Introduction to Business

Aims of the course

- To present basic categories of the business performance (for all kinds of organisations). - To develop knowledge for quicker and better understanding of specific courses of management and organisation in the following study years. - To contribute to better understanding of the content of organisational business performance.

Course syllabus

1. Introduction: companies and other organizations
2. Business process, phases in the business process, business process resources
3. Assets and liabilities in an organization
4. Theoretical aspects of production ant their relation to business practice in companies and other organizations
5. Costs and their different classifications
5.1. Cost behavior and related concepts: fixed costs, variable costs, marginal costs, cost elasticity, break-even point, optimal quantity of production
5.2. Relationship between the theory of production and the theory of costs
5.3. Primary cost types: depreciation, labor cost, cost of material, cost of services
5.4. Product costing and related concepts: cost centers, direct and indirect costs, costing methods
6. Pricing in organizations
7. Performance of organizations
7.1. Revenues and expenses
7.2. Profit and loss
7.3. Productivity, efficiency, profitability
7.4. Differences in performance measurement between companies and other organizations
7.5. The importance of sustainable development goals (SDGs) in business performance (workshop with an assignment to be submitted)

Course director(s)