OxfordAQA IGCSE Business: Technology and Ethical and environmental considerations (9225) – Revision Notes

These notes condense sections 3.2.1 Technology and 3.2.2 Ethical and environmental considerations of the OxfordAQA International GCSE Business (9225) specification, version 3.1, first teaching September 2020 and first examined May/June 2022. Fuller explanations and worked examples sit in the study guide. Then try the practice questions. For the whole topic, see the Influences on business revision notes. Course links: the hub, the checklist and the free diagnostics.

3.2.1 Technology at a glance

Point	Remember
ICT	Information and Communication Technology. Its use keeps changing, and this changes what businesses do
e-commerce	Buying and selling over the internet. Gives access to wider markets
Digital communication	Electronic contact with stakeholders, for example email and video conferencing

How ICT influences business activity

• Selling: online orders alongside shop sales.
• Buying: ordering from suppliers online.
• Communication: faster contact with staff, customers and suppliers.
• Staffing: some tasks shrink, new skills are needed, training costs money.
• Costs: set-up, security and upkeep, against savings on travel, printing and premises.

Always finish the chain: technology, then what changes, then the effect on cost, revenue or a stakeholder.

e-commerce: benefits and drawbacks

Benefits	Drawbacks
Wider market, beyond the people who can visit a shop	Delivery, packaging and returns costs
Open at all hours	Set-up and security costs
Possible saving on premises	Customers cannot see or touch the product
Can sell to other towns and countries	Some sales just move from the shop

Method for a “wider markets” answer, in steps:

1. Say who the business could not reach before.
2. Say what the website lets them do, such as order at any time or from abroad.
3. State the effect on sales revenue.
4. Add one cost or limit.

Digital communication and stakeholders

Method	Use it for	Watch out for
Email	Written messages to many people, with a record	Slow replies, unread messages
Video conferencing	Meetings with people far away, saving travel	Poor connections, less personal
Website or social media	News and questions from customers and the community	Needs regular updating; criticism is public

Stakeholders to link to: owners, employees, customers, suppliers, lenders, the local community. Name the stakeholder and say why the method suits them.

3.2.2 Ethical considerations

Key ideas

• Ethical behaviour: conduct that stakeholders regard as fair and also honest.
• Includes religious observance (for example, allowing staff time for prayer or festivals) and charitable giving.
• It is a choice. It is not the same as obeying the law.
• Trade-off: the ethical option often raises cost or lowers profit in the short run, but may bring benefits later.

Examples of ethical behaviour

• Fair prices to suppliers and prompt payment.
• Honest labelling and advertising.
• Fair treatment of staff.
• Giving money or time to charity.
• Respecting staff religious needs where possible.

Benefits and drawbacks

Benefits	Drawbacks
Customer loyalty from those who value fairness	Higher costs, lower profit per unit
Better reputation and staff recruitment	Rivals with lower costs may undercut prices
Stronger supplier relationships	Payback is uncertain and slow
Fewer complaints	Time and money diverted from the main business

Method for an ethics versus profit question

1. Name the ethical choice.
2. Show the cost, with a figure if the case gives one.
3. Show a possible benefit, and when it arrives.
4. Compare, then judge using something from the case, such as customers’ attitudes or the size of the cost.

3.2.2 Environmental considerations

Society and consumers expect more environmental responsibility in decision-making. A business weighs the costs against the benefits of behaving this way.

Named area	Problem	One response
Traffic congestion	Vehicles clog local roads	Fewer, fuller deliveries
Recycling	Resources lost	Recycled inputs and packaging; sort waste
Disposing of waste	Cost and harm to land and water	Cut waste at source
Noise pollution	Disturbs neighbours and staff	Insulation, limited hours
Air pollution	Harms health	Cleaner vehicles, filters

Costs	Benefits
Equipment, dearer inputs, training	Better reputation
Slower or more costly delivery	Customers who prefer green products
Time to plan changes	Lower waste costs, fewer complaints

3.2.2 Sustainability

• Usual definition (the specification gives none): serving today’s demand without leaving later generations short of what they will need.
• Global warming: emissions from burning fuels warm the planet. Society expects cuts.
• Using scarce resources: limited materials get dearer and may run out.
• Trade-off with profit: spending now cuts profit now; savings and reputation come later.
• Always ask over what time scale the benefit arrives.

Calculations you may need

These are standard forms, used in the study guide’s worked examples. The specification does not list a formula for them.

