There are many processes that business owners must complete in order to have a successful business. They will have to deal with both internal and external functions and these will usually relate to purchasing, production, marketing, finance, administration, personnel, public relations and general management.
Each section relates to another in some way but they are also separate and will often have individual managers for each function who will be specifically trained in the different tasks related to that field. It is a simplified explanation to suggest that these are the only eight functions in a business and specialized businesses will also have different functions, but these are the basis for what a business would usually work from.
Small companies may hire external agencies to help with functions they do not have the facilities or budgets to specialize in themselves. PR companies for example will often work for small companies who do not have their own PR executive.
There are many aspects involved in each particular function. Tasks such as Research and Development, for example, will come under production. Employees who work in R&D will often conduct experiments and tests to establish which new products will work and will also be responsible for staying up to date with current trends and developments within the industry to ensure the company stays ahead of the competition.
Production must also liaise with finance to ensure the funds are in place to develop new concepts. Within the production process, employees will also need to ensure that everything produced is either to the highest quality or the desired quality and is manufactured to the desired standards. Machinery, staff and materials must be used efficiently and health and safety issues within the production area must be assessed. Production also deals with the process from ordering the raw material all the way to distribution so this can include storage and transportation.
Each section relates to another in some way but they are also separate and will often have individual managers for each function who will be specifically trained in the different tasks related to that field. It is a simplified explanation to suggest that these are the only eight functions in a business and specialized businesses will also have different functions, but these are the basis for what a business would usually work from.
Small companies may hire external agencies to help with functions they do not have the facilities or budgets to specialize in themselves. PR companies for example will often work for small companies who do not have their own PR executive.
There are many aspects involved in each particular function. Tasks such as Research and Development, for example, will come under production. Employees who work in R&D will often conduct experiments and tests to establish which new products will work and will also be responsible for staying up to date with current trends and developments within the industry to ensure the company stays ahead of the competition.
Production must also liaise with finance to ensure the funds are in place to develop new concepts. Within the production process, employees will also need to ensure that everything produced is either to the highest quality or the desired quality and is manufactured to the desired standards. Machinery, staff and materials must be used efficiently and health and safety issues within the production area must be assessed. Production also deals with the process from ordering the raw material all the way to distribution so this can include storage and transportation.