Page 678 - Introduction to Business

G-4 GLOSSARY

computer monitoring Using computers to monitor the pro- conversion The process of moving from an old information
ductivity of employees while they work (Ch 17) system to a new information system (Ch 17)
computer software The detailed instructions that control the cooperative advertising Shared advertising costs by a com-
operation of a computer system (Ch 17) pany and a retailer carrying its products (Ch 10)
concentration The channel of distribution function involving core competency The aspects of a company’s operations that
the pooling of small lots into larger ones (Ch 10) it is best at doing (Ch 8)
concept testing Presenting the general idea of a new product corporations Legal “persons,” or entities, established for the
to a sample of the market in order to get its reaction (Ch 9) purpose of doing business and distinct from their owners
conceptual skills Abilities to think broadly and abstractly, to in terms of liability (Ch 3)
see the big picture (Ch 5) cost of goods sold The cost to a firm of the products sold by
confidentiality agreements Agreements by employees to keep the firm to its customers (Ch 12)
confidential trade secrets or other sensitive information counter trade A barter system of exchange in which trade
learned by working at a company (Ch 3) between specific countries is conducted without the use
consignment An arrangement whereby retailers do not have of monetary transactions (Ch 2)
to pay for merchandise until they sell it (Ch 10) coupon payments Interest paid to bondholders by a firm on
consolidation movement The wave of mergers and acquisi- its outstanding debt (Ch 13)
tions among financial institutions that has been sweeping coupons Certificates that allow consumers to receive a cash
the world in recent years (Ch 14) refund or a free product at the time of purchase (Ch 10)
consultative leadership The leader conferring with colleagues covenants not to compete Agreements by employees not to
and employees before making the final decision (Ch 7) compete with their former employer (Ch 3)
Consumer Confidence Index An indicator that measures the craft production or cottage system Production done by highly
self-assurance of consumers and is crucial in determining skilled workers using simple, flexible tools, where items
consumer spending habits that have a direct impact on were produced in small quantities and according to cus-
business prospects and the economy (Ch 1) tomer specifications (Ch 16)
consumer market People and households that purchase con- creative destruction The competitive process of business suc-
sumer products and services (Ch 8) cess and failure, whereby small firms enter the market-
consumer-to-consumer (C2C) e-business The e-business place to compete against existing larger firms and cause
that involves consumers selling goods and services to the failure of some of those existing firms (Ch 4)
other consumers (Ch 18) credit risk The chance that promised interest and principal on
consumption The amount used by private domestic resi- debt will not be paid (Ch 14)
dents (Ch 1) credit unions Not-for-profit thrift institutions that have mem-
containerization The placement of products in trailer-sized bers with a common bond, such as employer, religious
containers that can be shipped by rail, air, ship, or truck group, and educational institution (Ch 14)
(Ch 10) crisis planning Planning for very high-magnitude, unthink-
contests A form of sales promotion in which a prize is able events (Ch 5)
awarded for a competition (Ch 10) cross coupons Coupons printed on an item or enclosed within
contingency approach to leadership An approach to man- the item’s package that provide a discount on a different
agement where managers study the environment in which item (Ch 10)
their companies operate to determine the appropriate culture The behavior patterns, beliefs, and institutions that
leadership style to adopt (Ch 7) underpin all human activities, explain much of our behav-
contingency planning Planning for change and for business ior, and create an awareness for learning, and vary by
dynamics that are subject to change (Ch 5) social grouping (Ch 1)
contingency theories of leadership Theories that assert that currency pegging The currency of a country that is kept
leadership effectiveness is maximized when leaders make within a fixed range of values relative to a hard cur-
their behavior dependent on the characteristics of their rency (Ch 14)
followers and the business environment (Ch 7) currency risk The fluctuation in a country’s currency value
continuous process A process where the product is produced relative to other currencies in the world (Ch 14)
in very large volumes but with very little customization current assets The assets that will be used up, sold, or con-
(Ch 16) verted to cash within the year or the firm’s normal operat-
control chart A chart used to detect if the production system ing cycle if more than one year (Ch 12)
is in control or out of control (Ch 16) current liabilities The firm’s obligations that are payable
control decisions Decisions made once the production within one year or within the firm’s normal operating cycle
system is producing (Ch 16) if more than one year (Ch 12)
control unit The part of the CPU that transmits electronic sig- customer departmentalization Departmentalization accord-
nals to the other components of a computer system to ing to potential customers of the organization (Ch 5)
perform needed operations (Ch 17) customs union A group of free trade member countries that
controller The financial manager responsible for accounting, have adopted a common external tariff with nonmember
financial statements, and tax payments (Ch 13) countries (Ch 2)
controlling Measuring, monitoring, evaluating, and regulat-
ing an organization’s progress toward meeting its goals data Facts about events or attributes of things, places, or
(Ch 5) people (Ch 17)
convenience stores Small-sized stores that sell limited lines of data marts Subsets of a data warehouse that contain data for
food and nonfood items (Ch 10) a certain group of users (Ch 17)

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