared. However, it is recommended that
centres try to avoid having everybody doing exactly the same thing throughout the task.
Evidence of the learners’ planning can be in any appropriate format, but it should be in writing
and include individual objectives, tasks and prioritisation.
During the task, learners are expected to manage their time and monitor their own performance
with reference to their plan. Evidence for this will be based on a learner observation record, but
learners should also create written evidence, for example using their plan to tick off or
annotating tasks, adapting or adding to the plans when required, keeping a diary, etc: this should
then be submitted as supporting evidence for assessment. If no monitoring is observed by the
tutor during the activity itself and there is no written evidence, the tutor should check
afterwards, via brief one-to-one interviews between learner and tutor, in which the tutor asks the
learner about whether/how this took place and then records answers on the learner observation
record.
During the planning and teamworking activity, marks are awarded based on the tutor’s
observation of learners’ teamworking skills. Tutors will need to take a holistic view based on
what they see throughout the teamworking task rather than, say, at the beginning or end only,
although they will not need to be observe every activity from start to finish. They should take
care to observe discreetly and not get involved in the team activity. It is important to bear in
mind that individual learners’ ability to work and communicate in a team is not necessarily
linked to the achievement of the group as a whole. Learners are also assessed on their ability to
deal with any conflict that arises. Conflict can be understood in its broadest sense as including
low-level tensions within the group. It may be that there was conflict, but it was unobserved by
the tutor, in which case a post-task interview (group or individual) could be used to gather and
record evidence. There is no need to artificially engineer conflict if the group is able to work
harmoniously: if none occurs, the tutor can use a post-task interview to pose a hypothetical
situation (eg, involving a new and uncooperative team member) and asking how they would
have dealt with it.
The marks for the giving and receiving of feedback covers feedback between team members,
rather than from tutor to learner; however, additional feedback after the teamworking activity
has finished might be valuable. Feedback between team members may arise naturally as the
activity is happening. However, if there is an absence of evidence of feedback given and
received during the activity, the tutor must ensure that it takes place afterwards. This could be
done in a tutor-led group discussion.
The review of the teamworking activity can be presented in any appropriate written format and
must be done individually.
Marking grid A
focus available
LO.1 Benefits of teamworking are stated An explanation is provided which A detailed explanation is provided
in basic terms. There is little shows how organisations benefit, which shows clearly how
Understand the
reference to the learner’s own with examples from their own organisations benefit, supported by
benefits of
teamworking experiences. teamworking experiences. well chosen examples from their
teamworking
own teamworking experiences.
(0–4) (5–7) (8–10) 10
LO.2 The learner provides a limited The learner provides a reasonable The learner provides a good
assessment of team effectiveness, assessment of team effectiveness, assessment of team effectiveness,
Know how
with basic and generalised with judgements about specific with convincing judgements about
individuals and
judgements about the team’s aspects of the team’s performance specific aspects of the team’s
team leaders
performance and their own and their own contribution. They performance and their own
contribute to
contribution as a whole. They show show reasonable understanding of contribution given. They show good
teamworking
limited understanding of how the how the team might be more understanding of the team might be
team might be more effective with a effective with a team leader, with more effective with a team leader,
team leader, with a few benefits benefits explained. with benefits explained clearly.
stated briefly.
(0–6) (7–10) (11–14) 14
LO.3(.1, .2) Individual goals are set, which have Individual goals are set, which are Individual goals are set, which are
limited connection to team connected to team objectives. There connected to team objectives. There
Be able to plan
objectives. There is basic planning is reasonable planning for the team is effective planning for the team
and monitor team
for the team activity, with an activity, with prioritisation of tasks. activity, with good prioritisation of
work
attempt at prioritisation of tasks. tasks.
(0–4) (5–7) (8–10) 10
Total marks 34
Marking grid B
focus available
LO.3(.3, .4) The learner completes the tasks in The learner completes the tasks in The learner completes the tasks in
the time available, showing limited the time available, showing the time available, showing good
Be able to plan
time management skills. There is reasonable time management skills. time management skills. There is
and monitor team
limited evidence of active steps There is some evidence of active clear evidence of active steps taken
work
taken to monitor their progress steps taken to monitor their progress to monitor their progress during the
during the task. during the task. task.
(0–2) (3–4) (5–6) 6
LO.4(.1, .2) The learner shows basic The learner shows reasonable The learner shows good
teamworking skills and makes a teamworking skills, and makes some teamworking skills, and makes a
Be able to work
limited contribution to the task. contribution to the task. They show clear contribution to the task. They
and communicate
They show limited ability to some ability to maintain a positive are able to maintain a consistently
effectively in a
maintain a positive attitude, support attitude, support team members and positive attitude, support team
team
team members and communicate. communicate. They show some members and communicate
They show limited ability to deal ability to deal with any conflict effectively. They are good at dealing
with any conflict situations that situations that arise. If conflict does with any conflict situations that
arise. If conflict does not occur, they not occur, they have reasonable arise. If conflict does not occur, they
have few suggestions for how they suggestions for how they would deal have appropriate and convincing
would deal with it. with it. suggestions for how they would deal
with it.
(0–6) (7–10) (11–14)

LO.4(.3, .4) The learner gives feedback to others. The learner gives constructive The learner gives constructive and
They listen to feedback from others. feedback to others. They show some perceptive feedback to others. They
Be able to work
ability to accept feedback from show a good ability to accept
and communicate
others. feedback from others.
effectively in a
team
(0–2) (3–4) (5–6) 20
Total marks 26
Assessment guidance
marking grid B.
Level 2 descriptors
Descriptor Meaning
Accept (feedback) The learner allows others to give positive and negative
feedback, and tries to understand what they have done to
create a particular impression. They accept fair comment
gracefully even if they do not completely agree with it.
Appropriate Suitable/relevant and realistic.
Appropriately (planned) Showing that the requirements of the event have been
considered. Decisions that are made are appropriate but it
might be possible to improve upon some of them in order to
better meet the needs and expectations of attendees.
Assess/assessment Judge the extent or degree of something.
Convincing/convincingly Believable, well argued, well chosen.
Constructive (feedback) Feedback which aims to help. This will often aim to focus on
any positives and suggest improvements.
Effective (planning) Well thought out and carefully considered.
A few One or two.
Few Not many.
or understanding.
Perceptive Showing good insight and self awareness.
Some At least two OR to a certain degree, partial; not all.
State Assert, make a statement without evidence or explanation.
Well chosen (examples) Chosen in such a way that it provides support for the
argument; a good example.

of this unit.

Reflective learners Assessing team performance [RL1]; inviting feedback on their
team performance [RL4].
Team workers Working as part of a team, collaborating with others to work
towards common goals [TW1], showing fairness and consideration
to others when giving and receiving feedback [TW4], and
providing constructive support and feedback to others [TW6].
Self-managers Planning and prioritising tasks for the team activity [SM3].
learning.

Independent enquirers Identifying and clarifying which problems have to be resolved in
order to succeed at the teamworking task [IE1]; planning and
carrying out research into the communication used by an
organisation [IE2]; considering the influence of circumstances,
beliefs and feelings on team performance [IE5]; supporting their
self assessment of team effectiveness with reasoned arguments and
evidence [IE6].
Creative thinkers Working as part of a team, trying out alternative approaches [CT5]
and recognising the need to adapt their behaviour and styles of
communication with different team members [CT6].
Reflective learners Assessing themselves and others after a team activity [RL1];
preparing for the team activity, setting goals and success criteria
for the task [RL2]; reviewing the progress at the end of the
teamworking task [RL3]; reflecting on their performance as team
member by evaluating these experiences to inform future progress
[RL5].
Team workers Reaching agreements and managing discussions while taking part
in a team activity [TW2]; taking responsibility for the team’s
success, showing confidence in themselves [TW5].
Self-managers Working towards goals as part of the team activity, showing
initiative, commitment and perseverance [SM2]; dealing with
competing pressures [SM5].
Effective participators Working as part of a team, presenting a persuasive case for action
during discussions [EP2], proposing practical ways forward [EP3]
and trying to influence others [EP5].


system used
Manage information storage to enable Storing drafts of electronic documents.
efficient retrieval
Follow and understand the need for Ensuring organisational procedures are met when
safety and security practices working with word processing software to produce
business communications.
Troubleshoot

information
Select and use a variety of sources of Researching factors that make teams work successfully.
complex task
Access, search for, select and use ICT- Using folders to store and retrieve business documents.
fitness for purpose

Enter, develop and format information Preparing business documents suitable for different
independently to suit its meaning and purposes.
purpose, including:
• text and tables
• images
• numbers
• records
content and purpose
Present information in ways that are fit Producing business documents that present required
for purpose and audience information in a way that is fit for purpose and audience.
present information

Select and use ICT to communicate Sending and receiving emails while producing business
and exchange information safely, documents.
Mathematics
tackle it
each stage
situations
English
Speaking and listening – make a range Taking part in team discussions during the teamworking
of contributions to discussions and activities.
range of contexts
Reading – compare, select, read and Researching characteristics of team leaders.
and opinions
Writing – write documents, including Creating business documents.
Work experience
Work experience connected to this unit would useful, especially in relation to preparing
business documents and investigating communication.
None.
Reference material
Books
Leigh A and Maynard M – Leading Your Team (Nicholas Brealey, 2004) ISBN 1857883047
Lesikar R – Basic Business Communication Skills (McGraw Hill, 2002) ISBN 0071213074
Misteil S – The Communications Pocketbook (Management Pocketbooks, 2003)
ISBN 1870471415
Websites
www.businessballs.com Team activities
www.cipd.co.uk Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development
www.managers.org.uk Chartered Management Institute
LEVEL 2 UNIT 7: RESPONDING TO CHANGE IN BUSINESS
Unit 7: Responding to Change in Business
Level 2
Externally assessed
About this unit ‘It is not the strongest of the species that survive, nor the most
intelligent, but the one most responsive to change.’ – Charles
Darwin
Change always occurs in business. There is no doubt that at some
point you will face major changes at work, perhaps to your job
role, the ownership of the organisation for which you work, your
colleagues or to the way the work is organized. The purpose of
this unit is to enable you to understand more about these changes
and to develop your ability to respond in a way that is most
rewarding for both you and for your employer.
You will learn how change affects organisations, working from
the external causes, such as technological change, through to the
impact on the organisation and then on to the people whose work
is affected.
You will examine the ways people react to change, and learn
how to manage your own responses to change so that you can be
prepared to meet change as a challenge and an opportunity. You
will also learn about ways of assessing the impact of change on
people in a workplace.
Learning outcomes
LO.1 Know why and how change occurs in businesses
LO.2 Understand the impact of change on employees.

LO.1 Know how and A business interacts constantly with its business environment,
why change which changes when any of the following factors change:
occurs in • political: changes in government and government policy
businesses
• economic: economic growth, interest rates, level of
unemployment, taxation changes, supply of resources
• social: population changes, eg ageing population, population
movements; cultural issues such as attitudes to work, health,
religion
• technological: uses of information technology;
mechanisation; other new developments, eg
communications, consumer technologies, nanotechnology
• legal: consumer legislation; employment legislation
• environmental: climate change; concerns over protecting the
environment
• changes specific to the organisation or sector such as to
suppliers, distributors, competitors and customers.
Changes in the external environment lead to changes to
businesses such as:
• beginning of new businesses
• closure of businesses
• re-locating all or part of the business
• re-structuring
• changes to job roles and processes and procedures.
Types of change can be identified in terms of how radical the
change is:
• step change
• incremental change.
And also in terms of how centrally controlled it is:
• directive
• organic.
Keeping pace with change for a business has a number of
advantages:
• increased likelihood that business with survive
• business forms a better fit with its business environment
• advantages over its competitors
• increased chances of success
• better able to change again as need arises.
LO.2 Understand Change affects employees in a number of ways, for example:

the impact of • different role at work
change on
employees • new location of workplace
• new colleagues and managers
• loss of familiar colleagues and managers
• different work processes and equipment
• job losses.
People react to change in different ways, for example:
• fear, anxiety, stress
• excitement
• resistance
• support.
There are different ways for employees to deal with the
consequences of change:
• finding out why it is happening and what is going to change
• assessing the benefits and risks for self
• deciding how they feel about the changes
• trying to stay positive
• continuing to actively plan own career
• seeking support from others.
Keeping pace with change for employees has advantages, for
example:
• they may be more likely to keep their job
• they can develop new skills
• they may be ready to take advantage of opportunities which
arise inside and outside the organisation
• there are psychological advantages if they can stay positive
about the changes
• employers look for a positive attitude to change when
employing people.
There are different methods of evaluating impact of change on
employees:
• direct methods, eg observation, interviews, staff surveys
• indirect methods, eg measuring productivity, customer
satisfaction, staff turnover.
Teaching this unit

