DETERMINE RESOURCE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE MICRO BUSINESS

Transcription

1 DETERMINE RESOURCE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE MICRO BUSINESS UNIT BSBSMB304A This unit describes the performance outcomes, skills and knowledge required to determine the resource requirements of the micro business and to source these resources. KEY CONCEPTS Types of resources required Researching resources requirements Resource quantities Options for acquiring resources Services and support Establishing relationships with suppliers Procedures and systems for monitoring and maintaining resources 1 1

2 CHAPTER 1 RESOURCES REQUIRED IN THE BUSINESS Resources are vital to the production of products and/or provision of services by a business, as well as contributing to its general operations and overall management. A resource can be defined as:... any physical or virtual entity of limited availability; a stock or supply of money, materials, staff and other assets that can be drawn on by a person or organisation in order to function effectively... TYPES OF RESOURCES Your micro business, like all other businesses, requires a range of resources in order to be viable. The specific types of resources that your business needs depends on the nature of your business activities. A gardening business will have very different resource requirements as compared to a graphic design business, for example. Some general categories of resources that are essential to most businesses include: consumables equipment machinery facilities materials software vehicles personnel capital. Machinery Software Facilities Consumables Capital Equipment Materials Vehicles Personnel 3 3

3 Chapter 1: Resources Required in the Business 12 12

4 DELIVERY AND RECEIPT OF STOCK AND MATERIALS If you order stock and materials from a supplier(s), it is important that these are received both on time, undamaged and in the correct quantities. For this reason, it is suggested that you: use a purchase order to describe to the supplier exactly what it is that you wish to buy request a delivery note to accompany the delivery of your goods to confirm what you are receiving. By doing this, you will create an audit trail for your purchases, so that if something goes wrong and a delivery is either not made, or is made incorrectly, then it is possible to look back and confirm what was requested, and therefore what should have occurred. This places the onus on the supplier to deliver according to what you have ordered. Legally you are not obliged to accept delivery of orders that do not conform to your instructions. Under the Sale of Goods Act, if a supplier: delivers a quantity less than that ordered, you do not have to accept the delivery, even as a part instalment, unless you have previously agreed to do so delivers a quantity greater than you have ordered, you can reject the entire delivery delivers ordered goods that are mixed with unordered goods, you can reject the entire delivery, without having to sort what you want from what you don t want. In cases such as the above, it is your responsibility to advise the supplier of your refusal to accept the delivery and take reasonable care of the goods if they are to be picked up at a later date. You are not obliged to arrange for the return of the goods, or to bear the cost of the return. It is also important that there is someone present to receive goods when they are delivered. In this way, it is possible to check the delivery at the time it is made and to point out any problems on the spot. This can avoid unnecessary disagreements after the fact, when it is less clear that, for example, it is you that has not misplaced, miscounted or damaged a box after it was delivered. An example of an operating procedure for receiving stock and materials is provided below

5 Chapter 1: 3: Resources Preparing to Required Use the in Resources the Business the Business MONITORING AND MAINTAINING YOUR RESOURCES You have by now made a number of decisions regarding the types and quantities of resources required in order for your micro business to run effectively. The only way to determine whether or not these were the right decisions, is to monitor the use of the various resources you have acquired. This process is often referred to as operations management and involves the coordination of all aspects of the business to achieve organisational goals. Operations is mainly focused on the production side of the business, that is, the areas where resources are brought together to produce goods or services. In order to monitor the production process, you must be aware of the inputs (resources that are used in the production process to create goods or services) and how they are transformed into outputs (final products or services that the business sells to the customer). Stock and materials Labour Technology Information INPUTS Capital Equipment and machinery Facilities Production processes may involve, cultivating, managing, constructing, selling, measuring, fabricating, assembling and altering. These processes to transform inputs will be different depending on the nature of your business activities. For example, a service business will have very different production processes to a manufacturing business. As part of monitoring the use of resources in your business, you will need to address the following areas: facilities consumables equipment and machinery stock and materials software vehicles human resources