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Free ACCA Business and Technology Practice Questions & Answers
300 exam-style Business and Technology questions. Pick your answer, hit Check answer, and see the worked solution — free to start, no signup.
100% free · No login to startQuestion 31
Which of the following best describes a joint venture?
Select an option first.
Correct answer: B — Two or more organisations creating a separate entity to pursue a specific project together
Explanation: A joint venture involves two or more parties creating a new entity, sharing resources, risks, and rewards for a specific project. It differs from a merger (full combination) or simple partnership.
Question 32
Which of Mintzberg's five organisational components serves the organisation's needs indirectly, providing services such as legal, catering, and security?
Select an option first.
Correct answer: C — Support staff
Explanation: Support staff provide services that are not directly related to the core work — legal counsel, cafeteria, security, public relations. Technostructure designs work systems. Operating core does the main work.
Question 33
Unity of command is a principle that states:
Select an option first.
Correct answer: B — Each employee should receive orders from only one manager
Explanation: Unity of command (Fayol) requires that each subordinate reports to only one manager, avoiding conflicting instructions and confusion. It does not relate to decentralisation or strategic objectives.
Question 34
Which of the following is a benefit of centralisation?
Select an option first.
Correct answer: B — Greater consistency and easier implementation of organisation-wide policies
Explanation: Centralisation ensures consistent standards, policies, and decisions across the organisation. Faster local response, staff motivation, and reduced senior workload are advantages of decentralisation.
Question 35
What distinguishes a public sector organisation from a public limited company?
Select an option first.
Correct answer: B — A public sector organisation is owned and funded by the government, not private investors
Explanation: Public sector organisations are owned and funded by government to deliver public services. Public limited companies are privately owned and listed on stock exchanges for public investment.
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Question 36
A matrix structure in an organisation is characterised by:
Select an option first.
Correct answer: B — Employees reporting to both a functional manager and a project manager simultaneously
Explanation: A matrix structure overlays project teams on top of functional departments, giving employees dual reporting lines. This can improve flexibility and resource use but may create role conflicts.
Question 37
Shared services in an organisation typically involve:
Select an option first.
Correct answer: B — Consolidating support functions (e.g. HR, finance, IT) into a single unit serving the whole organisation
Explanation: Shared services centralise common internal functions to reduce duplication and cost, while still serving the whole organisation internally. It is not the same as outsourcing to an external provider.
Question 38
A stakeholder is best defined as:
Select an option first.
Correct answer: B — Any individual or group with an interest in or affected by an organisation's activities
Explanation: Stakeholders include anyone affected by or with an interest in the organisation — shareholders, employees, customers, suppliers, government, and communities. It is not limited to shareholders, directors, or employees alone.
Question 39
Internal stakeholders of an organisation include:
Select an option first.
Correct answer: C — Employees and management
Explanation: Internal stakeholders are those within the organisation: employees, managers, and owners. Customers, suppliers, government, and communities are external stakeholders.
Question 40
Organisational culture is best described as:
Select an option first.
Correct answer: B — The shared values, beliefs, and norms that shape behaviour within an organisation
Explanation: Organisational culture refers to the informal shared values, beliefs, attitudes, and norms that guide how people behave. Formal rules and policies are separate from culture, though they may reflect it.
Question 41
Charles Handy identified four types of organisational culture. Which culture is associated with a web shape and a central powerful figure?
Select an option first.
Correct answer: C — Power culture
Explanation: In Handy's model, power culture is depicted as a web with a central power source. Role culture resembles a Greek temple. Task culture is a net focused on projects. Person culture places the individual at the centre.
Question 42
A company that is heavily bureaucratic with clearly defined roles and procedures most likely has a:
Select an option first.
Correct answer: D — Role culture
Explanation: Role culture is characterised by rules, procedures, and clearly defined roles — typical of bureaucracies. Power culture relies on a central authority. Task culture is project-focused. Person culture centres on individual experts.
Question 43
Which stakeholder group would most likely be concerned with an organisation's impact on the local community?
Select an option first.
Correct answer: B — Pressure groups and local residents
Explanation: Pressure groups and local residents care about social and environmental impact. Shareholders focus on returns, trade payables on being paid, and loan creditors on repayment and interest.
Question 44
Mendelow's matrix is used to:
Select an option first.
Correct answer: B — Analyse and prioritise stakeholders based on their power and interest
Explanation: Mendelow's matrix plots stakeholders on a grid of power vs interest to determine management strategies. It is not a performance, financial, or risk tool.
Question 45
Stakeholders with high power and high interest should be managed by:
Select an option first.
Correct answer: D — Actively engaging and managing them closely
Explanation: High power/high interest stakeholders (key players) must be actively managed and involved in decisions. High power/low interest stakeholders need to be kept satisfied. Low power/high interest stakeholders should be kept informed.
