Operations

Chapter 1

1.) What factors account for the resurgence of interest in OSM today?

Globalization is one of the reasons for the resurgence of interest in OSM. As businesses become more global, firms need to have a solid knowledge of all their operations and processes. This will enable them to keep their prices low, and remain competitive in the marketplace. Technology is another factor that has led to the resurgence of interest in OSM. As technology becomes more advanced, people are coming up with more ways to become more efficient and effective. Because of the current economic climate, it is becoming more important for firms to take a hard look at their operations to ensure that they are operating in the best way. This could be the difference between staying in business and going out of business.

8.) Recent outsourcing of parts and services that had previously been produced internally is addressed by which current issue facing operation management today?

Coordinating the relationships between mutually supportive but separate organizations is the current issue that addresses this phenomenon. Companies are now outsourcing parts and services that had traditionally been produced internally. With this success, firms are now considering outsourcing other components of their operations. The ability to coordinate these activities will provide many challenges for the operations manager of the future.

Chapter 2

10.) What do we mean when we say productivity is a “relative” measure?

Productivity is a relative measure because it needs be compared to another number for it to be meaningful. For example, if an investment earns $100 for every $25 invested, that measure really does not mean anything unless you compare it to something else. You could compare that measure to a similar investment, or the same investment just at a different point in time.

Timbuk2

1.) For their custom messenger bag, the competitive dimensions that are driving sales are...