Constraints Of A Business Plan

Constraints That Impact on Implementation.

Businesses in general need to take into account that there are a number of constraints that may impact on the implementation of their business plan. Business law exists to ensure that firms can engage in lawful activity without impediment, and to restrain unlawful activity by that or any other firm.

Constraints that impact on the implementation of a business plan are categorised into six areas. These are:

• Legal.

• Financial.

• Social.

• Environmental.

• Technological.

• Competitive.

I will now evaluate these constraints and discuss how, and in what ways, they may impact on the successful implementation of a business plan.

Legal Constraints.

Legal changes are happening on a daily basis, and as a result, can have a large influence on what is happening within the business environment.

Health and safety legislative changes may increase costs, or force working practices to change. This is particularly important when considering new businesses, such as companies trading online.

Legal legislation changes may increase the cost of working practice to changes. This is particularly important when considering a new business venture, such as diversifying into the internet market. Changes to minimum wage, the standard working week and employee contracts need also to be taken into consideration.

Thus, there are many legally binding constraints that the business has to take into consideration when implementing their respective business plans. I will now list the main business laws and other legal constraints that a business has to think about, as well as saying what they are and how they impact the implementation process.

Changes to the minimum wage paid per hour or maximum working week permitted also need to be considered. Relevant legislation should be taken into account, and these are described in detail below.

Consumer Protection Law.

In the past, the relationship between business and the consumer was best described the buyer beware method. This indicated that the buyer had to use common sense when entering into a contract with the organisation in order to purchase products and services offered. It was the responsibility of the buyer to ensure that everything was satisfactory and functioning as claimed. This left the consumer wide open to abuse, particularly as products and services started to develop and become more sophisticated. Additionally, the manufacturer or retailer was in a far stronger position to resist consumer complaints, and had the financial resources available to fight any legal action that may arise.

Today, the consumer is in far more dominant position and the supplier must abide by a series of acts that are designed to protect the rights of the buyer. The consumer has also become far more knowledgeable as a result of the many consumer watchdog programmes that appear on television, radio and the Internet.

Trade Descriptions Act 1968.

The Trade Descriptions Act 1968 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which prevents manufacturers, retailers or service industry providers from misleading consumers as to what they are spending their money on.

As advertising became a crucial part of successful commercial enterprises and with fierce competition the temptation to push the boundaries of truth when making claims for a product is strong. This law empowers the judiciary to punish companies or individuals who make false claims about the products or services that they sell.

Applying a false trade description to goods is a strict liability offence, provided it is shown that the description was applied and was false, the accused has to prove certain defences in order to escape conviction. False descriptions as to services require the more normal proof of guilty knowledge. The advertising industry has managed to circumvent this obstacle, by usage of small print, and, to some degree, through creative associations of products with the things that people desire.

This act therefore ensures that the description given of the goods forms part of the contract the buyer makes with the seller. The act says that the description given must be accurate to avoid false selling.

Data Protection Act 1998.

The Data Protection Act is a legal basis for the handling in the UK of information relating to living people. It is the main piece of legislation that governs protection of personal data in the UK. Although the Act does not mention privacy, in practice it provides a way in which individuals can enforce the control of information about them. Most of the Act does not apply to domestic use, for example keeping a personal address book.

Compliance with the Act is overseen by an independent government authority, the Office of the Information Commissioner. The UK Data Protection Act is a large Act, and has a reputation for complexity. Whilst the basic principles are honoured for protecting privacy, interpreting the act is not always simple. Many companies, organisations and individuals seem very unsure of the aims, content and principles of the DPA. Some hide behind the Act and refuse to provide even very basic, publicly available material quoting the Act as a restriction

Consumer Credit Act 1974.

The Consumer Credit Act 1974 is a consumer protection law in the UK. It requires certain businesses to obtain Consumer credit licenses and protects individuals receiving credit up to Ð'Ј25,000. Appeals under the Consumer Credit Act are made to the Office of Fair Trading.

Cancelable agreements have a cooling-off period starting on the day the customer signs. This period is 14 days for goods bought from a mail-order catalogue. Otherwise, it is five days from the day the customer receives either a second copy of the agreement or a separate copy of a notice of cancellation rights.

Sale of Goods Act 1979.

The Sale of Goods Act 1979 is a British Act of Parliament, which regulates contracts in which goods are sold and bought. The Act consolidates the Sale of Goods Act 1893 and subsequent legislation, which in turn