New Products

Product Portfolio

A product portfolio is the full range of products and services that a company offers. Having a wide range of products can be good for a business, but it can make it harder to make business decisions.

Complexity

Deciding which products or services to invest in can become more difficult and maintaining all the products or services can be difficult.
In 2009, General Motors went bankrupt. it was offering 9 different brands of cars in a price range between $20,000 and $30,000. Toyota was only offering two.
It would have been harder to make (manufacture) all these different cars and it probably made business decisions more difficult.

The Boston matrix is a way for firms to analyse their product portfolios. It organises products into 4 categories based on two features - market share (% of market sales) and market growth (how fast the market is growing).

Stars

Stars are products (or services) in a portfolio that have a high market share in a fast growing market.

Cash Cows

Cash Cows are products (or services) with a high market share in a slow growing market.

Problem Children (or question marks)

Question marks or problem children are products (or services) with a low market share in a fast growing market.

Dogs

Dogs are products (or services) with a low market share in a slow growing market.

Using the Boston Matrix

Businesses usually want to have a diversified portfolio because it means not all of their eggs are in one basket, and this reduces risk. However, if all of your products are Stars or Cash Cows, that may be a good thing.
It can help allocate investment. Profit from stars can be used to invest in marketing for products that are problem children. This can help problem children to become stars.

1Business Activity & Influences on Business

1.1Business Objectives

1.1.1Business Aims

1.1.2Business Objectives

1.1.3Business Objectives Change Over Time

1.1.4End of Topic Test - Business Aims

1.1.5Diagnostic Misconceptions - Profit

1.2Types of Organisations

1.2.1Sole Traders & Partnerships

1.2.2Limited Companies

1.2.3Limited Liability

1.2.4Unlimited vs Limited Liability

1.2.5Not For Profit & Franchises

1.2.6Multinational Companies

1.2.7End of Topic Test - Business Ownership

1.2.8Application Questions - Business Ownership

1.2.9Diagnostic Misconceptions - Company vs Business

1.2.10Diagnostic Misconceptions - Owners vs Shareholders

1.3Classification of Businesses

1.3.1Sectors

1.4Decisions on Location

1.4.1Location

1.5Business & the International Economy

1.5.1Globalisation

1.5.2Exchange Rates

1.6Government Objectives & Policy

1.6.1Government Objectives

1.6.2The Government & Business Activity

1.6.3Interest Rates

1.6.4Interest Rates - Calculations

1.6.5Diagnostic Misconceptions - Recessions

1.7External Factors

1.7.1External Factors

1.8What Makes a Business Successful?

1.8.1Measuring Success

1.8.2Reasons for Failure

2People in Business

2.1Internal & External Communication

2.1.1Communication

2.2Recruitment & Selection Process

2.2.1Types of Employment

2.2.2Recruitment Stages

2.2.3Effective Recruitment

2.2.4Legal Controls Over Employment

2.2.5Diagnostic Misconceptions - Internal Recruitment

2.3Training

2.3.1Training

2.4Motivation & Rewards

2.4.1Motivation in the Workplace

2.4.2Financial & Non-Financial Methods

2.4.3End of Topic Test - The Workforce

2.4.4Application Questions - The Workforce

2.4.5Diagnostic Misconceptions - Money

2.5Organisation Structures

2.5.1Organisational Structures

2.5.2Centralised vs. Decentralised Structures

2.5.3Tall & Flat Organisations

2.5.4Functional Areas Within a Business

2.5.5End of Topic Test - Org Structure

3Business Finance

3.1Sources of Finance

3.1.1Internal & External Sources of Finance

3.1.2Factors Affecting Sources of Finance

3.2Cash Flow Forecasting

3.2.1Cash Flow

3.2.2Consequences of Cash Flow Problems

3.2.3Cash Flow - Calculations

3.2.4Solutions to Cash Flow Problems

3.2.5Diagnostic Misconceptions - Cash Flow

3.3Cost & Break-Even Analysis

3.3.1Costs, Revenue & Profit

3.3.2Profit, Average Unit Cost & Interest

3.3.3Costs - Calculations

3.3.4Revenue - Calculations

3.3.5Break-Even Analysis

3.3.6Profit & Losses - Calculations

3.3.7End of Topic Test - Finance

3.3.8Grade 9 - Finance

3.3.9Diagnostic Misconceptions - Fixed Costs

3.3.10Diagnostic Misconceptions - Break-even

3.4Financial Documents

3.4.1Financial Statements

3.4.2Income Statement

3.4.3Understanding Business Performance

3.5Account Analysis

3.5.1Business Calculations

3.5.2Gross Profit - Calculations

3.5.3Net Profit - Calculations

3.5.4Business Calculations 2

3.5.5Business Calculations 3

3.5.6Liquidity

4Marketing

4.1Market Research

4.1.1Market Research

4.1.2Forms of Market Research

4.2The Market

4.2.1Customer Needs

4.2.2Satisfying Customer Needs

4.2.3Market

4.2.4The Competitive Environment

4.2.5Market Segmentation

4.2.6Market Mapping - Price vs Quality

4.2.7End of Topic Test - Marketing

4.2.8Application Questions - Marketing

4.2.9Diagnostic Misconceptions - Competition

4.3The Marketing Mix

5Business Operations

5.1Economies & Diseconomies of Scale

5.1.1Economies of Scale

5.1.2Diagnostic Misconceptions - Economies of Scale

5.2Production

5.2.1Production Processes

5.2.2Flow and Batch Production

5.2.3Production Efficiency

5.2.4Technology & Production

5.2.5Diagnostic Misconceptions - JIT vs JIC

5.3Factors of Production

5.3.1Factors of Production

5.4Quality

5.4.1Importance of Quality

5.4.2Identifying Quality

5.4.3Total Quality Management

5.4.4End of Topic Test - Operational Decisions

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