Delivery guidance
The purposes of this unit are to provide opportunities for learners to learn why and how
organisations change and to develop their own willingness and ability to respond in a positive
and productive way to changes in business.
Learning from all the other units can contribute to an understanding of business concepts which
should assist the learners’ understanding of this unit: however Unit 1: Business Enterprise and
Unit 5: Marketing, Sales and Customer Service in Business provide particular opportunities for
curriculum links, for example relating to how businesses need to innovate in order to respond to
changes in market; there are also clear links to Unit 2: Business Administration, particularly
relating to the ways in which changes in technology impact upon administrative tasks and
processes. Learning from other curriculum areas such as science, technology or history may also
provide valuable stimulus material in the form of examples of predicted change or of human
reactions to change.
It is essential to give learners the opportunity to apply their learning to real organisations to help
them engage with the fairly abstract content of the unit, view the issues from a range of
perspectives, particularly those of employees and managers/owners of businesses and to practise
making links between cause and effect. These need not be commercial operations: this unit is
intended to include any type of organisation.
Ideally the programme of learning could be based on the study of a range of local and national
organisations going through change programmes. If the learners’ own school or college has
undergone any recent change, this may provide opportunities to carry out activities such as
interviewing some of the staff involved and assessing the impact of change on the employees.
As this unit is to be assessed through written examination, the learners should be given some
opportunities to practise applying the concepts from the unit to short case studies, in selecting
from a choice of possible given answers to a question and in providing short written answers to
questions.
The first section of this outcome is challenging to deliver because the causes of change can
easily be confused with the effects of change. Simple examples using material with which the
learners are already familiar should be used to build their ability to identify and discuss the
external causes of change from an organisational point of view. It would be sufficient for the
learners to study two or three changes under each heading (political, economic, social, etc) and
in each case to then follow through the impact on an organisation so that the relationship
between cause and effect is made clear, rather than attempt to comprehensively study a large
number of elements of the business environment.
The school or college in which this qualification is taught can be used as an example of an
organisation responding to changes in the external environment. Further examples could be
drawn from local or national organisations, from the commercial, public and voluntary sectors.
For example, there should be good opportunities to link the teaching to press coverage of
controversial changes to local organisations such as those affecting NHS Trusts at the time of
writing.
As the links between external factors, changes, impacts and advantages of change are a vital
element of this unit, flow charts, networks or other forms of graphical presentation could be
used to express the relationships between these various parts of the learning outcome.
Games where learners play the role of business decision makers would also provide good
opportunities for the learners to engage with this outcome and to ‘walk in the shoes of business
leaders’.
It might also be useful to contrast examples of organisations that responded to change
successfully and have prospered as a consequence, and those that were unable or unwilling to
respond and ended up going out of business or being taken over by more successful competitors.
The perspective of this outcome is from the employees’ viewpoint, which may be a slightly
more familiar one for most learners. Where it has been possible to study a range of local and
national organisations facing change for LO.1, these same organisations could be used to
consider the impact of change on the employees for LO.2.
As learners often respond well to a ‘personal interest’ story, they could interview or investigate
profiles of people who have successfully negotiated a number of changes in their working lives,
and finding out from them how they coped, and what they learned from their experiences.
Where these opportunities for ‘real world’ learning fail to provide clearly-identified examples of
some part of the outcome such as ‘resistance’ to change, it may be necessary to provide case
studies so that the learners have opportunities to practise achieving the assessment criteria.
Experiential learning could be used through reflecting on the learners’ own experiences of
change in organisations of which they have some experience, such as part-time employment or
membership of sports teams, and through evaluation of their own responses to these changes. If
the learners have common experience of changes, such as from outdoor-challenge type activities
or group projects, then this could provide valuable opportunities to learn through reflecting on
these experiences. It is also quite likely that learners have seen changes within their own school
or college, and they could be encouraged to reflect on how this has affected them and the people
who work there.
Role play could be used with participants taking on roles of managers/owners, employers with
different viewpoints, Trade Union representatives and other stakeholders and negotiating the
implementation of a controversial change within a business scenario.
There would be a good opportunity to use a suitably-designed game based on steering a career
through changes to illustrate the value of responding positively to change.
This learning outcome involves the use of evaluation skills, and it is essential that the learners
are familiar with the use of the different methods of assessing the impact of change on
employees and also that they practise drawing conclusions from sets of simple findings. This
could be provided through an investigation of the impact of recent or current changes within
their own school or college in which the learners use staff surveys, interviews etc. Ideally this
would be done before the period of change and after to enable comparisons to be made. If this is
not possible this could be achieved through studies of local or national organisations mentioned
previously or through the development of suitable case studies.

outcome
LO.1 Know why and how change occurs 1.1 Identify changes that affect businesses
in businesses
1.2 Explain the types and causes of change
that affect businesses
1.3 Outline the benefits for business of
keeping pace with change
LO.2 Understand the impact of change 2.1 Identify changes that affect employees
on employees
2.2 Assess the impact of change on employees
and their reactions towards it
2.3 Identify ways of dealing with change
2.4 Explain benefits for individuals of
responding positively to change

This unit will be assessed by an examination lasting one hour, containing a range of questions
on one or more organisations. The mark you achieve for this examination will be your mark for
the unit.

LO.1 Know why and how change occurs in 45–55%
businesses
LO.2 Understand the impact of change on 45–55%

employees
elements.)

Independent Exploring the consequences of change from perspectives of
enquirers individuals and organisations [IE3]; considering the impact of
circumstances and beliefs on attitudes to change [IE5].
Reflective learners Reflecting on own experiences of change in business organisations
[RL5].
Effective participators Discussing issues of concern when responding to change [EP1]
Presenting a case for accepting change [EP2]; identifying ways in
which change can bring improvements [EP4].


system used
efficient retrieval
Troubleshoot

information
complex task
fitness for purpose

Enter, develop and format information Presenting findings following an investigation of the
independently to suit its meaning and impact of change on employees.
purpose, including:
• text and tables
• images
• numbers
• records
Bring together information to suit Investigating the impact of change on employees and
content and purpose presenting their findings.
Present information in ways that are fit Presenting findings following an investigation of the
for purpose and audience impact of change on employees of a business.
present information

Mathematics
tackle it
each stage
situations
English
Speaking and listening – make a range Taking part in a role play of the negotiation of the
of contributions to discussions and implementation of change in an organisation.
Taking part in group discussion based on own
range of contexts
experiences of individual responses to change.
and opinions
Writing – write documents, including
None.
Reference material
Books
Ashwin A, Merrills S, Thompson R and Machin D – A2 Business Studies, chapters 26-29
(Harper Collins, 2009) ISBN 0007270380
Centre for Creative leadership, Gurvis J and Carlarco A – Adaptability: Responding effectively
to change (Jossey Bass, 2007) ISBN 1882197925
Collins J and Collins J – Good to Great: Why some companies make the leap…and others don’t
(Harper Collins, 2001) ISBN 0066620996
McFarland R K – The Breakthrough Company: How everyday companies become extraordinary
performers (Crown Business, 2008) ISBN 0307352188
Websites
www.bized.co.uk Resources for teaching of business studies
www.times100.co.uk Resources for teaching of business studies
LEVEL 2 UNIT 8: CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY
Unit 8: Corporate Social Responsibility
Level 2
Internally assessed
About this unit Organisations have a responsibility but also an excellent

opportunity to make a difference through their actions. One way
of doing this is to make sure that they act in a socially
responsible way; this notion is called corporate social
responsibility.
Consumers are taking a greater interest in the role of
organisations in society. This has partly been prompted by
increased awareness of environmental and ethical issues. These
issues include environmental damage and the way that staff are
treated. Corporate social responsibility has often meant
accountability in far away countries, but organisations are now
finding that measures closer to home are also important.
These sorts of issues have been highlighted in the media and the
pressure on organisations to play a positive role in society is
growing. Organisations are realising that if they respond to these
pressures, there might be long-term benefits to their business.
In this unit, you will learn about the concept of responsible
business practice and explore how an organisation interacts with,
and affects, the local, national and global community.
Learning outcomes
LO.1 Understand why organisations need to act responsibly
LO.2 Know ways in which organisations can demonstrate corporate social responsibility
LO.3 Be able to review and recommend improvements to business practices.

LO.1 Understand You need to learn about the pressures and benefits being placed
why on organisations to act responsibly:
organisations • the role of non-governmental organisations and pressure
need to act groups in raising awareness; the effects of negative publicity
responsibly
• the increasing popularity of ethical consumerism, eg fair-
trade, consumer boycotts; socially-responsible investment
• benefits, eg positive publicity, customer loyalty, staff
recruitment and retention, benefiting from talents of diverse
workforce.
LO.2 Know ways in Organisations can demonstrate corporate social responsibility
which through responsible business practices and thereby minimise
organisations negative impacts. This will vary according to the organisation
can but may include:
demonstrate • environmental concerns: waste management; recycling;
corporate using sustainable resources; reduction of carbon footprint;
social avoiding unnecessary energy consumption; encouraging
responsibility environmental good practice by consumers
• employees: promoting good health; staff pay and benefits;
training and development; safe and secure working
environment; ensuring diversity and equal opportunities, eg
through staff training, recruitment and pay policies, diversity
monitoring
• suppliers: treating suppliers fairly; choosing suppliers that
promote responsible practice, eg fair working conditions,
environmental concern, ethical trading
• consumers and general public: treating customers fairly and
honestly; meeting the needs of vulnerable customers;
promoting responsible consumer behaviour, health and well-
being; helping local economy through choice of local
suppliers
• local community: engaging with the community to
understand its needs; financial investment, eg sponsorship,
grants, charitable giving; non-financial investment, eg
encouraging employees to act as volunteers or mentors,
providing educational visits and work experience, promoting
local groups; social inclusion by providing employment.
LO.3 Be able to You need to learn about the process of reviewing business
review and practices in terms of assessing impact and recommending
recommend improvements, which will typically include the following steps:
improvements • gathering information:
to business
practices ○ choosing how to collect information, eg interviews,
observations, secondary sources
○ finding out what the organisation currently does
○ finding who is affected by the organisation and how
• analysing information:
○ assessing positive and negative impacts
○ identifying issues and coming up with ideas for
improvements
○ assessing ideas in terms of practicality and priority
• drawing conclusions:
○ selecting best ideas
○ explaining and justifying ideas.
Teaching this unit

Delivery guidance
It may be convenient to deliver this outcome alongside LO.2 so that learners can appreciate how
corporate social responsibility issues brought to people’s attention and why it is beneficial for
organisations to respond to them alongside the action that organisations take. It would be useful
to look at the work done by one or more pressure groups, such as Friends of the Earth. These
often highlight examples of environmental or ethical issues that they are campaigning or have
campaigned about. Learners need to be aware of the increased pressure that such groups and
consumers are placing upon organisations.
Learners will need to know about the ways in which organisations can show that they are acting
responsibly in relation to the different issues. This learning outcome deals with their actions,
and, implicitly, the benefits that their actions bring to others besides the organisation itself. This
is best contextualised by using different organisations as they are likely to focus on different
issues and, hence, different business practices. The list is appropriate for most businesses, but
the balance between the groups may change. For example, if a local hospital were chosen, the
interest group ‘customers’ would become patients, who could then be subdivided into, for
example, inpatients and outpatients. Many organisations now publicise their efforts to be
socially and environmentally responsible, and there is a wealth of material available: not only
on their own websites, but also on those of organisations such as Business in the Community.
Learners should not necessarily accept, at face value, the view given in an organisation’s public
relations material, but the efforts placed on creating this is, itself, instructive. Again, local or
national organisations may be able to help, particularly when it comes to the issue of how they
can benefit from showing that they implement responsible business practices.
Financial investment is usually easy to establish, and is often well publicised, for example on
organisations’ websites or publicity material such as posters in shops and offices. Non-financial
investment may be less easy to discover and more varied, for example, releasing an employee to
help at an after school club and service on charitable committees and boards of governors. An
excellent way of finding out about the investment that the organisation makes might be to talk to
an appropriate member of staff.
Many large organisations have websites dedicated to their corporate social responsibility which
give information about how they have taken action to deal with these types of problems,
although these may be less useful when it comes to issues that organisations are unwilling to
acknowledge or respond to. Naturally, these issues will be relevant in different ways depending
on the type, size and nature of the organisation. Case studies could be used to highlight ways in
which the issues differ and visits to, or speakers from, local employers would be useful.
This learning outcome deals with the process of assessing impact and ways of making
improvements. Learners need to be taught about the process of doing this, and will need to look
at examples in class. Impact can be assessed at any time, but for teaching purposes, it may be
most easily understood at a time of change, when there is a ‘before’ and ‘after’. This can be
researched from sources such as the local media, particularly where a business has started doing
something deemed controversial, such as a new factory, an enlarged facility or a new retail
outlet. Visits to local organisations would also be useful; for example, to local shopkeepers after
a new supermarket has opened.
When considering the positive impact, other examples could be used, for example cultural
diversity and the impact upon public services that results when organisations bring workers
from elsewhere in the EU.

