Business functions are the activities that are essential to the operation and success of a business. These functions are typically organized into departments or teams and are responsible for managing specific areas of the business. There are several key business functions that are common to most organizations. These include:
- Marketing: The marketing function is responsible for promoting and selling the products or services of the organization. This may involve activities such as market research, advertising, and sales.
- Finance: The finance function is responsible for managing the financial resources of the organization. This may include tasks such as budgeting, financial planning, and financial reporting.
- Human resources: The human resources (HR) function is responsible for managing the people-related activities of the organization. This may include tasks such as recruiting, training, and employee development.
- Operations: The operations function is responsible for managing the production and delivery of the organization’s products or services. This may involve tasks such as production planning, inventory management, and logistics.
- Information technology: The information technology (IT) function is responsible for managing the organization’s information systems and technology infrastructure. This may include tasks such as system design, implementation, and maintenance.
- Governance: The direction and control of a firm. Manages the performance of management.
- Strategy: The development of strategy and implementation of change.
- Research & Development: The process of innovating including market research, business experimentation and product development.
- Customer Service: Managing relationships with customers and handling requests such as inquiries and returns.
- Production: Production such as the manufacturing of products or delivery of services.
- Distribution: The process of reaching the customer with your products and services.