ib business management case study november 2022

Oxford Education Blog

The latest news and views on education from oxford university press., when, why, what, how of ib business management curriculum change 2022.

Experienced Business Management teacher, IB examiner and IB workshop leader Dr Loykie Lominé, introduces the new IB Business Management course.

Are you ready for change?

Changes to a course you have been teaching for several years can feel threatening, raising questions and doubts. This post will walk you through the When, Why, What and How of the changes to the International Baccalaureate Business Management course, so you can feel more confident and have fewer concerns.

When is both easy and complex. First exams are May 2024.

Several scenarios are possible dependent on the length of your course and your exam month as illustrated by the following three cases:

• Marsha teaches Standard Level in one year in the US, this means she will start teaching the new course from August 2023
• Claudio teaches in an IB school in Bolivia with exams in November. His students will have their first exams in November 2024, so he will teach the new course from January 2023
• Luis teaches Higher Level Business Management in two years in China. He will start teaching the new course from August 2022.

The IB has a very healthy process of curriculum review every seven years involving a long process of consultation, formulation and collective creation.

Changing a curriculum doesn’t mean the current one isn’t good. It just means that we’re going to have a new one which is even better. This is very important for our subject so it will better reflect changes in the business world.

To illustrate how much has changed in the business world, how many of these logos were known 10 years ago?

Changes to courses also bring the benefit of updating classroom resources. The current Oxford Business Management classroom resource was written before the ATL (Approaches to Teaching and Learning) were clearly defined by the IB, meaning the principle of inquiry was not fully developed. Inquiry is now at the core of the new curriculum and our new book .

Another improvement for teachers is that, while IB teaching is focused on conceptual understanding, the examiner’s report reveals students don’t always understand these concepts. To answer this shortcoming, the process to conceptual teaching and learning is now much more at the forefront of the course and the new Oxford Business Management Course Companion.

The revised course is also even better aligned to the IB mission, to the IB learner profile and to the pedagogical principles of the IB. Below I have selected six of the ten IB learner profile attributes to illustrate this, the sixth of which for me is the most important for Business Management and is central in the IB’s own introduction to the new course:

• INQUIRERS : the core of IB teaching and is at the core of the new syllabus
• RISK TAKERS: Business Management isn’t about eliminating risk. It is about minimizing and anticipating risks
• ATTRIBUTE THINKERS : its descriptor ends with the world making reasoned ethical decisions and in Business Management ethics is one of our key concepts
• CARING : we want our students to make a positive difference in the lives of others and in the world around us
• OPEN MINDEDNESS : evaluating a range of viewpoints, a range of perspectives, different ideas, and different views from various stakeholders. These perspectives are very needed in business management
• KNOWLEDGABLE: we want our students to leave us as change agents as well as confident, creative and compassionate business leaders, entrepreneurs and social entrepreneurs. I love this. I hope you do too!

The new course is not a revolution, it’s an evolution, building on the contents of the current course. So, what is changing regarding the contents of the syllabus and the assessment strategy?

What is staying?

• Human resources

We say goodbye, amongst others, to:

• Daniel Pink Drive’s Purpose, Mastery and Autonomy model
• Guerrilla marketing
• Kanban and Andon
• Cellular manufacturing
• Debt factoring
• Some of the more sophisticated sampling methods are out as well.

We say hello, amongst others, to:

• Deci and Ryan motivation theory in human resources
• New equation defect rate
• Data mining
• Crowdfunding
• Culture clash

Changes to concepts

In the current course we have six concepts – change, culture, ethics, globalization, innovation and strategy. This is being streamlined. We are moving from six to four:

• We retain change and ethics
• Add sustainability and creativity

These four interdisciplinary concepts are present throughout, and the course empowers students to explore them from a business perspective.

In the new Oxford Business Management Course Companion, we address the key concepts in several ways. We have included:

• A much longer introduction to concepts to help students and teachers understand their purpose
• Many new and improved case studies, and other examples of activities to engage and help students to see how the concepts provide understanding for the wider world beyond Business Management e.g. sustainable development goals
• We retain the triangle model of concepts, contents and contexts but the shape is changing to a cyclical model, focusing on inquiry-based teaching and learning. So, we have a longer introduction to inquiry, tasks, and activities, giving students the chance to train to be inquirers.