This unit will be assessed by an assignment based on corporate social responsibility in an

organisation.
You will need to:
• Research the organisation. This will involve: describing ways in which it is already acting
responsibly [LO.2]
• Assess impact and make recommendations. This will involve: assessing the positive and
negative effects of the organisation on a local community, identifying an issue that is
relevant to the organisation and recommending steps it could take to show it is acting
responsibly [LO.3]; and explaining the benefits of doing this [LO.1].

The assignment task must be set within a context that gives learners a purpose for completing it
(which could be real or scenario-based), so that the information they collect will or could be put
to some use. The organisation on which it is based must be a real one.
Evidence structure

outcome grid
LO.2 A Current situation Written evidence: ways
organisation is acting responsibly
LO.3 A Assessment and Written evidence: assessment of
recommendations positive and negative effects,
identifying an issue and
recommending steps
LO.1 A Written evidence: benefits of
acting responsibly
Level of demand
Assessment duration
learner. Centres can structure this time as they see fit. The suggested GLH for assessment does
not include time spent gathering information on the organisation.
specification.
More than one learner can work on the same organisation, and they can work together to collect
information, but groups should be no larger than four. However, each learner must write their
own evidence for assessment.

The different parts of the assignment could be done in a single format, or parts could be broken
into stages and could be done in different ways, for example a report and an article for the
assessment and the current business practices, and presentation slides and notes for the
recommendations. If a presentation is made for any part of the assignment, for moderation
purposes, it is important to note that the written evidence created (slides, notes) must by itself
provide sufficient evidence of the learner’s knowledge and understanding; presentation and oral
communication skills are not assessed in this unit.
The evidence created does not need to follow the order listed in the How you will be assessed
section, although it would be most natural for the assessment to come before the
recommendations and benefits. The assignment brief should make it clear which parts of the
assignment are assessing which learning outcome(s). Evidence for what how the organisation is
acting responsibly come in different places. When learners are ‘describing an issue’ in LO.2,
this could be one that the organisation is not making any effort to address or one that it is
already addressing but which has the potential for further action.
The organisation on which learners complete the assignment must itself be real, and could be
any type of organisation, public, private or voluntary. Larger organisations will provide greater
scope for learners when completing the first and second parts of the assignment, but smaller
organisations may also be suitable.
The organisation must have a presence (office, outlet, etc) that is near to, or accessible by, the
learners, irrespective of whether the organisation itself is a local, national or international
organisation. It would make sense if the local community is one which is located close to where
the learner lives or studies, because it would make it easier for the learner to gather information
and make the task more meaningful to them. However, this is not mandatory: information could
be gathered remotely and/or through visits. If a national or international organisation is used,
learners need to consider its impact on a local community, not across all of its local
communities.
Although the learners themselves should have input into the choice of organisation, centres are
responsible for ensuring that the organisation chosen meets the conditions outlined above.
Learners can make use not only of published information, but also information gathered in other
ways, for example from visits to organisations, interviews with their staff, interviews with
customers and locals. Learners should seek permission first if planning to talk to staff or
customers on the premises. It might be that the learner can make use of their work experience to
gather information on the organisation’s activities.
Marking grid
focus available
LO.1 Benefits are stated in general terms Specific benefits are given, although Specific benefits are given and
and may lack clarity. Answers lack these may be rather narrowly considered broadly from different
Understand why
depth and may focus narrowly on focussed. There is some attempt to perspectives. These are clear and
organisations need
one particular benefit. justify them the benefits. well justified.
to act responsibly
(0–4) (5–7) (8–10) 10
LO.2 Examples of responsible practices Examples of responsible practices Examples are given which describe
are stated, with limited description. are given which describe what the clearly and what the organisation
Know ways in
Some examples may not appear organisation does. Examples are does. Examples are consistently
which
relevant. generally relevant. relevant.
organisations can
demonstrate
corporate social
responsibility
(0–6) (7–11) (12–15) 15

focus available
LO.3(.1) The assessment is rather The assessment is specific. The assessment is specific and
generalised, with a narrow range of Examples are given, although it is detailed. A broad range of
Be able to review
examples given, which may not not always clear how these support examples are given, and these are
business practices
support the learner’s judgement. the learner’s judgement. used convincingly to support the
and recommend
learner’s judgement.
improvements
The assessment may focus narrowly Both positive and negative impacts The learner shows well-balanced
on either positive or negative are considered, although judgements judgement in dealing with both
impacts. may lack balance. positive and negative impacts.
(0–6) (7–11) (12–15)

LO.3(.2, .3) An issue is identified and described An issue is identified and An issue is identified and described
briefly, but this may show limited described, showing some clearly, showing good
Be able to review
understanding of the issue, and there understanding of the issue with understanding of the issue with
business practices
may be limited information about general examples, but these may appropriate examples that relate
and recommend
how it relates to the selected not always relate to the selected clearly to the selected organisation.
improvements
organisation. organisation.
The learner makes clear and
The learner makes limited and The learner makes realistic realistic recommendations about
generalised recommendations in the recommendations about specific specific steps the organisation can
form of simple statements about steps the organisation can take. take.
steps that the organisation can take.
(0–8) (9–14) (15–20) 35
Total marks 60
Assessment guidance
marking grid B.
Level 2 descriptors
Descriptor Meaning
Broad range of examples Examples that are varied and not all closely related to each
other.
Consistently Throughout.
facts, etc.
General/generalised Not specific, not relating to a particular organisation.
Generally Mostly/or most of the time, but not completely or consistently.
Justify Give good reasons for something.
Lack balance Not giving due prominence to what is most significant.
Lack depth Basic and superficial.
or understanding.
Narrow(ly)/narrowly focused Concentrating on only a small number/a part of what is
possible.
Narrow range of examples Examples that are closely related.
Relevant Applicable to the subject.
Simple Basic, routine, straightforward.
Some To a certain degree, partial.
Specific Relating to a particular organisation.
Well balanced Giving appropriate weight to most significant factors.

of this unit.

Independent enquirers Supporting their explanation of the benefits of acting responsibly
using reasoned arguments and evidence [IE6].
Effective participators Proposing practical steps that the organisation can take to
demonstrate it is acting responsibly [EP3].
learning.

Independent enquirers Exploring issues from the perspectives of different stakeholder
interests [IE3]; analysing and evaluating information provided on
company websites about their activities, judging its relevance and
value [IE4]; considering the influence of consumers’ beliefs about
corporate responsibility on their purchasing decisions [IE5].
Creative thinkers Questioning their own and others’ assumptions about what
constitutes responsible business practice [CT4].
Reflective learners Assessing organisations’ achievements in demonstrating that they
use responsible business practices [RL1].
Effective participators Discussing ethical issues that are of concern [EP1]; presenting a
persuasive case for what an organisation can do to invest in its
local community [EP2] which will influence the organisation and
balance its needs against those of the local community [EP5].


system used
efficient retrieval
Troubleshoot

information
Select and use a variety of sources of Researching information on an organisation in any of the
information independently for a learning outcomes, eg using company websites,
complex task information from pressure groups and non-governmental
organisations.
fitness for purpose

Enter, develop and format information Preparing a presentation on the environmental/ethical
independently to suit its meaning and issue, illustrating their slides with relevant information.
purpose, including:
• text and tables
• images
• numbers
• records
Bring together information to suit Writing their report on their chosen organisation and the
content and purpose local community.
Present information in ways that are fit Writing their report on their chosen organisation and the
for purpose and audience local community, presenting findings on an organisation
operating in the global economy.
present information

Mathematics
tackle it
each stage
situations
English
Speaking and listening – make a range Presenting their findings on an organisation operating in
of contributions to discussions and the global economy.
range of contexts
Reading – compare, select, read and Researching either of the organisations chosen.
and opinions
Writing – write documents, including Writing their report on their chosen organisation and the
extended writing pieces, local community, presenting their findings on an
communicating information, ideas and organisation operating in the global economy.
None.
Reference material
Websites
www.csr.gov.uk Government information on corporate social
responsibility
www.sustainable-development.gov.uk Government information on sustainable development
www.sustainability.com Organisation that advises on sustainability
Unit 9: Careers and Employment in Business
Level 2
Internally assessed
About this unit It is important to find a career that suits you. To do this, you will
need to think about what you want from a job and plan how to
get there. This unit will give you the opportunity to do this
through researching different careers and producing a career
plan.
Getting a job can be a challenge, and making a good impression
with your application and interview is all important. There’s no
substitute for experience, so in this unit you’ll have the chance to
practise applying for and being interviewed for a job. One of the
biggest challenges in getting into many jobs is not having
relevant experience. In this unit you’ll have the chance to solve
this by doing work experience.
How do employers know how well staff are doing? Most
organisations now use some form of performance management to
help them measure this. You’ll learn more about this and also
about the rights and responsibilities in the workplace.
Learning outcomes
LO.1 Be able to use sources of job information
LO.2 Be able to plan for and set goals for their career
LO.3 Be able to prepare for and participate as an interviewee in an interview for a job
LO.4 Know how employment legislation, procedures and processes operate in the workplace.

LO.1 Be able to use The employment market is competitive. You need to learn about
sources of job the sources of information on jobs and careers:
information • school or college careers advisers
• company websites and career packs
• agencies and job centres
• newspapers: articles, job advertisements
• careers guidance software
• college prospectuses.
LO.2 Be able to plan You need to learn about the steps involved in preparing a career
for and set plan to make best use of work experience:
goals for their • a self-analysis of your current situation and future
career requirements, eg what you like/dislike doing, what you need
and want from a job
• research to find a possible career that fits with step 1:
○ specific job-related information
○ what is required to achieve your chosen career, eg skills,
knowledge, training, education, experience
• planning making short-term activities for the next two years
which will help you access your career
• setting goals for workplace experience:
○ deciding which skills and attributes are relevant for the
job you will be doing
○ where you are now: your strengths and weaknesses
○ what to concentrate on: skills/attributes you want to
improve or show you can do
○ how to set goals that can help you do this
• reviewing goals: assessing if you have achieved your goals;
deciding what else you have learned.
LO.3 Be able to You need to learn about the preparation and process involved in
prepare for applying for a job:
and participate • using a job description and person specification to prepare an
as an up-to-date CV and covering letter or application form that
interviewee in addresses the requirements of the job
an interview
for a job • following interview protocols, eg dress code, punctuality
• preparing questions to ask at interview and for questions you
may be asked.
You will also need learn about techniques and skills needed at
interview:
• interview techniques: selling yourself, showing enthusiasm
• oral communication skills: asking and responding to
questions, listening, voice clarity, tone and pace
• non-verbal communication: body language, posture, eye
contact, facial expression.
LO.4 Know how Both employers and employees have rights and responsibilities.
employment You need to know about the main areas:
legislation, • contractual versus statutory rights
procedures
and processes • health, safety and welfare legislation
operate in the • employment protection rights
workplace
• paid holidays and working hours
• anti-discrimination legislation.
You also need to know how performance management is used in
the workplace:
• goal setting
• learning and developmental activities
• monitoring and appraisals
• performance-related pay.
Teaching this unit

