Editing General manager (section)

{{short description|Oversees a firm's day-to-day business operations}}

A '''general manager''' ('''GM''') is an executive who has overall responsibility for managing both the [[revenue]] and [[cost]] elements of a company's [[income statement]], known as profit & loss (P&L) responsibility. A general manager usually oversees most or all of the firm's [[marketing]] and [[sales]] functions as well as the day-to-day operations of the business.  Frequently, the general manager is responsible for effective planning, delegating, coordinating, staffing, organizing, and decision making to attain desirable profit making results for an organization.<ref>{{cite book|last=Sayles|first=Leonard|title=Leadership|url=https://archive.org/details/leadershipwhatef00sayl|url-access=registration|year=1979|publisher=McGraw-Hill, Inc|location=New York|isbn=0-07-055012-3|page=[https://archive.org/details/leadershipwhatef00sayl/page/6 6]}}</ref>

In many cases, the general manager of a business is given a different formal title or titles.  Most corporate managers holding the titles of [[chief executive officer]] (CEO) or [[President (corporate title)|president]], for example, are the general managers of their respective businesses.  More rarely, the [[chief financial officer]] (CFO), [[chief operating officer]] (COO), or [[chief marketing officer]] (CMO) will act as the general manager of the business. Depending on the company, individuals with the title managing director, regional vice president, country manager, product manager, branch manager, or segment manager may also have general management responsibilities.  In large companies, many vice presidents will have the title of general manager when they have the full set of responsibility for the function in that particular area of the business and are often titled [[vice president]] and general manager.

In [[consumer products]] companies, general managers are often given the title [[brand manager]] or category manager.  In [[professional services]] firms, the general manager may hold titles such as managing partner, senior partner, or managing director.