What is external growth in the context of business?

External growth refers to the expansion of a business's size and market reach through activities outside of its current operations. This often involves strategic decisions such as taking over or merging with another organization, which allows the business to quickly gain access to new markets, increase its customer base, and enhance its competitive position in the industry. By pursuing external growth, a business can benefit from shared resources, combined expertise, and potentially lower costs.

The other options relate to different aspects of business operations. Increasing production capacity primarily focuses on internal efficiencies rather than acquiring new capabilities or markets. Merging with internal operations can imply a consolidation within the existing framework without engaging externally, which does not align with the concept of external growth. Improving employee training enhances the skills of the workforce but does not directly result in growth through acquisition or merging with another entity. Therefore, option C best defines the essence of external growth in the business context.