Mastering HL Paper 2: Top Strategies from the May 2024 Exam

Nailing Section A: Precision and Application

Ruby Sturt: Alright, welcome back everyone to the IBDP Business Management - The Success Podcast! I'm Ruby, and sitting across from me in his digital chair is the ever-dapper Eric Marquette. You ready to talk all things HL Paper 2, Eric?

Eric Marquette: Absolutely, Ruby. Honestly, after that beast of a May 2024 exam, I reckon folks are ready for some quick wins. Today’s all about slicing through Section A and packing every answer with punch.

Ruby Sturt: Section A is a bit like sprinting a 200 metre dash—you can’t just stroll through and hope for the best. If you’ve listened to our episode on communication, you’ll know we love structure, and that’s exactly what you need here: two short case studies—Kimura Answers PLC and Novus Orbis PLC this year—and a mad mix of definitions, calculations, and those cheeky two-mark explanations.

Eric Marquette: I’ll never forget my first time teaching HL. My students, genuinely bright, kept losing precious marks for exactly one reason: vague, generic answers. We’d go over their work and I’d groan every time someone wrote “profit is important for the business” instead of, say, “Kimura Answers PLC reported $248 million in sales.” It’s those numbers and those context details that get you those sweet application marks.

Ruby Sturt: It’s tempting to keep things general, but as the markschemes will scream at you—surface-level stimulus use only nets you mid marks at best. If it says $183 million in expenses, write it. If Novus Orbis is struggling with overstocking, spell it out. Think of stimulus like giving your answer a suit—it just looks sharper and more ready for the examiner’s eyes.

Eric Marquette: Absolutely, and don’t forget efficiency—two marks for definitions, two for calcs, two for short explanations. You want to be as direct as possible. For example, if it asks for two intangible assets, list them plain and fast: patents, goodwill. Move on! Don’t say “money”—that’s tangible. It trips people up more often than you’d think.

Ruby Sturt: You know, in previous episodes on structuring answers and using conceptual frameworks, we kept highlighting the value of precision—and that’s no truer than here. Quoting KA’s figures, naming NOP’s industry specifics, these are the details that let you upgrade from “knows the stuff” to “top of the class.”

Eric Marquette: And it’s the difference between 3 and 5 marks. Drill down, show you’ve read every line of the stimulus. Your future examiner—and your future grade—will thank you.

Conquering Section A Calculations and Explanations

Eric Marquette: Now, let’s dig into those calculation questions. These are honestly my favourite—bit nerdy maybe, but alas. Here’s the trick: break them into steps, always show your working, and absolutely use the formulae sheet. For Paper 2, especially HL, you’ll get PBIT—so that’s sales minus cost of sales, then minus expenses. Like in the May 2024, sales $248 million, cost of sales $42 million, and expenses $183 million... comes to $23 million. Don’t skip steps. Examiners want to see the method, not just the answer.

Ruby Sturt: And you have to write units, folks! I still wince thinking about my own IB exams—lost an entire mark once, simply because I put the “$” instead of “%” on a profit margin. I mean, it’s gutting, right? Always double-check, especially with percentages like 9.27%—get the sign right, and use your calculator but jot out the workings. That “ownership” of your answer—that’s where marks are sitting, just waiting for you.

Eric Marquette: Don’t forget about depreciation—straight-line method is classic. If they give you $1 million for twenty vehicles, residual $100k, over five years, your annual depreciation is ($1 million minus $100k) divided by five, so $180,000 per year. Even if you miscalculate an earlier figure, use your answer consistently throughout; the “own figure rule” sometimes saves your bacon.

Ruby Sturt: Totally. And then those explanation questions that ask for disadvantages or advantages—this is not the time to philosophise, it’s about structure. I always tell my students: Point, Explain, and Apply. Like, if it asks for a disadvantage of straight-line depreciation for KA’s cars, you start with: “It assumes even wear each year”—that’s your point. Then, “But in reality, cars depreciate faster upfront, so KA might report higher profits and pay more tax early on”—that’s your explain and apply, right there.