Calculation	Form
Change in sales revenue	new revenue minus old revenue
Percentage change	change ÷ original × 100
Share of total	part ÷ total × 100
Contribution per unit	selling price minus variable cost per unit
Payback period	cost ÷ yearly saving

Must-know distinctions

• Ethics (choice) versus law (duty).
• e-commerce (selling online) versus digital communication (contact with stakeholders).
• Cost (what the business pays) versus benefit (what it gains).
• Short-run profit versus long-run position.

Worked reminders

Religious observance as a cost

A workshop has 10 staff paid £9 an hour. Each is allowed an extra 20 minutes a day for prayer, five days a week.

1. Weekly cost = 10 × (20 ÷ 60) × 9 × 5 = £150.
2. Yearly cost = 150 × 52 = £7,800.
3. Judgement: a real cost, but it may reduce staff turnover and build goodwill. Whether it is worth it depends on how much the workshop values keeping skilled staff.

A model chain for e-commerce

“The business sells online (point), so customers in other regions can order without visiting the shop (reason). This raises potential sales revenue (effect). However, delivery and returns add costs, so profit may rise by less than revenue (limit).”

A model chain for an environmental decision

“The factory fits filters to its chimneys (point), which reduces air pollution for nearby residents (reason). This improves its reputation locally (benefit) but the filters cost money to buy and clean (cost). Because the factory is next to housing, complaints could be costly, so the benefit may outweigh the cost (judgement).”

Command words in this topic

Command word	Task	Length of answer
State, identify	Give the fact asked for	A few words
Define	Give the meaning	One short sentence
Calculate	Show working and units	As needed
Explain	Give a reason or consequence	A developed point
Analyse	Build a chain of cause and effect	Two or three linked points
Evaluate, justify	Weigh both sides, then reach a supported judgement	A short paragraph with a conclusion

For evaluate and justify, the conclusion must depend on a detail in the case. Useful details are the size of the cost, the type of customer, how long the benefit takes to arrive and how competitive the market is.

Quick self-test

1. State what ICT stands for.
2. Define e-commerce.
3. Give two examples of digital communication.
4. Online sales of a firm rose from £8,000 to £11,000 a month. Calculate the percentage increase.
5. A firm pays suppliers £0.05 more per unit and makes 20,000 units a year. Calculate the extra yearly cost.
6. State two named environmental considerations.
7. Give one benefit and one drawback of acting ethically.
8. State what is meant by acting ethically in terms of stakeholders.
9. A business spends £6,000 on packaging. Recycled packaging would cut this by 15%. Calculate the saving.
10. A machine costs £9,000 and saves £3,000 a year in energy. Calculate the payback period.
11. Give one reason sustainability can conflict with profit.

Answers

1. Information and Communication Technology.
2. Buying and selling goods or services over the internet.
3. Any two from email, video conferencing, a website or social media.
4. 3,000 ÷ 8,000 × 100 = 37.5%.
5. 0.05 × 20,000 = £1,000.
6. Any two from traffic congestion, recycling, disposing of waste, noise pollution, air pollution.
7. Benefit: loyal customers or better reputation. Drawback: higher cost. Other valid answers accepted.
8. Behaving so that stakeholders see the business as fair and honest.
9. 6,000 × 0.15 = £900.
10. 9,000 ÷ 3,000 = 3 years.
11. Money spent now on cleaner methods lowers profit now, while the benefits arrive later.

Where marks are usually lost

• Naming a technology or a problem without saying what changes for the business.
• Giving only the benefits of e-commerce and forgetting delivery and set-up costs.
• Writing “email is quick” without linking it to a stakeholder or a result.
• Describing ethics as always profitable. Show the cost as well as the possible gain.
• Confusing ethical choices with legal duties.
• Listing pollution types without any cost or benefit to the business.
• Evaluating without a judgement, or with a conclusion that could fit any business.
• Dropping the units, such as £ or years, in a calculation.

Frequently asked questions

What does sustainability mean in OxfordAQA IGCSE Business? The specification gives no definition. The usual definition is serving today’s demand without leaving later generations short of what they will need.

Which environmental areas does the 9225 specification name? The named areas include traffic congestion, recycling, disposing of waste, noise pollution and air pollution. For each, link the problem to a response the business could make, such as fewer, fuller deliveries to cut congestion.

Does ethical behaviour include religious observance? Yes. Ethical behaviour includes religious observance, such as allowing staff time for prayer or festivals, and charitable giving.

What is the difference between e-commerce and digital communication? E-commerce is selling online, while digital communication is contact with stakeholders, such as owners, employees, customers and suppliers.

Official syllabus

OxfordAQA International GCSE Business (9225) specification, version 3.1, for International GCSE exams May/June 2022 onwards, published by OxfordAQA. Sections 3.2.1 and 3.2.2.