Date: Monday 28 October 2024

Topic: Key business functions and their role in enabling business to meet goals

Introduction: Various business departments play crucial roles in increasing profits

and market share in an ever changing industry. From Public Relations to
Management, the synchronisation of these functions is key to the success of the
business; thus, the synergy between departments can make or break the business’
desire to reach its goals.

HEADING: Business Departments

SUBHEADING: Marketing

Definition: The activities done by a business to promote the buying or selling of

products or services.

Role: Marketing may be if not the most important business function because this is a
way to put your brand out into the public eye. Companies like McDonald’s have
embraced this opportunity by collaborating with musicians like Travis Scott creating a
“Travis Scott meal” that generated over $20 million with merchandise alone
generating more than $15 million boosting the long-term youth appeal of McDonald’s
and it’s global reach. Businesses can utilise marketing to increase brand exposure
and using it to help shape the narrative of what their brand is through their own lens.
This is the power that marketing has if employed correctly (Levin, n.d.).

The Marketing Mix

Product - this deals with the actual good that a business is selling in terms of its
quality, product design, the warranties that will be associated with the good and
whether customer service will be available.

Price - this is the monetary value of the product being sold and the potential payment
methods that can be used to acquire the goods. Types of pricing strategies can
include offering discounts, price skimming, cost plus pricing and psychological
pricing.

Place - this is the location where your product your service will be sold. This can be a
physical store or online.

Promotion - this is how your product is promoted to potential customers thus having
a good brand image is important. One of the most popular promotional methods at
the moment is social media.

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Process - these are the systems that a business has in place to produce their goods
or services. Therefore maintaining high-quality production whilst being efficient is
vital not only to please customers, but to meet governmental standards e.g. food
companies having to meet sanitary guidelines which in turn can lead to tax benefits
(Twin, 2024).

Physical evidence - this refers to the tangible elements possessed by the business,
for example, the packaging of the products, cleanliness of stores, employee behavior
and hospitality, etc. On a daily basis, customers view the tangible elements of the
business so it is important to make sure perceptions are positive.

Types of Marketing

1. Social Media Marketing - done online through Instagram, YouTube, Facebook,

etc and is effective because it is cheaper than traditional forms of marketing,
e.g. billboards (Twin, 2024)
2. Email Marketing - done when businesses directly contact clients via email and
can be very effective because data collected from customer online activity
(website cookies) can help tailor services to client needs.
3. Influencer Marketing - this is when you get a popular public figure to promote
a good/service which can help in boosting credibility.
4. Outdoor Marketing - these are public displays done through e.g billboards
next to highways, benches or car wraps.

SUBHEADING: Management

Definition: Management is how a business is run internally (on a day-to-day basis)

and deals with leading and directing employees (this can be done through
supervisors, Head of Departments, etc.) whilst employers set the short, medium and
long-term visions of the business.

Role: Management is vital in a business’ overall process because it ensures, both

tangible and intangible resources (e.g equipment, trademarks) are used efficiently
thus less time is wasted on tedious jobs and all employees are working towards the
companies objectives. This entail leads to less time being taken in the decision
making process and problems will be solved quicker. For example, in 2019 due to
the Covid pandemic companies like Google Meet had to adjust and manage the
influx of users utilising their platforms, and this is was an opportunity to retain users
for the future, thus the management team needed to make sure that all processes
both technological and operational were in place and performing at highest quality to
ensure customer satisfaction.

Planning - This is when a business sets clear and decisive goals and a way to
achieve these objectives before any action is taken. Provides direction and removes

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doubt and uncertainty for both employers and employees whilst optimizing resources
at hand.

Types of Planning

1. Strategic - This involves looking at both internal strengths and weaknesses of

a business and weighing them together with external opportunities and threats
that can either give an organisation competitive advantage or decrease
market share. Strategic planning is performed by the top level management
and done long-term between 3-5 years (University of Minnesota, 2015).
2. Operational - This is done over a short-term period by e.g. supervisors to
ensure that the day-to-day tasks are being carried out efficiently and systems
are in place to meet business objectives.
3. Contingency - This is when a business proactively covers risk by ensuring that
there is a ‘fall back’ plan If anything goes wrong thus minimising the extent of
potential losses and the business can recover smoothly from unfavourable
circumstances, e.g. A natural disaster in Thailand back in 2011 affected the
supply chain of Apple MacBooks hindering its production of devices. Although
an event like this could have been detrimental to many corporations, Apple’s
diversification meant that they could source from other regions without having
to suffer the burden of having just one supplier (Apple’s Supply Chain May Be
a Sinking Proposition, 2023).

Organising
Businesses need to ensure that resources are in place by breaking down tasks and
avoiding the overload of employees. This can be done on a department to
department basis to minimize confusion between sectors and promote synergy. This
is vital as it leads to clarity and adaptability as in the unlikely event that something
goes wrong, measures would have been put in place to get back on track to achieve
organizational objectives.

