YEAR 11 BUSINESS STUDIES
BUSINESS RESEARCH TASK
Tim Hogarth
1
Table of Contents
Primary Sources Introduction Letter of Introduction Mission Statement Initial Interview Secondary Sources Interview/Questionnaire
Including Area of Investigation: Business Plan/Set up Management structures Quality control Financial control Property
3 4 5 6
7 - 11
Graph Photos
12 13
Evaluation
14
Conclusion
15
2
Introduction: In undertaking the investigation for my BRT I have approached a print consultancy business. The name of the existing small business that I am presenting my BRT on is GNH Printing Pty Ltd. GNH Printing is a small owner/operator business, employing 3 permanent and 2 casual staff. GNH Printing provides a graphic art and printing service to a variety of clients. This service includes graphic design, digital photography, data processing and pre press artwork. A small business of this type provides clients with personal service and competitive prices. GNH Printing has low overheads and is able to offer clients a choice of print shops best suited to the type of job required. This gives GNH Printing a competitive edge in an extremely competitive industry. Throughout my BRT I plan to identify aspects of this small business including a business plan, prime function, nature of the business and owner / operator / management skills. I will present this data in a report.
3
Introduction Letter: Tim Hogarth 22 Bimbadeen Ave BRADBURY NSW 2560 1 August, 2006
Dear Mr Hogarth My name is Tim Hogarth and I am a year 11 student at St. Gregory‟s College. I am studying Business Studies as a part of my Preliminary course and one of the requirements of this course is to complete a Business Research Task (BRT). As a part of this business investigation I am required to approach an existing small business and report on the nature of the business including the prime functions, operating procedures and objectives. I am also required to present relevant information on the business sector relating to the small business. I am seeking your approval to conduct my BRT on your business. This would require a convenient time to meet with you for an interview, approximately two phone calls and permission to present my findings on your business in my BRT to my teachers. My contact details are: Tim Hogarth phone: 02 46253512 Email: timhogarth@hotmail.com.au I would like to thank you and hope that you find my request favorable Yours sincerely,
Timothy Hogarth
4
Mission Statement
Our aim is to apply our corporate values in our everyday dealings with customers, to provide a premium product and offer reliable customer service quality printing and graphics design at a competitive price. We will seek out and foster business and working relationships with those organisations and persons who share these values as well as the merits of applying Intelligence, Integrity, Impartiality, Ingenuity, Initiative and Industry to all their endeavours”
5
Initial Interview: Good afternoon Mr Hogarth my name is Tim. Thank you for taking the time to speak with me. I have prepared a questionnaire for you so I can gain some of the information I require to prepare my report. This will also save time so as not to interrupt your day. Some questions I do need to ask in person are about the day to day running of your business and with your permission I would like to take some photographs of your work areas. General Information Q. A. What are your work hours? The staff work 9am – 5pm. Myself, being self employed times can vary depending on the work load. Who are some of your clients? GNH Printing‟s client base has developed over the years to include a quality group of clients such as CSR Roofing, PGH Bricks, Sunbeam, Oldfields, Bristol Paints (Barloworld) and Asia Pacific Brands to name just a few. How many staff do you employ? 3 permanent & 2 part-time. What type of equipment and software do you use? Up to date computers, graphics programs such as Photoshop & Quark Express, digital cameras, colour laser printers, photocopiers and communication devices such as E-mail and mobile phones are important to the day to day running of our graphics studio. What type of Account Package do you use? An external accountant takes care of the company finance and I control the monthly accounts with computer software called Myob.
Q. A.
Q. A. Q. A.
Q. A.
Thank you for you time today, I have emailed you my questionnaire to complete at your convenience and I will make a follow up phone call in a week to gather any other relevant information required for my report.
6
Questionnaire emailed:
What is the nature of your business pertaining to the following headings? Prime Function GNH Printing is an expert in design consultancy and well established print broking business within the print media industry, specialising in providing solutions for businesses in the consumer goods market. The business is a „one-stop‟ vertically integrated print media provider with the capability of design, advertising, packaging, product branding, photography and print media placement. Pty Ltd Company GNH Printing was set up as a Pty Ltd company to take full advantage of the tax and company laws. Stake holders GNH Printing is solely owned and operated by myself. Industry Sector We are positioned at both ends of the graphics industry. We have the capabilities to design, produce finished artwork and project manage the print requirements of our clients to give them the best possible result. Location We are situated at Chipping Norton in Sydney giving us easy access to all of the Metropolitan area. Competitors Such is our industry that anyone with a computer and the right programs can set up a small bureau from a home office and profess to be able to produce artwork. External influences We are driven by the ever changing requirements of our clients and the need to keep pace with the industry in general.
7
Using these references what are the main functions of your business? Quality control GNH is a design and print management company, whilst GNH operates to the highest standards of industry practice, we are not quality assured. However, in relation to all strategic print partners, we ensure that they are ISO9001 quality assured (Quality Endorsed Company) Technology used We use the latest graphics software in conjunction with modern, fast computer hardware. Keeping up to date in this industry is a must. Employee relations Being a small business the relationships developed with the employees over the years has given GNH a strong internal base to build its reputation on. Trust and loyalty is important. Motivation When you design or create something it gives you the motivation to follow it through to its end. Each job brings a new challenge. Customers As mentioned earlier we have a diverse range of clients. The client is the most important person in the equation. We endeavor to supply them with the quality product they expect and we demand. Finance/BAS Our client base consists of excellent payers. In the event of large jobs or up front payment GNH has the luxury of an overdraft to fall back on. We calculate our BAS on a monthly basis on the accrual system. Accounting All documentation is entered by me and the accounts and tax returns are looked at on a yearly basis by an external accountant. Our trading terms are 30 days from date on invoice.
