Edexcel A Level Business: Using MOPS in 20 mark questions
Updated: Nov 8
Many students are not sure what to put for MOPS in the 20 mark questions on the Edexcel papers. This list is not exhaustive it is just some ideas. I normally do this as a mindmap exercise as a class and get students to work individually to relate this to a case study company they know well. MOPS is; Market, Objective, Product and Situation. There are lots of examples in the Edexcel past papers on the 20-mark questions. This will help students to craft conclusions that will gain them higher marks.
Examiner tip: In the top answers students should be looking to answer these questions in their conclusions, and not add more questions in an answer.
Market
What is the market share of the company?
Is the business new to the market?
Is this an established market with a new entrant?
Is this market an emerging economy?
Is this a saturated market?
What is the total market size?
Is this a domestic or international market?
Can Porter’s 5 forces be applied to this market?
Who are the main competitors in this market?
Objective
What are the social objectives of this business?
What is the reputation of this business?
Are the ethical objectives sound in this business?
Is the main objective of this business to maximise profits?
Is the main objective of this business growth, and is that internal or external (through mergers and takeovers, joint ventures and strategic alliances)?
What quality issues might stop the business from achieving its objectives?
Product
Is there an innovative design in this product?
Is there any conflict between the quality of the product and the profit objectives?
Is this a new or existing product?
Does this product require scarce resources?
Are there any other products already on the market that are similar?
Where is the product in its lifecycle?
Is the product a cash cow, question mark, star or dog?
Situation
Does the business have a sound plan?
Does the business have any financial problems?
Does the business have any supplier issues?
What are possible solutions to their current problems?
Does the business have any current employee problems? E.g. strikes
Is this a business in crisis?
Does this business have areas that it needs to improve?
You can use these questions in lessons to get students used to the idea of offering solutions and answers. It should be part of the normal way of working to offer MOPS in all their 20-mark home works. Any student that is looking for A or A* should be using MOPS in all their 20-mark essays.
If you want to print out some past papers with MOPS examples they can be found in the model marked answers here on the Edexcel site:
I hope that has been helpful
Sarah Hilton
Sarah has been a business teacher for over two decades and is currently an Edexcel A level business examiner.
