unit 4 - decision making to improve operational performance

Question 1

Operations Management

Answer 1

managing the process of turning inputs into outputs

Question 2

Cost Objectives

Answer 2

reducing or maintaining costs

Question 3

Quality Objectives

Answer 3

improving or maintaining quality

Question 4

Dependability Objectives

Answer 4

ensuring customers can trust the business and that they are reliable

Question 5

Environmental Objectives

Answer 5

focusing on reducing damage on the environment

Question 6

Flexibility Objectives

Answer 6

allows a business to respond to change in demand with little notice

Question 7

Speed Objectives

Answer 7

provides the ability to meet customer expectations in terms of time taking to produce and distribute

Question 8

Adding Value

Answer 8

converting inputs into outputs allows a business to sell the product at a greater price than the cost of the inputs used

Question 9

Internal Influences On Operational Objectives

Answer 9

type of product, availability of internal resources, other business functions objectives

Question 10

External Influences On Operational Objectives

Answer 10

technological advancements, changing tastes, globalisation, competition, pestle

Question 11

Labour Productivity

Answer 11

calculates how much employees produce

Question 12

Unit Costs

Answer 12

calculated figures can compare costs between departments, years or competitors

Question 13

Capacity

Answer 13

helps to understand the percentage of its maximum capacity is being used

Question 14

Problem With Operation Data

Answer 14

can only apply to businesses with physical outputs

Question 15

100% Capacity

Answer 15

disadvantage as they cannot respond to additional or special orders as they have no capacity to produce these products

Question 16

Efficiency

Answer 16

refers to the ability of employees to increase their output from a fixed amount of inputs

Question 17

Lean Production

Answer 17

minimising waste to increase efficiency

Question 18

Just In Time

Answer 18

form of lean production, involves a business only ordering supplies when they are needed

Question 19

Just In Case

Answer 19

a business ordering excess stock in case there is an increase in demand for their product

Question 20

Capital Intensive

Answer 20

mainly relying on capital or machinery in the production of products (coca cola)

Question 21

Labour Intensive

Answer 21

mainly rely on the use of human labour in the production of products (asda)

Question 22

Computer Aided Design (CAD)

Answer 22

increases efficiency as they do not have to manually make designs

Question 23

Computer Aided Manufacture (CAD)

Answer 23

increases efficiency as it can create products

Question 24

E-Commerce

Answer 24

increases efficiency as admin tasks can be completed more quickly than on paper systems

Question 25

What Determines Quality

Answer 25

quality of materials, quality of production process, style of the product, durability speed and quality of a service

Question 26

Customer Feedback

Answer 26

measures quality, getting reviews from customers

Question 27

Customer Surveys

Answer 27

measures quality, more detailed about the customers experience

Question 28

Checking Quality In Production

Answer 28

check raw materials from suppliers, take samples in the middle of production and samples of finished products

Question 29

Total Quality Management (TQM)

Answer 29

culture of quality that ensures quality in production, sales and after-sales customer service but it is expensive

Question 30

Quality Assurance

Answer 30

the maintenance of target quality by attention to detail at every stage of the process

Question 31

Quality Control

Answer 31

maintaining standards by testing or inspecting output against standards

Question 32

Benefits Of High Quality

Answer 32

improved brand rep, higher selling price, avoids product recalls

Question 33

Drawbacks Of High Quality

Answer 33

inspection costs, staff training costs, provision of customer service costs

Question 34

Push Production Sytem

Answer 34

relies on market demand and forecasting to dictate production levels

Question 35

Pull Production System

Answer 35

uses current customer demands to dictate production levels

Question 36

Mass Customisation

Answer 36

approach to production which involves products being made in mass with the final process being customisation to respond to customer needs, lowers unit costs

Question 37

Inventory

Answer 37

the stock a business holds

Question 38

Inventory Control Diagram

Answer 38

shows maximum stock level, re-order level, buffer stock and lead time

Question 39

Outsourcing

Answer 39

occurs when a business uses a separate business to complete part of its work

Question 40

Advantages Of Outsourcing

Answer 40

provide cost savings due to third-party partly paying costs

Question 41

Disadvantages Of Outsourcing

Answer 41

lead to quality problems, may lose influence over quality control