Operations Strategy Flashcards
What are the characteristics of a good operation strategy?
-Low cost
-High and consistent quality
-Fast and reliable delivery
-Flexibility
What is the definition of operations strategy?
The pattern of strategic decisions and actions which set the role, objectives and activities of operations
Outline the Strategic Framework for Process Design and Improvement
-What is our strategic position: what is the value proposition to our customers?
-What must operations do particularly well given our strategic position: Which capabilities must operations develop
-How should processes be structured to develop capabilities to support the strategy?
What are the different types of process types?
-Continuous flow
-Line flow
-Batch
-Job Shop
-Project
Outline a continuous flow process?
These processes are repetitive and continuous (e.g. beer breweries)
Outline a line flow process?
This is a repetitive discrete process (e.g. car assembly line)
Outline a batch process?
This is when groups of identical items are produced together (e.g. bakery)
Outline a job-shop process?
This is when highly customised products are made in small volumes (e.g. tailor made suits)
Outline a project process?
This is when a one-of-a-kind product is made (e.g. consulting projects)
Rank the different processes in terms of flexibity?
- Job Process
- Batch Process
- Line Process
- Continuous Flow Process
What must be considered when aligning strategy and operations?
-Tradeoff
-Fit
-Focus
How can increasing the batch size increase the capacity of a process?
By reducing setup time
How do you calculate the capacity of a batched resource?
Batch size/ Setup Time + (Batch Size*Processing Time)
How do you calculate average inventory in a batched process?
Inventory = 1/2 Batch Size (1-Flow Time*Processing TIme)
