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Video Synopsis:
ORGANISATIONS COMPARED
Organisations are everywhere. Millions of people get their living from them. What do these organisations do? How do they work? Who owns them? Why are organisations organised in so many different ways?
In the video "Organisations Compared", Dave Nellist offers a simple, light-hearted introduction to the different kinds of organisations, looking at their advantages and disadvantages. Along the way he visits a variety of real-life examples, from the retail giant Arcadia to a small co-op called Brixton Cycles.
Sole Traders:
The simplest type of organisation in legal and financial terms is a sole trader. This is a business which is owned by one person. Sole trader businesses are easy to set up — but they're also the most likely to go bust.
Partnerships:
Another form of private business is the partnership. A partnership is an organisation in which a combination of people get together to share their skills and expertise. The partners share ownership of the business.
Private Limited Companies:
If a sole trader or a partnership goes bust, the owners are personally liable for the organisation's debts. In a private limited company, the owners are protected from their firm's debts. The owners of a limited company are called shareholders because they hold shares in the company.
Public Limited Companies:
The shares of a private limited company are held privately. In a public limited company shares are bought and sold on the stock exchange. Being a plc gives an organisation access to much greater sums of capital than other businesses.
Co-ops:
These are organisations which first appeared in the nineteenth century, when workers came together to produce and sell their own goods. In co-ops, decisions are made collectively and often everyone is paid their same.
Franchises:
A franchise is a business arrangement in which a business pays for the privilege of having the name and set-up of a more established organisation. Many outlets of McDonalds and KFC, for example, look as though they're actually part of the famous-name companies whose name they bear, but are in fact franchises.
Public Sector:
Over twenty per cent of the working population are employed not by private organisations, but in the public sector. Some public sector organisations are state undertakings — in other words, owned by central government, or municipal undertakings — owned by local government.
Charities:
But organisations are not just owned either by the public or private owners. There's also the voluntary sector. Perhaps the most well-known type of voluntary organisations are charities, who depend on donations as well as people who work unpaid.
Running time: 25 mins approx (Produced in 2002)
"Very good. It really enlivened the topic. One of the best I've seen in this area. It fitted in very well with the syllabus."
Mr Donegan,
Business Education,
Portobello High School,
Edinburgh
"The students liked the style and found the video engaging."
Tony Casey,
Strode's College,
Egham, Surrey
"This video went down well with my students and it covered a lot of quite boring detail in an entertaining way."
Jocelyn Nicholson,
Henbury High School,
Macclesfield, Cheshire
Video Summary: Explains the different types of organisation.