3. Business (Macro/Micro) Environment

1. Define macro environment and name its main component. (network of systems composed of culture, political and economic forces, technology, skill mix and consumer groups)

2. Why is macro environment a source of constraints and opportunities for an organization? (the performance of an organization depends on the components of macro environment, e.g. demand for its products defines its productivity and price, thus the possible profit of an organization;, sometimes macro environment is very favorable for the activity of an organization (they are the only ones to sell a certain product which is in high demand), but sometimes certain regulations and tariffs might significantly hamper its activity)

3. What does organization environment refer to? (to all groups of people, norms and conditions with which an organization must deal)

4. What does the cultural component of BE imply? (values, norms, artifacts, acceptable behavior patterns, traditions of business behavior etc.)

5. Prove that societal norms and values of every organization are interdependent. (these are people who decide on the policy and activity of an organization and they take decisions depending on their background and values)

6. What is meant by political forces? In what way does the political system influence BE?(form and role of the government in a society, organizations depend on the laws and regulations adopted in the country, depending on the state policy an organization can provide certain services (private accounting and auditing companies, private financial institutions, private utility services etc.)

7. How does the presence of the political system make management’s job easier? (securing that all the enterprises operating in the country are to follow the same rules, thus the rules of the game are known well in advance and let mangers plan their activity)

8. Why is it quite difficult to separate the political and economic systems from each other? (the type of economy a society has (planned, private enterprise))

9. What for must organizations have access to modem technology? (to be able to compete successfully producing high-quality modern goods at a competitive cost)

10. What is «skill mix»? Prove its importance. (Knowledge and skills of labour force that presuppose the tasks they can accomplish, thus allowing certain production on this are or not, e.g. illiterate society cannot develop space technologies. High level of IT skills in India made it the main country in the world granting outsourcing services to multinational companies all over the globe)

11. Explain the following: «Labor market conditions and skill mixes are crucial to success».

12. Why do you think the consumers are called the ultimate arbiters of the organization’s success? (organizations depend on the profit and can earn it only supplying its goods to consumers and if the latter don’t want them there is no chance to cover the expenses and thus to successes)

13. What is the most influential element of the environment, do you think?

14. The elements which make up the external environment can be divided into general and specific factors. Which ones do you think are general and which ones are specific? (General: the level of technology, the state of the economy, political and social actions; specific: trade unions, banks, suppliers of materials, consumers, government agencies and competing organizations)