Small Business Management Glossary A-H

A method of classifying inventory items with categories which are of high value, less costly, and/or low cost items.

Regulating the activities or course of activities of an organization

To guide and/or supervise the activities of an organization

Refers to those activities which encourage subordinates to work toward the achievement of the company's goals

The art of making the public aware of the services or commodity that the business has for sale.

Federal legislation that requires employers to treat applicants and employees equally regardless of age.

A grouping of accounts receivable into age categories based upon the length of time they have been outstanding on the company record.

Legislation that guarantees disabled people equal access to employment, as well as access to public places.

Private investors who are willing to supply financing for new and/or risky small venture startups.

Computer programs designed for a specific use and are relatively easy to use without any technical knowledge of programming.

The part of the central processing unit (CPU) where numerical calculations and logical operations are performed.

A written document that states explicitly the rights and duties of partners in a partnership.

American Standard Code for Informatiuon Interchange

A commonly used code for representing data.

The computer uses a program called an assembler to translate the commands into its own machine language.

It also keeps track of the symbolic names and assigns appropriate memory locations to them.

The assembler translates instructions on a one-for-one basis, so one instruction in assembly language becomes one instruction in machine language.

Assembly language is a great help to the programmer.

A measure of the accounts receivable turnover.

A duplicate of an original program or data made as a precaution against loss of damage of the original.

Association of business firms that promotes ethical conduct by all business firms in a community.

The smalles amount of information a computer can store.

Computers must represent information in the form of bits because the electronic circuits they are made of can have only two states: on or off.

The governing body that is elected by the stockholders of a corporation.

A qualification that is absolutely necessary for the job.

It is an allowed and approved reason for discrimination.

The cost of a fixed asset less accumulated depreciation.

The identification for a product.

The point at which total sales revenue equals total operating costs.

The forcible breaking and entering of premises closed for business with the subsequent removal of cash or merchandise.

An organization that combines inputs of raw materials, capital, labor, and management skills to produce useful outputs of goods and services so as to earn a profit.

An insurance that protects companies during the period necessary to restore property damaged by an insured peril.

Coverage pays for lost income and other expenses related to recovery.

A written description of a new idea that projects marketing, operational, and financial aspects of proposed business.

Fundamental statements that serve as guides to management practice.

The space a character, letter, or number takes up in the computer.

It is made up of a group of eight (8) bits.

Insurance that provides monetary benefits to a to a business that has experienced an unforseen peril such as flood, fire, etc.

A device like a TV screen in which a cathode ray (electron beam) hits a phosphorescent screen for the display of information.

A terminal device similar to a television set on which input or output may be displayed.

let the seller beware

A source of market data that explains where certain businesses are located.

A source of market data that keeps track of new home sales by region and/or the construction of new houses by region and specific area.

A source of market data that explains where certain manufacturers are located.

A source of market data that compiles population statistics with regard to distribution of population by region, area, etc.

The unit of a computer system that contains the circuits which control the functions and perform the execution of instructions

• Composed of the following three parts:
•        Memory (primary storage)
•        Arithmatic or logic unit
•        Control unit

Compact Disc Read-Only Memory

A compact disc from which stored data can be read by a laser beam

The superior-subordinate relationship that serves as a channel for two-way communication.

An association of business people who attempt to protect and promote the commercial interests in a community.

The difference between current assets and current liabilities

The current asset items consisting of cash, inventories, and accounts receivable

Federal legislation that prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin.

A clause in an insurance policy under which the insured agrees to maintain insurance equal to some specified percentage of the property value or otherwise to assume a portion of any loss.

A computer monitor that can display more than one (1) active color.

The practice of trying to obtain something that is being sought by others under similar circumstances at the same time.

A device that manipulates data according to a series of instructions stored in tis memory.

An electronic device that can accept data, perform instructions on the data, and deliver the results of the processed data.

By changing the instructions the computer can be made to do a completely different task.

An orginization of hardware and softwaredesigned to accomplish a data processing function.

A type of credit granted by retailers tht is used by individuals or families for satisfaction of their own wants.

The emphasis place on providing to customers products and services that are safe, reliable, and honestly advertised

Also, a social movement that seeks to strengthen the rights of consumers relative to sellers

A mangement function which compares organizational and individual performance with predetermined standards or expexcted results.

