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• Operations


  The activities that a company undertakes in order to produce goods or services
• Operations management


  The field of management that is responsible for overseeing these activities and ensuring that they are carried out efficiently and effectively
• Operations management includes


  • Planning
  • Organizing
  • Staffing
  • Leading
  • Controlling the operations of a business
• Role of operations management in organisations


  • Responsible for ensuring that the day-to-day operations run smoothly
  • Coordinates the various functions within the organization, such as production, logistics, and customer service
  • Works to improve the efficiency of the operations, often by implementing new processes or technologies
  • Vital for ensuring that the company is able to meet its objectives and deliver value to its customers
• Five key performance objectives of operations management


  • Quality
  • Speed
  • Dependability
  • Flexibility
  • Cost
• Quality


  Essential for customer satisfaction, as producing low-quality products can result in increased costs in the long run
• Speed


  Customers expect products and services to be delivered quickly, so operations managers must focus on improving the speed of their operations without compromising on quality
• Dependability


  Vital for maintaining customer satisfaction, as customers want to be able to rely on a company to deliver its products and services on time and as promised
• Flexibility


  Allows a company to adapt to changing market conditions and customer demands, and can be measured in terms of agility, adaptability, and responsiveness
• Cost


  Companies must ensure that they are operating efficiently and not wasting resources, but cost-cutting measures must be balanced with other objectives such as quality and dependability
• Operations manager


  A key role within an organization, responsible for the day-to-day operations and ensuring that the company is meeting its objectives
• Duties of an operations manager


  • Developing and implementing operational plans and strategies
  • Managing budgets and resources
  • Hiring, training, and managing staff
  • Overseeing production and inventory management
  • Monitoring and improving quality and efficiency
  • Maintaining compliance with health and safety regulations
  • Liaising with other departments, such as sales and marketing
  • Managing relationships with suppliers and vendors
  • Keeping up to date with industry trends and best practices
• Categories of decisions taken by the operations manager


  • Strategic decisions
  • Operational decisions
  • Control decisions
• Strategic decisions


  Typically made at a higher level and involve a longer-term perspective, with a significant impact on the overall direction of the organization
• Operational decisions


  Typically made at a lower level and involve shorter-term issues, focused on the day-to-day activities of the organization
• Control decisions


  Made to monitor and adjust the performance of the organization, focused on identifying and correcting problems, as well as taking advantage of opportunities
• Functional areas that operations management is linked to


  • Marketing/sales
  • Finance
  • Production
  • Human resource management
  • Information systems
  • Procurement
• Relationship between operations management and marketing/sales

  Marketing and sales provide insights into customer demand and feedback on customer satisfaction, which helps operations to plan, schedule, and improve the production process
• Relationship between operations management and finance


  Finance provides information on budgets, costs, and revenue, which is used by operations to plan, control, and improve the efficiency of the production process, as well as insights into the return on investment of different products and services
• Relationship between operations management and production


  Production is at the heart of operations management, responsible for converting raw materials into finished products, and working closely with operations to plan, schedule, and control the production process
• Relationship between operations management and human resource management


  HRM is responsible for recruiting, training, and developing the workforce, which is critical for the success of operations, and also plays a role in developing and maintaining an effective safety program
• Relationship between operations management and information systems


  Information systems provide the data and analysis needed to make informed decisions about production and operations, such as production scheduling, quality control, inventory management, and logistics
• Relationship between operations management and procurement


  Procurement is responsible for acquiring the materials, supplies, and services needed for production, and works closely with operations to ensure the right materials are obtained at the right time and price
• Operations management is a function that is found in all organizations, as it is essential for the success of any business
• Production and operations management


  • Production scheduling systems can be used to optimize the use of resources
  • Quality control systems can be used to monitor and improve the quality of products
• Inventory management systems


  • Help to track and control the inventory levels
  • Logistics systems can be used to optimize the flow of goods through the supply chain
• Procurement


  Function that interfaces with operations management, responsible for acquiring the materials, supplies, and services that are needed for production
• Procurement works closely with operations


  To ensure that the right materials are obtained at the right time and at the right price
• Procurement


  • Plays a role in developing and maintaining relationships with suppliers, which is essential for the smooth running of operations
• Operations management


  A function that is found in all organizations, regardless of their size or industry
• Operations management in small organizations


  • May be performed by a single individual or a small team
• Operations management in larger organizations


  • May be a separate department with dedicated staff
• Operations management is responsible for ensuring that the organization is able to meet its production and service delivery goals
• Production selection and design


  Critical activity performed by operations management, involves choosing the most appropriate production process for the organization's products or services
• Operations management processes


  A set of activities and tasks that are carried out in order to produce goods and services
• Production selection and design

  • Considers factors such as cost, quality, capacity, flexibility, and risk
  • Ensures that the production process is designed in a way that maximizes efficiency and minimizes waste
• Input-transformation-output (ITO) model


  A fundamental concept in operations management referring to the three main stages of the production process: input, transformation, and output
• Input stage


  • Obtaining the resources needed to produce the product or service
• Transformation stage


  • Converting the inputs into the desired output
• Process selection and planning


  Another important activity performed by operations management, involves choosing the most appropriate processes for each stage of the production process