Functional Areas of Business: Key Departments and Required Skills

This report discusses the concept of business and the key functional areas of business, including marketing, human resource management, customer service, finance, research and development, and sales. It also highlights the skills required to work effectively in these departments. The report provides valuable insights into the world of work and is relevant to students studying BSc (Hons) Business Management with Foundation, particularly the course code BMP3004.

BSc (Hons) Business Management with Foundation
BMP3004
World of Work
Functional Areas
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Contents
1.0 Introduction 4
2.0 What is a business? 4
3.0 What is Functional areas of business – Definition
4
4.0 What are the key functional areas of a business?
4
5.0 Description of the various functional areas in business
organizations
5.1 Marketing 5
5.2 Human Resource Management 5
5.3 Customer Service 5
5.4 Finance 5
5.5 Research and Development 5
5.6 Sales 6
6.0 Description of the types of skills needed by employees to be
able to work effectively in these functional areas
6.1 Skills needed by Marketing employees 6
6.2 Skills needed by Human Resource Management employees
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6.3 Skills needed by Customer Service employees
7
6.4 Skills needed by Finance employees 7
6.5 Skills needed by Research and Development employees
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6.6 Skills needed by Sales employees 8
7.0 Conclusion 8
References 9
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1.0 Introduction
World of work refers to things and activities which are related to occupation, job,
employers and employees and business functions. Business functions are are the managerial
activities which are performed within an organization towards the achievement of business
success (Brida, Moreno-Izquierdo and Zapata-Aguirre, 2016). The report will define the the
concept of business and key functional areas of business. The report also highlights the skills
which are required to perform effectively in the functional areas of management.
2.0 What is a business?
Business is an organization which is engaged in commercial, professional and
industrial activities in order to generate revenues and profitability for the business. In other
words, it is an organized effort for individuals to produce and sell the goods and services for
earning profits. A business comprises of various departments which has own function that
needed to be performed in order to maintain the competitiveness of the business and achieve
organizational success.
3.0 What is Functional areas of business - Definition
Functional areas within a business are teams of employees who have same skill set
and specializations. There are various functions are of business which plays a crucial role in
supporting business towards organizational success. Therefore, the functional areas o
business are those factors which group similar skills of employees to enhance the efficiently
and effectiveness of employees for the accomplishment of organizational objectives (Gao and
et.al, 2016). In other words, functional areas are the departments where a business can
function in order to meet organizational objectives and gain competitive advantage from
them.
4.0 What are the key functional areas of a business?
For the accomplishment of organizational objectives, various functional areas of a
business acts as core elements to ensure organizational effectiveness. There are several
functional areas of an organization, some of these functional areas involves- marketing,
human resource, finance, customer service, research and development, administration
department, operational function and sales. These functional areas supports business in
maintaining effective coordination which will support the organization in achieving the
organizational standards and objectives.
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5.0 Description of the various functional areas in business
organizations
5.1 Marketing:
The marketing functional area of an organization defines the operations which are
performed by an organization to identify products and services and promote the goods and
services which are sold by the organization (Han and et.al, 2015). This function of the
organization will defines how the goods and services of the business is delivered and
development of pricing strategy in order to generate higher revenues and larger customer
engagement for the business with the help of innovative and effective marketing strategies.
5.2 Human Resource Management:
The functions which are performed by the human resource management involves
planning, organizing, controlling and coordinating and leading the right direction to whole
organization which is helpful for the achievement of organizational objectives. The human
resource management perform the functions through which they can keep employees
motivated, resolve conflicts within the management and ensure organizational effectiveness
within the business. The human resource development or personnel management is concerned
with maintaining the balance in the organizational culture, ensure job satisfaction and majorly
focuses on the manpower of the business.
5.3 Customer Service:
The functions and activities which are performed by the customer service department
focuses on the delivering quality customer services through which an organization can meet
customer satisfaction that will be helpful for enhancing the brand image and goodwill of the
company in the industry (Kaczmarek and Kociuba, 2017). These functions of the
organization are the provision of services which are provided to customers before, during
and after a purchase. In other words, the act of providing support to new and existing
customers is the functional activity which is performed by customer service department.
5.4 Finance:
The functions which are performed by the finance department involves management
of finances and monetary funds of the organization in order to maintain a record of monetary
transaction which are performed by the business. The functions and activities which are
performed by the finance departments involves planning and management of organizational
funds and funding sources. The functions of this department focuses on meeting the short and
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long term financial capital markets which can be helpful in analyzing the financial status and
well being of the business.
5.5 Research and Development:
The research and development (R&D) activities of the business involves activities
which supports innovation and introduction of products and services in order to meet
organizational objectives by effectively understanding the demands of the customers (Li and
et.al, 2021). It is one of the major function performed by the organization and plays an
integral role in the business by supporting in gathering valuable information for meeting the
demands of the customers.
5.6 Sales:
The sales department of an organization manages the sales tasks which supports an
organization in operating effectively and form sales business strategies for accomplishment
of organizational objectives. The major functions which are performed by the sales
department of an organization involves converting sales and customer acquisition, retaining
existing customers and forming strategies for business expansion. This department focuses on
forming sales strategies which are helpful in generating higher revenues and maximizing the
profitability of the business.
