Objective of Business

Objectives of Business means the purpose for which the business is established. It is generally believed that the main objective of business is ta make profit and avoid loss. We do admit that profit is a driving force in undertaking any business activity but it is not the sole objective of any business. In the words of Urwick “earning of profit cannot be objective of a business any more than eating is the objective of living” . A business which is hunting after profits and ignores other objectives will not be doing service to the community. We here classify the objectives of business under three heads and then examine them briefly (1) Economic objectives (2) Social objectives (3) Human objectives.

I. Economic Objectives:
Business, as we know. is primarily an economic activity. The major economic objectives to be achieved by business are: (1) earning of profit (2) creation of market and innovabon.

(i) Profit earning
The primary objective of business is to produce and sell goods for profit, of course, through the satisfaction of human wants. A business which does not earn profit cannot stay in the market for a longer period. The income of enterprise, therefore, must exceed expenditure over a period of time. Profit is necessary for the enterprise to. insure its own survival, growth and expansion. In the Words of Petter F Rucker NThe problem of any business is not the maximization of profit but the achievement of sufficient profit to cover the fisk of economic activities and thus to avoid /losses”. It is clear from the above definition that a business enterprise should work for reasonable profit which should cover its own future risk. If the profit is made by over-charging customers, indulging in malpractices such as hoarding, blackmarketing, smuggling, etc, it will be against the ethics of business. It will be regarded robbery and not a business activity.

(ii) Creating Markets
Every business tries to create customers for its products and services. The more the customers are treated, the wider will be the market for the goods and larger the profit.

(iii) Technological Improvements
The business, if it is to stay in, the market, must offset stagnation by using efficient methods of production. The creation of new products, new designs and application of new techniques of production contributes to growth, change and expansion in the economy.

II. Social Objectives:
The social objectives of business are gaining more and more recognition with each passing year. The main social objectives of business are as follows:-

(i) Supply of standard quality of goods
One of the social responsibilities of business is to produce goods of standard quality. If the enterprise is producing inferior, substandard and adulterated goods, it will be doing disservice to the society.

(ii) Avoidance of anti-social practices
It is not fair on the part of a business to indulge in anti-social practices such as hoarding, black marketing, smuggling, over charging etc., to earn profit. A reasonable profit on a legitimate business is regarded a healthy sign and considered hi/al from Islamic point of view also.

(iii) Provision of more employment.
Business provides employment to the people. It thus helps in increasing the standard of living of the members of the society.

(iv) Cooperation with the government
The business community should adopt a positive approach towards the policies of the government of the country. They should pay all taxes and dues in time to the gqvernment. All business activity should be carried within the legal frame work of the country.

(v) Use of national resources
The business should use the national resources in the best interest of the country. Wastage should be reduced to the maximum. The motto should be more and more goods for more and more people at lower and lower prices.

Ill. Human Objectives:
The business’activity is carried on by the people (entrepreneurs) through the people (employees) and for the people (customers). Human factor is thus an important element in business. A business which overlooks the human factor cannot prosper and ultimately suffers losses. The human objectives of business are that (1) the employees working in a business should be fairly rewarded (2) A healthy climate is created by providing opportunities to the employers for deve new skills and abilities (3) The employees should have say in the affairs which directiy affect them. (4) thinking of modern business must go well beyond material benefits of its employees. It must reduce unpleasantness of work and plan forjob satisfaction to the workths.

