Danho
ZIMSEC A Level · N2018

Business Studies Paper 1 November 2018

Questions
26
Total marks
101

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Questions
26
Pass mark
16
Sit this paper

Answer every question in the printed order, get marked at the end, then see the answers.

The questions

Question 101

[1 marks]business types
Which of the following is a type of business found in the private sector?
  1. APartnership
  2. BState-owned parastatal
  3. CGovernment department
  4. DLocal authority

Question 201

[1 marks]corporate culture
What term describes the shared values, beliefs, attitudes and ways of behaving that characterise how people in an organisation work, sometimes summed up as 'the way we do things around here'?

Answer this when you sit the paper.

Question 301

[1 marks]mergers and integration
Two giant shoe manufacturing firms, both at the same stage of production in the same industry, decide to merge into a single company. This type of merger is best classified as a:
  1. AVertical merger
  2. BConglomerate merger
  3. CHorizontal merger
  4. DJoint venture

Question 401

[1 marks]organisational structure
What term describes an organisational structure in which the management of a task cuts across normal departmental boundaries, so that staff report to more than one manager, for example a project manager and a functional department head?

Answer this when you sit the paper.

Question 501

[1 marks]organisational structure
Which of the following is a genuine disadvantage of a matrix organisational structure?
  1. AIt makes the firm less able to respond quickly to changing markets.
  2. BIt duplicates management roles, raising the cost of running the firm.
  3. CIt reduces communication between specialists working on different projects.
  4. DIt gives every employee one single manager to report to directly.

Question 601

[1 marks]training and development
What term describes the training given to new employees when they join a firm, covering things such as their colleagues, the organisational structure, communication procedures and health and safety rules?

Answer this when you sit the paper.

Question 701

[1 marks]market research
Desk research involves obtaining information from already published secondary sources such as trade magazines, government statistics or online databases. Which of the following is a genuine advantage of desk research compared with field research?
  1. AIt generates information specifically tailored to the needs of the firm's own customers.
  2. BIt removes the need for the firm to ever carry out any primary market research.
  3. CIt is quicker and cheaper since published sources already exist and are readily available.
  4. DIt always produces completely accurate and fully up to date market data.

Question 801

[1 marks]research and development
What term describes the scientific research and technical development that a firm carries out in order to improve its products or processes?

Answer this when you sit the paper.

Question 901

[1 marks]marketing and promotion
What term describes a specified amount of money that a business sets aside to spend on promoting its products or beliefs?

Answer this when you sit the paper.

Question 1001

[1 marks]product portfolio analysis
The Boston Matrix analyses the products in a firm's portfolio according to two dimensions. What are they?
  1. AProfit margin and sales volume
  2. BMarket share and market growth
  3. CSelling price and production cost
  4. DPrice and quality

Question 1101

[1 marks]depreciation
A firm bought a vehicle costing $20 000 with an estimated useful life of five years and a scrap value of $5 000. Using the straight line method of depreciation, what is the net book value of the vehicle at the end of year two?

Answer this when you sit the paper.

Question 1201

[1 marks]depreciation
A firm bought a vehicle costing $20 000 with an estimated useful life of five years and a scrap value of $5 000. Using the reducing balance method of depreciation at 20% per annum, what is the net book value of the vehicle at the end of year two?

Answer this when you sit the paper.

Question 1301

[1 marks]depreciation
Which of the following is a cause of the depreciation of a fixed asset such as machinery?
  1. AA fall in the general rate of interest
  2. BWear and tear from continued use of the asset
  3. CAn increase in the market value of the asset
  4. DAn increase in demand for the goods the asset produces

Question 1401

[1 marks]investment appraisal
Which of the following is a genuine advantage of using the Average Rate of Return (ARR) method to appraise an investment?
  1. AIt focuses only on how quickly the initial outlay is recovered.
  2. BIt requires every future cash flow to be discounted before comparison.
  3. CIt accounts for the fact that money received in the future is worth less than money received today.
  4. DIt considers the profitability of the whole project over its life, not just the speed of recovery.

