2026 WACE Business Management and Enterprise exam: What to learn from last year's mistakes

WACE Business Management and Enterprise is on Wednesday 11 November at 9:20 am, WA time.

Last year's mean was 63.54%. The examiner report identifies Question 2 as the hardest short-answer question and warns about generic responses that ignore the case study.

I've checked the report and marking key. Here are four revision targets.

1. Question 2(a): Describe the benefit of home-grown production

Where an answer loses marks: Naming a benefit was worth less than describing it. Two distinct benefits were required.

What you needed: Explain a business advantage, such as closer oversight of production or reduced exposure to international supply disruption, rather than just writing “Australian made”.

My practice check: add a consequence to every benefit. How does it affect quality, delivery, customer demand or the business's ability to operate? Keep the two benefits distinct so the second paragraph adds something new.

2. Question 2(b): Make ethics affect a decision

Where an answer loses marks: A general fact about offshore labour did not explain how ethics influences the business decision.

What you needed: Connect working conditions and fair treatment to supplier selection or the choice of production arrangements.

My revision drill: write a short decision rule for a fictional business. What evidence would make it reject a supplier despite a lower price? Explain the ethical concern and the business consequences. This forces the answer beyond “ethics is important”.

3. Question 2(c): Describe the incentive, not just its name

Where an answer loses marks: The key distinguished a general statement from a description of each of two home-government incentives.

What you needed: Explain the form of assistance and how it helps the business. The 2025 key used export-development grants and R&D tax incentives among its examples.

My practice method: build a three-column revision table: incentive, mechanism, business benefit. Check current official information when updating examples; last year's marking key is evidence of that exam's expectations, not a promise that a programme is currently open.

4. Question 9(d): Apply the forces, then recommend

Where an answer loses marks: Definitions alone did not explain the impact on Fizzology's proposed expansion. The question also required a recommendation.

What you needed: Apply the three specified forces—new entrants, buyer power and rivalry—to the scenario, then decide whether expansion is appropriate.

My answer check: replace the business name with a random company. If the paragraph still works unchanged, add actual case facts. End with a recommendation that follows from your analysis, including the condition that matters most.

Sources: 2025 examiner report and 2025 marking key. Revision drills are my suggestions.

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