Chapter 2: Competitiveness, Strat. Planning, and Productivity Flashcards
Q: What is competitiveness?
A: How effectively an organization meets customer wants and needs relative to competitors, based on its capabilities and market performance.
Q: Why do organizations fail?
A:
1. Neglect of operations
2. Failure to leverage strengths
3. Overemphasis on short-term financials
4. Neglect of investments
5. Poor internal communication
6. Failure to consider customer needs
Q: What is a business strategy?
A: The long-range plan of a business.
Q: What is operations strategy?
A: A long-range plan for the operations function specifying how resources are used to support the business strategy.
Q: What are the three critical factors in developing a business strategy?
A:
1. What business is the company in? (Mission)
2. Does the company understand the market? (Environmental scanning)
3. What are the company’s strengths? (Core competencies)
Q: What is a mission?
A: A statement defining what business an organization is in, who the customers are, and how its core beliefs shape the business.
Q: What are core competencies?
A: The unique strengths of a business.
Q: What are key external factors affecting a business?
A:
1. Economic conditions
2. Political conditions
3. Legal environment
4. Technology
5. Competitors
6. Customers
7. Suppliers
8. Markets
Q: What are trends in the environment?
A:
1. Marketplace trends
2. Economic trends
3. Political trends
4. Social trends
Q: What is supply chain strategy?
A: How an organization cooperates with its supply chain to achieve goals and stay competitive.
Q: What are the four key competitive priorities?
A:
1. Cost
2. Quality
3. Time
4. Flexibility
Q: What does competing on cost involve?
A:
1. Offering products at lower prices than competitors
2. Focusing on cutting costs and eliminating waste
3. Low cost does not mean low quality
Q: What does competing on quality involve?
A:
1. Product design quality - meeting customer requirements
2. Process quality - delivering error-free products
Q: What does competing on time involve?
A:
1. Being the first to deliver
2. Rapid or on-time delivery
3. Focusing on short lead times
Q: What does competing on flexibility involve?
A: Accommodating changes in customer demand and production requirements.
