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Introduction.
The students of “Ciclos
Formativos”, “Vocational Training” or “Training courses” have a serious problem
when they want to get a job in a competitive market. This problem is the lack
of business experience.
Although students of
“administration and finance” do 350 hours of internship in a company as a
subject like the others in the classroom, they may only get experience in a
particular part of the administrative tasks, so they need a much wider one to
get a whole experience in business administration.
One of the tools to achieve
this purpose is the subject “Business in the classroom”.
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Business in the classroom.
The subject "Business
in the classroom" not only is a subject but an interdisciplinary project
that allows students to obtain a right experience in the workplace.
Therefore, it has to be set
up a business inside the classroom to get a real company environment. We have
the suitable furniture with computers for each student, a printer, a telephone
set and stationery (and other stuff like any kind of office supplies like
folders, files, stapler, clips and so on)
Moreover, there should be a
business decoration like the company logo hanged in the wall.
The business is chosen by
students and teachers being our current the business sale of workwear. We can
found another business in other schools like book publishing, gardening, sale
of computers and hotel business among others.
The business is structured
into four departments: Accountancy and finance, sales, purchases and Human
Resources which I speak later because now I have to talk about SEFED, the
computing platform that allows us to work with more realism.
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SEFED platform
SEFED platform is a computer
on line environment which performs a virtual market made up of, more or less,
250 virtual companies or practice enterprises around Cataluña,
Spain and Europe.
Moreover we can find in Morocco
too.
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Departments
o Sales department. It has
two basic activities:
Firstly, to
make properly and accurate the administrative circuit of sales. The network
launches a sales order, and then the members of the department send it to the
purchasing department to buy it because the business works by just-in-time system.
Platform launches an automatic sales order every week.
Just-in-time
system is all you sells all you need to buy because the company is working
without warehouses.
When the
purchase is done, the good ordered are sent to the customer with the delivery
note and later the invoice. The three documents of the sale departments are
sent stapled.
- Secondly
they have an important marketing activity. They have to look for new customers.
To get new customers out from the SEFED platform is a very exciting challenge.
The network gives a list of virtual business to contact whom we can do it by e
mail or telephone. Also, we received information from other business to start a
business relationship
In addition students
have to make up a catalogue with goods and their prices and hung it on the SEFED
network which is a very good toll to get new sales because all the business of
the SEFED environment can see it.
o Purchasing department.
Firstly, they have
to make a purchase order to the network because the only supplier of the
company is from the SEFED system.
Three days
later, more or less, the company receives the delivery note of that order and
three days later too, it is sent the invoice. These documents are given stapled
to the accountancy department to record them.
The purchasing department would be the storekeeper if the company did
not work with just-in-time system.
Also, they
have to hire supplies like water, gas, electricity, insurances and others ones
to companies from the SEFED system.
As you can see
the mainly activity of the department is related with the platform SEFED.
However, it can buy any kind of good or service from any company linked to
SEFED. The administrative business process is the same that it has been told
before but with no link with the platform, only between two external companies.
This
department also has the task of managing electronic mail and telephone support.
o
Human
Resources department.
The various
activities carried out by the human resources departments are:
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Preparation of payrolls
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Calculation of the payment of the social security system.
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Absenteeism control.
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Health and safety at the company
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Employment contracts
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A Register the insurance number.
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IRPF tax
o
Accounting
and finance department.
They do:
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Record all the business documents mainly invoices. both
issued and received.
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Make payments and collections
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Bank reconciliation between accountancy and bank statements.
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VAT Report and other tax settlement
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Payments and collections forecasts.
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Analysis of financial statements.
Departments
have to have a fluent communication then otherwise things are not going well.
Students will
rotate through all departments during the course to learn the functions of
each.
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Skills to get.
Students also
achieve other goals.
o They learn to manage
different business information in the computer, therefore they can have a file
structure in the drive. It can seem easy, but it is not, because not only
students have to file paper documents but also virtual ones. They have to look
for a lot of information on Internet.
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Other topics related to the subject
o International Practice Enterprise Fair in Barcelona
2016
Every two
years an international fair rides SEFED two-day in Barcelona. There we can find more than 75 different
companies from different schools throughout Spain,
especially Galicia, Catalonia and Basque Country and few in Europe, mainly
from Austria.
The companies set up their stands and offer their products and services to the
visitors. They also make presentations of their companies, products and
services in front of a public in a suitable room for it.
SEFED
companies who do not want a stand can also participate in the fair as visitors.
That visit could be used to distribute commercial material so we can get new
customers.
All in all, thanks
to this subject students can get:
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the chance to experience in all areas of the company.
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apply the theory learned in class to business practice
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gain confidence for their professional future
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basic experience in the main administrative tasks of a
company