The new toolkit

Another new feature of the course detailed in the Oxford Business Management Course Companion is the new toolkit. This is a compilation of all the tools we currently know and use e.g. Ansoff, BCG matrix decision tree, forcefield analysis, and SWOT, plus new tools such as descriptive statistics (mean, standard deviation, quartiles) and theoretical models such as Hofstede’s cultural dimensions and Porter’s generic strategies. These are included with exercises on how they should be used to analyse the business context of an organization.

All of this change to the curriculum has meant we have had to substantially revise our course book, not simply tack on a few extra sections, which gives you a fully updated resource.

Click for a digital evaluation copy of our Business Management Course Companion (2022 edition ) .

How – changes to the assessment.

The assessment models have also been revised for exams starting in 2024 . The external assessment (exams) will be much more focused. Each paper will now concentrate on a particular skill set.

• Paper 1 will now be the same for Standard and Higher-Level students. Previously Section A of the paper was the same, but Sections B and C were different
• While still based on a long case study it will now only be partly pre-released as an extract and a list of topics providing the theme and context. Previously having the whole case study early led to students over preparing answers and failing to answer the question asked in the exam
• Most questions will be qualitative.
• Different for Standard and Higher Level
• Most questions will be quantitative
• Students will have an examination booklet with some stimulus material, possibly some charts, tables, infographics, and there will be several parts and questions.
• Only for Higher-Level students, counting for 25% of their overall score
• Assignment focusing on social enterprise – It’s very innovative and I love it!
• Provides stimulus material, such as extracts from emails, Twitter feeds, newspaper articles
• Students will have to do something very innovative, something very creative, making a document with recommendations and an action plan. As a teacher I feel a little bit nervous about this because it’s a new form of assessment, but at same time I find it so innovative.

Internal Assessment

• Same internal assessment (IA) for Standard and Higher-level students with the same task and the same criteria. If you teach mixed classes, this is a very helpful change
• The task is proportionally more important for Standard Level students counting for 30%
• Students have to produce a research project about a real business issue or problem facing a particular organization using one of the four conceptual lenses
• IB recommends the IA should take 20 hours – this will be a little more for Standard Level students
• Same deadlines, 20th of April for May exam schools. 20th October for November exam schools
• Same process – marked by teachers, moderated by the IB.

The IA is now about a concept, but a concept studied and explored within an organization using the contents of the course. Up to now, we didn’t really assess concepts, although we did in Section C with reference to one organization of choice. It didn’t work so well. This new model is an amazing way to assess students conceptual understanding.

To support these assessment changes, in the new Oxford Business Management Course Companion we have an entire unit specifically about assessment which provides many practice questions with answers provided on the OUP companion website for teachers. We also provide lots of little vignettes called assessment advice, giving tips to students throughout the book.

You will also benefit considerably from the resources that will be available on the OUP online platform Kerboodle, where you will have 63 multi-choice quizzes, with a mix of summative and formative style questions. You will benefit from this because you can triangulate the knowledge, the assessment coming from those multi-choice questions with the ones coming from the assessment.

Contact your local Oxford Educational Consultant to find out more about Business Management and Kerboodle support

International mindedness.

I want to mention two other important aspects of the new course which have a direct impact for us in Business Management: international mindedness and TOK.

At the core of an IB education is international mindedness which aims at helping to create a better and more peaceful world. This is very close to our heart too because we are an international author team.

So, we reflect this in our new book through case studies drawn from around the world. We have some from our own countries – the United States, Kenya, and France, but we also have case studies from many other countries, as you can see here in the image – Spain, Philippines, China, India, Nigeria, Asia, Southeast Asia, and South America. Our aim is to make sure students and teachers can find examples they can relate to no matter where they are in the world.

And finally, the last aspect I want to mention about international mindedness is Hofstede’s model. This is new. It is in the toolkit and we can use this to make international mindedness really come to life.

Theory of Knowledge (TOK)

TOK is not about learning a new body of knowledge, TOK is about thinking critically and inquiring into the process of knowing.