Delivery guidance
time within the timetable for its delivery and assessment. The time spent on workplace
experience, which learners will need to take part in order to complete the assessment (but not
the learning) for LO.4 and the review of goals in LO.2, is not considered to be part of the guided
learning hours for this unit.
Delivery covering the different sources of information that can be used to access careers
information (LO.1) can be integrated with career planning (LO.2), since they go hand in hand.
A useful starting point is to ask learners to carry out a self-assessment. This could include their
current experience of the workplace, qualifications and skills. CASCAID’s Kudos software is
also a good starting point and can be used in parallel with the self assessment. These activities
would help to generate ideas on occupational and career preferences and can be useful in
helping learners to focus on realistic options before it comes to assessment. Learners will need
to spend time becoming familiar with the information available on company websites and
electronic or published career information. Most company websites will have a recruitment
section and these can be a good starting point for gathering information on career opportunities.
Visits to organisations or visiting speakers can also be a rich source of information on career
opportunities for learners. At this level, they will not be expected to learn about different
recruitment methods. Visits to organisations or visiting speakers (for example from employers,
agencies or ex-learners from the centre) can also be a rich source of information on career
opportunities for learners. Organisations that focus on graduate entry could be able to help: even
though learners would not be able to apply in the immediate future, visits to or from such
organisations could help focus learners on the longer term.
In preparation for goal setting, it would be useful to review as a class the sorts of skills and
attributes that are valued in the workplace, and encourage learners to think about what will help
them in their career plan. It would also be extremely valuable to involve a local employer or
workplace provider to talk to them about what they expect from their employees; if more than
one can be involved in this process, there may be interesting opportunities to compare and
contrast. Ranking exercises where learners decide on the relative importance of different
skills/attributes in different types of job can lead to fruitful and interesting group discussions.
Another starting point would be to use fictional representations, such as from television dramas.
At this level, it would be useful to introduce the concept of SMART goal setting, but it is worth
remembering that not all goals can be formulated in this way, but they need to know about the
importance of setting goals that are at least specific and realistic. Learners can practise by
setting goals related to other learning experiences in the school or college or personal goals for
the future.
Learners will need to be prepared for their workplace experience by learning how to record their
experiences in some way, for example using a diary, for which they will need to be prepared
(although the diary itself will not be assessed) and what to record. It is important that learners
understand that it is much better to keep an ongoing record rather than leave this to the end.
Centres can suggest alternative methods of recording experiences, such as video diaries or
blogs. It is useful preparation if learners can practise the skills of recording experiences by
completing a diary of their learning experiences in school or college so that learners understand
which sorts of information is useful to record.
After their workplace experience has finished, they should be given time to reflect on their
workplace experience and to evaluate the progress they have made towards their goals. Talking
through their progress in groups can be a useful way of helping to give learners a clear focus on
the experiences they have gained in the workplace.
Learners will need guidance on the format and content of job application documents, above all
the importance of showing how they have the skills, attributes and experience necessary for a
job as outlined in a job and person specification. They should have some practice at completing
an application form: real examples could be obtained from local employers. As well as using
hard copies, it would also be useful to practise using online application forms that are readily
available. An example or a template of a basic CV and covering letter could be used to provide
guidance on what they should include in their own. Local businesses may also be able to help by
providing examples of real applications made for particular jobs (with personal identifying
information removed).
As a starting point for interview preparation, learners could work in small groups to come up
with basic questions they think they could ask at an interview.
It is important to note that the unit content differentiates between interview techniques and
communication skills; this distinction will also be seen when it comes to assessment (in
assessment criteria and marking grids). Showing learners a DVD or video of a mock interview
and asking them to identify the examples of good or bad practice can be an effective and fun
way of introducing them to the importance of body language and interview protocols. As a
confidence builder, learners should have the opportunity to practise basic interview techniques
prior to the assessed interview; recording learners’ practice interviews for them to watch
afterwards could help. Learners are likely to require guidance and regular feedback on their
progress in order to develop their interview techniques and communication skills.
The delivery of this can be linked to Unit 6: Teams and Communication in Business which
covers ways of improving written communication.
Learners will need to have a broad understanding of the main categories of rights and
responsibilities and of methods of performance management. Newspaper articles and topical
television reports can be a fruitful way of bringing this potentially dry area to life. Learners
could be encouraged to research and find recent and current examples of disputes or
developments in key areas of employment legislation.
Some learners, particularly those with part time jobs will have some experience of methods of
performance management, an appraisal for example. Asking them to share their experiences will
help to improve their understanding of the importance of performance management to
employers and employees. At this level there is no need to go into the details, for examples
about different types of appraisal or monitoring systems, but learners do need to know in outline
how and why they are used.

This unit will be assessed by a single assignment connected to careers and your future
employment.
You will need to:
• Use careers information to produce a simple career plan, which includes information you
have found out about a chosen career, a short-term plan to help you achieve this, and goals
for your workplace experience [LO.1, LO.2(.1, .2)]
• Create job application documents, and then prepare for, and take part in, a job interview
[LO.3]
• Use your workplace experience:
○ to identify statutory and contractual rights and responsibilities of people in the
organisation in which you are working; and describe which performance management
methods are used and what they are used for [LO.4]
○ to review what you have learned and whether you have achieved the goals you set in
your career plan [LO.2(.3)].

assessed section, and exemplified within the unit sample assessment material (SAM). The
assignment for part of this unit is connected to workplace experience. This could be in the form
of a placement or it could be a part-time job that the learner is starting or is already doing, but
centres will not be able to complete the assessment for this unit without it. The job applied for in
the assessment of LO.3 must not be one that they have practised preparing as part of the
learning for this unit.
The assignment (and by extension the job in which learners will be doing in LO.4) must be
relevant to the Principal Learning in Business, Administration and Finance.
Evidence structure

outcome grid
LO.1, A Career plan Written evidence: chosen
career; plan; goals for
LO.2(.1, .2)
workplace experience
LO.3(.1) A Job application: documents Written evidence: CV and
covering letter or application
form
LO.3(.2) A Job application: interview Written evidence: questions
preparation they think they may be asked
and questions they could ask
LO.3(.3, .4) B Job application: interview Learner observation record:
interview and communication
skills
LO.4 A Workplace experience* Written evidence: rights,
responsibilities and
performance management
LO.2(.3) A Written evidence: review of
workplace experience and goals
* This part of the assignment is based on the learners’ experience at work, but assessment takes
place afterwards.
Level of demand
The extent of the career plan required in LO.2 is exemplified in the unit sample assessment
material (SAM). The job applied for in LO.3 should be appropriate for a Level 2 learner: this
should be a job that typically requires relevant Level 2 qualifications as a minimum. The job
should be one in which learners would be expected to solve problems and complete tasks which
are generally routine, but some of which may be complex. They would need to be able to work
with some autonomy subject to overall guidance and supervision. Examples of appropriate jobs
include: administrative assistant, marketing assistant or junior finance officer.
Assessment duration
learner. Centres can structure this time as they see fit, but it is recommended that the job
interview lasts no longer than 15-20 minutes. The suggested GLH for assessment does not
include time spent in the workplace. Centres should note that the total class assessment time is
likely to be higher to allow time for separate observations of interviews in LO.3.
specification.
All work must be completed individually; no group work is allowed. Although information for
the assessment for LO.4 and part of LO.5 will be collected without supervision, the tasks must
be written up under supervised conditions.

It is recommended that assessment takes place in stages after the relevant learning has taken
place rather than all at the end of the unit. See below for further guidance.
Learners will benefit most from this unit if the assessment for LO.1, LO.2 and LO.3 takes place
shortly before their workplace experience starts (unless this assignment is based around a job
that learners are already doing). This will help prepare them for the workplace and should
maximise the chances that it will be a mutually beneficial experience both for the learner and
the employer.
For their short-term career plan in the first part of the assignment, learners should focus on one
career: this could be quite broad, such as ‘accountancy’, ‘sales’ or ‘human resources’, or it could
be more narrowly focussed on a specific job and/or organisation. Their plan should follow the
four steps listed in the What you need to learn section, and should include further study or
qualifications where appropriate. Learners do not need to use all of the sources and types of
information listed in the What you need to learn section for LO.1, only what is relevant. Their
plan for how to access this career should be short term which can be understood as being
approximately the next two years. Their short-term plan is not expected to necessarily take them
up to the point where they are actually employed in this career (although it may do), but it
should represent progress towards it. The goals that learners set for their workplace experience
may relate not only to what the learner wants to improve, but also to what learner wants to
prove they can do. For example, it may be that a learner thinks that they are good at time
keeping, but they would have difficulty in coming up with evidence for this; they can therefore
use their goal setting and workplace experience to gather evidence of their existing
attributes/abilities which will be useful to them in future. The goals set do not need to conform
to SMART principles, but they should aim to at least be specific and realistic.
There are different approaches possible for the job application and interview for the second part
of the assignment. The most coherent approach would be either to a job that they have found
out about in the first part of the assignment or the job that the learners are going to do as
workplace experience in LO.4 or for centres to assess LO.3 last, after the workplace experience
has been completed: this would allow learners to make use of what they have learned and been
able to demonstrate during their workplace experience when making their application, and could
be contextualised as being an interview to recruit recent work-experience participants into a
permanent position within the organisation. Alternatively, the job could be one that learners find
for themselves, for example a job from a local newspaper or it could come from a brief specially
designed by the tutor. Whatever approach is taken, tutors will need to ensure that learners have a
job description and person specification to work from.
If the application is made using a CV and covering letter, learners can make use of previous
versions that they have created for practice purposes, but they should customise them for the
specific requirements of the job applied for.
The interview can be done as a role play, and the tutor must complete a learner observation
record. Other members of staff, local employers or a work-experience provider could take part
in the interviews in the role of interviewer.
The workplace experience, which forms the context for the assessment of the last part of the
assignment, could be in the form of a placement or it could be a part-time job done over a longer
period. The workplace experience must relate to some part of the Business, Administration and
Finance diploma and therefore allow the learners to apply some of the knowledge and skills that
they have developed or (if the workplace experience takes place early in the course) get a taster
of the knowledge and skills that they will later focus on. Learners doing full-time work
experience should complete this before they write their review. Ideally, this will also be the case
for learners doing part-time work experience, but if this proves impractical, they may be able to
complete this after at least half of the work-experience is finished. During the workplace
experience, they will need to record their experiences in some way, for example using a diary
(although the diary itself will not be assessed) so that afterwards they have the necessary
information to allow them to write up their experiences.
Learners can collect information about rights, responsibilities and performance management in
the organisation, eg by talking to existing members of staff or a mentor or by finding examples
of contracts (if available). There are a great many statutory and contractual rights and
responsibilities that could be covered. There is no requirement to mention everything, but
learners should make reference to some aspects of the broad categories listed in the relevant
sections in What you need to learn. Similarly, there is no need to provide a comprehensive
coverage of all types of performance management, only what is actually used within that
organisation, which may include methods not covered within classroom teaching.
Marking grid A
focus available
LO.1 The learner produces a career plan The learner produces a career plan The learner produces a career plan
which includes limited information which includes information accessed which includes detailed information
Be able to use
accessed on a chosen career. They on a chosen career. They produce a accessed on a chosen career. They
sources of job
produce a short-term plan of short-term plan of activities which produce a short-term plan of
information
activities and goals for their includes specific information and activities which includes specific
LO.2(.1, .2) workplace experience, but in both which has some relevance to their information and which has clear
cases these may not be specific or career plan. They set specific goals relevance to their career plan. The
Be able to plan
and set goals for realistic. for their workplace experience. learner sets specific and realistic for
their career their workplace experience.
(0–5) (6–9) (10–12)
LO.2(.3) They review progress and lessons They review progress and lessons They review progress and lessons
learned with limited reference to the learned by assessing how far they learned by assessing how far they
Be able to plan
goals set. have achieved their goals, with some have achieved their goals, providing
and set goals for
supporting evidence. good supporting evidence.
their career
(0–2) (3–4) (5–6) 18

focus available
LO.3(.1) Specific requirements of the job The learner addresses some specific The learner addresses the specific
applied for are addressed to a requirements of the job applied for. requirements of the job applied for
Be able to prepare
limited degree. Conventions are Conventions are followed, but with well. Conventions are followed, with
for and
generally followed, but with a some omissions and inconsistencies. few omissions or inconsistencies.
participate as an
number of omissions and Appropriate style/register is used in Appropriate style/register is
interviewee in an
inconsistencies. Appropriate some places. generally used.
interview for a job
style/register is used in few places.
(0–4) (5–7) (8–10)
LO.3(.2) They make limited preparation for They make some preparation for the They prepare well for the interview,
the interview, identifying a few interview, identifying a range of identifying a range of relevant
Be able to prepare
general questions they think they questions they think they may be questions they think they may be
for and
may be asked as well as a few asked, most of which are relevant to asked and appropriate answers.
participate as an
questions they could ask. the job they are applying for, and They identify a range of relevant
interviewee in an
basic answers to them. They identify questions that they could ask.
interview for a job
a range of questions that they could
ask.
(0–2) (3–4) (5–6) 16
LO.4 The learner identifies a few The learner identifies employment The learner identifies and
employment rights, but shows rights and responsibilities, showing categorises employment rights and
know how
limited understanding of the some understanding of the difference responsibilities, showing a good
employment
difference between statutory and between statutory and contractual understanding of the difference
legislation,
contractual rights or of employment rights. between statutory and contractual
procedures and
responsibilities. rights.
processes operate The learner identifies methods of
in the workplace The learner identifies methods of performance management, showing The learner identifies methods of
performance management. some understanding of how they are performance management, showing
used. a good understanding of how and
why they are used.
(0–5) (6–9) (10–12) 12
Total marks 46
Marking grid B
focus available
LO.3(.3, .4) The learner shows limited level of The learner shows a moderate level The learner shows a good level of
interview techniques in terms of of interview techniques in terms of interview techniques in terms of
Be able to prepare
selling themselves and showing selling themselves and showing selling themselves and showing
for and
enthusiasm. enthusiasm. enthusiasm.
participate as an
interviewee in an They demonstrate a basic level of They demonstrate a reasonable level The learner demonstrates a good
interview for a job oral communication skills, showing of oral communication skills, level of oral communication skills,
the ability to answer simple showing the ability to answer simple showing the ability to answer simple
questions. questions and give acceptable questions well and give good
answers to more unexpected or answers to more unexpected or
open-ended questions. open-ended questions.
Some aspects of non-verbal Some aspects of non-verbal Non-verbal communication skills are
communication skills may be communication skills are likely to be likely to be good and sustained.
adequate, but are likely not to be good, but may not be sustained.
sustained.
(0–6) (7–10) (11–14) 14
Total marks 14
Assessment guidance
marking grid B.
Level 2 descriptors
Descriptor Meaning
Assess Judge the extent or degree of something.
Categorises Puts in groups which share common features.
A few One or two.
Few Not many.

or understanding.
A number of At least three.
Most/mostly The majority with one or two left out.
A number of Many.
Open ended question A question which requires more than a yes/no answer.
Relevant/relevance Applicable to the subject.
A simple question A question that is very straightforward or which requires only
a yes/no answer.
Some At least three; to a certain degree, partial.
Specific Definite and clear.
Sustained Maintained over a period of time.
Unexpected question A question that is not routine or easy to predict.
Well presented Attractive and easy to read.

of this unit.

