Etiquette

In business situations we often have to meet new people, and first impressions are important to help relationships with new contacts get off to a good start. However, the behavior that is considered polite may vary depending on culture. Manners are important in everyday work situations. What passes as good manners can also vary from country to country. The best advice for people when planning a business visit is to do a research into the social customs of the contry that they are visiting. Modern technology means that there are now a number of areas where the rules of behavior are evolving all the time, such as the etiquette of using mobile phones, business letters versus emails etc. Good manners are often simply a way of showing respect. So a good guideline in these contemporary situations is to act in the same way that you want other to act. Culture at work. Some cultures prefer precise information. For example, if somebody is talking about data, they use exact figures. It doesn't matter if the information is positive or negative. The information always needs to be clear and exact. Other cultures sometimes use approximate figures. For example, somebody might say 'sales figures increased by almost 25% when the exact figure is 21%.This is used to make negative data sound more positive.

Data!

There are different ways to collect and manage data. Increased use of the internet in recent years means that more data about individuals can be collected and stored than ever before. Some of this information is used to analyse people's buying habits.

Some argue that the collection of so much data about individuals can help with efficiency and improve customer service. For example, when buying goods online, a company can retain delivery details, which means that when you buy from that company again you are not required to complete your delivery address, etc. choices that customer make mean that a company can collate information and inform customers when other similar items of interest are available.

However, others are uneasy that compainies and organisations are able to collect and retain so much information about individuals. They question what use the information will be put to. Some civil liberties groups argue that we live in a time of unprecedented electronic surveillance when every transaction and movement can be monitored.

Company's Activities

There are different areas that a company is involved in. companies can be divided into sectors-those that:

-produce goods (manufacturers)

-provide services (service providers)

-sell goods to the public (retailers)

-are involved in TV, film and publishing (media).

Some companies concentrate on one main activity, while other are involved in more than one sector. For example, General Electric is a multinational company which is involved in a number of different areas such as manufacturing technological products, offering financial services and media.

It is possible to classify business activity into three sections:

-Primary

-Secondary

-tertiary

Primary business activity discribes axtractive areas such as agriculture, mining, fishing etc. this type of activity generally focuses on extracting and utilizing resources provided by nature.

Secondary business activity includes manufacturing and construction industries(those that make, build or assemble products, e.g. car production).

Tertiary activity includes businesses that provide services (e.g. banking, public transport, web design).Services can be divided into direct services that are offered directly to the general public and commercial services, which deal with other businesses. However, many businesses(e.g. banking)offer services which are used by the public as well as by other commercial companies