Syllabus - Operations

Question 1

Role of Operations Management

Answer 1

• strategic role of operations management – cost leadership, good/service differentiation
• goods and/or services in different industries
• interdependence with other key business functions

Question 2

Influences

Answer 2

• globalisation, technology, quality expectations, cost-based competition, government policies, legal regulation, environmental sustainability
• corporate social responsibility
  – the difference between legal compliance and ethical responsibility
  – environmental sustainability and social responsibility

Question 3

Operations Processes

Answer 3

• inputs
  – transformed resources (materials, information, customers)
  – transforming resources (human resources, facilities)
• transformation processes
  – the influence of volume, variety, variation in demand and visibility (customer contact)
  – sequencing and scheduling – Gantt charts, critical path analysis
  – technology, task design and process layout
  – monitoring, control and improvement
• outputs
  – customer service
  – warranties

Inputs, Transformation, Outputs

Question 4

Operations Strategies

Answer 4

• • performance objectives – quality, speed, dependability, flexibility, customisation, cost
• new product or service design and development
• supply chain management – logistics, e-commerce, global sourcing
• outsourcing – advantages and disadvantages
• technology – leading edge, established
• inventory management – advantages and disadvantages of holding stock, LIFO
• (last-in-first-out), FIFO (first-in-first-out), JIT (just-in-time)
• quality management
  – control
  – assurance
  – improvement
• overcoming resistance to change – financial costs, purchasing new equipment, redundancy
• payments, retraining, reorganising plant layout, inertia
• global factors – global sourcing, economies of scale, scanning and learning, research
• and development

P Objectives, SCM, Product/Service Dev, Global Factors