Independent enquirers Identifying questions to answer in preparation for the interview
[IE1].
Reflective learners Setting goals for their workplace experience [RL2]; assessing their
workplace experience in terms of how far they have achieved their
goals [RL1].
Effective participators Proposing practical steps for their career plan [EP3].
learning.

Independent enquirers Planning and carrying out research into career pathways or
workplace legislation [IE2]; preparing for their interview,
considering what employers are looking for as well as what they
themselves need from a job [IE3]; concluding which careers are
suitable for them, supporting these with reasoned arguments and
evidence [IE6].
Creative thinkers Generating ideas for different career options [CT1]; questioning
their own ideas about a suitable career [CT4].
Reflective learners Reviewing the progress they have made during the workplace
experience and deciding what to do next [RL3]; inviting feedback
from people involved in their workplace experience and dealing
positively with it [RL4]; evaluating their experiences of the
workplace to inform plans for the future [RL5].
Team workers Rehearsing their interviews, showing fairness and consideration to
others [TW4] when providing feedback afterwards [TW6].
Self-managers Seeking out challenges or new responsibilities when taking part in
workplace experience [SM1]; working towards their goals set for
their workplace experience, showing initiative, commitment and
perseverance [SM2]; organising time and resources, prioritising
actions while preparing for a job interview [SM3].


system used
Manage information storage to enable Saving documents prepared for their job applications.
efficient retrieval
Troubleshoot

information
Select and use a variety of sources of Researching occupations for their career plans, making
information independently for a use of different information sources.
complex task
fitness for purpose

Enter, develop and format information Preparing documentation for interviews, using text and
independently to suit its meaning and tables to create CVs.
purpose, including:
• text and tables
• images
• numbers
• records
Bring together information to suit Researching occupations for their career plans, preparing
content and purpose CVs and covering letters.
Present information in ways that are fit Researching occupations for their career plans, preparing
for purpose and audience CVs and covering letters.
present information

Mathematics
tackle it
each stage
situations
English
Speaking and listening – make a range Taking part in interviews as interviewee.
range of contexts
Reading – compare, select, read and Gathering information from different sources to inform
understand texts and use them to their career plan.
and opinions
Writing – write documents, including Preparing documentation for interviews; reviewing their
extended writing pieces, workplace experience.
Work experience
Workplace experience is integral to this unit. For further information, see Assessment
information for assessors, above.
This unit can be delivered without specialist resources. However, there are specialist resources
that are useful and relevant, for example Cascaid’s Kudos software.
Reference material
Books
Anderson A, Barker D and Critten P – Effective Self Development: A Skills and Activity-based
Approach (Blackwell, 1996) ISBN 0631200150
Fry R – Your first Interview: for students and anyone preparing to enter today’s tough job
market (Career Press, 2002) ISBN 1564145867
Linn L – Landing your first real job (McGraw-Hill Education, 1996) ISBN 0070380619
Messina E N – Teenwork: Four teens tell all: A guide for finding jobs (Goodheart-Wilcox,
2005) ISBN 159070598X
Narms J – Employment Law for Business students (Longman, 2007) ISBN 1405832762
Websites
www.alec.co.uk Alec: employability skills advice
www.careeesa-z.co.uk Careers A-Z
www.careers-gateway Careersoft
www.channel4.com/brilliantcareeers Brilliant Careers
www.connexions-direct.com Connexions
www.support4learning.org.uk Support4Learning
There are a number of industry-specific websites that have useful career information, for
example:
www.acca.co.uk Association of Chartered Certified Accountants
www.cim.co.uk Chartered Institute of Marketing
www.cipd.co.uk Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development
www.lawsociety.org.uk Law Society of England and Wales
List of annexes
Annexe A: Qualification codes 281

Annexe B: Personal, learning and thinking skills 283
Annexe C: Wider curriculum mapping 289
Annexe D: Glossary of terms 291
Annexe E: Internal Assessment of Principal Learning Units: Controls for
Task Setting, Task Taking and Task Marking 295
Annexe F: Learning outcomes and assessment criteria for each unit 303
Annexe A: Qualification codes
The National Qualifications Framework (NQF) code is known as a Qualification Accreditation
Number (QAN). This is the code that features in the DfES Funding Schedules – Sections 96 and
97 and is to be used for all qualification funding purposes. Each unit within a qualification will
also have an NQF unit code.
The qualification and unit codes will appear on the learner’s final certification documentation.
The QANs for the qualifications in this publication are:
500/4186/1 Edexcel Level 1 Principal Learning in Business, Administration and Finance
500/4184/8 Edexcel Level 2 Principal Learning in Business, Administration and Finance
These Principal Learning qualifications contribute to the following Diploma qualifications at the
same level:
500/4924/0 Edexcel Level 1 Foundation Diploma in Business, Administration and Finance
500/4940/9 Edexcel Level 2 Higher Diploma in Business, Administration and Finance
These qualification titles will appear on learners’ certificates.
Learners need to be made aware of this when they are recruited by the centre and registered
with Edexcel. Providing this happens, centres are able to describe the programme of study
leading to the award of the qualification in different ways to suit the medium and the target
audience.
Other codes
The codes below will be required when making entries for individual units and the overall
Principal Learning qualification:
Unit codes Each unit is assigned a unit code. This unit code is Please refer to the
used as an entry code to indicate that a learner Edexcel
wishes to take the assessment for that unit. Centres Information
will need to use the entry codes only when entering Manual, available
learners for their examination or coursework on the Edexcel
moderation. website.
Cash-in codes The cash-in code is used as an entry code to Please refer to the
aggregate the learner’s unit scores to obtain the Edexcel
overall grade for the qualification. Centres will Information
need to use the cash-in codes only when entering Manual, available
learners for their qualification award. on the Edexcel
website.
Annexe B: Personal, learning and thinking skills
QCA — a framework of PLTS
A FRAMEWORK OF PERSONAL, LEARNING AND THINKING SKILLS 11–19 IN ENGLAND

The framework comprises six groups of skills that, together with the functional skills of
English, mathematics and ICT, are essential to success in learning, life and work. In essence the
framework captures the essential skills of: managing self; managing relationships with others;
and managing own learning, performance and work. It is these skills that will enable young
people to enter work and adult life confident and capable.
The titles of the six groups of skills are set out below.
Team workers Self-managers
Independent enquirers
Reflective learners Creative thinkers
Effective participators
For each group there is a focus statement that sums up the range of skills. This is followed by a
set of outcome statements that are indicative of the skills, behaviours and personal qualities
associated with each group.
Each group is distinctive and coherent. The groups are also inter-connected. Young people are
likely to encounter skills from several groups in any one learning experience. For example an
Independent enquirer would set goals for their research with clear success criteria (Reflective
learner) and organise and manage their time and resources effectively to achieve these (Self-
manager). In order to acquire and develop fundamental concepts such as organising oneself,
managing change, taking responsibility and perseverance, learners will need to apply skills from
all six groups in a wide range of learning contexts 11-19.
The Skills
Focus:
Young people process and evaluate information in their investigations, planning what to do
and how to go about it. They take informed and well-reasoned decisions, recognising that
others have different beliefs and attitudes.
Young people:
• identify questions to answer and problems to resolve
• plan and carry out research, appreciating the consequences of decisions
• explore issues, events or problems from different perspectives
• analyse and evaluate information, judging its relevance and value
• consider the influence of circumstances, beliefs and feelings on decisions and
events
• support conclusions, using reasoned arguments and evidence
Creative thinkers
Focus:
Young people think creatively by generating and exploring ideas, making original
connections. They try different ways to tackle a problem, working with others to find
imaginative solutions and outcomes that are of value.
Young people:
• generate ideas and explore possibilities
• ask questions to extend their thinking
• connect their own and others’ ideas and experiences in inventive ways
• question their own and others’ assumptions
• try out alternatives or new solutions and follow ideas through
• adapt ideas as circumstances change
Reflective learners
Focus:
Young people evaluate their strengths and limitations, setting themselves realistic goals
with criteria for success. They monitor their own performance and progress, inviting
feedback from others and making changes to further their learning.
Young people:
• assess themselves and others, identifying opportunities and achievements
• set goals with success criteria for their development and work
• review progress, acting on the outcomes
• invite feedback and deal positively with praise, setbacks and criticism
• evaluate experiences and learning to inform future progress
• communicate their learning in relevant ways for different audiences
Team workers
Focus:
Young people work confidently with others, adapting to different contexts and taking
responsibility for their own part. They listen to and take account of different views. They
form collaborative relationships, resolving issues to reach agreed outcomes.
Young people:
• collaborate with others to work towards common goals
• reach agreements, managing discussions to achieve results
• adapt behaviour to suit different roles and situations
• show fairness and consideration to others
• take responsibility, showing confidence in themselves and their contribution
• provide constructive support and feedback to others
Self-managers
Focus:
Young people organise themselves, showing personal responsibility, initiative, creativity
and enterprise with a commitment to learning and self-improvement. They actively
embrace change, responding positively to new priorities, coping with challenges and
looking for opportunities.
Young people:
• seek out challenges or new responsibilities and show flexibility when priorities
change
• work towards goals, showing initiative, commitment and perseverance
• organise time and resources, prioritising actions
• anticipate, take and manage risks
• deal with competing pressures, including personal and work-related demands
• respond positively to change, seeking advice and support when needed
• manage their emotions, and build and maintain relationships
Focus:
Young people actively engage with issues that affect them and those around them. They
play a full part in the life of their school, college, workplace or wider community by taking
responsible action to bring improvements for others as well as themselves.
Young people:
• discuss issues of concern, seeking resolution where needed
• present a persuasive case for action
• propose practical ways forward, breaking these down into manageable steps
• identify improvements that would benefit others as well as themselves
• try to influence others, negotiating and balancing diverse views to reach workable
solutions
• act as an advocate for views and beliefs that may differ from their own
(See www.qcda.gov.uk/16953.aspx)
PLTS Performance Indicator (suggested recording sheet)
Name: Date:
Level of success
1 = low, 5 = high
Identify questions to answer and problems to resolve 1 2 3 4 5
Plan and carry out research, appreciating the consequences of decisions 1 2 3 4 5
Explore issues, events or problems from different perspectives 1 2 3 4 5
Analyse and evaluate information, judging its relevance and value 1 2 3 4 5
Consider the influence of circumstances, beliefs and feelings on decisions and
1 2 3 4 5
events
Support conclusions, using reasoned arguments and evidence 1 2 3 4 5
Creative thinkers
Generate ideas and explore possibilities 1 2 3 4 5
Ask questions to extend their thinking 1 2 3 4 5
Connect their own and others’ ideas and experiences in inventive ways 1 2 3 4 5
Question their own and others’ assumptions 1 2 3 4 5
Try out alternatives or new solutions and follow ideas through 1 2 3 4 5
Adapt ideas as circumstances change 1 2 3 4 5
Reflective learners
Assess themselves and others, identifying opportunities and achievements 1 2 3 4 5
Set goals with success criteria for their development and work 1 2 3 4 5
Review progress, acting on the outcomes 1 2 3 4 5
Invite feedback and deal positively with praise, setbacks and criticism 1 2 3 4 5
Evaluate experiences and learning to inform future progress 1 2 3 4 5
Communicate their learning in relevant ways for different audiences 1 2 3 4 5
Team workers
Collaborate with others to work towards common goals 1 2 3 4 5
Reach agreements, managing discussions to achieve results 1 2 3 4 5
Adapt behaviour to suit different roles and situations 1 2 3 4 5
Show fairness and consideration to others 1 2 3 4 5
Take responsibility, showing confidence in themselves and their contribution 1 2 3 4 5
Provide constructive support and feedback to others 1 2 3 4 5
Self-managers
Seek out challenges or new responsibilities and show flexibility when
1 2 3 4 5
priorities change
Work towards goals, showing initiative, commitment and perseverance 1 2 3 4 5
Organise time and resources, prioritising actions 1 2 3 4 5
Anticipate, take and manage risks 1 2 3 4 5
Deal with competing pressures, including personal and work-related demands 1 2 3 4 5
Respond positively to change, seeking advice and support when needed 1 2 3 4 5
Manage their emotions, and build and maintain relationships 1 2 3 4 5
Discuss issues of concern, seeking resolution where needed 1 2 3 4 5
Present a persuasive case for action 1 2 3 4 5
Propose practical ways forward, breaking these down into manageable steps 1 2 3 4 5
Identify improvements that would benefit others as well as themselves 1 2 3 4 5
Try to influence others, negotiating and balancing diverse views to reach
1 2 3 4 5
workable solutions
Act as an advocate for views and beliefs that may differ from their own 1 2 3 4 5
Note to learner: The circled number represents an indication of your PLTS performance so far.
Note to tutor: Indicate the level of success by circling the appropriate number during your
feedback with the learner.
Summary of the PLTS coverage throughout the programme
Personal, learning and Unit