Eric Marquette: Absolutely, and this is where you mesh the technical and the contextual. Numbers are your friends, context is your soulmate. You keep them together and you’ll avoid those trapdoors. Oh, and time yourself: 5–7 minutes for calcs, 3 minutes for short explanations. More on that in our episode about time management, if you need a refresher.

Ruby Sturt: And never assume “generic” is good enough! Even for a two-mark explainer, sprinkling in a detail—“KA’s vehicles experience obsolescence as technology changes fast in the software industry”—gets that examiner nodding happily.

Section B Essay Excellence: Tools, Structure, and Integration

Ruby Sturt: Now, deep breath—let’s wade into Section B. This is your essay, and it’s where the marks can really run away… or, with a bit of strategy, you can lasso them right back. To start, never pick your essay question at random—spend those first few minutes sizing up all three, and go with the one where your strengths match the topic. If you’re a pro at operations, and NOP’s JIT system pops up, that’s your goldmine.

Eric Marquette: Exactly. Look for command terms—“evaluate,” “discuss,” “justify”—and match your answer style to what’s required. If you missed our earlier episode about command terms, circle back and give it a listen; misunderstanding them is a classic error students make. And before you start writing, don’t rush—plan your answer. A quick PEEL structure for each paragraph goes miles.

Ruby Sturt: Right. PEEL is your friend—Point, Evidence, Explain, Link. And, I mean, make business tools your ace. This year, the examiners wanted to see models like SWOT, the Ansoff Matrix, force field analysis, even financial ratios. If you use these tools, and not just by name but genuinely integrated—like, “NOP’s $8 million cost of sales justifies a switch to JIT," or “KA’s 9.27% margin highlights potential for diversification under Ansoff Matrix”—you’re moving up those markbands!

Eric Marquette: And here we go, Ruby, let me try a classic mistake. Suppose I write: “JIT will help NOP because stock levels are high. JIT is good for efficiency.” -200>

Ruby Sturt: Ah, caught you! But where’s the context? Try: “With NOP’s $8 million already tied up in cost of sales and $2.5 million in closing stock, adopting JIT could drastically reduce inventory holding costs and release capital for product development, but—here’s the nuance—political instability from the stimulus could cause supply chain disruptions, making JIT risky in the short term.” That’s an answer bursting with stimulus and analysis.

Eric Marquette: Exactly—this is what the examiners reward: clarity, balance, depth, and business tools in the right place. And wrap it up with a judgement; don’t just list pros and cons—synthesize. “While JIT suits NOP’s overstocking, the lack of full supplier data in the stimulus means we can’t guarantee it’ll always be a win.”

Ruby Sturt: And keep time in mind—plan for about 35-40 minutes for writing, 500-700 words, clean paragraphs. If you get stuck, don’t freeze—move to the next point. Partial credit beats a blank space every time.

Eric Marquette: If you want to hit the highest marks, you need arguments that are balanced, use the stimulus effectively, and integrate at least two or three business tools. Don’t forget ethical or sustainability angles when it fits—those higher-level insights can really push your essay up a notch.

Ruby Sturt: Alright, that was quite the workshop, Eric! If you forget everything else—remember: application beats memorization, tools are your weapons, and time is your best mate. Practice with the May 2024 QP, use the markscheme, and keep reviewing Units 1-5 holistically. Eric, any final pearls of wisdom?

Eric Marquette: Just don’t let a silly mistake trip you up at the finish line! Keep your plan tight and your writing structured—future you will thank you. And as always, if you're out there slogging away, you’re not alone—jump into our next episode, drop us your Section B nemesis, and subscribe if you haven’t. Ruby, pleasure as always.

Ruby Sturt: Pleasure’s all mine, Eric! Good luck, business legends—manage that business mind, and we’ll catch you next time on The Success Podcast. Bye!

Eric Marquette: See you soon. Goodbye!