The IB likes to tell us that all IB subjects are TOK teachers. This is certainly the case for Business Management, which we strongly emphasize in our course book, aiming to help teachers and students understand how we can embed TOK know how into Business Management, and how we can integrate TOK and Business Management.

To do this we have a much longer introduction to TOK and Business Management. We have examples throughout the book of the links you can make between TOK and Business Management and how to explore those links.

And finally…

I hope I have given you confidence with the new IB curriculum, helping you to set aside any concerns and start to feel a growing sense of excitement and joy which I personally felt when I read the new course.

We also, hope our new Business Management Course Companion will be a tool you will rely on to help you deliver your course and steer your students to achievement.

With best wishes for your first teaching of Business Management 2022!

The content for this article has been extracted from the Oxford University Press webinar: IB DP Business Management: What’s new in the curriculum? presented by Dr Loykie Lominé (10 February 2022).

Reference is made in this article to the new Oxford University Press Course Companion for Business Management written by Loykie with Martin Mwenda Muchena and Robert A. Pierce.

Share this:

Case Study Store

All case study packs are delivered as downloadable pdf files with case studies, exam-style questions, and suggested answers

About these resources:

These unit case study packs contain fictional case studies designed for practice and assessment on Paper 2 of the 2022 and 2016 International Baccalaureate Business Management exam, so be sure to choose the packs that are linked with the version of the syllabus you want.  New and updated packs will be released throughout 2022.  Every IB syllabus content standard is covered at least one time by a case study, and all purchased packs contain exam style questions and extensive suggested answers.  See the recommendations below!

Click below to download a sample case study on S ection  1.5 - Growth & Evolution (New syllabus, first exams 2024)

Click below to download a sample case study on S ection 4.4 - Market Research (New syllabus, first exams 2024)

FREE SAMPLE

The Everything Bundle (All Paper 2 & 3 Resoures)

Unit 1-5 Bundle 2024 Syllabus

Unit 1 Case Study Pack 2024 Syllabus

Unit 2 Human Resources Case Study Pack 2024 Syllabus

Unit 3 Finance Case Study Pack 2024 Syllabus

Unit 4 Marketing Case study Pack 2024 Syllabus

Unit 5 Case Study Pack 2024 Syllabus

Business Management Tookit Case Study Pack

Paper 3 Case Study Pack

All sales of these digital materials are final.  

Recommendations

"These case study packets are very detailed and valuable tool for any BM teacher. It is great how Collin has different case studies for each topic of the unit with detailed answers. These have been huge help in my preparation for BM classes and in preparing practice exams and worksheets."

   Ben 

"Collin’s case studies are great. They have been a huge help in my IB business management prep. He provides interesting case studies for all of the unit content with a detailed answer key. Highly recommend." 

   Tim 

"This is a really great resource that has already saved me ton of time! It can be so hard to find case studies that only test students on what they know in the first unit, and these case studies are geared for each chapter of the I.B. Business Management course. I have paid a lot more for resources that were not half as useful as this pack was. I can't wait to use them for other units as well!"

   Alison 

"To anyone considering making a purchase, just do it! I took advantage of the offer on the bundle of exam questions, units 1-5. Easy and secure payment, instant download (PDF) and more than one full exam style question for each topic. Mark scheme is straight forward. As it’s for questions based on Paper 2, it has a 10 marker for each subunit. Great resource. Plus as they have been written by Collin, they don’t come with hints of which websites they are from, making cheating less likely. Thank you so much, saved me hours of P&P."

   Bradley

"I've been teaching business management for the past four years, and I wanted to reach out to tell you that the cases make an excellent complement to the course: They're well thought out and are clearer in their answers and methodology than other resources that I've used in the past. Best of all, they don't go beyond the content that students are currently on. With this in mind, your cases are great for assessing specific domains of knowledge, and are an excellent complement to exam-style cases, which address topics from the entire course." 

   Joe

Choose Your Test

Sat / act prep online guides and tips, every ib business and management past paper available: free and official.

International Baccalaureate (IB)

If you want to do well on your IB exams (which you should since acing them will get you college credits!), you need to prepare as you would for any other standardized test: with practice tests .

But preparing for an IB exam doesn't simply mean reviewing your class notes. You should use IB Business Management past papers as practice tests so that you feel prepared for the length, format, and types of questions asked.

