Functional Areas and Required Skills in an Organisation

This report defines the functional areas of the business and what skills are required by employees to perform effectively in the organisation. It discusses various functional areas such as HR, accounting and finance, marketing and advertising, production, IT, operations, customer service, and legal department. It also highlights the skills required for effective performance in these functional areas such as interpersonal skills, communication and motivation, organisation and delegation, planning and strategic thinking, commercial awareness, mentoring, and problem-solving.

INDIVIDUAL
REPORT
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Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
TASK...............................................................................................................................................3
Define various functional areas in the organisation....................................................................3
Define types of skills which are required by employees to perform effectively in functional
areas.............................................................................................................................................5
CONCLUSION ...............................................................................................................................7
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................8
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INTRODUCTION
Business functions are activities which are performed in a business to achieve
competitive advantage. The functions which are performed in an organisation can be core or
supportive through which a business can gain competitive advantage (Ackah, 2019). The core
business functions are the operations which supports the organisation in generating in income.
Business functions supports an organisation in grouping organisational capabilities through
which capabilities and processes can be described. In other words, these acts as operations which
ensure effective functioning of the business. The report defines the functional areas of the
business and what skills are required by employees to perform effectively in the organisation.
TASK
Define various functional areas in the organisation
Business is an organisation where goods and services are exchanged in order to exchange
money. There are different functions which supports a business to perform effectively that can be
helpful for accomplishment of organizational objectives. There are various functional areas
which must be operated effectively in order to accomplish organisational objectives. Some of the
functional areas which are performed in the organisation are discussed below:
 Human Resource(HR)- This function of human resource management supports an
organisation to recruit new employees within the organisation through which they can
perform the managerial activities and meet organisational objectives. This supports an
organisation to hire right candidate who is skilful, have experience and required
qualification for the desired job role in the business (Brida, Moreno-Izquierdo and
Zapata-Aguirre, 2016). The major functions and operations which are performed with the
help of HR department in the business involves- compensation and benefits, training and
development, employee relations and organisational development.
 Accounting and Finance- This department is considered as the lifeblood of the
organisation which manages all functions of monetary transactions of the business. The
functions which are performed within the accounting and finance departments involves
management of accounts receivables and payables, payroll management and also ensure
that all employee receive their salary on time. The functions which are performed by the
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accounting and finance department involves budgeting, forecasting and decision making
regarding all financial transactions which will be performed within the organisation.
 Marketing and advertising- The functions of marketing is to manage the marketing and
advertising strategy which supports the business in promoting the vision and mission of
the business. This department manages the functions which are related to creating
product packaging, managing pricing strategies and creating innovative and appealing
content through which the business can attract more customers (Danielewicz and Turała,
2016). The other functions which are performed by the marketing and advertising
department involves management of brand, monitoring and management of social media
and producing internal marketing communications for employees working in the
organisation.
 Production- This functional area of an organisation focuses on turning raw materials into
finished goods by following production processes. This department follows specific
standards and targets while performing in each stage of the production process. The
production departments ensure that the products which are sold to the customers must be
of premium quality and are free from defects.
 Information technology- This department manages the function of hardware, software
and networking solution which are used in the business. The major functions which are
performed by the IT department involves management of IT security in order to protect
corporate data and IT infrastructure from unwanted cyber threats, viruses and cyber
crimes. The other functions and activities which are performed by the IT department
involves collection, storage and distribution of data to employee who requires access to
these data and company information (Facco, Romano and dos Santos, 2017). The
department also development and operation's of network support for effective
communication and collaboration within the organisation.
 Operations- The functions which are performed by this department focuses on ensuring
continuous and smooth functioning of activities which supports in designing and
controlling the process and redesigning business operations. This function in the
organisation aims to deliver highest quality products and services.
 Customer service- This department of the organization majorly focusses on the
functions and operation through which the business can offer support and resolve the
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issues of their customer by which they can give effective customer assistance that can be
helpful for customer meeting customer satisfaction. The primary function performed by
this department is to create and maintain the relationship with their customer and public
answering inquires, processing orders and through resolving complaints and concerns of
the customers.
 Legal department- This department function is to provide legal services and advices to
the organisation and also acts a representatives on behalf of the organisation (Li and et.al,
2019). The department deals with legal matters which are concerned with business
development, real estate transactions, contract management, litigation, customer claims
against defects and damages and employment law.
