Functional areas within business 15 .

Functional areas within business 15 .

Key functions in business Customer services Operations Finance The main functional areas Research and development Administration and IT support Marketing and sales Human resources 1.5 Functional areas within business

Delivering key functions In a small business, will be done by individuals In a medium/large business, will be done by individuals working in functional areas or departments 1.5 Functional areas within business

Links between functions All functional areas must link together to achieve the overall aims and objectives This means cooperation and good communications R&D HR Ops IT Admin CS Sales Marketing Financ e 1.5 Functional areas within business

Human resources Recruitment, retention and dismissal Health and safety Employee organisations and unions The main responsibilities of the human resources function Working conditions Training, development and promotion Includes the legal rights and responsibilities of employer and employees 1.5 Functional areas within business

Finance Concerned with money and future plans Preparing accounts, eg invoices, management accounts, financial accounts for shareholders and Inland Revenue Preparing wages and salaries Obtaining capital and resources, eg money for expansion or to pay for resources such as equipment and materials. 1.5 Functional areas within business

Administration and IT support Clerical work, eg mail, record keeping Cleaning and maintenance The role of administration and ICT function Support for software applications, electronic communications and electronic transactions Health and safety Security 1.5 Functional areas within business

Operations Concerned with the main business activities Obtains and converts resources of the business into goods/services, ie – – – – Buildings and land Equipment People Materials 1.5 Functional areas within business

Marketing and Sales Both are concerned with customer needs. Market research Activities include: Sales Promotion 1.5 Functional areas within business

Customer service Concerned with customer relationships Activities include: Providing information Giving advice Providing credit facilities Delivering goods Providing after-sales service 1.5 Functional areas within business

Research and development Concerned with developing new goods/services and updating old ones Activities include: Technological developments Scientific research Design features Performance of product 1.5 Functional areas within business

The use of IT Relates to all functional areas: Electronic communications (eg email) Data sharing (eg databases) Security systems (eg virus protection) External communications (eg Internet) Online support for customers (eg order tracking) Electronic transactions (eg EFT) 1.5 Functional areas within business

Functional variations No two businesses are the same! Functions will vary because of: Size and scale of business Activities of business Type(s) of customers Needs of customers Preferences of owner(s) 1.5 Functional areas within business

Investigating functional areas Identify key functions Find out where these carried out (or by whom) Check names of key areas/departments Identify links between functions/areas Identify use of IT within/between functions and customers Note any problem areas 1.5 Functional areas within business