Tesco’s key functional areas Functional areas In all companies there are many different tasks which need to be carried out regularly, in order for the business to reach its aims and objectives. Stock needs to be brought, the bills and finances need to be controlled, and customer service issues dealt with and so on. In a small organisation one or two people may do all the jobs, whereas in a large organisation people have to be specialized in many different individual tasks. In a large company it is easier to identify the separate functional areas, because groups of employees would work together in departments.
Each department carries out its own individual tasks to relate to their specific area. The main purpose of functional areas is to make sure that all of the main business activities are completed properly, as its essential in order to run the business well. Key functional areas for Tesco’s Finance The finance department in Tesco’s is there to ensure that Tesco stays up and running. The main activities of the finance department is to record all business transaction clearly. So they would record all of their expenditure and all of their incoming money.
They would also allocate each department a budget, and make sure that they do not exceed that budget. The finance department would also look at and monitor Tesco’s financial performance, by monitoring how Tesco is doing financially. They need to control all finances and cash flow to make sure that Tesco’s stays reliable and does not go bust. They need to make sure that there is enough money to pay off debts, loans, bills and their employees, and making sure that there is enough money for the company itself.
To make carful financial decisions, by comparing the predicted performance with the actual performance, they do this by looking and comparing their financial situation is past years to their financial situation now. By doing this they can decide if they expense of whatever they want to invest in, will leave them with enough money in the end. The finance department is most likely one of the main departments for Tesco as, everything cost money and it’s their job to ensure that the money is organised, recorded and there when they need it. Human resource management
The human resource department is also extremely important to Tesco, there main purpose is to hire, fire, train and develop staff. They have to make sure there hiring the right people or it is a risk to the company. Once they have selected an employee it is there job to offer them training, in order to develop their skills and reach their full ability. They also make decisions on whether people can stay on, disciplinareys and firing people, the needs of their staff and having good working conditions. By law they have also have to keep all records in their possession confidential by following the data protection act.
So human resources hold a lot of the businesses responsibility. Marketing The marketing department’s job would be market research. This means they would create new ideas for Tesco and then advertise them in order to increase sales and make more money. They are also in charge of growth and survival strategies. They would find out what people want and try and meet their needs, by doing things like public surveys and questionnaires. Production Productions responsibility is to make the services that are provided by Tesco.
Production make sure that there products are delivered to their customers, to a high quality and in the right time they take their orders and meet their demands and arranging delivery dates. They are also responsible for inspecting the food, the packing of the food and the distribution of the food. They also have to keep records of their stock, so they know how much stock is available at all times. Customer service The customer service department deals with any issues or query’s that customers may have, and try there absolute best to make sure that customers are always happy and looked after.
Tesco’s customer service is one of the most important things to them, and at the heart of what they do. They want to gain respect and value from their customers, so that they will become loyal to them and recommend Tesco to others as a good store which will improve their reputation and gain them more customers. So by making sure they listen and respond to all their customers’ needs there more likely to achieve this. If they did not treat their customers well and strive to meet their needs they would not have many customers, would not have a good reputation and they would there for not sell a lot and make hardly any money.
Procurement Procurement is the act of obtaining or buying goods and services. So it’s the process an organisation uses to buy the products or services it needs, from other organisations. So procurement department for Tesco is essential in order for them to be able to sell products and offer a service to their customers. Without the good and services it needs Tesco would not be able to operate so it’s essential the procurement team do a good job. Information tech services
At Tesco information technology is right at the heart of their business, as it’s essential for the business to run effectively and it also helps them improve their customers shopping experience by faster tills and stock checking systems. The use of IT is helping them to know what to sell, and also to help deliver the product to sell. Many different areas in Tesco put it to good use for example * There supply chain systems, create effective stock control and availability for customers * The till process The self-scan check out * Loyalty card So the information tech department for Tesco has is important as it is constantly coming up with new ideas to better the business in different ways i. e the loyalty card and the self-scan checkout which have both been very successful. Research and development department The research and development department at Tesco are responsible for researching new ways in which they can develop Tesco as a business and increase their profit for example them moving into different countries.
It can be a long process as they have to make sure that it’s going to work before putting it into practice by doing lots of research, investigations and analysis, or they could lose money. As it also relates to the business future plans they have to keep it quiet, to avoid someone stealing their idea. Tesco’s research and development team are doing a very good job as their findings have already led to them selling a wide range of products from mobile phones to car insurance and even shop as far afield as Thailand. Sales Sales is a crucial function for all business as its where there money is made.
It is where Tesco’s produced products actually get purchased by the customers. There would be no point in Tesco have outstanding products and services if nobody brought them or enough of them, so for that reason Tesco sets sales targets so they know that there meeting there aims and objectives. Making sure the sales targets are met is down to the sales staff or sales team. As Tesco sells some complex items that people would want advice on, they need to ensure that there sales staff are trained, friendly, and knowledgably, and can describe and demonstrate the products to the customers to help increase sales.
