IB Business Management HLTopic 7 — Exam Skills and AssessmentPapers 1 & 2Exam skill~10 min read
Scoring Full Marks on 10-Mark Questions
Ten-mark questions are marked by level, not by counting points. That changes everything: a long answer full of correct facts can sit in a low band, while a shorter answer that argues both sides and decides can sit at the top.
📘 What you need to know
Two commands appear at 10 marks: examine and discuss. Both ask you to weigh up at least two options, reasons, consequences or limitations.
Sometimes you are also asked to make a recommendation.
The mark is decided by the level of response, so structure matters as much as content.
A full-mark answer shows: focus on the question, correct tools and theories, information from the case study, and balanced arguments.
It also comments on the limitations of the case study material — what you were not told.
Start by defining the key terms in the question stem.
What the examiner is looking for
Four things run through a top-band answer. They are not four paragraphs — they are four threads woven through the whole thing.
Examiners read the whole answer and place it in a band. One missing thread pulls the whole answer down.
Examine questions
Examine asks you to weigh up at least two options, reasons, consequences or limitations. The clean way to build it is six steps: define, argue, counter, argue, counter, conclude.
🧩 The six-step examine answer
Define the key terms from the question stem. If it says “sources of finance”, say what those are.
First point, using information from the case study and developed with business theory and vocabulary.
Counter-argument to the first point, again rooted in the case study, with a clear chain of reasoning.
Second point, with different evidence and a different theory.
Counter-argument to the second point.
Conclusion that explores what the case study did not tell you, considers what would change the decision, and names a tool that would help compare the options.
Check the number in the question. “Examine two sources of finance” means exactly two. Three shallow options score less than two developed ones.
WORKED EXAMPLE
Examine two suitable sources of finance Orbit Audio could use to fund its new factory. [10]
Orbit Audio makes wireless speakers. Last year it earned a net profit of $6.4m and spent $2.1m on a warehouse. It is a private limited company and wants to raise $9m for a new factory. The founders currently own 100% of the shares.
Step 1: define the key term
Sources of finance are the ways a business raises money. They can be internal or external, and short or long term.
Step 2: first point — retained profitOrbit’s $6.4m net profit is internal finance, so there is no interest to pay and no ownership given away — it keeps the founders’ 100% control intact.Step 3: counter it$6.4m does not reach $9m, and $2.1m has just gone on a warehouse, so leaning on retained profit would leave almost no cash buffer for the unexpected.Step 4: second point — a bank loanA long-term loan raises the full $9m at once and spreads repayments over the life of the factory, matching the cost to the asset it pays for.Step 5: counter itInterest is a fixed cost whether or not the factory sells anything, and higher gearing makes Orbit more fragile if speaker sales slow.Step 6: conclude, including what you were not toldThe case study gives no interest rate and no cash flow forecast, so the true cost of the loan cannot be judged. A combination is most likely: retained profit for part of the cost, a loan for the rest.Defined, two options, both countered, judgedNotice the conclusion names the missing information. That is what separates the top band from the one below.
Discuss questions
Discuss works the same way but is usually built around two challenges, factors or implications rather than two options. Four steps is enough: define and link to the business, then two balanced points, then the conclusion.
🧩 The four-step discuss answer
Define the key terms and tie them to this business straight away — not a textbook definition floating on its own.
First point with evidence, a chain of analysis, and a counterargument that also relates to the business.
Second point with a different piece of evidence, its own chain, and its own counterargument.
Conclusion on the limitations of the case study material, what could change the answer, and any tool that would help.
The balance does not have to be even. You are allowed to say one side is stronger — in fact you should. What you cannot do is pretend the other side does not exist.
Writing a conclusion that scores
Weak conclusions repeat the essay. Strong conclusions do three things: they decide, they say what the case study left out, and they say what would change the answer.
The three sentences of a good conclusion
On balance … • However the case study does not say … • This would change if …
💡 Exam tip
Open with definitions of the terms in the question stem. It is the fastest way to show focus.
Name your theories. Force field analysis, Ansoff, the product life cycle, cost-benefit analysis — naming one shows the examiner what you are applying.
Use different evidence for each point. Recycling the same figure looks like one point written twice.
Include an “it depends on” sentence. It is the cheapest evaluation you can write.
Say what the case study does not tell you. Missing data is a genuine limitation and it is explicitly rewarded.
Budget about 20 minutes. Ten marks at roughly two minutes a mark, plus a couple of minutes to plan.
⚠ Common mix-up
Writing everything you know about the topic. Length is not level. An unfocused answer stays low however long it runs.
Two points with no counterarguments. That is analysis, and it caps the answer well below the top band.
A conclusion that sits on the fence. “There are advantages and disadvantages” decides nothing.
Defining terms and never using them again. The definition should shape the argument that follows.
Generic theory with no case study. Ansoff’s matrix explained in the abstract earns very little.
Ignoring a number in the question. “Examine two” is not an invitation to examine four.
Up next: Scoring Full Marks on 17-Mark Questions — the HL Paper 3 plan of action, marked against four separate criteria.
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