thinking skill 1 2 3 4 5
Independent enquirers , ,
Creative thinkers ,
Reflective learners , , ,
Team workers , ,
Self-managers , ,
Effective participators , ,
– required component; – opportunities for development
Personal, learning Unit

and thinking skill 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Independent enquirers , , ,
Creative thinkers ,
Reflective learners , , , ,
Team workers , ,
Self-managers , , ,
Effective participators , , ,
– required component; – opportunities for development
Annexe C: Wider curriculum mapping
Study of the Edexcel Diplomas in Business, Administration and Finance provides opportunities
for the learner to develop an understanding of spiritual, moral, ethical, social and cultural issues
as well as an awareness of citizenship, environmental issues, European developments, health
and safety considerations and equal opportunities issues.
The Edexcel Diplomas in Business, Administration and Finance make a positive contribution to
wider curricular areas as appropriate.
The specification contributes to an understanding of:
• moral and ethical issues – for example, various moral and ethical issues are dealt with at
Level 2 in Unit 8: Corporate Social Responsibility
• social and cultural issues – for example, differing attitudes to money are explored in the
Unit 3: Personal Finance and Financial Services (both levels).
Citizenship issues
Learners undertaking the Principal Learning in Business, Administration and Finance will have
the opportunity to develop their understanding of citizenship issues, especially the key concepts
of rights and responsibilities in Unit 4: Sales and Customer Service in Business (Level 1),
Unit 5: Marketing, Sales and Customer Service in Business (Level 2) and Unit 9: Careers and
Employment in Business (Level 2); and of democracy and justice in Unit 8: Corporate Social
Responsibility (Level 2).
Environmental issues
Learners are encouraged to appreciate the importance of environmental issues in various units,
most explicitly at Level 2 in Unit 7: Responding to Change in Business and Unit 8: Corporate
Social Responsibility.
European developments
Much of the content of the Edexcel Diplomas in Business, Administration and Finance applies
throughout Europe even though the delivery is in a UK context. European legislation is
addressed at Level 2 in Unit 8: Corporate Social Responsibility.
Health and safety considerations
The Edexcel Diplomas in Business, Administration and Finance are practically based and so
health and safety issues are encountered throughout the units. Learners will develop awareness
of the safety of others as well as themselves in all practical activities. Learners will also explore
health and safety issues across the business, administration and finance sector, particularly in
Unit 1: Business Enterprise (both Levels) and at Level 2 in Unit 9: Careers and Employment in
Business and Unit 8: Corporate Social Responsibility.
Equal opportunities issues
Equal opportunities issues are implicit throughout the Edexcel Diplomas in Business,
Administration and Finance.
Wider curriculum mapping

Unit
1 2 3 4 5
Moral and ethical
Social and cultural
Citizenship issues
Health and safety
considerations
Personal, learning and Unit

thinking skill 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Moral and ethical
Social and cultural
Citizenship issues
Health and safety
considerations
Annexe D: Glossary of terms
There are some terms that you may come across in the specification, which have a particular
meaning within the context of the Diploma. You are therefore advised to familiarise yourself
with the definitions of the terms in this glossary.
Term Definition
Additional learning Units or qualifications that learners choose to include in their
Diploma. Additional learning is complementary in character. It
consists of further learning and can include national curriculum
entitlement areas and/or learning options such as languages,
music or science that relate to individual needs, interests and
aspirations, provided these do not duplicate learning in Principal
Learning and Generic Learning.
Applied learning Acquiring and applying, knowledge, skills and understanding
through tasks set in sector contexts that have many of the
characteristics of real work or are set within the workplace.
Most importantly, the purpose of the task in which learners
apply their knowledge, skills and understanding must be
relevant to real work in the sector.
Assessment criteria Specify the standard a learner is expected to meet to
demonstrate that a learning outcome, or set of learning
outcomes, has been achieved. Assessment criteria should be
sufficiently detailed to support a consistent judgement that a
learning outcome has been achieved – there are no minimum or
maximum number of assessment criteria that relate to each
learning outcome. The criteria should not dictate the method of
assessment to be used.
Diploma A defined set of qualifications that have been combined
according to a set of rules. The Diplomas are designed to
support progression to further study, training and employment.
Experiential learning A process that stresses the central role of experience in learning
related to the world of work. Learners reflect on their
experience, draw out and articulate lessons learnt (generalise),
and then apply their learning to new situations or activities.
External assessment Assessment tasks are set and candidates’ work is assessed by
Edexcel.
Formative assessment This is concerned with the short-term collection and use of
evidence as guidance of learning, mainly in day-to-day
classroom practice.
Functional skills Functional skills are core elements of English, mathematics and
ICT, providing the essential knowledge, skills and
understanding needed to operate confidently, effectively and
independently in life and at work.
Term Definition
Generic Learning Generic Learning enables learners to develop and apply the
skills and knowledge necessary for learning, employment and
personal development.
The Generic Learning component of the Diploma is made up of
the following constituent parts:
• functional skills
• personal, learning and thinking skills
• a project
• work experience.
Generic skills Generic skills are relevant to learning, training and working in
all lines of learning and all sectors. They include functional
skills and personal, learning and thinking skills.
Internal assessment Tasks are set and marked against criteria provided by Edexcel
and subjected to external moderation. Internal assessment is
normally supervised and conducted under controlled conditions.
Level The level at which a qualification or unit is positioned for
accreditation. Levels are defined in terms of complexity,
autonomy and range of achievement.
Line of learning The broad subject areas that each Diploma will cover. There are
17 lines of learning, including: Creative and Media; Information
Technology; Society, Health and Development; Engineering;
Construction and the Built Environment.
Personal, learning and The framework of skills, which will equip all young people for
thinking skills (PLTS) successful employment and lifelong learning. PLTS require
learners to be:
• independent enquirers
• creative thinkers
• reflective learners
• team workers
• self-managers
• effective participators.
Principal Learning Learning modules and units of assessment that the learner must
include in their Diploma. Principal Learning includes a
minimum of 50 per cent of applied learning and consists of
knowledge, understanding, skills and attitudes that support
progress through the line of learning into the sectors concerned.
Opportunities to develop and apply generic skills are also
integrated into Principal Learning.
Project A freestanding qualification within the Diploma.
Term Definition
Specialist learning Units or qualifications that learners choose to include in their
Diploma. Specialist learning allows the learner to take up
further, more specialist learning, within their line of learning. It
consists of qualifications and units that will support progression
across the range of progression pathways within a chosen sector,
as identified and recommended by the employers and higher
education advisers on the Diploma Development Partnership.
Summative assessment This serves to inform an overall judgement of achievement.
Transcript A report of the units and qualifications that make up a learner’s
programme and achievement. It lists the learner’s units and
grades for each of the components of their Diploma
qualification and also records work experience and personal,
learning and thinking skills.
Work experience A component of the Diploma, which enables learners to utilise
and develop their knowledge and skills in the actual workplace.
Annexe E: Internal Assessment of Principal
Learning Units: Controls for Task Setting, Task
Taking and Task Marking
This annexe should be read in association with the latest edition of the Joint Council for
Qualifications document ‘GCSE, GCE, ELC, Functional Skills, Principal Learning in the
Diploma and Project Qualifications – Instructions for conducting coursework’, available
from the JCQ website, www.jcq.org.uk
Section 1: Introduction
It is a requirement of the Criteria for accreditation of Diploma qualifications at Levels 1, 2
and 3 that:
‘Internal assessment [of Principal Learning] must normally be supervised and
conducted under controlled conditions to ensure reliability and fairness.’
Further guidance from the Qualifications and Curriculum Development Agency has identified
three stages of assessment for which control must be specified:
• Task setting
• Task taking (controls on time, resources, supervision, and collaboration)
• Task marking.
Further to the areas specified above, this annexe in collaboration with the individual
specifications also sets the parameters for:
• guidance and support;
• submission, revision, re-working;
• the involvement of parents/carers;
• malpractice; and the authentication of learners’ work.
This annexe details the controls that normally apply to all Edexcel Principal Learning internally
assessed units. However tutors and assessors must also apply any specific controls or additional
requirements that may be identified within the Assessment information for assessors section in
individual units.
There are three levels of control that can apply to each stage.
High control Where the assessment requirements are tightly prescribed.
Medium control Where the assessment requirements are specified in terms of parameters
that allow consortia some flexibility to suit local circumstances.
Limited control Where the assessment requirements are specified in terms of broad
parameters that allow consortia to determine the details of the assessment.
It is the responsibility of the consortium to ensure that internal controlled assessment for
Principal Learning is conducted and marked in accordance with the requirements specified by
Edexcel and conducted in line with the JCQ Instructions for conducting coursework.
Section 2: Edexcel Controlled Assessment Profile
In Edexcel’s internally-assessed Principal Learning units, some aspects are subject to medium
control and others have limited control. The table below shows the standard profile for all
Edexcel Principal Learning internally-assessed unit specifications. Individual unit specifications
will indicate where a divergence has occurred from this profile.
Aspect Level 1 Level 2 Level 3

Task setting Limited Limited Limited
Time Limited Limited Limited
Resources Limited Limited Limited
Supervision Medium Medium Medium
Collaboration Limited Limited Limited
Marking Medium Medium Medium
Section 3: Assessment controls

3.1 Task setting
Limited control
Edexcel will publish, as part of its tutor support materials, at least one model assignment for
each internally assessed unit. It is recommended that these model assignments are used in the
assessment of each unit. However in order that these assignments can best meet learner interests
and local needs they will include guidance for tutors and assessors to show the ways in which
they may be adapted and contextualised. If the tutor decides to either adapt or write their own
assignments then each assignment must meet the following conditions:
• each internally assessed unit must be assessed through a single coherent assignment which
addresses the overall theme of the unit to emphasise how the different learning outcomes all
relate to each other. Each assignment may be broken down into a series of related tasks
• assignments must have an applied work-related context
• across all tasks, assignments must address all learning outcomes and assessment criteria,
and must give access to the full range of marks
• the evidence produced must conform to the requirements published in the How you will be
Assessed section of the relevant unit specification
• in some units the marking grid is divided into parts A and B. All tasks which will be marked
against the A grid must generate learner evidence that can be re-assessed at a later stage
during internal standardisation activity or external moderation
• where tutors decide to set their own assignments, another person, who understands the
requirements of the specification, must check that each new assignment is appropriate for
the line of learning and the level, and also that a new assignment will allow candidates full
access to the marking criteria. This is especially important when a new tutor/assessor is
required to produce assignments. Suitable people may include a Domain or Lead Assessor.
This review process must be documented and the evidence of the review must be made
available for the external moderator if requested
• if the assignment is to be produced outside the teaching institution, for example by a
supervisor at the learner’s work experience placement, then the tutor or assessor at the
teaching institution responsible for that unit, must sign off the assignment for validity before
the learner attempts the assignment.
In addition to these requirements, further guidance on writing assignments is provided in this
specification, in the section ‘Assessment and grading of the principal learning specifications’.
Complexity
If the level of complexity of the evidence required is not already identified within the
specification, then an indication can be assumed from the amount of time set within the
specification for the production of the assessment evidence, considering the level at which the
specification is being taken. The expectations of what a Level 1 learner can accomplish in 10
hours are far different from that which can be expected from a Level 3 learner in the same time
period.
Unless it is otherwise specified, learners should be set a task of equivalent complexity, whether
they are expected to achieve marks at mark band 1 of the marking grid or mark band 3.
3.2 Task taking (controls on time, resources, supervision, and collaboration)
If not specified within the unit, it is to be assumed that tasks or the whole assignment will
normally be attempted at the end of the learning process.
Time – Limited control

Each unit has a time for assessment allocated. This is defined as ‘the time to be spent generating
evidence for assessment’, and covers all tasks and/or aspects of the assessment which carry
marks in the unit marking grid. Activities to support the assessment such as setting up
equipment or researching data are not included in the time allowance if they do not carry marks.
While it is not a requirement that this time should be observed to the minute for internal
assessments, it should be taken as strong guidance and variance should not normally be by more
than plus or minus 10%. Learners given significantly less time may well be disadvantaged in
relation to the quality and breadth of work they can produce, while those given significantly
more may well be disadvantaged by an excess of time spent on assessment rather than learning.
Resources – Limited control

Unless otherwise stated in the individual unit specification, learners are entitled to have full
access to all resources seen fit for purpose by the centre tutor/assessor. Any specific resources
(eg equipment, published material) required or prohibited for assessment will be detailed in the
individual unit.
Supervision – Medium control