6.0 Description of the types of skills needed by employees to be
able to work effectively in these functional areas
6.1 Skills needed by Marketing employees:
 Customer knowledge- It is one of the crucial skill which support in understanding
customers and determining the changing demands of the customers. These skills
supports an organization in targeting customer needs and meeting customer
satisfaction level.
 Effective teamwork- The function which are performed by the marketing employees
requires team work and it is an important skill, as this supports in promoting the
goods and services of the business which are helpful in enhancing customer
engagement and ensuring business success (Nawaz and Koç, 2019).
 Analytics- Managing the data is one of the important skill for meeting marketing and
organizational objectives. These skills supports an employee in managing marketing
channels, creating creative content through which an organization can meet the
objectives and maximize their profitability.
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6.2 Skills needed by Human Resource Management employees:
 Communication- This is one the crucial skill which supports an employee in sharing
and transferring valuable information effectively and also helps in building trust and
strong understanding within the business.
 Organization- The skills and ability to organize everything is one the important skills
which support the employees in managing all work effectively and meet the
requirements and organizational objectives (Vaca and et.al, 2015).
 Flexibility- The flexibility and adaptability skill of an human resource employee
supports in enhancing the organizational culture through which positive working
scenario can be maintained.
6.3 Skills needed by Customer Service employees:
 Persuasive speaking skills- This skill of an customer service employee supports
them in speaking confidently, staying positive and ensure positive and interactive
communication which can help in dealing with issues which are faced by the
employees.
 Effective listening skills- This skill of an customer service employee supports in
understanding the concerns and issues of employees through which they can offer
quick and satisfactory response in order to meet customer satisfaction level.
6.4 Skills needed by Finance employees:
 Aptitude for financial reporting- The skill which supports in preparing the
documentations and strong proficiency in financial reporting supports an employee to
effectively manage the finances and activities of the department (Wang and et.al,
2021).
 Knowledge of IT software- Due to digitization in the business era, all employees
managing the functions of finance department must have strong knowledge of IT
software.
6.5 Skills needed by Research and Development employees:
 Analytical thinking skills- These skills supports employees in resolving issues
regarding various problems and use existing information to accurately understand
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situations and get better insight of the dynamic business environment. These skills
supports employees to effectively gather and manage data.
 IT skills- The skills and knowledge to use the updated technology supports these
employees in effectively gathering, storing and managing the data and making
valuable information from these sources.
 Projects management- The employees must have skills and vast knowledge to
effectively plan the whole project through which they can achieve the objectives.
These skills are required to ensure the whole project is carried out effectively as per
the plan through which the objective are achieved.
6.6 Skills needed by Sales employees:
 Presentation skills- A sales employee must have innovative and attractive selling
skills through which they can easily manipulate the decisions of the employees which
will be helpful in generating higher revenues and maximizing the profitability of the
business.
 Objection handling- The skill to handle customer objection positively helps the sales
employee to willingly participate in managerial activities sand meet focus on
improvement criteria which will help them in meting the desired targets and
objectives.
Conclusion
From the above study, it can be summarized that functional areas are the core
elements of the business which supports an organization in achieving the objectives and
maintaining their competitive position in the industry. There are various functions which are
performed within an organization and with effective coordination and cooperation between
the different functions and department of the business supports an organization in meeting
their targets and gaining competitive advantage. Therefore, several functions altogether
supports business in facing challenges and meeting competitive edge in the industry.
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References
Books and journals
Brida, J. G., Moreno-Izquierdo, L. and Zapata-Aguirre, S., 2016. Customer perception of
service quality: The role of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) at
airport functional areas. Tourism Management Perspectives. 20. pp.209-216.
Gao, Y and et.al., 2016. Potential threat of heavy metals and PAHs in PM2. 5 in different
urban functional areas of Beijing. Atmospheric Research. 178. pp.6-16.
Han, Y. J and et.al., 2015. Metallic elements in PM2. 5 in different functional areas of Korea:
Concentrations and source identification. Atmospheric Research 153. pp.416-428.
Kaczmarek, T. and Kociuba, D., 2017. Models of governance in the urban functional areas:
Policy lessons from the implementation of integrated territorial investments (ITIs) in
Poland.
Li, H. H and et.al., 2021. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in street dust from different
functional areas in Chengdu, China: seasonal variation and health risk
assessment. Environmental Geochemistry and Health. pp.1-13.
Nawaz, W. and Koç, M., 2019. Exploring organizational sustainability: Themes, functional
areas, and best practices. Sustainability. 11(16). p.4307.
Vaca, C. K and et.al., 2015, April. Taxonomy-based discovery and annotation of functional
areas in the city. In Ninth International AAAI Conference on Web and Social Media.
Wang, J and et.al., 2021. Pollution characteristics, sources and health risk of metals in urban
dust from different functional areas in Nanjing, China. Environmental Research.
p.111607.
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