An Evidenced-Based Approach to Business Functions Essay

This academic essay provides an overview of an evidence-based approach to discussing business functions within organizations. It defines business functions as encompassing core activities that generate revenue, as well as crucial support functions. The essay explores various business functions, including governance, strategy, finance, marketing, research & development, customer service, human resources, and supply chain. It uses examples of companies like Unilever, which focuses on compliance to regulations to mitigate risks, and Amazon, which leverages its supply chain and logistics network. The essay emphasizes the dynamic nature of business functions, which change with market trends and customer preferences, as illustrated by Amazon's evolution. The essay concludes by highlighting the importance of adapting business functions to external requirements to remain competitive in the ever-changing market environment.

Running head: ACADEMIC ESSAY
Academic Essay
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

1ACADEMIC ESSAY
Topic- An evidenced based approach to the discussion of the business functions of
organisations
Introduction
This research report provides an overview of evidence based approach to the
discussion of business functions. It can be mentioned that business function is a broad context
in which there are multiple functions associated with other integrated business functions.
Business functions are fundamentally the activities that are usually carried out by the
organizations and these functions can be divided into core functions and support functions. It
can be mentioned that core functions are the crucial activities of business yielding earning.
However, there are several other business functions that are equally important for the
business. The discussion in the report identifies and discusses the business functions of the
organisation with credible evidences.
Business functions of the organisation
When it comes to business functions, it can be mentioned that business functions
always cover the entire functions of the organization that support and lead the business.
According to Aziri, Zeqiri and Ibraimi (2014) business functions are greater level of grouping
of business processes and capabilities that describe a business as its greatest range. Some
functions that are worth considering incudes governance, strategy, finance, marketing,
research & development, customer service, human resource, supply chain and logistics, etc
(Cantù et al. 2015). As organisations with the business units or divisions have been better
able to standardise as well as centralise their operations, conventional headquarter functions
like finance, HR, IT, marketing and strategy have increased in size and effect. On the
contrary, the risk management and compliance are emerging as the core functions in business
today. For example, the longstanding business like Unilever which performs in global market

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fundamentally pays attention to ‘compliance to regulation’ to avoid the environmental and
political risks (Laursen, and Andersen 2016). Large corporations today are highly responsible
for the environmental degradation and resource crunch and to address this concern, the large
brand like Unilever focusing on the compliance and standards set by the government. On the
contrary, some organisations are leveraging the low cost supply chain and logistic network as
the major function to penetrate in the global market. For example, the e-commerce giant
Amazon.com has a large customer base in all developed and developing nations (Donici et al.
2012). The core business function of Amazon is its logistic and supply chain network, while
mining organisation like Rio Tinto would prefer broad and global supply chain network as
their major function (Perfetto and Vargas-Sánchez 2018). Thus, it is worth mentioning that
when it comes to business function, there are multiple functions equally important to sustain
a particular business.
Conclusion
It can be ascertained that business function is not a static choice to enterprise because
along with the shifting of market trends and customers’ preference business functions are
changing. Market environment has been dynamic, thereby, the functions needs to be
determined and shaped as per the external requirements and it is just how Amazon.com did
leverage the e-commerce platform and entered the global market. Thirty years ago Amazon,
when selling books and DVD did not think of e-commerce platform but today the function
become a lead to business.

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References
Aziri, B., Zeqiri, I. and Ibraimi, S., 2014. Human resource management in contemporary
business organizations: A literature review. Journal of International Scientific
Publications, 8(1314–7242), pp.815-821.
Cantù, C., Corsaro, D., Tunisini, A. and Sebastiani, R., 2015. Innovative and networked
business functions: customer-driven procurement. Journal of Business & Industrial
Marketing.
DONICI, A. N., MAHA, A., IGNAT, I., & MAHA, L. G. (2012). E-Commerce across United
States of America: Amazon. com. Economy Transdisciplinarity Cognition, 15(1).
Laursen, L.N. and Andersen, P.H., 2016. Supplier involvement in NPD: a quasi-experiment
at Unilever. Industrial Marketing Management, 58, pp.162-171.
Perfetto, M.C. and Vargas-Sánchez, A., 2018. Towards a Smart Tourism Business Ecosystem
based on Industrial Heritage: research perspectives from the mining region of Rio Tinto,
Spain. Journal of Heritage Tourism, 13(6), pp.528-549