The company is a special organizational form of conducting economic activity. There are various types of enterprises, but they all operate on the same principles. The enterprise is an independent business entity with the rights of legal entities and created by an entrepreneur or an association of entrepreneurs. The purpose of creating an enterprise is the production and (or) sale of products, the performance of work and services. The main task that the company performs is meeting the needs of the market and society, as well as making a profit. As a separate economic structure, an enterprise has the right to independently determine the type and quantity of products that will be produced (this is production activity), sold, bought, distributed (commercial activity). In addition, the company independently chooses methods and ways of distributing the product for its own needs and other purposes (exchange, accumulation, etc.).
All enterprises according to legal acts are legal entities that bear property liability. The main goal of any enterprise is to make a profit. To get the maximum profit, you need to produce goods or services, making sure that the level of expenses incurred in the process of production and sale of products does not exceed the income from this activity. This takes into account a number of factors that are represented by the demand of customers, their desires, the saturation of the market with a particular product, the company's ability to produce specific goods and services, as well as the organizational system, including its productivity, the level at which production is organized, and the enterprise's compliance with scientific trends -technical progress. A large role in the success of the enterprise is played by the forms of management and the organization of marketing.
The classification of enterprises is based on the principle that all enterprises differ from each other in a number of ways. An enterprise can be individual, family, state, etc. A very frequent occurrence is the so-called firms — that is, associations of enterprises that engage in different or identical activities. In addition, enterprises are classified by qualitative and quantitative criteria.
The classification of enterprises by the number of employees divides them into: small enterprises (enterprises employing up to 100 people); medium-sized (enterprises employing up to 500 people); and large (enterprises employing more than 500 people). The most important place in the economy of most developed countries is the place of small business. “Small business” is a conditional concept that cannot speak of the legal form of an enterprise, level of production or turnover. It is worth noting that in developed countries, more than half of the working population is employed in small business. The main advantage of such a business is the ability to adapt to any market changes and the presence of a high level of competition, which stimulates development.
There is a classification of enterprises by qualitative characteristics, as well as a classification of enterprises by type of ownership - it divides them into state and private. In addition, enterprises are classified by the nature of their activities, the type of products manufactured or sold, the methods of competition, participation in various associations. The main qualitative parameter of an enterprise is its organizational and legal form, according to which entrepreneurial activity is conducted.