Learners must normally be supervised by the centre tutor/assessor whilst producing evidence for
the summative assessment activity, unless otherwise stated in the individual unit specification.
Supervision is defined as normal classroom/workshop/studio working conditions, with the
tutor/assessor being present in the same room whilst the summative assessment evidence is
produced by the learner, but not requiring examination conditions.
Where supervision is relaxed:
• because it is not possible to directly supervise the activity that is required to produce
summative assessment evidence, eg researching data, then the tutor/assessor must
authenticate the learner work following the process identified in the section headed
‘Authentication’; or
• because the most suitable environment for producing the evidence means the tutor/assessor
cannot be present, eg work experience, the tutor/assessor must ensure an appropriate person
supervises the evidence production. All such evidence must be authenticated (see
Authentication below) and, where this covers performance evidence, a signed learner
observation record must be completed with enough reliable information to allow the tutor to
accurately assess the evidence (see 3.4 Task marking below).
It is not permissible for summative assessment evidence to be produced in the learner’s home
environment, without the direct supervision of their assessor.
Due to the nature of producing an artefact, its production as part of the summative assessment
will often be dictated by the availability of materials, equipment etc, therefore it may well be
produced outside of the centre. However, the assessor must be confident that the work is that of
the learner. In order to be confident, Edexcel requires one of the following situations to apply:
• the work is carried out under the direct supervision of the teaching centre assessor. This is
the most desirable option
• the learner demonstrates to the teaching centre assessor equivalent levels of skill in each of
the processes included in the production of the final artefact. Ideally this would be in the
course of the regular teaching/learning programme, but exceptionally, if the assessor feels a
skill has been assessed at a level beyond expectations, the assessor may require the learner
to repeat that skill before authenticating the work.
If the artefact can only be produced remotely, for example during work experience, the assessor
must have enough reliable information to allow them to both accurately assess the outcome and
have a signed learner observation record from an appropriate person who directly observed the
learner producing the artefact. An ‘appropriate person’ is defined as someone with a supervisory
role within the workplace (or equivalent), and who has the required skills. This person must not
be a family member, and must record and supply the required information for the assessor.
Collaboration (Group work) – Limited control

Some units may require learners to work as part of a group. In other units, unless it is
specifically forbidden, tutors may choose to have learners working collaboratively. When
producing assignments which require or allow learners to work in groups, tasks must be written
to allow each group member to fully meet the requirements of the assessment criteria.
Learners must not have their assessment opportunities reduced by the poor performance of other
group members. Where this becomes apparent the tutor or assessor should intervene, or provide
suitable alternative activities which do not greatly add to the learners’ workloads.
Group tasks should not rely on the performance of individual members of the group to allow
other group members to meet all of the assessment criteria.
It is important that each learner is assessed on their individual contribution to the achievements
of the group. Where several individuals contribute to a single piece of work, individual
contributions must be clearly shown on the work to enable external moderation to take place.
This can be indicated by learners or through the tutor’s annotations.
Guidance and support
At the start of the assignment learners will often be required to plan out their programme of
work. The tutor/assessors should agree these plans and where appropriate agree milestones
where they can monitor learners’ responses. Appropriate intervention is to be encouraged to
ensure learners have every opportunity of success. However, if the planning process forms part
of the assessment criteria, care must be taken to ensure that the plan remains the learner’s own
work.
Within some unit specifications, the level of assistance given to a learner is a discriminating
factor used to decide a learner’s positioning within the marking bands. To aid the assessor in
selecting the appropriate level of assistance given to the learner a glossary of descriptors is
included in the units and should be used for guidance when marking the learners work. In some
cases, where a glossary doesn’t exist, the following definitions should be used:
• Assistance – The learner has to be guided and advised to make progress, and responds to
ideas suggested. The tutor/assessor needs to direct significant aspects of the work.
• Limited assistance – The learner suggests ideas for themselves, but makes use of guidance
and advice from the tutor/assessor to make progress. The tutor/assessor assists in some
aspects of the work, but generally does not direct it.
• Independently – The learner develops ideas themselves, using the tutor/assessor as an
advisor rather than as a director. The tutor/assessor facilitates the work but does not need to
direct its progress.
It is expected that all learners should develop as independent learners, but this does not mean
that they should not be given any support in order to be able to research, write up and complete
their reports. The hallmark of the independent learner, whatever the level, is knowing when and
whom to ask for support in helping to carry the work forward.
All learners must be fully and equally briefed at the start of any task or assignment about the
requirements of that task, including how they will be marked. They should be given the
opportunity to ask any questions in order to clarify the requirements.
Once the assignment is under way, the tutor should respond to questions and requests for
advice, but should normally refrain from intervening unasked. Responses can advise the learner
on such matters as further sources of information, and can point out where further work is
needed, but must always stop short of actually stating what to write.
In some units the amount of support and guidance a learner may receive in the course of
carrying out the task or assignment is specified. This occurs, for example, when differentiation
between mark bands is achieved in part by the support the learner needs to complete a practical
task safely.
Tutors or assessors must always intervene where matters of health and safety are concerned.
When this happens, the assessor should make a judgement about the appropriate marks that can
be applied to the learner’s work in the light of the intervention, and attach to the work a record
of the intervention and justification for the marks awarded.
3.3 Feedback, re-working and submission
All Principal Learning awarding bodies are required to follow the instructions for feedback,
re-working and submission specified by the JCQ
Candidates are free to revise and redraft a piece of coursework without teacher involvement
before submitting the final piece. Candidates should be advised to spend an appropriate amount
of time on the work commensurate with the marks available.
Teachers may review coursework before it is handed in for final assessment. Provided that
advice remains at the general level, enabling the candidate to take the initiative in making
amendments, there is no need to record this advice as assistance or to deduct marks. Generally
one review should be sufficient to enable candidates to understand the demands of the
assessment criteria. Advice may be given in either oral or written form.
Having reviewed the candidate’s coursework it is not acceptable for teachers to give, either to
individual candidates or to groups, detailed advice and suggestions as to how the work may be
improved in order to meet the assessment criteria. Examples of unacceptable assistance include:
• detailed indication of errors or omissions
• advice on specific improvements needed to meet the criteria
• the provision of outlines, paragraph or section headings, or writing frames specific to the
coursework task(s)
• personal intervention to improve the presentation or content of the coursework.
As indicated above, a clear distinction must be drawn between any interim review of
coursework and final assessment for the intended examination series. Once work is submitted
for final assessment it may not be revised: in no circumstances are ‘fair copies’ of marked work
allowed. Adding or removing any material to or from coursework after it has been
presented by a candidate for final assessment will constitute malpractice.
Where coursework is submitted in digital format there may be instances where the construction
of the e-coursework does not attract any marks, in which case this construction may be done by
the teacher instead of the candidate.
If a candidate requires additional assistance in order to demonstrate aspects of the assessment,
the teacher should award a mark which represents the candidate’s unaided achievement. The
authentication statement should be signed and information given on the Candidate Record
Sheet.
Teachers must keep live coursework secure and confidential at all times whilst in their
possession. It is not acceptable for teaching staff to share coursework with other candidates.
There may be occasions when a learner needs to retake a task or assignment. This is acceptable
at the discretion of the tutor, but the assignment should normally be set in a different context so
that the learner is not repeating exactly the same tasks which they have had the chance to
practise beforehand. Individual units will have further guidance where appropriate.
Authentication
All candidates must confirm that any work they submit for assessment is their own.
Where learners are required to gather information and resources, tutors or assessors should take
the opportunity to discuss authentication and plagiarism at the outset.
Where learner observation records and practical activity logs are required Edexcel will provide
exemplar pro formas. Centres may choose to develop their own documentation, but they must
record at least the information contained within the exemplar pro formas.
Once the assignment has been completed the assessor may need to interview or test the learner
on their understanding of the information and/or the resources that they have identified and
used. This may be necessary if, for example:
• the assessor needs to confirm the authenticity of the work
• the unit marking grid carries marks for information and/or resource gathering.
It will be up to the centre assessor to decide on the appropriate format, although the activity
should be of a ‘closed book’ nature.
If the assessor decides to interview the learner, the assessor is required to question the learner
regarding their information or resources until the assessor is sufficiently satisfied with the
authentication. Whilst the interview is in progress the learner should not have access to the
information or resources unless the individual unit specifies otherwise. It can be either a group
or individual interview.
If the assessor decides to test the learner, the assessor is required to follow the usual testing
format, with learners working in silence, and placed in a manner so that they do not see other
learners’ responses. The questions are at the discretion of the assessor, as is the length and
timing of the test. Learners are not permitted to view the questions prior to the test and should
not have access to their work during the test unless the individual unit specifies otherwise.
The documented outcome could be either notes following an interview with one or a group of
learners and signed by the assessor, or marked test papers.
Each candidate is required to sign a declaration before submitting their coursework to their
subject tutors/assessors for final assessment, to confirm that the work is their own and that any
assistance given and/or sources used have been acknowledged. Ensuring that they do so is the
responsibility of the candidate’s centre.
It is also a requirement that tutors/assessors confirm to the awarding body that all of the work
submitted for assessment was completed under the required conditions and that they are
satisfied that the work is solely that of the individual candidate concerned. Where assessment is
supervised by someone other than the tutor, additional confirmation is required from the person
who has supervised the assessment.
All tutors/assessors who have assessed the work of any candidate entered for each component
must sign the declaration of authentication.
3.4 Task marking (standardisation and marking) — Medium control
Marking
Edexcel requires all consortium assessors to use only Edexcel authorized documentation in the
assessment of its Principal Learning internal assessed units. All Edexcel Principal Learning
internal assessed unit specifications have mark descriptors, and these must be used when
assessing learner work. Consortium assessors must not try to re-interpret the mark descriptors,
or use any other unauthorised publication which aims to do so.
If written evidence and artefacts are completed under the supervision of someone else (see
Supervision above), this person may comment upon what is produced, but only the tutor can
allocate marks.
Where performance evidence is observed by someone other than the tutor, this person must
record their comments on the learner observation record. It is then the responsibility of the tutor
to judge this evidence and allocate marks.
Standardisation
All Principal Learning awarding bodies are required to follow the instructions for
standardisation specified by the JCQ.
Centres should use reference and archive materials (such as exemplar material provided by the
awarding body or, where available, work in the centre from the previous year) to help set the
standard of marking within the centre.
Prior to marking, a trial marking exercise should be undertaken. Teachers mark the same
relatively small sample of work to allow for the comparison of marking standards. The exercise
can take place at appropriate stages during the course and has three beneficial effects: it helps to
bring about greater comparability in the marking standards; it may identify at an early stage any
teachers whose standards are out of line with that of their colleagues; and it alleviates a heavy
marking load at the end of the course.
Where the work for a unit has been marked by more than one teacher in a consortium,
standardisation of marking should normally be carried out according to one of the following
procedures:
Either a sample of work which has been marked by each teacher is re-marked by the teacher
who is in charge of internal standardisation – normally the Domain Assessor;
Or all the teachers responsible for marking a component exchange some marked work
(preferably at a meeting led by the Domain Assessor) and compare their marking standards.
Where standards are found to be inconsistent, the discrepant teacher(s) should make adjustments
to their marks or re-consider the marks of all candidates for whom they were responsible. The
new marks should be checked by the teacher in charge of internal standardisation.
Following completion of the marking and of internal standardisation, the coursework must be
retained within the consortium and not returned to the candidates.
Consortia should retain evidence that internal standardisation has been carried out.
Annexe F: Learning outcomes and assessment
criteria for each unit
The following sections state the learning outcomes and assessment criteria for each unit that are
presented on the National Database of Accredited Qualifications, NDAQ. Each section outlines
the intermediary stage in generating the marking grid from the learning outcomes via
assessment criteria.
Unit title: Level 1 Unit 1 Business Enterprise
outcome
LO.1 Understand what makes a product or 1.1 Describe a product or service

service successful
1.2 Explain what makes it successful
LO.2 Be able to generate and develop an 2.1 Generate ideas for a product or service,
idea for a product or service reaching agreement to select a workable
idea for development [CT1, TW2]
LO.3 Be able to test an idea for a product 3.1 Collect market research data [IE2]
or service
3.2 Interpret market research data
LO.4 Be able to present a business idea 4.1 Communicate a business idea to an
audience
4.2 Present a persuasive case for investing in a
business idea [EP2]
LO.5 Be able to implement and review a 5.1 With support and guidance, collaborate
business enterprise with others and work towards the goal of
implementing a business idea [TW1],
showing commitment and perseverance
[SM2]
5.2 Take decisions when implementing a
business idea
5.3 Assess how successful the business idea
has been [RL1]
PLTS: This summary references where applicable, in the square brackets, the elements of the
personal, learning and thinking skills which are embedded in the assessment of this unit. By
achieving the criteria, learners will have demonstrated effective application of the referenced
elements of the skills. Annexe B of this document lists the personal, learning and thinking skills
and their elements.
Key IE – independent enquirers

CT – creative thinkers
RL – reflective learners
TW – team workers
SM – self-managers
EP – effective participators
Unit title: Level 1 Unit 2 Business Administration, Teams and
Communication
outcome
LO.1 Know administrative processes 1.1 Identify administrative processes

used in business
LO.2 Be able to produce simple 2.1 Manage information
business documents
2.2 Select appropriate formats for business
communication
2.3 Communicate in writing using appropriate
language
LO.3 Be able to plan and carry out 3.1 Organise time and resources [SM3]
administrative work safely
3.2 Use office equipment safely
LO.4 Be able to work as part of a team 4.1 Work as part of a team [TW1], showing
fairness and consideration [TW4]
4.2 Communicate in a team situation
4.3 Deal positively with feedback [RL4]
4.4 Assess team effectiveness [RL1]
and their elements.

