Operations Management Questions and Answers

Operations Management Questions and AnswersIt is indispensable for subject argonaing trading works anxiety beca ingestion operation is one of the most full manoeuvres in businesses around the world, and we have to face it from day to day whether we buy the farm in take or redevelopment industries. If we only choose a limited functional perspective, we go out veritablely restrict our finishs. In different words, we contribute non see an overall picture and do not meet requirements of employers. Additionally, we study operations counsel to maintain efficient production or gain processes with a workforce in order to readily adapt to naked equipment and schedules, on the upstart(prenominal)(a) hand, to attend smooth and efficient operation. Studying operations perplexity provides necessary ideas, techniques and principles which tramp be procedured in some(prenominal) manufacturing and service industries. The principles of process thinking can be applied crossw ise the business. Overall, operations Management is an interesting and challenging field of study.2. What is the difference amidst the terms production counsel and operations centering?The difference surrounded by the terms production commission and operations counsel is that production way is link mainly to manufacturing. Meanwhile, operation management includes manufacturing as well as service industries.3. How does the function of an operations manager differ from the function of a marketing manager or a pay manager? How are these functions correspondent?The function of an operations manager is to create the supply of goods, whereas the marketing managers function is to create the demand for goods. Meanwhile the function of a finance manager is to secure and allocate the capital to produce the goods.These functions are similar because decisions made by all three managers reckon quaternion types of operations decisions including process, quality, talent and invento ry. Therefore, a high level of integration is ask betwixt decisions made by the marketing, finance, and operations managers.4. How is the operations management field related to the fields of benevolent resources, information systems, or accounting?The human resources function directly influences the skills level of operations workforce, their capacity and avail big businessman to perform work, and their ability to work as a team towards common goals. Operations management is a major internal customer of information systems, and as a result, these systems generally support specific operations decisions such(prenominal)(prenominal) as capacity determination, forecasting, quality management, inventory control, and scheduling. Be similar to finance, accounting interacts with all quartet decision categories in operations, particularly when capital or measurement of operations is required.5. Describe the nature of operations management in the quest organizations. In doing this, first identify the purpose and products of the organization then use the four decision types to identify important operations decisions and responsibilities.a. A college libraryb. A hotelc. A small manufacturing sloppeda. A college libraryPurpose rent information available to students and faculty.Products Services and products in the forms of books, periodicals, reference materials, the internet, etc. appendage First, designing the way the facility is snipd with an emphasis on fiction, non-fiction, reference, periodical, and administrative sections. Second, we decide the kinds of office equipment allow support the students and staff. Third, we determine how materials will be recorded, checked in/out, and returned to their proper book-shelf. Fourth, we determine the type of information engine room equipment that used to support the circulation process and student internet access. Fifth, we consider who will be responsible for library operation and who will proctor and tax their fea t. tone of voice Be sure that materials are up to date and relevant. invent sure that the staff is available to assist library. Manage feedback system to monitor student and faculty satisfaction. depicted object The library serve and materialss demand uphold the size of the shelves, what it carries, the number of librarians, and when those employees are scheduled history How many books, magazines, encyclopedias, computers needed to meet the demands of students and facultyb. A hotelPurpose Provide a cheery place for leaf nodesProducts Services and goods in the forms of room service, beds, premium linens, pools, night-clubs, foods, etc. sue First, information architecture will be required to support the guest reservation, payment, check in/out, and entertainment processes. Second, equipment needed to support the room, theatrekeeping, and food service divisions. Third, job descriptions and performance standards required for staff in severally of those divisions. Fourth, manageme nt needed for monitoring employee performance and resolving guests feedbacks.Quality Be sure that the rooms are clean, and affordable. Make sure that staff maintains friendly attitudes with guests. contentedness Local demands determine the number of available rooms, the convenience provided, and how many employees of each department will serve.Inventory Local demand affects inventory interpretation to support the hotels administrative, household management, and food service divisions.c. A small manufacturing firmPurpose Provide merchandise with high quality to the consumer at the net realizable saluteProducts Physical goods come along with the essential services to support those goods crop What type of industrial facilities will be equipped? How large a facility will be needed to house the production line and administrative support offices? How the goods will be designed, manufactured, packaged, marketed, and back up?Quality Use a quality control process to get word and reduc e defects. Make sure that staff maintains friendly attitudes with customers during all levels of the gross revenue and support processes.Capacity Physical facilities labor.Inventory What, when how much raw materials kept on hand to facilitate the manufacturing process?6. For the organizations listed in questions 5, describe the inputs, break process, and outputs of the production system.a. A college libraryInput The librarys staff decides and collects books, periodicals, reference materials which harmonize the colleges requirementsTransformation First, accountant pays out for the cost of buying books, shelves, and other facilities. Second, librarians arrange and lay out books so as to make them available to students and faculties. railroad siding Students and faculties refer and absorb books, periodicals, reference materials.b. A hotelInput Rooms and amenities, employees, capital, and other resources.Transformation Use those above inputs to offer hotel services.Output Customer s hire and use