Overview of Management

Business has become and more competitive each day and in that competition lies many steps with which to compete, get ahead, and stay ahead. The business that can master the tools available stands a greater chance for the sustainable competitive edge. Big business is increasing and small businesses are starting to fade. In today’s market, businesses big and small need to try to find a way to stay ahead of their competitors. In this essay, I will discuss the business opportunities of Kudler Fine Foods and how that business is able to compete as a small business in the competitive world today.

Kudler Fine Foods was started in by Kathy Kudler in 1998 after she found herself frustrated by having to go all over town for fresh ingredients for a gourmet meal. She decided to open a store where gourmet cooking ingredients could be purchased without the hassle of going to many different locations.

The primary functions of management are planning and strategizing, organizing, leading, and controlling (Gomez-Mejia, 2002). The task of planning and strategizing lies on the shoulders of the owner, Kathy Kudler and her management team. The main objectives to be accomplished in the planning and strategizing are to help the firm set future goals and plan activities to reach those goals. Kathy has the vision of where she wants her company to go, so she must set the goals and delegate the task to the department managers and human resources to ensure that there is a team that shares in the pursuit of her goal.

The task of organizing encompasses all the resources of human, physical, financial, informational, and technical expertise available in pursuit of the greater goal. This task lands with the managers as well as the director of finance and accounting who takes care of all financial activities, the individuals in human resources who are in charge of employment, labor relations, training, and employee services. Human Resources acts as a clearing house to employ the best help possible and has the best interest of the company in mind. The Human Resource department should share in the vision of the owner and want the businesses to succeed.

Leading a team could be considered the greatest task of many corporations. Leading means motivating everyone involved with the company to work together to achieve a goal, big or small. Again, this task falls mainly with management. Department managers are responsible for directing and coordinating activities involved with production, sale, and distribution of products. This involves store managers as well who are responsible for keeping individual stores within company budgets and planning work schedules for the employees. The task of motivating the employees falls within this realm because if an employee is happy, then that directly translates into a happy customer and increased sales. Management is there to create a positive work environment for the employees as well as a positive experience for guests and customers.

Controlling involves measuring performance and comparing that to the objectives created by the owner and upper management. It also involves managing and implementing changes as needed in order to succeed and monitor success. This task could be considered financial because in any business, the ultimate goal is to create profit in order to be successful. The measurement of performance lies mainly within the financial aspect of the company which is lead by the accounting clerk who interprets, record, and verifies the numerical data that is used to assess the monetary success of a business. The director of finance and accounting comes into play when there is planning and directing of finance and accounting activities to be done. The financial aspects and individuals within that role of the company are important in meeting the monetary goals of the owner and the business.

The roles of different individuals within a firm can be broken down into the five forces in the Porter Model (Turban, 2003). The threat of entry of new competitors, the bargaining power of suppliers, the bargaining power of customers, the threat of substitute products and services, and the rivalry among existing firms in the industry. Kudler