BOTSWANA EXAMINATIONS COUNCIL Botswana General Certificate of Secondary Education

Transcription

1 BOTSWANA EXAMINATIONS COUNCIL Botswana General Certificate of Secondary Education CANDIDATE NAME CENTRE NUMBER CANDIDATE NUMBER BUSINESS STUDIES Specimen Paper /02 October/November 20XX 2 hours Candidates answer on the Question Paper. No Additional Materials required. READ THESE INSTRUCTIONS FIRST Write your Centre number, candidate number and name in the spaces provided at the top of this page. Answer all questions. Write your answers in the spaces provided on the Question Paper. Do not use staples, paper clips, highlighters, glue or correction fluid. The number of marks is given in brackets [ ] at the end of each question or part question. Calculators may be used Total This document consists of 12 printed pages. BEC 20XX [Turn over

2 2 ZIGMA (PTY) LTD Zigma (Pty) Ltd is a company that manufactures cell phones in Botswana. The company uses advanced technology across all areas of the business, which enables the Production Department to use mass production. In the last 10 years, the company s sales have been high and increasing by 10% on average each year. Recently the demand for their cell phones has started falling due to competition from new businesses entering the market. Management fear that the product will soon reach its decline stage of the product cycle. The marketing manager has proposed a number of strategies to address the problem which includes entering foreign markets, changing the design of the product as well as packaging and an aggressive advertising campaign using either radio or magazines. During the Annual General Meeting, a proposal to convert Zigma (Pty) Ltd into a public limited company was voted on by the shareholders. This would mean the company will be listed on the stock exchange. It was also proposed that management enter into productivity agreements with employees to encourage them to be more productive. However, the management was reluctant because the demand for their cell phones has started falling. The conversion into a public limited company might affect the span of control of the General Manager as more employees, including Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Manager and a Public Relations Officer, will be recruited. The General Manager is currently supervising the Human Resources, Production, Marketing and Finance Managers. Like many other businesses in the world, Zigma (Pty) Ltd has been affected by changes in monetary policies as the Government of Botswana often reviews its monetary policies to regulate economic activities BEC 20XX 0615/02/O/N/XX

3 1 (a) Explain two benefits to Zigma (Pty) Ltd of listing on the stock exchange. 3 Benefit 1:... Explanation:... Benefit 2:... Explanation: [4] (b) Would you advise Zigma (Pty) Ltd to enter into productivity agreement with employees? Justify your answer. BEC 20XX 0615/02/O/N/XX [Turn over

4 4...[8 (c) Examine how an increase in interest rates might affect the activities of Zigma (Pty) Ltd.... [8] BEC 20XX 0615/02/O/N/XX

5 2 (a) Explain two reasons why Zigma (Pty) Ltd should hold an Annual General Meetings 5 Reason 1:... Explanation:.... Reason 2:... Explanation: [4] (b) Recommend whether Zigma (Pty) Ltd should use retained profits or sell existing assets in order to raise finance to acquire more advanced technology. Justify your answer [8] BEC 20XX 0615/02/O/N/XX [Turn over

6 (c) Would you advise Zigma (Pty) Ltd to convert into a public limited company? Justify your answer [8] BEC 20XX 0615/02/O/N/XX

7 3 (a) Explain two benefits of being a shareholder at Zigma (Pty) Ltd. 7 Benefit 1:... Explanation:... Benefit 2:... Explanation:......[4 (b) Discuss the effects of technology on skills of workers at Zigma (Pty) Ltd and Recommend whether the business should continue using advanced technology.... [8] BEC 20XX 0615/02/O/N/XX [Turn over

8 8 (c) Management decided to motivate employees using either job rotation or job enrichment. Which method would you recommend management to use? Justify your answer.... [8] BEC 20XX 0615/02/O/N/XX

9 4 (a) Describe two functions that might be performed by the Marketing Manager of Zigma (Pty) Ltd. 9 Function1:... Description: Function 2:... Description: [4] (b) Would you recommend to Zigma (pty) Ltd that they should change the designs of the phones or sell into foreign markets in order to extend the life cycle of the cell phones? Justify your answer [8 BEC 20XX 0615/02/O/N/XX [Turn over

10 (c) Should Zigma (Pty) Ltd use radio or magazine to advertise their products? 10 Justify your answer.... [8] 5 (a) Explain two factors that might affect the demand for cell phones...[4 BEC 20XX 0615/02/O/N/XX

11 (b) Should Zigma (Pty) Ltd continue using mass production? Justify your answer [8] (c) Should Zigma (Pty) Ltd recruit the public relations officer internally or externally? Justify your answer. BEC 20XX 0615/02/O/N/XX [Turn over

12 12...[8] Permission to reproduce items where third party owned material protected by copyright is included has been sought and cleared where possible. Every reasonable effort has been made by the publisher (BEC) to trace copyright holders, but if any items requiring clearance have unwittingly been included, the publisher will be pleased to make amends at the earliest possible opportunity. BEC 20XX 0615/02/O/N/XX