In this article, we'll provide you with links to IB Business Management past papers, free and official. Additionally, we'll give you advice on how to use them to ace the real IB Business Management test.

2022 IB Exam Changes Due to COVID-19

Because of the ongoing COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic, the IB has decided to extend the adaptations which were put in place for 2021 to 2022. May 2022 IB assessments will have two routes, exam and non-exam, depending on which your school chooses. Currently they plan to return to their regular assessment process in the Spring of 2023.

Stay up to date with the latest information on what this means for IB diplomas, course credit for IB classes, and more with our our IB COVID-19 FAQ article .

New IB Business Management Course

The IB organization recently unveiled the new curriculum for Business Management that they will begin teaching in August 2022. The good news is, this new curriculum won’t affect students currently in the program who will take exams May 2022-Nov 2023.

For those of you out there who are planning to start taking the course in August for the 2022-2024 cycle, here’s a quick breakdown of what you need to know (you can also find the IB’s official update here ):

• The first assessment of the new curriculum will be May 2024 . Exams should remain roughly the same until then.
• The new curriculum will revolve around four major interdisciplinary concepts: creativity, change, ethics, and sustainability. These concepts will be used as frameworks for understanding the connections between each unit and the course as a whole.
• New features of the course include “inquiry statements” in each unit designed to develop students’ higher-order thinking skills and knowledge of current issues in the business world, as well as a “business management toolkit” full of analytical tools that can be used in several interdisciplinary contexts during their education and beyond. The topics covered, and the organization of the units will also be changing.  You can find the new Business Management SL full course and assessment brief , and the Business Management HL full brief . 
• Business Management exam papers are also being updated in 2024 to test the four new major concepts. The two big changes are the addition of a 3rd paper for HL students, and a different breakdown of time allowed for each paper. SL students will have an hour and 30 minutes for each of their two papers, and HL students will have an hour and 30 minutes for paper 1, an hour and 45 minutes for paper 2, and an hour and 15 minutes for the new paper 3. 
• Paper 1 will be an evaluation of an unseen case study. Previously students were given a case study to focus on for the exam. In 2024, students will get a pre-released statement that specifies the context and background of the case study they’ll be expected to evaluate, but not the case study itself. Instead, students will be expected to apply their research-based knowledge flexibly, like a professional would be expected to.
• Paper 2 will be an in-depth quantitative analysis and evaluation of unseen stimulus material. Again, in previous years this stimulus material was released ahead of time. For 2024, students will be asked to apply the business management theories and tools they’ve learned to any business context.
• The newly added Paper 3 will be about social enterprise. It will require that students “identify and describe a human need and the potential organizational challenges facing the social entrepreneur wanting to meet this need.” Then, students will need to recommend a course of action for the business being discussed.

If you’ll be taking your Business Management exam in 2024 or later, the links included below won’t exactly replicate what you’ll see on your assessment. However, they can help you practice writing about the concepts you’ve learned in the amount of time allowed on the test, and you’ll get valuable experience that can help you reduce your test anxiety before the big day! 

For those who are taking the exam in the next couple years, keep reading for the best past papers to practice with. 

Free IB Business and Management Past Papers Links

The IB has cracked down on illegally uploaded real past papers in the last few years, so many previous sources are no longer available.

Compounding this problem, the IB so far has not provided any free sample IB Business and Management exam papers on its website . We'll be sure to update this article as soon as they do with links, though!

While searching for "free IB Business and Management papers" online might still turn up some results, we do not recommend using them, as there's no guarantee those papers are real past IB papers . Instead, we suggest using the relatively inexpensive official paid IB past papers and mark schemes for further practice. This will give you the most accurate testing experience and score results.

Also be sure to check out the sample exam questions at the end of your course brief . Even though they don’t come with a mark scheme to allow you to review how you did, they’ll still give you a chance to study the concepts and practice writing in the time allowed. Plus, these are official! 

Paid IB Business Management Past Papers Links

To download safe and official IB Business Management SL/HL past papers and mark schemes, purchase them from the Follet IB store directly.

Currently, the store offers several sets of English-language IB Business Management SL and HL past papers from 2015 through 2021 . There are a small number of past IB Business and Management papers in French and Spanish available as well.

