Business Functions and Processes - Essay Example

Reflective Writing Business Functions and Processes Table of Contents Introduction 3 Week Introduction to Module 4 Week 2: Operations 4 Week 3: The Role of People in Teams 5 Week 4: Quality 5 Week 6: Processes 7 Week 7: Technology 7 Week 7: Sustainability 8 Week 8: Assessment Review 9 Conclusion 11 12 References 13 Introduction The module principally concentrated on developing understanding about business functions and processes that assist modern day organisations towards the attainment of their respective predetermined objectives. It is strongly believed than an effective and successful business function and procedure comprises various significant aspects that include strategy, people, quality, mechanisms, technologies and sustainability. These aspects are regarded as the core principles towards establishing a foundation for the modern organisations to attain success in achieving the determined goals (Chang, 2005). Through this module, I firmly expect that I would be able to gain a better understanding about the above-discussed aspects, which would certainly assist me to know how the formation of an effectual business function and procedure, through incorporation with such aspects, help an organisation to accomplish its predetermined objectives. Contextually, as per my understanding, the desired goals of modern organisations generally include raising profitability in terms of market share, enlarging customer base and most significantly, attaining superior competitive positioning over chief business market participants. In this present day context, going through the module, I was able to realise that business functions along with processes play an imperative role in developing the overall performance of the organisations. This could be identified in the form of adopting along with implementing effective strategies, employing right people, assuring greater product quality, enhancing the business or operational procedures, implementing innovative technologies and maintaining sustainability within its internal business practices and external business operations among others. Thus, from the selected functional area of business functions and processes, it is expected that I would be competent enough to know how organisations can develop their entire performance using the above-discussed concepts. In order to improve my reflective writing based on the module, I went through accessing various journals and books that comprise Avella & et. al. (1998), Bates & et. al. (2001), Chang (2005), Brown & Blackmon (2005) and Chiang & Tseng (2005). Week 1: Introduction to Module In order to determine how my selected functional area (i.e. business functions and processes) adds value, this week I came up with the idea of understanding various planned concepts that comprise strategic significance of operations, quality management, importance of making effective decisions and using of technology in business operations. Apart from these factors, I also gained ample knowledge about the execution of a quality based management system towards the accomplishment of predetermined business targets of any contemporary organisation. Specially mentioning, in order to have a better understanding about the module, I was provided with the idea of operations control along with improvement. Week 2: Operations I felt much astonished while gaining the understanding of various strategic concepts that include the importance of a quality based management system, making effective decisions, operations control along with improvement and use of technology in business operations. I also felt amazed by knowing that the above-portrayed strategic concepts aid modern organisations, belonging to reap several benefits that commonly comprise developing overall business or operational performances, enlarging customer base by assuring them with quality products and/or services and most vitally, attaining greater profitability in terms of market share by raising product sales. Week 3: The Role of People in Teams While going through the module, I got into interaction with other members, taking the advantage of team approaches, as facilitated by the module. Working with different members belonging to diverse culture along with tradition as a team, was a good experience for me, which eventually supported in enriching my understanding regarding the other team members’ thought processes and develop my ability to cope with any sort of disagreement or conflict to attain the determined goal. Working as a team, I and the other members became good friends that eventually made our interaction quite smoother. As per my observation, the members were good in communication skills and treated everyone with respect. This also contributed in accelerating my abilities to interact with others in a smooth and peaceful manner. While working as a team, I observed how a better understanding amid the team members gradually developed while conducting any project or going through any kind of module. Similarly, while working as a team to perform the various tasks of the module, feedbacks were received by me from the team members regarding my behaviour and most vitally, regarding my overall performance, which further helped me assess my strengths and weaknesses and take adequate measures to improve my skills correspondingly. The feedbacks also motivated me to look for accessing future opportunities that would assist me in attaining my ultimate career goals. Week 4: Quality As per my self-assessment I performed well in evaluating the utilisation of various effective and quality operations tools as well as techniques that aim at enhancing the valued added by business functions and processes in accelerating chances for business success. It is worth mentioning in this context that apart from going through the readings in my module, I also focused on referring to other relevant journals as well as articles published by various authors that gradually developed my performance, enhancing my understandings regarding the value added to the functional areas of the above stated module. For instance, Avella & et. al. (1998) stated that the adoption and the execution of effective as well as proper manufacturing strategies have the capacity of offering a superior competitive position to the organisations of this modern day context. Accordingly, I observed that Avella & et. al. (1998) stressed on highlighting that manufacturing strategies are primarily based on three significant aspects that entail ‘flexibility’, ‘quality’ and ‘delivery.’ With reference to the observations made by Avella & et. al. (1998), I learnt that one of the prime factors, i.e. acquiring certain tangible as well as intangible resources, have been supporting and continually strengthening the manufacturing strategies adopted by modern organisations, which also needs to be accounted to gain better efficiency in business function and process management. In this similar context, Bates & et. al. (2001) signified that there exists a crucial association between the concepts of manufacturing strategy and organisational culture. According to Bates & et. al. (2001), manufacturing strategy and organisational culture can operate synonymously and influence the business functions to a major extent, giving rise to strategic issues and challenges if not aligned properly, but mitigating the same in the benefit of management, subjected to its structured and well-examined strategic implementation. It is owing to the similar reason that these concepts are fundamentally regarded as “deeply ingrained patterns of management behaviour.” Bates & et. al. (2001) also identified that these concepts, i.e. manufacturing strategy and organisational culture, become evidently interlinked as decisions are made often while formulating any manufacturing strategy and designing appropriate organisational culture simultaneously to gain better efficiency in managing the contemporary functions of modern organisations. These explanations undoubtedly helped me with a clearer rational understanding that both manufacturing strategy and organisational culture are effective business functions as well as procedures that are required to be managed proficiently to assist the modern business organisations to develop their overall performance at large. Week 6: Processes Studying the article of Brown & Blackmon (2005) also provided me with an understanding about the importance of manufacturing strategy as a process, which often acts as one of the effective business functions supporting modern organisations to attain their predetermined business targets at large. As per the observation made by Brown & Blackmon (2005), manufacturing strategy, as a process, not only tends to develop the manufacturing performance of the organisations but also determines their profit in terms of growth and market share. Reviewing this article, I firmly understood that manufacturing strategy in the form of a process contributes to the organisations in raising greater customer value though delivering them with quality products or services. In the background of business functions and processes module, I gained an insight that rapid escalation of business market competition, speedy change in the customers’ preferences and increased level of globalisation along with internationalisation has affected the internal business settings of a business firm altogether. I was also able to understand that it is this particular factor, which in turn, restricted the modern business organisations to attain superior competitive position over their respective chief business market participants. Week 7: Technology Brown & Blackmon (2005) were also of the view that manufacturing strategy as a means of a process contributes in providing benefits to the organisations in attaining superior competitive positioning by delivering quality products to the customers with the employment of innovative technological advancements. Based on the above article of Brown & Blackmon (2005), in relation with the functional area of business functions and processes, I came to know that the alignment of competitive strategies, specifically with the competitive business environment, would eventually lead towards dynamic strategic flexibility of the organisation. Developing such as understanding, I was able to gain the knowledge as well as understanding of different approaches to business functions and processes as practiced in the modern organisations. Week 7: Sustainability Chiang & Tseng (2005) also had a significant contribution in developing my understanding in the functional area. It was helpful for me to identify one of the imperative approaches of business functions and processes i.e. sustainability in a clearer manner. In this similar concern, according to the observation made by Chiang & Tseng (2005), I could learn that the term ‘sustainability’ is fundamentally described as complying with the requirements of the existing generations without negotiating the competence of the upcoming ones to fulfil their respective necessities. Intensification in the business market competition and the incessant change of the business environment has certainly made it quite challenging for the organisations of this modern day context to sustain their respective businesses. Thus, in order to address and mitigate this adverse situation, it has become quite necessary for the organisations to adopt and implement strategies with greater significance to sustainability prospects. With this similar concern, Chiang & Tseng (2005) illustrated one of such sustainable strategies as to employ pioneering technologies along with providing quality products or services to the customers. Week 8: Assessment Review As can be apparently observed, a wide range of research has been conducted in the functional area, where my initiative to perform external search gave me an opportunity to link my theoretical knowledge with the practice occurrences around the world. I would like to note this initiative as a positive attribute in my performance that helped me to gain a brief knowledge as well as understanding about various strategic concepts like people, quality, procedures, technology and most vitally, the importance of sustainability in the practical implementation of business functions and processes. Going through these journals, along with the readings given in my module, I could easily rationalise the association between manufacturing strategy and organisational culture, which helped me to perform better when conducting certain activities. One of such activities includes evaluating the utilisation of operations as well as techniques for enhancing the value added to the area of business functions and processes. As I have already mentioned, I believe to have performed well in critically evaluating the utilisation of operations tools and systems for enhancing