IV. National Objectives
Every business whether operating on small or large scale must have an obligation towards nation also. It should help in achieving national goals such as promoting social justice, increasing valued added goods for exports, finding out better and cheaper substitutes for imports and helping in increasing exports for building the foreign exchange reserves to meet the import bills

3.3 Classification of Objectives of Business
It is generally believed that a business has a single objective, that is, to make profit. But it cannot be the only objective of business. While pursuing the objective of earning profit, business units do keep the interest of their owners in view. However, any business unit cannot ignore the interests of its employees, customers, the community, as well as the interests of society as a whole.
For instance, no business can prosper in the long run unless fair wages are paid to the employees and customer satisfaction is given due importance. Again a business unit can prosper only if it enjoys the support and goodwill of people in general. Business objectives also need to be aimed at contributing to national goals and aspirations as well as towards international well-being. Thus, the objectives of business may be classified as -
a. Economic Objectives
b. Social Objectives
c. Human Objectives
d. National Objectives
e. Global Objectives
Now we shall discuss all these objectives in details.
3.4 Economic Objectives
Economic objectives of business refer to the objective of earning profit and also other objectives that are necessary to be pursued to achieve the profit objective, which include, creation of customers, regular innovations and best possible use of available resources. Let us learn about these.
i. Profit earning
Profit is the lifeblood of business, without which no business can survive in a competitive market. Infact profit making is the primary objective for which a business unit is brought into existence. Profits must be earned to ensure the survival of business, its growth and expansion over time. Profits help businessmen not only to earn their living but also to expand their business activities by reinvesting a part of the profits.
In order to achieve this primary objective, certain other objectives are also necessary to be pursued by business, which are as follows:
a) Creation of customers
A business unit cannot survive unless there are customers to buy the products and services.
Again a businessman can earn profits only when he/she provides quality goods and services at a reasonable price. For this it needs to attract more customers for its existing as well as new products. This is achieved with the help of various marketing activities.
b) Regular innovations
Innovation means changes, which bring about improvement in products, process of production and distribution of goods. Business units, through innovation, are able to reduce cost by adopting better methods of production and also increase their sales by attracting more customers because of improved products. Reduction in cost and increase in sales gives more profit to the businessman. Use of power-looms in place of handlooms, use of tractors in place of hand implements in farms etc. are all the results of innovation.
c) Best possible use of resources
As you know, to run any business you must have sufficient capital or funds. The amount of capital may be used to buy machinery, raw materials, employ men and have cash to meet day-to-day expenses. Thus, business activities require various resources like men, materials, money and machines. The availability of these resources is usually limited. Thus, every business should try to make the best possible use of these resources. This objective can be achieved by employing efficient workers, making full use of machines and minimizing wastage of raw materials. 3.5 Social Objectives
Social objectives are those objectives of business, which are desired to be achieved for the benefit of the society. Since business operates in a society by utilizing its scarce resources, the society expects something in return for its welfare. No activity of the business should be aimed at giving any kind of trouble to the society. If business activities lead to socially harmful effects, there is bound to be public reaction against the business sooner or later.
Social objectives of business include production and supply of quality goods and services, adoption of fair trade practices and contribution to the general welfare of society and provision of welfare amenities.
i. Production and supply of quality goods and services
Since the business utilizes the various resources of the society, the society expects to get quality goods and services from the business. The objective of business should be to produce better quality goods and supply them at the right time and at a right price. It is not desirable on the part of the businessman to supply adulterated or inferior goods which cause injuries to the customers. They should charge the price according to the quality of the goods and services provided to the society. Again, the customers also expect timely supply of all their requirements. So it is important for every business to supply those goods and services on a regular basis. ii. Adoption of fair trade practices
In every society, activities such as hoarding, black-marketing and over-charging are considered undesirable. Besides, misleading advertisements often give a false impression about the quality of products. Such advertisements deceive the customers and the businessmen use them for the sake of making large profits. This is an unfair trade practice.
The business unit must not create artificial scarcity of essential goods or raise prices for the sake of earning more profits. All these activities earn a bad name and sometimes make the businessmen liable for penalty and even imprisonment under the law. Therefore, the objective of business should be to adopt fair trade practices for the welfare of the consumers as well as the society. iii. Contribution to the general welfare of the society