The IB sells each of their older papers and mark schemes individually. These individual papers or mark schemes cost either $3 or $3.99 (depending on how old they are). The most recent past papers are sold with included mark schemes for $7.99. Either way, this means that a full test with all papers and mark schemes costs anywhere from $12 to $16 before tax.

Buying everything on this site will be costly (not to mention it'll be in different languages!), so we recommend that you only buy the most recent (2020-2021 ) papers . These will be the most similar to your IB Business Management exam, and two exams should provide you with plenty of practice.

How to Use IB Business Management Practice Exams

An IB Business Management test will take you three hours for SL or four and a half hours for HL . If you're going to invest that much time, you'll need to be maximizing your learning from these tests.

To make sure you get the most out of each Business Management practice test, follow these three essential tips.

#1: Spread Out the Test Over Two Days

Typically, IB Business Management Paper 1 and Paper 2 are held on two separate days before and after a weekend. If possible, you should copy this schedule exactly so that your practice can be as realistic as possible. At the very least, make sure you' re taking the two papers on two different days .

Having to hold on to the information over multiple days (with a weekend in between!) makes it difficult to cram for the IB Business Management test. You'll need to have mastered the IB Business Management concepts and be able to write intelligently about them.

#2: Use Exact Timing

It's important that you time yourself so that you force yourself to practice your pacing . The time historically allowed per IB Business Management paper has been as follows:

• Paper 1: One hour 15 minutes
• Paper 2: One hour 45 minutes
• Paper 1: Two hours 15 minutes
• Paper 2: Two hours 15 minutes

However, when the new assessment begins in 2024 , the timing will be different (although the total time will still be the same):

• Paper 1: One hour 30 minutes
• Paper 2: One hour 30 minutes
• Paper 3: One hour 15 minutes (that’s right, there’s an added paper!)

Because the test structure is changing as well as the curriculum, be sure to double check with your teacher how the timing will work for the exam in 2023 . The new curriculum won’t be on that test, but there’s no word yet on whether or not they intend to go ahead and change the timing in 2023.  

That said, do not stray from this timing, not even by a minute. You need to get used to the actual exam timing. Also, you'll get an inflated practice exam score if you allow yourself extra time. Don't do it! Stick to the actual timing so that you have a realistic indicator of your IB score.

#3: Review, Review, Review!

And now we get to the most important tip: after completing your IB Business Management papers, review your exam using the mark scheme .

Why do you need to review? Reviewing helps you figure out what mistakes you're making and what information you don't know before you take the real exam. If you don't check your answers on your practice test(s), you'll make the same mistakes on the actual IB Business Management test.

Take some time (at minimum an hour per paper) to review your answers. Taking one IB Business Management practice test with in-depth review is far superior to taking eight tests without review!

What's Next?

Ready to learn more about IB Business Management and other similar topics? Check out our detailed Business Management study guide as well as our guide to what "return on assets" means .

Looking for past papers for other IB tests? We've got you covered with our full collections for IB English , Math , Physics , Chemistry , Geography , and Economics .

Want more information on the IB program? Learn how it works with our introductory guide and see a list of all the courses you can take in the IB Diploma Programme .

As an SAT/ACT tutor, Dora has guided many students to test prep success. She loves watching students succeed and is committed to helping you get there. Dora received a full-tuition merit based scholarship to University of Southern California. She graduated magna cum laude and scored in the 99th percentile on the ACT. She is also passionate about acting, writing, and photography.

Ask a Question Below

Have any questions about this article or other topics? Ask below and we'll reply!

Improve With Our Famous Guides

• For All Students

The 5 Strategies You Must Be Using to Improve 160+ SAT Points

How to Get a Perfect 1600, by a Perfect Scorer

Series: How to Get 800 on Each SAT Section:

Score 800 on SAT Math

Score 800 on SAT Reading

Score 800 on SAT Writing

Series: How to Get to 600 on Each SAT Section:

Score 600 on SAT Math

Score 600 on SAT Reading

Score 600 on SAT Writing

Free Complete Official SAT Practice Tests

What SAT Target Score Should You Be Aiming For?