the value of the functional area of business functions and procedures with the assistance of various published journals that have been discussed above that helped me link my theoretical underpinnings with practical happenings. However, I also believe that need to improve my present performance at various areas to attain the next higher level in benchmarking my competencies and simultaneously, attaining a more succinct knowledge about the various strategic concepts relating to the module of business functions and processes. Thus, in order to develop my performance for the next time, I will follow certain steps in a planned and objective-oriented manner. One of such steps includes forming along with developing an effective team approach. This approach would certainly aid me in improving my performance next time clearing any sort of doubt that I might have concerning the diverse approaches of business functions and processes applied in the modern business arena. The other step can be apparently noted as accessing and reading various scholarly journals, books along with articles that mainly deal with various approaches of the above stated module. It is worth mentioning that I am going to fit myself in such an environment wherein I would be able to develop my performance in the context of gaining knowledge as well as understanding of various concepts relating to the module of business functions and processes. In the earlier discussion, it was quite apparent that the aforesaid journals, published by various authors have enabled me to gain a greater insight regarding various strategic concepts like quality, technologies, sustainability and procedures. Thus, in order to develop my performance for the next time, I would require possessing a better idea about determining the importance of the above-discussed strategic concepts in this present day context. It would be vital to mention in this similar context that business organisations in this modern day context have to face challenges in terms of severe market competitions due to certain crucial factors. These factors generally comprise broader application of pioneering technological advancements, gaining momentum of globalisation as well as liberalisation, increased level of internationalisation, incessantly changing of the customers’ preferences along with demands and business environment among others. Thus, gaining broader knowledge about these crucial factors would certainly aid me in developing my performance for the next time in the context of determining various approaches linked with the module of business functions and procedures. Moreover, I feel that gaining a brief idea about the above-discussed factors would not be sufficient in developing my performance for the next time. Rather, their implications, whether positive or negative, along with relevant and proper discussion would further be needful to help me in developing my performance to the next level. It is worth mentioning that the aforementioned practices would certainly help me in improving my performance for next time and further assist me in clarifying any sort of doubt that might occur in relation to the chosen functional area. Carrying out further researches relating to the approaches of business functions and processes shall also be useful for me to gain a better knowledge about the current application of this functional area in today’s modern business environment. The conduct of the researches would certainly aid me in exploring newer ideas as well as concepts associated with the module of business functions and processes. Thus, it can be affirmed from a broader understanding that the steps or the practices that entail forming and developing an effective team approach as well as accessing and reading a broad array of journals and books relating the functional area would certainly be beneficial in improving my performance for the next time. Conclusion Based on the above analysis and discussion, it can be affirmed that the module of business functions and procedures play a decisive role in offering valuable knowledge and information to the business organisations assisting them to attain their respective targets. Specially mentioning, the knowledge and the information can be of several strategic concepts that encompass people, quality, mechanisms, technologies and sustainability. In relation to the chosen functional area or the module of business functions and procedures, it is to be stated that I have been able to understand key underpinning concepts, ideas and approaches of different business functions and processes through undergoing various theoretical approaches. These approaches can be identified in the form of the subject areas relating to the importance of manufacturing strategy, strategic significance of operations tools along with techniques and quality management. In addition, the other approaches that I learnt through this module, concerning the selected functional area, comprise the use of technology specifically in operations and the execution of a quality based management system. Correspondingly, in order to enhance my performance in critically evaluating the utilisation of operations tools and techniques for developing the value added to the above stated module, I plan to perform certain other significant activities that will comprise forming and developing an effective team approach as well as making a broader research related to the chosen functional area. References 1. Avella, L., Fernandez, E. and Vazquez, C. J. (1998). Taxonomy of the Manufacturing Strategies of Large Spanish Industrial Companies. INT. J. PROD. RES 36 (11), pp. 3113-3134. 2. Bates, Kimberly. A., Amundson, S. D., Schroeder, R. G. and Morris, W. T. (2001). The Crucial Interrelationship Between Manufacturing Strategy and Organisational Culture. Manufacturing Strategy and Organisational Culture, pp. 1565-1580. 3. Brown, S. and Blackmon, K. (2005). Aligning Manufacturing Strategy and Business-Level Competitive Strategy in New Competitive Environments: The Case for Strategic Resonance. Journal of Management Studies, 42 (4), pp. 793-815. 4. Chiang, J.H. and Tseng, M. L. (2005). The Impact of Environmental Characteristic on Manufacturing Strategy under Cleaner Production Principles Guidance. The Journal of American Academy of Business, Cambridge, 7(1), pp. 163-168. 5. Chang, J. F. (2005). Business Process Management Systems: Strategy and Implementation. US: CRC Press. Read More