Leading
This involves the influence managers can assert on employees to inspire a growth
mindset, and the will to want the business to succeed therefore working efficiently.
Different forms of leadership can be implemented, depending on the size of the
workforce e.g. transitional leadership which works based on rewarding employees
for meeting deadlines which can be remunerated through monetary and
non-monetary compensation (e.g paid holiday) (University of Minnesota, 2015).

Controlling
This is when the business makes sure that standards are being met. This is done
through a three-way process.

1. Establishing performance standards

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 2. Comparing performance to standards
3. Corrective action to get back on track

The business can thus measure performance through financial statements, traffic
generated from the website and retention of customers.

SUBHEADING: Administration

Definition: These are day-to-day tasks and activities with regards to paperwork that
need to be fulfilled to allow the organisation to fulfil its desire of achieving profit.

Role: This business department ensures that all data is collected and any paperwork
is in check for smooth operations. This will need to be done on a day-to-day basis as
meetings, appointments and calls will need to be made and scheduled. This also
includes record keeping e.g. stock on hand, contracts, patent, etc. The administrative
function keeps data on the flow of income and expenses incurred by the business
which is useful to financial department as they liaise together. (Shiksha.com, 2020)

Different Types of Adminstrators

1. Office Administrator - responsible for ensuring that day-to-day functions in a

business run smoothly and these include appointments, resources are being
optimized and reports are prepared for senior staff allowing them to focus on
the strategic success of the business.
2. Database Administrator - Ensures that all the data in the business is accurate
and is also responsible for troubleshooting recovery and configuration of the
database.
3. System Administrator - Deals with the technological software in the business
and ensuring that processes are up-to-date with industry standards.
4. Project Administrator - Responsible for making sure that any projects
partaken in by the business are on time and the right resources are in place.
5. Network Administrator - responsible for all the telecommunications in the
business including configuring network devices, monitoring performance and
ensuring that there is a strong presence of cyber security in the system to
deter any potential hack attacks.

SUBHEADING: Public Relations

Definition: This is how the business is perceived by current and potential

stakeholders e.g. employees, customers, government, creditors, etc.

Role: Public relations plays a pivotal role in maintaining a positive public image of
the business which is essential if the business wants to lend lucrative brand deals,
lure potential customers and investors and continue growing in an ever changing

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business environment. This can be done through social media campaigns e.g.
Instagram, Facebook, YouTube marketing and through more tangible methods like
billboards. Businesses can also incorporate corporate social activities including
cleaning the environment, although businesses do not gain any monetary value, the
public perception of the business is enhanced thus can lead to more customers and
potential profits. (Hayes, 2023)

Types of Relations in a business

1. Investor relations - this is how the business can bridge the gap between the
company and potential investors. This includes releasing of financial
statements to attract investment.
2. Media relations - this aims at maintaining a positive image of the business in
the press this can be done by working directly with radio, newspaper,
television, and social media companies.
3. Government relations - having a good relationship with governmental bodies
can help the business get better tax returns and support in case of natural
disasters e.g. COVID-19
4. Customer relations - maintaining a favourable public perception is vital in
retaining current customers and turning them into brand loyal customers.

Conclusion: All these business departments play a crucial role in the success of the
business. From promoting products and services offered to maintaining a favourable
image in the public eye, when all these aspects are pieced together the business can
achieve its goals.

List of References

1. U
‌ niversity of Minnesota (2015). Planning, Organizing, Leading, and
Controlling. [online] Umn.edu. Available at:
https://open.lib.umn.edu/principlesmanagement/chapter/1-5-planning-organizi
ng-leading-and-controlling-2‌[Accessed: 7th November 2024]
2. Hayes, A. (2023). Public Relations (PR). [online] Investopedia. Available at:
https://www.investopedia.com/terms/p/public-relations-pr.asp. [Accessed: 8th
November 2024]-
3. Shiksha.com. (2020). Available at:
https://www.shiksha.com/online-courses/articles/admin-roles-and-responsibiliti
es/. [Accessed: 6th November 2024]
4. Twin, A. (2024). Marketing in Business: Strategies and Types Explained.
[online] Investopedia. Available at:
https://www.investopedia.com/terms/m/marketing.asp. [Accessed: 8th
November 2024]

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5. Levin, T. (n.d.). Travis Scott reportedly earned $20 million through his
partnership with McDonald’s. [online] Business Insider. Available at:
https://www.businessinsider.com/travis-scott-earned-20-million-from-mcdonald
s-partnership-report-2020-12. [Accessed: 8th November 2024]
6. Apple’s Supply Chain May Be a Sinking Proposition. (2023). Bloomberg.com.
[online] 27 Sep. Available at:
https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2023-09-27/apple-s-iphone-suppl
y-chain-is-at-risk-from-climate-change-ln28pd3s. [Accessed: 10th November
2024]