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OM4 Chapter 1: Goods, Services, and Operations Management

Discussion Questions

1. Explain how operations management activities affect the customer experiences described in the Museum of Science + Technology anecdote at the beginning of this chapter. What “moments of truth” would a customer at Chicago’s Museum of Science + Technology encounter?

The anecdote at Chicago’s Museum of Science + Technology focuses on the role of goods, services, and processes in creating customer experiences and satisfaction. Students will have many great examples of their museum experiences. Moments of truth might include (a) buying a ticket and the associated service encounters with a call center, web site and/or travel agency (b) getting to the (parking, subway, train, taxi, walk) museum site, (c) asking museum employees for directions, (d) waiting in line, (e) food service, rest rooms, handicap and discarding trash processes, (f) museum security (art, safety, etc.), (g) interactive museum and learning displays (biztainment, robotics, software), and so on.

Whatever the student describes make sure you lead them into a discussion of key lessons that focus on the role of OM such as (1) process and job design and customer flows, (2) service encounter design and employee training, (3) integrating goods and services into a comprehensive CBP, (4) the importance of service management skills in most museum processes, (5) how services differ from goods, (6) biztainment, (7) capacity and staff/show scheduling, (8) purchasing, (9) the role of data analytics in forecasting customer demand, improving performance, and making good management decisions, (10) facility layout and location, and (11) a continuous improvement orientation. Get the students participating – use their examples to illustrate key OM concepts in Chapter 1. Help them “see OM” in their examples. Use “What Do OM Managers do?” box as a basis for discussion.

2. Explain why a bank teller, nurse, or flight...