Chapter 1

Question 1

What is meant by the phrase transformation process? Draw it as a diagram.

Answer 1

Inputs -> Outputs.

{Suppliers}->INPUTS->{Transformation Process}->OUTPUTS->{Customers}

Question 2

What is the definition of operations management?

Answer 2

Responsibility for producing and delivering goods or services of value to customers.

Question 3

What do operations managers do ?

Answer 3

Operations managers make decisions to manage the transformation process that converts inputs into desired finished goods or services.

Question 4

Provide examples of each category of decisions.

Answer 4

Process- Is how the organization transforms inputs into outputs (i.e. type of Technology, equipment and process flow and job design.) This may relate to internal and external environment (i.e. rising labor wages, green push, political and social changes)

Quality - What level of quality for goods and services. How to monitor the level of quality. Reduce variations. How to drive towards continuous quality improvement?

Capacity - Determine the maximum level of outputs. An example is hiring temp employees for peak times of the year.

Inventory - When and how many inputs to order to relation to capacity.

Question 5

What are the primary functional areas in most organizations?

What is each of the primary functional areas mainly concerned with?

Answer 5

Three primary functions of any firm
Operations – value addition
Marketing – link to market and Voice of Customer (VoC)
Finance – link to capital markets

Question 6

Provide examples of how each primary functional area interacts with the others.

Answer 6

1

Question 7

What are examples of supporting functions?

Answer 7

Supporting functions

• Human resources
• information systems
• accounting

Question 8

What’s meant by the phrase cross-functional decision making?

Answer 8

Every function needs to be concerned with own decisions responsibilities but also with integrating decision with other functions.

Example - Marketing decides to change the price on pizza, this affects sales and change the capacity needs to operations. Operations therefor needs to redesign the process to better manage inventories.

Question 9

What is SIPOC diagram, why do you need it? Can you draw one?

Answer 9

SIPOC (suppliers-> inputs-> process-> outputs-> customers)

visual tool for documenting a business process from beginning to end. SIPOC (pronounced sigh-pock) diagrams are also referred to as high level process maps because they do not contain much detail.

Question 10

What are the four types of decisions of operations managers?

Answer 10

Process- Is how the organization transforms inputs into outputs (i.e. type of Technology, equipment and process flow and job design.) This may relate to internal and external environment (i.e. rising labor wages, green push, political and social changes)

Quality - What level of quality for goods and services. How to monitor the level of quality. Reduce variations. How to drive towards continuous quality improvement?

Capacity - Determine the maximum level of outputs. An example is hiring temp employees for peak times of the year.

Inventory - When and how many inputs to order to relation to capacity.