Ch-5 Policies in Functional Areas

Functional management:
Functional management is the most common type of organizational management. The organization is grouped by areas of specialty within different functional areas (e.g., finance, marketing, and engineering). Some refer to a functional area as a "silo". Besides the heads of a firm's product and/or geographic units the company's top management team typically consists of several functional heads such as the chief financial officer, the chief operating officer, and the chief strategy officer. Communication generally occurs within a single department. If information or project work is needed from another department, a request is transmitted up to the department head, who communicates the request to the other department head. Otherwise, communication stays within the department. Team members complete project work in addition to normal department work. The main advantage of this type of organization is that each employee has only one manager, thus simplifying the chain of command.

Policy:
A policy is typically described as a principle or rule to guide decisions and achieve rational outcomes. The term is not normally used to denote what is actually done, this is normally referred to as either procedure or protocol. Policies are generally adopted by the Board of or senior governance body within an organization whereas procedures or protocols would be developed and adopted by senior executive officers. Policies can assist in both subjective and objective decision making. A Policy can be considered as a "Statement of Intent" or a "Commitment". For that reason at least, the decision-makers can be held accountable for their "Policy". The term may apply to government, private sector organizations and groups, and individuals Policy differs from rules or law. While law can compel or prohibit behaviors (e.g. a law requiring the payment of taxes on income), policy merely guides actions toward those that are most likely to achieve a desired outcome.

Product Policies:
A strategic rule or rules covering how a good or service is promoted to potential consumers. A typical product policy created by a business for a manufactured product might attempt to manage how the item will be perceived by its target market and could also contain information about how durable the product is.

In marketing terms, we can define a product as being anything which can satisfy a need or a desire and is available for purchase on the market. A product can be offered in the form of a good, a service, an idea, a person or a combination between these elements. While producers see the object as a physical thing, consumers are actually buying the advantages that a certain product can deliver. In general, when a product is defined, the following aspects have to be taken into consideration: 1. The physical components which refer to the technical and physical aspects of a product (such as weight, volume, color). 2. The non-physical components gather the brand, the product name, the instructions, the price and all services related to the product (warranty, service, installation). 3. Product communication is composed of all information which is sent to the final buyer: merchandising actions, advertising, promotions at the point of sale. All these actions have the role of facilitating the presentation of the product and influencing the purchasing decision. 4. The product imagines is something intangible and it shows how a product can represent its consumer as well as how that consumer wishes to be seen in the social surroundings.

Personnel Policies:
A personnel policy is a plan of action, a set of proposals and actions that act as a reference point for managers in their dealings with employees. Personnel policies constitute guides to action. They furnish the general standards or bases on which decisions are reached. Their genesis lies in an organizations values, philosophy, concepts and principles. Personnel guide the course of action intended to accomplish personnel objectives. A policy is a guideline for making wise decisions. It brings about stability in making decisions. A policy is a stance, often a choice made between two or more alternatives, such as the choice between promoting employees on than basis of merit versus promoting them on the basis of seniority. Personnel policies define the treatment, rights, obligations, and relations of people in an organization. They are the blueprints by which the organization runs--the rules and procedures that protect workers (and the organization) from being abused, put them in control of their jobs, and keep them from making errors that will hurt the organization or one another. It may be hard work to devise a set of policies, but when situations arise that need answers, you'll see how helpful they are. There are essentially three types of personnel policies that you will need to develop for your organization.

General Policies have to do with the basic structure, philosophy, and rules of the organization. They deal with issues ranging from equal opportunity in hiring and advancement to conflicts of interest, sexual harassment, alcohol in the workplace, and Internet usage. Hiring and Employment Status Policies involve the worker's employment relationship with the organization -- hiring, firing, and everything in between. Here is where pay scale, title, promotions, and performance reviews are laid out. These policies also cover benefits, employees' rights, and reasons for termination. Everyday Procedural Policies deal with issues that affect the everyday life of the worker (or volunteer), and the day to day operation of the organization. They generally include

the hours employees are required to be at work, how workers should dress, when they get paid, and issues of security, as well as guidelines for how things are done in the organization

Financial policies:
Criteria describing a corporation's choices regarding its debt/equity mix, currencies of denomination, maturity structure, method of financing investment projects, and hedging decisions with a goal of maximizing the value of the firm to some set of stockholders.The responsibility for managing and protecting the assets of any non-profit organization rests on the shoulders of the board of directors. In many rural non-profit organizations these directors may be "just volunteers". Despite this, the board needs to approach their financial affairs from a very businesslike perspective! This Factsheet reviews basic policies and procedures that organizations should have in place to protect their financial assets. It does not cover issues like bonding and insurance, which are also important parts of an organizations risk management strategy.

Marketing Policies:
Marketing policy is a process that can allow an organization to concentrate its resources on the optimal opportunities with the goals of increasing sales and achieving a sustainable competitive advantage. Marketing policy includes all basic and long-term activities in the field of marketing that deal with the analysis of the strategic initial situation of a company and the formulation, evaluation and selection of market-oriented strategies and therefore contribute to the goals of the company and its marketing objectives.

Public Relation Policy:

Public relations are a strategic communication process that builds mutually beneficial relationships between organizations and their publics. Simple and straightforward, this definition focuses on the basic concept of public relations as a communication process, one that is strategic in nature and emphasizing mutually beneficial relationships. Process is preferable to management function, which can evoke ideas of control and topdown, one-way communications. Relationships relates to public relations role in helping to bring together organizations and individuals with their key stakeholders. Publics is preferable to stakeholders, as the former relates to the very public nature of public relations, whereas stakeholders has connotations of publicly-traded companies. As a management function, public relations also encompass the following:

Anticipating, analyzing and interpreting public opinion, attitudes and issues that might impact, for good or ill, the operations and plans of the organization. Counseling management at all levels in the organization with regard to policy decisions, courses of action and communication, taking into account their public ramifications and the organizations social or citizenship responsibilities. Researching, conducting and evaluating, on a continuing basis, programs of action and communication to achieve the informed public understanding necessary to the success of an organizations aims. These may include marketing; financial; fund raising; employee, community or government relations; and other programs. Planning and implementing the organizations efforts to influence or change public policy. Setting objectives, planning, budgeting, recruiting and training staff, developing facilities in short, managing the resources needed to perform all of the above.