Define types of skills which are required by employees to perform effectively in functional areas
There are various skills which are required to perform effectively in key functional areas
of the business, some of these skills are discussed below:
 Interpersonal skills- The interpersonal skills supports employees to effectively perform
all managerial activities by communicating and interacting with other employees through
the business can meet organisational objectives. These skills supports in maintaining
social activities and creating a team while creating an professional standards through
which the necessary information can be shared and all objectives of the business can be
accomplished.
 Communication and motivation- Communication is one of the essential skill which
supports in maintaining two-way interaction through which a business can share value
data and information that ca be helpful in meeting the organisational objectives and
create a sense of understanding among all employees which will lead to positive working
scenario. Motivation is the key skill which supports in enhancing creativity and maintain
willingness in the organisation in order to meet the organisational objectives (Seigler,
2017). These skills supports in establishing trust, share all valuable information, maintain
positive working scenario, enhance employee engagement and ensure more valued staff
through which all employees can willingly participate in managerial activities and
perform the functions effectively.
 Organisation and delegation- With the help of effective organisational skills, it will
support in minimizing the stress and work-pressure through which time can be saved and
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deadlines can be met. The organizational skills support in managing the work in a
planned manner and with ease through which all objectives can be achieved. The skills
and authority to delegate the work starts with identifying the strengths and weakness of
employees and their specialization which will help in more constructive delegation that
can lead to effective achievement of objectives. The skill to effectively delegate the work
will help in managing the amount of work and divide the work pressure which can
enhance the confidence and skills of employees.
 Planning and strategic thinking- It is one of the skill which supports in creating an
organisational vision which helps in getting better picture an idea of the strategies,
approaches and techniques which must be followed by the business in order to achieve
the organisational objectives (Shams and et.al, 2018). With the help of forward planning,
this skill will support in prioritizing objectives with the strategy, review systems and
plan for future needs can help the business in creating an competitive edge. With the help
of strategic thinking skill, it will support in enhancing innovation and will bring change
in the organisation through which the functions can be effectively performed,
organisational objectives can be accomplished and business can enhance and maintain
their productivity and profitability.
 Commercial awareness- This skill supports in creating awareness regarding the mission
and objectives of the business and also supports in understanding the industrial
background of the company. This skill helps in determining the competitors and factors
which can create an influence on the functions of the business through which better plans
and policies can be formed.
 Mentoring- This skill helps in offering training and development and advertising of the
staff by which knowledge can be shared and functions can be performed effectively.
This skill supports in giving guidance and forming decision by which the organisation
can perform the functions of each department effectively.
 Problem solving- This skill helps in resolving conflicts through which all functions can
be effectively performed by using innovative decisions and more productive work flow in
all functional areas of business can be maintained (Van Niekerk, 2015). This supports in
creating more informed decision and is an helpful skill for maintaining positive
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organisational culture through which all employees can effectively perform their assigned
work and support in meeting all functional and organisational objectives.
CONCLUSION
From the above study, it can be summarized that there are several departments which
combines and create an effective and productive organisation and these departments plays a
crucial role by performing various functions for the achievement of organisational objectives and
success of the business. There are various departments which has their own roles and
responsibility to perform through which an organisation can accomplish the objectives. As per
the mentioned information, it can be understood that there are numerous skills which supports
organisation in performing their functions effectively, some of these skills involves- mentoring,
interpersonal skills, commercial awareness, strategic thinking and self-motivation.
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REFERENCES
Books and journals
Ackah, M., 2019. Soil elemental concentrations, geoaccumulation index, non-carcinogenic and
carcinogenic risks in functional areas of an informal e-waste recycling area in Accra,
Ghana. Chemosphere. 235. pp.908-917.
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.
Danielewicz, J. and Turała, M., 2016. Territorial capital as a determinant of development
processes in functional areas. Acta Universitatis Lodziensis. Folia Oeconomica. 2(319).
pp.55-68.
Facco, G., Romano, L. N. and dos Santos, C. G., 2017. Cooperation of functional areas in
agricultural machinery development process. Product: Management and Development.
15(1). pp.1-7.
Li, L and et.al., 2019. Coordinated dispatch of integrated energy systems considering the
differences of multiple functional areas. Applied Sciences. 9(10). p.2103.
Seigler, D. J., 2017. Social media responsiveness in the public sector: A study of social media
adoption in three functional areas of local government. International Journal of
Organization Theory & Behavior.
Shams, S. R and et.al., 2018. Strategic innovation management: A cross-functional vision to be
materialised. In Business Models for Strategic Innovation (pp. 1-10). Routledge.
Van Niekerk, B., 2015. Convergence of functional areas in information operations. South
African Journal of Information Management. 17(1). pp.1-7.
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