AIM University Group

Learning Outcome 1: PASS
AC 1.1 — Pass

The learner has met AC 1.1 by correctly identifying the main types of business organisations and explaining their key features. In Task 1, the learner correctly matched the bakery, legal firm, multinational manufacturer, farmer-owned group, and charity to the appropriate business types: sole trader, partnership, company, cooperative, and non-profit organisation.

The learner also gave relevant characteristics for each type, including profit retention and control for sole traders, shared ownership and resources in partnerships, shareholder ownership and directors in companies, member benefit and voting in cooperatives, and donation-funded public benefit in non-profit organisations.

In Task 2, the learner explained ownership, liability, and control for sole trader, partnership, and company structures. The sole trader and partnership explanations were strong. The company explanation was mostly accurate, especially on shareholders and limited liability, but the control structure was slightly unclear because it suggested shareholders directly manage operations. Companies are usually controlled by directors and senior managers, with shareholders influencing major decisions.

Feedback for improvement:
Revise the difference between shareholders, directors, and managers in a company. Shareholders own the company, but directors and managers normally control daily operations.

AC 1.2 — Pass

The learner has met AC 1.2 by explaining business purposes across the private, public, and voluntary sectors. The learner clearly explained that private hospitals aim to provide healthcare while making profit, government hospitals provide accessible healthcare for the general public, and medical charities serve disadvantaged groups with free or low-cost care.

The learner also explained how sector purpose affects who is served and how organisations are funded. The response correctly identified private hospital funding through fees, insurance, and investment; government hospital funding through taxes and budgets; and charity funding through donations, sponsors, volunteers, and fundraising.

For Task 4, the learner correctly matched organisational structures to the event organisations: functional for the global event corporation, matrix for the project-based creative agency, and flat for the small startup event team. The advantages of each structure were also relevant. The matrix explanation was slightly underdeveloped because it did not fully explain how staff work across different projects and specialist functions.

Feedback for improvement:
When explaining a matrix structure, clearly state that employees may report to both a functional manager and a project manager, allowing specialist staff to work across several client projects.

Learning Outcome 2: PASS

AC 2.1 — Pass

The learner has met AC 2.1 by explaining and analysing the main PESTLE factors affecting OceanView Escapes. The response covers political, economic, social, technological, legal, and environmental factors with clear links to the case.

Feedback for improvement:
The learner should separate political and legal factors more clearly. Some health, safety, and licensing points were placed under political factors, but these are mainly legal/regulatory factors.

AC 2.2 — Pass

The learner has met AC 2.2 by applying Porter’s Five Forces and SWOT analysis to OceanView Escapes.

Feedback for improvement:
The learner should avoid overlap between new entrants and substitutes. Airbnb and boutique properties can be competitors or substitutes depending on how they are used in the analysis, so the distinction should be made clearer.

AC 2.3 — Grade: Pass

Marks Awarded: 28/35

The learner has met AC 2.3 by assessing the role and impact of government and regulation on OceanView Escapes.

Feedback for improvement:
The recommendations needed more depth. The learner could improve this section by recommending regular compliance audits, staff training, use of government incentives, a direct booking strategy to reduce OTA dependency, and monitoring policy requirements before entering the United States market.

Learning Outcome 3: PASS

AC 3.1 — Pass

The learner has met AC 3.1 by accurately describing the organisational structures used by SAS. The response identifies and explains flat, divisional, and functional structures and applies each one clearly to the SAS case.

Feedback for improvement:
The answer could be slightly improved by making the distinction clearer between the overall divisional structure and the functional departments inside each division.

AC 3.2 — Grade: Pass

Marks Awarded: 23/25

The learner has met AC 3.2 by evaluating how SAS’s organisational structure affects business performance.

Feedback for improvement:
The evaluation is strong, but the learner could make the link to customer service outcomes slightly clearer when discussing how structure affects performance.

AC 3.3 — Grade: Pass

Marks Awarded: 24/25

The learner has met AC 3.3 by analysing how organisational culture and leadership styles affect SAS’s operations across all three divisions.
Feedback for improvement:
The answer could be improved by making a stronger direct comparison between the three divisions at the end, especially explaining why the Caribbean division performs better than the USA and Canada divisions.

AC 3.1 - 3.3
The learner has met the LO3 recommendation task by giving relevant and practical recommendations to improve SAS’s structure, leadership, culture, coordination, efficiency, and business performance.

Learning Outcome 4: PASS

AC 4.1 — Pass

The learner has met AC 4.1 by defining globalisation and explaining how it affects GTH’s business operations.

Feedback for improvement:
The answer could be improved by giving more direct discussion of global competition from large international hotel chains and how this affects pricing, branding, and service quality.

AC 4.2 — Pass

The learner has met AC 4.2 by assessing opportunities and challenges GTH faces in international markets.

Feedback for improvement:
The learner should compare all three countries more fully. The USA needed more detailed assessment, especially high demand, strong competition, fast-paced market conditions, and possible joint venture conflict.

AC 4.3 — Pass

The learner has met AC 4.3 by evaluating several market entry strategies used by GTH. The response correctly explains FDI in the UK, franchising in Canada, and joint venture in the USA.

Feedback for improvement:
The answer is missing a full evaluation of e-commerce / digital expansion as a market entry or global support strategy. The learner also needed a clearer final judgement on which strategy is most effective for GTH and why.

Recommendation — Pass

The learner has met the Integrated LO4 recommendation task by giving practical recommendations to improve GTH’s global operations, coordination, service standardisation, efficiency, brand consistency, and competitive advantage.