Functional Areas of Management

Abstract

To understand the functional areas of management it is helpful to understand a manager's role in each function. These functional areas of management include: Management, Business Law, Humans Resources Management, Leading, Accounting, Finance, Economics, Research and Statistics, Operations Management, Marketing, and Strategic Planning. A manager's ability to perform these roles successfully, can determine a company's wellbeing. In conclusion, the importance of one role over another is discussed.

According to Strategic HR Review, a manager is someone who "...paints a visual picture of the future in a highly emotive way that others can get hold of and want to be part of " (Sparrow, 2013, p. 83 ). An effective manager can implement his or her strategic vision, and have employees buy into that vision. Managers must "plan to engage every person in his team...knows his talent, and have a retention and development plan for each of them" (Sparrow, 2013, p. 84). A manager is considered the ethical backbone of the company, one whose values are "...defined through their actions and behavior" (Sparrow, 2013, p. 87). Using the proper motivations and inspiration, managers can allow employees to achieve tasks that they would never think possible, thus maximizing both profitability and performance.

Managers must have a good understanding of Business Law to keep their company in compliance with state and federal laws, including tax laws. This is especially true for companies that operate in heavily regulated industries. Working for a fertilizer manufacture, our company must adhere to state regulations regarding product registration, hazardous materials transportation, and weight regulations of delivery vehicles. Staying in compliance with both state and federal laws allows our company to avoid any hindrances affecting our company's ability to conduct business. To safe guard intellectual property our managers must adhere to patent and trademark laws. In the area of taxation, our company's managers must be knowledgeable on current tax laws, including how these laws apply to our organizational structure.

Human Resource Management deals with handling the life cycle of the company's employees. This starts with the hire of the employee, and includes dealing with employee compensation, management disputes, sexual harassment claims, and termination. According to the International Journal of Business and Management, "The recruitment of employees helps the organization achieve its strategic goals effectively, because the recruitment process selects that appropriate applicants to work together in order to realize the objectives towards the strategic direction of the company" (Jiang, 2009, p. 156). A manager must match applicant's skills to job function, and consider company culture for greater success.

The two main attributes of a leader are to inspire and motivate. Good leaders will offer the right amount of inspiration and motivation to get the most out of each individual employee. As stated in the Strategic HR Review, good leaders need to "keep employees fully informed of the vision..." (Sparrow, 2013, p. 84) to accomplish the company's goals.

The Accounting function is broken down into two areas: Financial Accounting and Managerial Accounting. "The financial accounting function is responsible for periodically reporting pecuniary information to business owners" (Davoren, 2013, p. 1). In the area of Financial Accounting, understanding financial statements like balance sheets, income statements, and statement of cash flow, is necessary. Managerial accountants take this information and make decisions regarding the company's budgets, forecasts, costs, expansion possibilities, and cash flow.

The Financial function deals with a manager's ability to understand the company's financial data, and make appropriate decisions regarding the company's financial stability and future. If additional capital