What Is Business?

A definition of the three elements of what it means to be in business

by Ryan Linsey Sievers

Nota Bene: “Business” these days is often getting a bad rap. Some have tried to address this, for example the updated Davos Manifesto on the universal purpose of business. But the heart of the American economy is made up of 31.7 million small businesses. And the soul of American business is the 60.6 million people employed by those small businesses (according to the Small Business Administration).

The definition of business illustrated here is intended primarily for those privately-held small business-scale entrepreneurs (those without the aide of billion-dollar R&D departments or a small country’s GDP-worth cash hoard) seeking to understand the elemental components of what it means to be in business and what to consider when prioritizing the use of limited resources to achieve a self-sustaining endeavor and invest in its growth.

To be in business is to satisfy customers’ desires through the coordinated efforts of teams for a reasonable profit.

To be in business means more than simply to make a profit. There are three elements at the core of what it means to be in business. Understanding and managing these three elements is essential to any business endeavor’s success and longevity.

A definition: A company is in business when it is engaged in (1) the identification and satisfaction of the…