Evolution of Business Presentation Essay

The Industrial Revolution Business has gone through several different stages of evolution from feudalism to the industrial revolution. In the following, each stage of business evolution will be examined and explained in detail. FeudalismThe business or economic system in which one class of people, aristocrats, control the property rights to all valuable resources, including people. The Hierarchy of English Aristocrats is indicated to the right of the description of Feudalism. The position in which an individual held was determined by the income they generated. The more income you made, the higher position you held in the hierarchy. The kings and Queens were the highest in rank who controlled everyone and everything that happens in their land. Hierarchy of authorityDating back in the Stone Age, the beginnings of Feudalism were starting to take place. Business has always been the stepping stone to a grand life, rather it be a great nation or corporation. During the time of the stone age, there was a chief who had authority over everyone. There were hunters who hunted wild animals for food to distribute to the tribe or clan. The food gatherers would gather and clean all the food the hunters would bring in. Craftspeople would make clothes and weapons out of the hides and bones of the animals hunted. The priests, shamans, and sages were responsible for providing â€Å"protection† and religious hope. MERCANTILISM Business or economic system in which merchants and bankers organize the trade of products across markets and countries until they are put to their most valued use. Mercantilism existed back in Egyptian times also. It was a huge part of Egypt and it’s economic existence. There was some papyrus records found that described boundless quantities of grain and olive oil being stored in warehouses that extended over several fields in Alexandria, Egypt. These  warehouses were meant for sale abroad. In the time of the Ptolemy dynasty, mercantilism was a godsend. This king of Egypt owed Alexander the Great an abundant amount of money for Egypt being a free country. Along with gold, King Ptolemy would send fields of grain as payment for their freedom. The price of TeaMerchants then and now still make huge amounts of profit by taking advantage of differences in the prices of products in different markets. In the 1600s, tea that was imported from India to Britain cost about $100 a pound in today’s money. It was so expensive that it had to be locked up and taken out with care. Because tea was so expensive, some British communities fought back by dressing up as Native Americans and forcing the tea that was being imported into the ocean. This was called the Boston Tea Party and it helped bring about eh American Revolution. CAPITALISM The economic, business, and political system that allows people to own resources and use them to engage in production, trade, and distribution of goods and services. Capital was and still is a huge part of business. If you didn’t have what you needed, trading and bartering was the way to get it. For example, $100 was your starting capital and you needed to buy ten sacks of corn to create your product. Once you create your product and sold it, you produced more capital to turn around and buy more product. If the business was good then you could have created profit as well. Capital is not just money, it could be anything that creates profit. A piece of land perhaps with the ability to grow corn, raise cattle, etc. When a person grows corn and raises livestock, they could sell it and make an abundance of profit. COMMERCE Commerce is a division of trade or production which deals with the exchange of goods and services from producer to final consumer. Commerce comprises the trading of something of economic value such as goods, services, information or money between two or more entities. It functions as the central mechanism which drives capitalism and certain other economic systems. Commerce can be traced to the very start of communication in prehistoric times. Trading became a principal of prehistoric people who bartered what they had for goods and services from each other. PROPERTY RIGHTS Property rights are the claims by people to own, use, and sell the rights to valuable resources. Unlike now, there were no laws to protect and provide people with a legitimate claim to own and use property. The claim for property rights were a matter of using harsh force to get obtain it. Once you claimed land, you owned everything on it. The diagram shows what property rights and resources are,Land: ownership of the rights to land and the buildings and structures upon it. Capital: Ownership of the rights to financial assets such as stock, bonds, and money. Enterprise: Ownership of the rights to the products of enterprise such as patents and copyrights to products. Labor: Ownership of the rights to ones own labor and the right to work freely. THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION The Industrial Revolution was an era in the 1700 and 1800’s that marked improved production and trade brought about by advances in technology. The Industrial Revolution was a period in which fundamental changes occurred in agriculture, textile and metal manufacture, transportation, economic policies and the social structure in England. It spread through Europe and  the United States. This period is appropriately labeled â€Å"revolution† for its thoroughly destroyed the old manner of doing things. Advances in agricultural techniques and practices resulted in an increased supply of food and raw materials, changes in industrial organization and new technology which cased an increase in production, efficiency and profits, and the increase of commerce, foreign and domestic, were all conditions which promoted the advent of the Industrial Revolution. REFERENCES The McGraw-Hill Companies. (2007). The Evolution of Business. Retrieved August 22, 2008, from The McGraw-Hill Companies, Week Two, BUS210- Foundations of Business Web site. Halsall Paul, (1996). Internet Medieval Sourcebook. . Retrieved August 22, 2008, from http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/sbook1i.html#FeudalismWikipedia. (). Feudalism, Mercantilism, Capitalism, Commerce, Property rights, The Industrial Revolution. Retrieved August 22, 2008, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_PageGoogle.com. (2008). Feudalism, Mercantilism, Capitalism, Commerce, Property rights, The Industrial Revolution. Retrieved August 22, 2008, from www.google.comAbout.com. (2008). Feudalism, Mercantilism, Capitalism, Commerce, Property rights, The Industrial Revolution.. Retrieved August 22, 2008, from www.about.comAsk. (2008). Feudalism, Mercantilism, Capitalism, Commerce, Property rights, The Industrial Revolution. Retrieved August 22, 2008, from www.ask.com