Functional Areas

This is also known as the different departments within

the business

What different functional areas/departments do think most businesses have? Marketing Finance Sales Human Resources Administration Research and Development Production Customer service

What do you think each of the following departments do?

Marketing Finance Sales Human Resources Administration Research and Development Production Customer services

Marketing and sales The processes designed to meet the

needs of the consumer Market research both primary and

secondary research Primary – collecting information first

hand e.g. questionnaires Secondary – analysing information

which has already been gathered e.g. company reports

Marketing and sales Marketing also deals with what is

commonly known as the 4 Ps: product, price, place and promotion

Most well known is promotion – deals with advertising, sales promotions and PR (public relations) and publicity campaigns.

Sales Businesses can sell in many ways Sell through retailers Personal selling – through sales

reps e.g. insurance Mail order Internet selling

Customer service Customers expect- knowledgeable staff,

prompt attention/service, polite and helpful staff

Duty to provide a positive shopping experience – to make the customer feel important

The type of information provided to customers varies and the member of staff may not know the answer but it must be dealt with correctly

Customer service The type of information provided

to customers varies and the member of staff may not know the answer but it must be dealt with correctly

Staff must also be able to give advice which is appropriate to the individual customer

Customer service Provide credit facilities Deliver goods After-sales service – returned

goods, repairs service, technical queries, maintenance service, complaints

Research and development This function deals with Developing new products Making improvements to existing

products Often the result of research carried

out – products developed with designers so that they are useable

Activity Make a poster which includes the

following: The various functions of business Give a brief explanation of what each

function does On the back poster:

Explain how the different departments work together. Give examples.

Explain how the different functions help a business to achieve it’s overall aims.

Task Consider Tesco and decide which of the

functional areas they have and exactly what each functional area does?

Give one example of how each functional area is reliant on others to support its activity.

Explain and evaluate how these functions contribute towards achieving the business’s aims and objectives.