Question 46
Which of the following best defines Gross Domestic Product (GDP)?
Select an option first.
Correct answer: B — The total monetary value of all goods and services produced within a country in a given period
Explanation: GDP measures the total monetary value of all goods and services produced within a country's borders in a specific period. It is not just exports minus imports, government spending, or average income alone.
Question 47
When an economy experiences inflation, this means:
Select an option first.
Correct answer: B — The general price level is rising over time
Explanation: Inflation is a sustained rise in the general price level. Deflation is a fall in the price level. Inflation does not directly define unemployment trends or negative growth.
Question 48
A government using fiscal policy would most likely:
Select an option first.
Correct answer: B — Adjust its tax rates and public spending levels
Explanation: Fiscal policy involves government decisions on taxation and public expenditure. Monetary policy involves interest rates and money supply. Trade policy involves tariffs.
Question 49
Monetary policy primarily involves:
Select an option first.
Correct answer: B — Controlling the money supply and interest rates
Explanation: Monetary policy is conducted by central banks and involves managing money supply, credit conditions, and interest rates. Government spending is fiscal policy. Minimum wages and trade restrictions are separate policy areas.
Question 50
During a recession, which of the following is most likely to occur?
Select an option first.
Correct answer: B — Falling GDP and rising unemployment
Explanation: A recession involves two or more consecutive quarters of negative GDP growth, typically accompanied by rising unemployment and falling consumer spending. Tax revenues tend to fall during recessions.
Question 51
A fall in interest rates is most likely to:
Select an option first.
Correct answer: B — Encourage business investment and consumer spending
Explanation: Lower interest rates reduce borrowing costs, encouraging businesses to invest and consumers to spend. Higher interest rates increase saving attractiveness and reduce borrowing.
Question 52
The balance of payments records:
Select an option first.
Correct answer: B — All financial transactions between a country and the rest of the world
Explanation: The balance of payments is a record of all economic transactions between residents of a country and the rest of the world, including trade in goods, services, and capital flows.
Question 53
Stagflation refers to:
Select an option first.
Correct answer: B — High inflation combined with stagnant economic growth and high unemployment
Explanation: Stagflation is a particularly damaging economic condition combining high inflation, stagnant growth, and unemployment. It is difficult to address as policies for inflation can worsen unemployment and vice versa.
Question 54
The law of demand states that, all else equal:
Select an option first.
Correct answer: C — As price rises, quantity demanded falls
Explanation: The law of demand holds an inverse relationship between price and quantity demanded: as price rises, demand falls, and vice versa. This assumes all other factors remain constant.
Question 55
Price elasticity of demand measures:
Select an option first.
Correct answer: B — How responsive quantity demanded is to a change in price
Explanation: Price elasticity of demand measures the percentage change in quantity demanded relative to a percentage change in price. Supply responsiveness is price elasticity of supply. Income responsiveness is income elasticity.
Question 56
A PESTEL analysis is used to evaluate:
Select an option first.
Correct answer: B — The macro-environmental factors affecting an organisation
Explanation: PESTEL covers Political, Economic, Social, Technological, Environmental, and Legal factors — all external macro-environmental influences. SWOT covers internal strengths/weaknesses. Porter's Five Forces analyses industry competition.
Question 57
Which of the following is a social factor in a PESTEL analysis?
Select an option first.
Correct answer: C — Demographic changes and cultural trends
Explanation: Social factors include demographics, lifestyle trends, education levels, and cultural values. Tax policy is Political/Legal. Inflation is Economic. New production methods are Technological.
Question 58
Porter's Five Forces framework is used to:
Select an option first.
Correct answer: B — Assess the competitive intensity and attractiveness of an industry
Explanation: Porter's Five Forces analyses industry structure through: threat of new entrants, bargaining power of buyers, bargaining power of suppliers, threat of substitutes, and competitive rivalry. It is not an internal or financial analysis tool.
Question 59
A market is said to be in equilibrium when:
Select an option first.
Correct answer: C — Quantity supplied equals quantity demanded at the current price
Explanation: Market equilibrium occurs where the quantity buyers wish to purchase equals the quantity sellers wish to sell at a given price, with no tendency for price to change.
Question 60
A supply chain refers to:
Select an option first.
Correct answer: B — The network of organisations involved in producing and delivering a product to the end customer
Explanation: The supply chain encompasses all parties involved from raw material suppliers through to the final customer — including manufacturers, distributors, and retailers.
More free ACCA topics
Management Accounting401
Financial Accounting400
Corporate and Business Law400
Performance Management400
Financial Reporting400
Financial Management400
Strategic Business Reporting400
Advanced Financial Management400
Advanced Performance Management400
Advanced Taxation400
Taxation300
Audit and Assurance300
Strategic Business Leader300
Advanced Audit and Assurance296
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