Business Operations When you first think of business operations, you might think of the simple items or tasks that are completed on a day to day basis by the employees of the company. While these items are general business operations, there is a bigger picture and understanding the key functions to that are critical to the stability and profitability of the business. The ability of a business to earn a profit. Six Key Functions of Business Operations Accounting Management Finance Functions of Business Production Sales and Operations Marketing Delivering Key Functions O In a small business, will be done by individuals O In a medium/large business, will be done by individuals working in functional areas or departments Link Between Functions O All functional areas must link together to achieve the overall aims and objectives O This means cooperation and good communications Accounting The primary role of accounting consists of: O Measuring and summarizing business activities, O Interpreting financial information, and O Communicating the results to management and other decision makers. Finance Often overlapping with accounting, the finance function of a business helps to provide resources and planning for resources to help operate and expand the business. Tasks include: O Budgeting O Raising Financial Capital O Tax Compliance O Safeguarding Company Assets Production & Operations The production and operations function of a business has one overarching goal: to use company resources to efficiently produce goods and services that their customers want. Production Production management Input handles the process of incoming materials, to the production process, what’s going out the door, and the feedback from Feedback Process the customer. This helps them make the necessary adjustments to fit the customers needs. Output Marketing The marketing function is two-fold: O Help the business identify potentially successful products, and then O Promote those products Tasks would include: O Creating a marketing plan O Advertising O Customer Service O Public Relations Sales While the function of sales may seem obvious, there is more to it than just handing over a product and receiving its price. The sales function requires: O Identification of customers and potential customers O Product promotion O The actual selling O Follow-up Management Using people and other organizational resources, the management function seeks to reach organizational goals through planning, organizing, directing, and controlling. Management assures that the employees have the proper tools to accomplish the responsibilities that they are assigned. Functional Variations No two businesses are the same! Functions will vary because of: O Size and scale of business O Activities of business O Type(s) of customers O Needs of customers O Preferences of owner(s).