Operations Management

Chapter 1: Introduction to Operations Management

Answers to Assigned Discussion Questions in Textbook

1. Define the term operations management.

Operations management manages the resources needed to produce the company’s products and services. It involves managing people, machines and information.

2. Explain the decisions operations managers make and give three examples.

Operations managers must plan the production schedule. This entails deciding how much to produce and in what order. This information would be used to make purchasing and staffing decisions. Operations managers must manage inventory. They must arrange the inventory in the warehouse. They also facilitate the movement of inventory from the warehouse to the retail facilities or the customer. Operations managers also must manage quality levels. This may include inspection of materials, and the use of quality tools such as control charts.

3. Describe the transformation process of a business. Give three examples. What constitutes the transformation process at an advertising agency, a bank, and a TV station?

The transformation process involves taking the various inputs and transforming them into outputs. An advertising agency would transform the time of its staff into an advertising campaign. A bank may use the time of a teller, an input computer, and a bank branch to accept a deposit. A TV station could use the time of its production crew, the video equipment, and the studio to produce a news story.

4. What are the three major business functions, and how are they related to one another? Give specific examples.

The three major business functions are finance, marketing and operations. Operations entail the production of a product or service and must manage the inputs to production such as workers' time, aluminum, and machine time to create airplane parts Finance manages the assets, such as the building used for production, investments and cash flows...