A portion of the central processing unit (CPU) that directs the sequence of operations, interprets coded instructions, and initiates the proper commands to execute instructions.

The registered right of a creator to produce, publish, and sell the work which is the product of the intelligence and skill of that person.

Those individuals who flee the bureaucratic environment of big business by going into business for themselves.

A legal form of organization whereby a legal entity is authorized by a state to operate a business under the entity's charter or articles of incorporation.

The written application for permission to incorporate that is approved by a state official.

An agreement that payment for a product or service will be made at some later date.

An orginization of retailers and other firms in a given community that serves its members by summarizing their credit experience with particular individuals.

Insurance that protects non-retailing businesses from abnormal bad-debt losses.

The current asstes dividied by the current liabilities and a measure of the liquidity of the business.

The user tells the programmer what he/she wants to be able to do and the programmer writes a set of instructions (program) to perform the specific tasks for the particular user.

The information that the computer manipulates

An organized collection of related data.

The process of entering data into a computer system.

Any procedure for receiving information and producing a specific result.

The rearrangement and refinement of raw data into a form suitable for futher use.

Any borrowed or loaned capital invested in the business that must be repaid to creditors.

Insurance policy provision that makes the insurer liable only for losses in excess of the stated deductible.

A superior's act of granting to subordinates, on the basis of competence, the right to act or decide.

The statistical study of human populations with respect to their size, density, distribution, composition, and income.

The use of a computer to design and print professional-quality typeset documents.

A sudden misfortune, resulting in the loss of life and/or property.

A thin disk of magnetic material capable of storing a large amount of information.

The words, symbols or numbers which appear in visual form.

A business valuation approach which centers on estimating the amount of potential income that may be produced by the business in the next year.

The wealth produced in or near a community that provides employment and income to the local population.

The quality to be purchased which minimizes total costs.

An unforseen combination of circumstances that results in a need for immediate action.

A record of statements made at the time the applicant first seeks employment.

The primary way of judging the job applicant's appearance, poise, speech, etc.

Life insurance that allows the insured, rather than the beneficiary, to collect the face value of the policy upon maturity or to collect that value in annual payments.

One who organizes, manages, and assumes the risk of a business firm or venture.

The absence of employment discrimination based on rece, color, religion, sex, or national origin.

Outlaws discrimination in pay against those who are over forty years old.

The obtaining and maintaining of adequate workspace and equipment.

Obtaining cash before payments are received from customers by selling off one's accounts receivable to a third party.

Outlaws discriminatory practices in pay

Requires employers to pay a minimum wage to employees, and to pay a minimum of one and one-half times the regular rate for any hours beyond forty worked in a week.

The business function of effectively obtaining and using funds.

The efficient utilization and adequate regulation of assets, revenue, expenditures, and capital rights.

Long-term capital that is invested in the small business

Also, funds invested in such long-term assets as: land, building, machinery, furniture, fixtures, and other equipment.

A cost that, for a given period of time and range of activity called the relevant range, does not change in total but becomes progressively smaller on a per-unit basis as volume increases

These expenses do not increase with increased business, nor do they decrease with declining business activity.

A device containing a sealed rigid magnetic disk and read/write mechanism, usually built directly into a computer's cabinet.

A flexible, plastic disk on which data is stored magnetically.

To prepare a new disk for use by the computer or an old one for re-use.

Formatting erases all previous information.

All new disks must be formatted before they may be used.

Insurance covering business liability to customers who might be injured on or off premises of from the product sold to them.

1,000 megabytes.

An intangible asset such as the name of a funeral home.

Also, an intangible asset which enables a business to earn a profit in excess of the normal rate of profit earned by other businesses of the same kind.

Pictures, charts, diagrams, etc.

The physical equiipment or device which makes up a computer system, including its input and output devices.

Everything except the programs in the computer system.

Programming language developed to make the task of programming easier.

Motivating people in organizations to develop teamwork which effectively fulfills their needs and achieves organizational objectives.

Determining personnel needs in terms of numbers of individuals and their required skills.

The process of acquiring, training, developing, motivating and appraising a suficient quantity of qualified employed to perform necessary activities.

Developing activities and an organizational climate conducive to maximum efficiency and worker satisfaction.

Developing a comprehensive strategy for meeting future human resource needs.