Business units should work for the general welfare and upliftment of the society. This is possible through running of schools and colleges for better education, opening of vocational training centres to train the people to earn their livelihood, establishing hospitals for medical facilities and providing recreational facilities for the general public like parks, sports complexes etc. 3.6 Human Objectives
Human objectives refer to the objectives aimed at the well-being as well as fulfillment of expectations of employees as also of people who are disabled, handicapped and deprived of proper education and training. The human objectives of business may thus include economic well-being of the employees, social and psychological satisfaction of employees and development of human resources.
i. Economic well being of the employees
In business employees must be provided with fair remuneration and incentives for performance, benefits of provident fund, pension and other amenities like medical facilities, housing facilities etc. By this they feel more satisfied at work and contribute more for the business. ii. Social and psychological satisfaction of employees
It is the duty of business units to provide social and psychological satisfaction to their employees. This is possible by making the job interesting and challenging, putting the right person in the right job and reducing the monotony of work. Opportunities for promotion and advancement in career should also be provided to the employees. Further, grievances of employees should be given prompt attention and their suggestions should be considered seriously when decisions are made. If employees are happy and satisfied they can put their best efforts in work. iii. Development of human resources
Employees as human beings always want to grow. Their growth requires proper training as well as development. Business can prosper if the people employed can improve their skills and develop their abilities and competencies in course of time. Thus, it is important that business should arrange training and development programmes for its employees. iv. Well being of socially and economically backward people
Business units being inseparable parts of society should help backward classes and also people those are physically and mentally challenged. This can be done in many ways. For instance, vocational training programme may be arranged to improve the earning capacity of backward people in the community. While recruiting it staff, business should give preference to physically and mentally challenged persons. Business units can also help and encourage meritorious students by awarding scholarships for higher studies.
3.7 National Objectives
Being an important part of the country, every business must have the objective of fulfilling national goals and aspirations. The goal of the country may be to provide employment opportunity to its citizen, earn revenue for its exchequer, become self-sufficient in production of goods and services, promote social justice, etc. Business activities should be conducted keeping these goals of the country in mind, which may be called national objectives of business. The following are the national objectives of business.
i. Creation of employment
One of the important national objectives of business is to create opportunities for gainful employment of people. This can be achieved by establishing new business units, expanding markets, widening distribution channels, etc. ii. Promotion of social justice
As a responsible citizen, a businessman is expected to provide equal opportunities to all persons with whom he/she deals. He/She is also expected to provide equal opportunities to all the employees to work and progress. Towards this objective special attention must be paid to weaker and backward sections of the society. iii. Production according to national priority
Business units should produce and supply goods in accordance with the priorities laid down in the plans and policies of the Government. One of the national objectives of business in our country should be to increase the production and supply of essential goods at reasonable prices. iv. Contribute to the revenue of the country
The business owners should pay their taxes and dues honestly and regularly. This will increase the revenue of the government, which can be used for the development of the nation.
v. Self-sufficiency and Export Promotion
To help the country to become self-reliant, business units have the added responsibility of restricting import of goods. Besides, every business units should aim at increasing exports and adding to the foreign exchange reserves of the country.

3.8 Global Objectives
Earlier India had a very restricted business relationship with other nations. There was a very rigid policy for import and export of goods and services. But, now-a-days due to liberal economic and export–import policy, restrictions on foreign investments have been largely abolished and duties on imported goods have been substantially reduced. This change has brought about increased competition in the market. Today because of globalisation the entire world has become a big market. Goods produced in one country are readily available in other countries. So, to face the competition in the global market every business has certain objectives in mind, which may be called the global objectives. Let us learn about them. i. Raise general standard of living
Growth of business activities across national borders makes available quality goods at reasonable prices all over the world. The people of one country get to use similar types of goods that people in other countries are using. This improves the standard of living of people. ii. Reduce disparities among nations
Business should help to reduce disparities among the rich and poor nations of the world by expanding its operation. By way of capital investment in developing as well as underdeveloped countries it can foster their industrial and economic growth. iii. Make available globally competitive goods and services
Business should produce goods and services which are globally competitive and have huge demand in foreign markets. This will improve the image of the exporting country and also earn more foreign exchange for the country.