Question 1501

[1 marks]sources of finance and cash flow
What term describes the method of raising finance in which a firm sells an asset it owns, such as its premises or machinery, and then immediately leases that same asset back so it can continue using it?

Answer this when you sit the paper.

Question 1601

[1 marks]quality management and benchmarking
What term describes the process of comparing a firm's products, services or processes against those of industry leaders or competitors in order to identify areas for improvement?

Answer this when you sit the paper.

Question 1701

[1 marks]quality management
Which of the following best distinguishes quality assurance from quality control?
  1. AQuality assurance checks standards throughout production, while quality control only inspects the finished output.
  2. BQuality assurance happens only after production is finished, while quality control runs throughout the whole process.
  3. CQuality assurance and quality control both mean exactly the same thing and are simply two names for one process.
  4. DQuality assurance is used only in service industries, while quality control is used only in manufacturing industries.

Question 1801

[1 marks]stock control and lean production
What term describes the stock control method in which materials and components are ordered and delivered only when they are needed for production, so that little or no stock is held in advance?

Answer this when you sit the paper.

Question 1901

[1 marks]sales forecasting and time series
What term describes the method of sales forecasting that examines historical sales data over time in order to identify trends, seasonal variations and cyclical patterns?

Answer this when you sit the paper.

Question 2001

[1 marks]technology in business
In a clothing manufacturing firm, the computer technology that allows designers to create and modify garment designs on screen before they are produced is known as:
  1. AComputer-Aided Design (CAD)
  2. BComputer-Aided Manufacturing (CAM)
  3. CComputerised stock control
  4. DEnterprise Resource Planning (ERP)

Question 2101

[1 marks]external business environment
Which of the following was identified in the case study as one of the challenges facing Kembo Tiles Ltd?
  1. AA shortage of imported raw materials
  2. BGovernment-imposed price controls on roofing tiles
  3. CLimited access to credit facilities
  4. DRising fuel costs for transporting tiles

Question 2201

[2 marks]change management and human resources
Kembo Tiles Ltd is introducing lean production methods such as just in time and computer aided design. Which of the following best explains why some of its workers may resist this change?
  1. AThey assume time based management will require every production run to be lengthened
  2. BThey fear that computer aided design and faster methods will cut the number of jobs
  3. CThey expect just in time delivery to force the firm to hold much larger stocks of clay
  4. DThey believe Kaizen will remove the firm's need for regular team briefings and meetings

Question 2202

[2 marks]change management and human resources
Managers at Kembo Tiles Ltd expect some of the workforce to welcome the move to lean production. Which of the following is a likely positive reaction from the workers?
  1. AThey value the new skills and development opportunities that the retraining brings
  2. BThey are relieved of all responsibility for the quality of the tiles they make and pack
  3. CThey expect to be given a share of the company's ownership under the new methods
  4. DThey expect the firm to stop measuring how long each production task takes them

Question 2203

[3 marks]change management and human resources
The Human Resources Manager at Kembo Tiles Ltd is worried about how the workforce will react to the planned move to lean production. Which approach is most likely to reduce resistance among the workers?
  1. AHolding back all retraining until workers have complained about the new equipment
  2. BAnnouncing the new methods to the workforce on the day the equipment is switched on
  3. CReplacing experienced machine operators with newly recruited staff on short contracts
  4. DConsulting the workforce about the new methods and involving them in planning the changeover

Question 2204

[2 marks]change management and human resources
A business changing to new production methods often meets opposition from workers who are used to the existing way of working. What is the general term for this opposition?

Answer this when you sit the paper.

Question 2301

[1 marks]lean production
The Managing Director listed the lean production methods the firm would adopt. Besides just in time, computer aided designs, time based management and team working, which method did she name?
  1. ASimultaneous engineering
  2. BTotal Quality Management
  3. CCellular manufacturing
  4. DKaizen

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