TW – team workers
Unit title: Level 1 Unit 3 Personal Finance and Financial
Services
outcome
LO.1 Know the main types, features and 1.1 Identify the types, features and sources of
sources of money money in everyday situations
LO.2 Understand the importance of 2.1 Explain why it is important to avoid
avoiding debt getting into debt
LO.3 Know how to plan personal finances 3.1 Identify how sources of financial
information and advice can be used to help
make financial decisions
3.2 Construct simple budgets for personal use
LO.4 Know how to choose and use 4.1 Outline how to open and manage current
current and savings accounts and savings accounts, taking account of the
account provider’s information
requirements, costs, charges and benefits
4.2 Select an appropriate current account and a
savings account, based on the account’s
features and calculations of interest
4.3 Outline common security measures taken
to protect against fraud and theft
Unit title: Level 1 Unit 4 Sales and Customer Service in Business
outcome
LO.1 Know the role of sales and 1.1 Outline the functions of sales in a business
customer services in a business
1.2 Outline the functions of customer services
in a business
LO.2 Know how organisations provide 2.1 Identify customer characteristics
effective service to customers
2.2 Identify the features of effective customer
service
LO.3 Understand the importance for 3.1 Explain the importance of effective service
organisations of providing good to customers to a business
service to customers
LO.4 Be able to interact with customers 4.1 Prepare for the sales process
4.2 Communicate with customers in a sales
situation
4.3 Use selling skills to influence others [EP5]
4.4 Answer routine customer enquiries
and their elements.

TW – team workers
Unit title: Level 1 Unit 5 Careers and Employment in Business
outcome
LO.1 Be able to use sources of job 1.1 Find out job information
information
1.2 Compare job opportunities
LO.2 Know the skills and attributes 2.1 Identify skills and attributes required at
required in the workplace work
LO.3 Be able to prepare for and 3.1 Communicate information in job
participate as an interviewee in a application documents
job interview
3.2 Identify questions to answer [IE1] in
preparation for the interview
3.3 Communicate as an interviewee
LO.4 Know how to set goals for work 4.1 Set goals for work experience [RL2]
experience
LO.5 Be able to record and review 5.1 Assess how successful workplace
experiences in the workplace experience has been [RL1]
5.2 Interpret feedback received from the work
experience
and their elements.

TW – team workers
Unit title: Level 2 Unit 1 Business Enterprise
outcome
LO.1 Know the features of 1.1 Identify entrepreneurial characteristics

entrepreneurship
LO.2 Be able to generate and develop an 2.1 Generate ideas for a product or service
idea for a viable product or service [CT1]
2.2 Compare ideas in terms of viability
2.3 Select and develop a business idea
LO.3 Be able to present a business idea 3.1 Communicate a business idea to an
audience
3.2 Present a persuasive case for investing in a
business idea [EP2]
LO.4 Be able to plan a business 4.1 Plan the start-up and implementation of a
enterprise business idea
LO.5 Be able to implement and review a 5.1 Collaborate with others to work towards
business enterprise the goal of implementing a business idea
[TW1], showing initiative, commitment
and perseverance [SM2]
5.2 Take decisions when implementing a
business idea, adapting plans as required
[CT6]
5.3 Assess how successful a business
enterprise has been, evaluating experiences
to inform future progress [RL5]
and their elements.

TW – team workers
Unit title: Level 2 Unit 2 Business Administration
outcome
LO.1 Know the different administrative 1.1 Identify roles in business that carry out
roles and processes in business administrative tasks
1.2 Identify different administrative tasks
LO.2 Understand the importance of 2.1 Explain why effective administration is
effective administration important
LO.3 Be able to communicate 3.1 Select appropriate formats for business
effectively in writing communication
3.2 Communicate in writing using appropriate
language
LO.4 Be able to plan and carry out 4.1 Manage time effectively
administrative work safely
4.2 Use office equipment safely
LO.5 Be able to organise and support a 5.1 Organise a meeting [SM3]
meeting
5.2 Support a meeting
5.3 Carry out follow up activities for a meeting
and their elements.

TW – team workers
Unit title: Level 2 Unit 3 Personal Finance and Financial
Services
outcome
LO.1 Know the main types, features 1.1 Identify the types, features and sources of
and sources of money money in everyday situations
LO.2 Understand how sources of 2.1 Compare different sources of financial
financial information and advice information and advice
differ
LO.3 Know how to plan and manage 3.1 Outline benefits of planning personal
personal finances expenditure
3.2 Construct personal budgets that take
account of personal remuneration
3.3 Identify the purpose, types and current
rates of personal taxes
3.4 Identify factors that influence attitudes to
risk and reward
LO.4 Understand the main features of 4.1 Describe ways of managing current and
common financial products and savings accounts, taking account of costs,
services charges and benefits
4.2 Assess the risks and rewards associated
with different types and providers of
financial products and services
4.3 Choose between different sources of
foreign currency based on exchange rates
and related costs
Unit title: Level 2 Unit 4 Business Finance and Accounting
outcome
LO.1 Know the nature of business 1.1 Identify accounting and finance roles
finance and accounting involved in financial processes
1.2 Describe the uses of financial information
LO.2 Be able to budget for a product or 2.1 Calculate the cost of a product or service
service
2.2 Identify internal and external sources of
business finance
2.3 Apply relevant budgeting techniques in the
preparation of a simple business budget
LO.3 Be able to manage transactions 3.1 Select an appropriate method for
processing and storing financial
information
3.2 Create financial documents
3.3 Record financial information in a cash
book
LO.4 Be able to report on financial 4.1 Create financial reports
performance
4.2 Interpret financial performance
and their elements.

TW – team workers
Unit title: Level 2 Unit 5 Marketing, Sales and Customer Service
in Business
outcome
LO.1 Know the principles of 1.1 Identify the components of the marketing
marketing mix
1.2 Create promotional materials
LO.2 Be able to carry out market 2.1 Select an appropriate market research
research method
2.2 Collect market research data [IE2]
2.3 Analyse market research data
LO.3 Understand how effective 3.1 Describe customers’ needs and
customer service is achieved expectations
3.2 Explain how organisations benefit from
good customer service
3.3 Assess the effectiveness of services
provided to customers
LO.4 Be able to handle customers 4.1 Prepare for the sales process
effectively in a sales situation
4.2 Communicate effectively with customers
in a sales situation
4.3 Use selling skills to influence others by
dealing with objections [EP5]
4.4 Assess own customer handling skills
[RL1]
and their elements.

TW – team workers
Unit title: Level 2 Unit 6 Teams and Communication in Business
outcome
LO.1 Understand the benefits of 1.1 Explain the benefits of effective team
teamworking working
LO.2 Know how individuals and team 2.1 Assess own contribution to effective team
leaders contribute to teamworking working
2.2 Assess a team’s effectiveness [RL1]
LO.3 Be able to plan and monitor team 3.1 Set individual goals that contribute to team
work objectives
3.2 Plan and prioritise work tasks [SM3]
3.3 Manage own time in a team-based activity
3.4 Monitor own performance
LO.4 Be able to work and communicate 4.1 Work effectively in a team towards goals
effectively in a team [TW1], dealing with any conflict that
arises
4.2 Show consideration and fairness to other
team members [TW4]
4.3 Provide constructive feedback to other
team members [TW6]
4.4 Respond positively to feedback provided
by others [RL4]
and their elements.

TW – team workers
Unit title: Level 2 Unit 7 Responding to Change in Business
outcome
LO.1 Know why and how change occurs 1.1 Identify changes that affect businesses
in businesses
1.2 Explain the types and causes of change
that affect businesses
1.3 Outline the benefits for business of
keeping pace with change
LO.2 Understand the impact of change 2.1 Identify changes that affect employees
on employees
2.2 Assess the impact of change on employees
and their reactions towards it
2.3 Identify ways of dealing with change
2.4 Explain benefits for individuals of
responding positively to change
Unit title: Level 2 Unit 8 Corporate Social Responsibility
outcome
LO.1 Understand why organisations 1.1 Explain the benefits of acting responsibly,
need to act responsibly using reasoned arguments and evidence
[IE6]
LO.2 Know ways in which organisations 2.1 Describe responsible business practices
can demonstrate corporate social
responsibility
LO.3 Be able to review and recommend 3.1 Assess the positive and negative impact of
improvements to business an organisation on a local community
practices
3.2 Identify a relevant issue that the
organisation could address
3.3 Recommend steps an organisation can take
to demonstrate it is acting responsibly
[EP3]
and their elements.

TW – team workers
Unit title: Level 2 Unit 9 Careers and Employment in Business
outcome
LO.1 Be able to use sources of job 1.1 Access careers information

information
LO.2 Be able to plan and set goals for 2.1 Identify steps required to achieve their
their career chosen career [EP3]
2.2 Set goals for work experience [RL2]
2.3 Assess work experience against goals set
[RL1]
LO.3 Be able to prepare for and 3.1 Produce job application documents
participate as an interviewee in
3.2 Prepare for an interview by identifying
an interview for a job
questions to ask and answer [IE1]
3.3 Demonstrate interview techniques
3.4 Communicate as an interviewee
LO.4 Know how employment 4.1 Identify statutory and contractual rights
legislation, procedures and and responsibilities
processes operate in the
4.2 Describe methods of performance
workplace
management
and their elements.

TW – team workers
3362db230410S:\LT\PD\DIPLOMAS\DP020652 PRINCIPAL LEARNING IN BAF L1&2 (PHASE 2) ISSUE 3.DOC 1-323/1
Further copies of this publication are available from
Edexcel Publications, Adamsway, Mansfield, Notts, NG18 4FN
Telephone 01623 467467
Fax 01623 450481
Email: publications@linney.com
Publications Code DP020652 April 2010
For more information on Edexcel and BTEC qualifications

please visit our website: www.edexcel.com
Edexcel Limited. Registered in England and Wales No. 4496750

Registered Office: One90 High Holborn, London WC1V 7BH. VAT Reg No 780 0898 07

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Edexcel Level 1 and Level 2

Authorised by Roger Beard

Introduction to Edexcel’s Diplomas 1

How are the Diplomas structured? 2

Structure and aims of Principal Learning in Business,

Programme design and delivery 13

Personal, learning and thinking skills (PLTS) 15

Access and recruitment 16

Professional development and training 18

Level 2 units 111

List of annexes 279

What are the Diplomas?

Each Diploma will be available at three levels:

Foundation Diploma — 600 Guided Learning Hours (GLH)

Additional and specialist learning * 120 GLH

Higher Diploma — 800 Guided Learning Hours (GLH)

Additional and specialist learning * 180 GLH

Advanced Diploma — 1080 Guided Learning Hours (GLH)

Additional and specialist learning * 360 GLH

Progression Diploma (Level 3) — 720 Guided Learning Hours (GLH)

Functional skills and personal, learning and thinking skills (PLTS)

Additional and specialist learning (ASL)

The Edexcel Diplomas in Business, Administration and Finance: Principal

Edexcel Level 1 Principal Learning in Business, Administration and Finance

Unit Title GLH Assessment

Unit Title GLH Assessment

Level Unit numbers Unit titles

Calculation of the Principal Learning grade

Calculation of the Diploma grade

Figure 1: Experiential learning cycle

Personal, learning and thinking skills (PLTS)

Access and recruitment

Access arrangements and special considerations

Professional development and training

Unit 1: Business Enterprise

Principal Learning unit

Guided Learning Hours: 60

What you need to learn

Teaching this unit

Delivery guidance for LO.3

Assessment information for learners

This unit will be assessed by an assignment connected to developing and implementing a

Assessment information for assessors

Learning Marking Activity/section Evidence

Instructions and controls for taking assessment assignments

Setting Time Resources Supervision Collaboration Marking

Limited Limited Limited Medium Limited Medium

See Annexe E for further information.

Assessment Mark Band 1 Mark Band 2 Mark Band 3 Maximum marks

(0–3) (4–6) (7–8)

Delivery of personal, learning and thinking skills (PLTS)

Skill When learners are …

Skill When learners are …

Functional skills — Level 1

ICT — Use ICT systems

ICT — Find and select information

ICT — Develop, present and

Skill When learners are …

Unit 2: Business Administration, Teams and

Principal Learning unit

Guided Learning Hours: 60

What you need to learn