8
How did you establish your business in regard to the following? Personal qualities My personal work ethics are important to me. I am from the old school. Honesty, reliability are important values to me and as they say “if it‟s worth doing, its worth doing well”. Management Being a small business doesn‟t mean that it is any easier to maintain. You still have to have certain management & people skills to keep the company heading in the right direction. In some ways you have to be a jack of all trades. Outsourced Business GNH has the capabilities of producing all your graphic arts needs to the pre press stage. Anything after that is sub contracted out to a variety of print shops. Tax GNH is registered for a 100% tax credit and operates under the current tax and company laws. Competitive Advantage Our competitive advantage is our size. We don‟t have the overheads a larger advertising agency would have. This would be reflected in what they would need to charge to survive. When it comes to printing we have the flexibility to be able to shop around for the best possible price and not have any of the capital outlay it takes to operate a large printing company.
Reason for Establishing the Business I saw an opportunity, I had confidence in my ability to compete and survive and I wanted to create something of my own for the future.
9
How have you developed your business? Set up Identify the market area you want to target. Structure your business to give it the best advantages, creative and professional staff, state of the ark hardware and software and any financial backing that you may need. History Gary Hogarth has in excess of thirty-six years in the printing industry. Starting his career as an apprentice tradesman working on presses he developed his print factory career to encompass the fields of graphic art/design and film work. His broadening knowledge of the print industry processes and effective communicative style inevitably led to his progression into print sales. Over the last thirteen years he has developed his own consistently profitable business (GNH Printing Pty Ltd.) focussed on design, artwork and print brokerage. During that time he has developed wide ranging industry connections and a loyal client base that includes a range of significant commercial enterprises. The success of the business has been achieved, in part, through the added skills and imagination of the creative team assembled and trained by Gary Hogarth. Objectives & Future To maintain what we have worked hard to create and to grow the business through strategic planning with a view to expanding the business in the near future. Forecasting Knowledge and past experience equip the management of GNH Printing to quickly „sense‟ where the industry trends are moving and enable the company to identify growth opportunities. Forecasting revolves around our clients. It makes work projection and planning easier as their work is seasonal and we know the type and amount of work load to expect months in advance.
10
Do you have a business plan? Yes. The business plan up until this stage in the life of GNH Printing has been rather simple. Maintain and strengthen customer confidence, always continue to look for new clientele and keep within your budget limitations. At the present time we are looking to expand our business by acquiring another graphic arts and advertising studio.
11
GNH Printing Work Breakdown
10% 30%
Graphic Art/Pre-press Artwork Print
Photography 60%
12
Various work stations within the GNH graphic art studio showing their tools of trade: - Computers - Product prototype for use in instruction booklets
The colour laser printers are used for mock ups and proofing purposes. They are also used for short run brochure work or reports.
With the setup and capabilities that GNH Printing has at its disposal they can produce anything from a business card to a multi paged booklet as well as 3D visual drawings and enhancements.
13
Evaluation Listed below are some of the management skills required, in my opinion, to setup a small business. After reviewing the questionnaire completed by Mr Hogarth on his small business I became aware of these skills/qualities: Expect Hard work /Long hours Financial Backing Expertise in chosen industry Awareness of the market and its trends Don‟t be afraid to take risks Confidence in your own ability Have a good business plan Monitor sales analysis reports monthly and compare with your forecasts - Compare monthly sales against previous years - Outsourcing can keep costs low and give a competitive edge - Employ professional staff -
Recommendations GNH Printing appears to me to be a well run and viable business, the owner/manager has a good relationship with both his staff and his customers. Its reputations has won GNH Printing its loyal customer base and the customer service it provides along with its competitive prices is what keeps this business thriving. The only recommendation I can suggest would be to do an annual SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats) analysis, to keep the company achieving to its capacity. During my interview with Mr Hogarth he indicated that he had plans to expand GNH Printing towards a wider market by acquiring another graphics arts studio and merging the businesses together.
14
During my BRT investigation I have learnt that: a good business plan is important a successful small business must provide good customer service produce quality products encourage good employee relationships (trust and loyalty) keep up to date equipment/software offer staff training stay competitive with price be flexible have good communication skills
Conclusion In planning and researching my BRT I have come to the conclusion that to set up and run a successful small business a person must have the drive and energy to work long hours and the Good knowledge of the industry sector and confidence in their ability to provide good customer service and quality products for competitive prices. Having a good business plan is important, including marketing strategies and forecasting objectives. These are necessary to secure financial backing for setting up an overdraft or line of credit with your financial institution which would give a small company the freedom to grow their business without financial worry. Mr Hogarth did not think it was appropriate to include any financial documents/reports in my BRT. I would like to thank Mr Hogarth of GNH Printing for his assistance and cooperation with my BRT.
15