Finance looks after money, marketing finds and keeps customers, operations makes the product or delivers the service, and human resources manages the people who do the work.
This lesson starts the functional areas chapter of SPM Business. The next lesson shows how the functions link in a business process.
One bakery, four functions
Here is an original case. Roti Pagi is a small bakery with a shop and a few regular school orders.
| Function | What it does | Activity in Roti Pagi |
|---|---|---|
| Finance | Plans, records and controls money | Keeping a list of flour and butter bills and checking cash before payday |
| Marketing | Finds and keeps customers | Offering a school breakfast box and asking parents for feedback |
| Operations | Produces and delivers | Mixing, baking and packing 200 buns each morning |
| Human resources | Recruits, trains and supports staff | Training a new helper and setting the baking shift rota |
Each row answers a different question. Finance asks what the bakery can afford, and marketing asks who will buy.
The mistake that costs marks
The common slip is a definition with no case. A student writes, “Marketing is the function that promotes products to customers.”
An applied answer says, “Roti Pagi’s marketing could offer a school breakfast box, because its regular orders come from schools. This helps it keep customers who already trust the bakery.”
| Feature | Generic | Applied |
|---|---|---|
| Uses a case detail | No | School orders |
| States an action | No | Breakfast box |
| Explains the effect | No | Keeps customers |
A pattern for any function
Write three parts: the function, one activity from the case, and the effect. That is enough for a short explanation mark.
If the question asks you to explain two functions, repeat the pattern twice and say how they connect. Connections are the subject of the next lessons.
Check yourself
Match each activity to a function: (a) deciding how to pay for a new oven, (b) choosing which school canteen to approach, (c) checking each tray before packing, (d) training a new part-timer to pack orders.
Answer
(a) Finance, because it is about money. (b) Marketing, because it is about finding customers.
(c) Operations, because it is about making the product to standard. (d) Human resources, because it is about training people.
What to study next
Continue with connecting departments in a business process, then try the practice set.
If you want a teacher to read your explanations beside the case, see online one-to-one Business tuition.