Business objectives and their importance

Any entrepreneur starting up a business has a number of goals that they would want to achieve, which are called objectives. Over a period of time, the objectives of a business may change as the business grows or in the likely event that it faces difficulties.

The main objectives of a business are:

• To make a profit. Owners will expect some return on the money they have invested in the business.
• If the business is new or been expanded, then they would want survival. Survival might be the main objective if the economy is experiencing recession with high unemployment.
• When a business is surviving, the owners will want the business to make profit by increasing sales.
• Increase market share.
  
• Beat their competition by having an excellent reputation.
• Customer satisfaction by providing excellent service or products.
• Providing employment for people.
  
  Without objectives, businesses will get nowhere and might as well not exist!
  

Stakeholders and their differing objectives

Stakeholders are people involved in business activity, and who have an interest in the success of the business. They include:

· Owners: They invest their own money into a business. They have a say in the decision-making in the business, and a share of the profits
· Managers: These are people who are employed by the owners to monitor the daily running of the business. They put the owners’ decisions into practice. In large businesses, managers may be experts in specific areas such as marketing or finance.
· Employees: They are paid to work for the business, doing a specific job. The employees’ stake is the money in the form of the pay they receive, which they can spend on goods and services.
· Consumers: They buy the goods and services produced. If businesses provide substandard service or goods, they can go into financial trouble.
· Government: They want businesses to be successful to provide wealth for the country. Businesses are influenced by the laws the government enforce.
· Community: Businesses are important to communities because they provide employment. However, they can damage a community’s environment by creating pollution