15 Strategies to Improve Your SAT Essay

The 5 Strategies You Must Be Using to Improve 4+ ACT Points

How to Get a Perfect 36 ACT, by a Perfect Scorer

Series: How to Get 36 on Each ACT Section:

36 on ACT English

36 on ACT Math

36 on ACT Reading

36 on ACT Science

Series: How to Get to 24 on Each ACT Section:

24 on ACT English

24 on ACT Math

24 on ACT Reading

24 on ACT Science

What ACT target score should you be aiming for?

ACT Vocabulary You Must Know

ACT Writing: 15 Tips to Raise Your Essay Score

How to Get Into Harvard and the Ivy League

How to Get a Perfect 4.0 GPA

How to Write an Amazing College Essay

What Exactly Are Colleges Looking For?

Is the ACT easier than the SAT? A Comprehensive Guide

Should you retake your SAT or ACT?

When should you take the SAT or ACT?

Stay Informed

Get the latest articles and test prep tips!

Looking for Graduate School Test Prep?

Check out our top-rated graduate blogs here:

GRE Online Prep Blog

GMAT Online Prep Blog

TOEFL Online Prep Blog

Holly R. "I am absolutely overjoyed and cannot thank you enough for helping me!”

How to study for IB Business Management?

Recent posts.

• Digital SAT 2024-25 Exam Test Dates and Deadlines
• SAT Vocabulary Words : Digital SAT March 2023 Attempt
• Insights into the Test-Optional Debate in 2024
• How To Improve Your ACT Math Score
• SAT Vocabulary Words : Digital SAT January 2023 Attempt
• February 2024
• January 2024
• December 2023
• November 2023
• October 2023
• September 2023
• February 2023
• December 2022
• November 2022
• September 2022
• February 2022
• January 2022
• December 2021
• September 2021
• February 2021
• January 2021
• December 2020
• October 2020
• September 2020
• August 2020
• February 2020
• January 2020
• December 2019
• October 2019
• September 2019
• August 2019

Studying at a top university needs good grades. IB is excellent preparation for University courses. It ensures hard work, application, and sound thinking; all attributes help students stand in good stead for higher education and later in their careers.

Having said that, one can not completely rely on a month of golden effort before the final exam. For IB Business Management, here are a few best ways to achieve a 7.

• Start with aiming for a 7 in all your work . There is no magic bullet to score a 7 because it always comes down to hard work and dedication. Aiming to achieve a 7 in every piece of work will help you when you come short sometimes. Hard work equals straining the brain. Take notes, practice questions, and read around the topics.
• Be a business leader: Learn to manage. For Business Management, you need to think like a business leader. You have to be able to offer solutions to any business problem or opportunity. Do case studies to exercise this approach. Imagine yourself as either an advisor or a manager. Being ready to face the consequences of a wrong decision will make one more attuned to delivering the best answer.
• Replace common sense w. BUSINESS-SENSE .Make every answer a business answer. Do not give an answer that “anyone” could provide! Put CONTENT into the CONCEPT into the CONTEXT. For example, how the profit of a product helps the business achieve its strategy.
• Be an early bird. Your internal assessment must be started on time because your research will rely on other people outside the school environment. Though they will be more than willing to give their input, you would not be able to tie them down to a time that suits you. So start your coursework early.
• Be familiar with the syllabus . This will help you in making your strategy-you can either start with working on topics(marketing, operations, HRM, finance, etc.) or work around the core concepts(culture, change, ethics, innovation, etc.)
• Discuss more with your teacher . When it comes to developing your thinking, your teachers are a goldmine of information. Discuss case studies and topics per lesson with your teacher. Getting confronted with different opinions will strengthen your evaluative skills. This will help you develop your perspective on how you analyze business information.
• Find real-life examples instead of just memorizing . Apply your theories to businesses. For example, are there any businesses you visit often? Are you a consumer of books, electronics, clothes, make-up, shoes, movie tickets, etc.? When studying a theory, think of a business to see if you can apply the theory to it.
• Stay up to date . Every business has its unique methodology for operating its business. Reading up on the latest business news helps in understanding the different approaches each company takes.

Lastly, practice as much as you can. If any kind of help is required with the preparations, feel free to contact us by filling in our Student’s Assistance Form. Recommended Article: Best IB hacks