servicesc. A small manufacturing firmInput Energy, materials, labor, capital, information.Transformation trailing all component parts, work in process, packaging materials.Output ideal goods, and general supplies.7. Describe the decision-making and the process slang of operations management. Why are both these views useful in studying the field of operations management?The decision-making is a process of deciding or settling something important, especially in a group of people or in an organization. On the other hand, it is the way we choose between alternative courses of action using cognitive processes memory, thinking, evaluation.The process view of operations management provides a basis of delimit service and transformation process as well as a foundation for analysis and design of operations.Both these views are useful in studying the field of operations management because the decision-making provides a foundation to break open operations into part such as p rocess, quality, capacity and inventory. Meanwhile, the process view provides essential insights for the productive processes in functional areas.8. Write a picayune paper on some of the challenges lining operations management in the future. Use newspapers and business magazines from the library or the Internet as your indigenous sources.Operations management is not a sustainable thing. It always transfigures and copes with new challenges in the future. First, globalization is one of the integral challenges facing operations management today and into the future. Operations managers will have to face global aspiration today and in the future. One of the examples is the lawsuit between apple and Samsung now. Apple has started proceedings against Samsung for copying the designs of iPhone and iPad (Daily Mail, 2011). Although Samsung a Korean company is a supplier and partner of Apple an American group, the lawsuit still happens because they are competitors on mobile devices fi eld. Second, environmental responsibility will affect operations management in the future. The changes in environmental rules may change processes and capacity. Third, operations management will face awareness of technology and its trends as an indispensable challenge. engine room has changed everything in operations and it will continue. For example, automation system could replace human resource more than ever. Overall, those things are only three parts of challenges facing operations management in the future. However, they are typical challenges today and into the future.9. look backward the want ads in The Wall Street Journal or use the Internet to look for management bits that are available for operations management graduates.On Monster.com, MANUFACTURING BWAY Corporation has sought an operation manager for coordinating manufacturing process. This position includes production, scheduling, safety, maintenance/repair, quality management. Candidates have at to the lowest degre e five historic period experiences as a Production Operations Manager college degree and powerful communication ability. Also, it requires candidates to be able to ensure quality and delivery performance for the plant (Monster, 2011).10. How do changes in the environment, such as demand changes, new pollution control laws, the changing value of the dollar, and price changes, affect operations? Name specic impacts on operations for each change.Changes in demand, law, specie value, etc. affect significantly to operations. Operations have to adapt to such changes quickly. The demand changes will increase or decrease the number of products, thereby affect process, capacity and inventory. On the other hand, every addition and change in the pollution control laws, operations must consider that production process use safe and certificated resources. If a manufacturing process does not match the law, it will be redesigned and reconsidered. The changing value of dollar will cause a lot of effects. It will affect the environment such as the customers demand, transportation cost, etc. Price changes will increase or cut down the input cost, thereafter affect production cost and finished goods price.11. Find examples of well-run and poorly run operations in recent business periodicals such as BusinessWeek, Fortune, and the Wall Street Journal. What can you apprize from these examples?On the Wall Street Journal, there is an article that describes Fujitsu, a well-run operation in the difficult time after disasters (Osawa, 2011). Fujitsu has prepared for all possible contingencies in order to reconsider the production process after catastrophes. I can learn from this example something valuable, particularly, Fujitsu has clear plan and they made decision quickly after disasters. Therefore, the production system was not interrupted for a long time. In one BusinessWeeks article, MGM Grand had an issue on sweet employees with operations. Sometimes employees did not know what meetings were at the hotel (BusinessWeek, 2009). From this example, it is clear that stuck of staff would affect operations such as customer loyalty, return visits, and spending in the hotel.12. Identify some of the current trends in operations that you think are of life-sustaining importance.Some current trends in operations that are critical importanceGlobal CompetitionOperations StrategySupply chain of mountains ManagementLean manufacturing13. Describe how operations process thinking can be applied to the dramatiseing types of worka. Acquisition of another company.b. shutdown the books at the end of the year.c. Marketing research for a new product.d. form of an information system.e. Hiring a new employee.Operations process thinking can be applied well to various types of work by following process, quality, capacity and inventory.a. Acquisition of another companyProcess Consider and look to to take over another company or at least gain a controlling interest in that company.Q uality belittle the expenses of cash in making the acquisition.Capacity Ensure that we can borrow a significant amount of money to pay for the acquisition.b. Closing the books at the end of the year.Process Prepare financial statements.Quality The accounting revisited to ensure all statements are proper.c. Marketing research for a new product.Process Corporate staff makes some of the process decisions. They have developed a standard that is simply sized to t customers demand.Quality Products must follow certain standards for quality that have been set by the corporate staff.Capacity Decisions about capacity determine the maximum level of output of productsInventory Select appropriate suppliers and decide how much components to order and when to place orders.d. intent of an information system.Process Analyze and design system requirements from different perspectives.Quality Ensure that design meets the requirements.Capacity The information system has ability to foregather every wo rk today and into the future.