Operation management - Assignment Example

Outputs are also unique to every business in terms of the type of product or service being offered. A company without a quality OM strategy can risk being topped by more able competitors. This report looks to Starbucks on Lincoln-High Street, a service company with very high demand and need to be efficient. Analysis looks to understand performance objectives, demand fluctuations, quality perceptions from customer groups and suggestions on how Starbucks can improve. Source: Drawpack. (2014). External and internal effects on the performance objectives.

[online] Available at: http://www.drawpack.com/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=6326 (accessed 20 November 2014). For Starbucks, speed is the most key objective to be sure the business gains customer loyalty and meets with satisfying important paying customers. The Lincoln-High Street Starbucks is a very busy organisation. During observation, research saw that Starbucks serviced about 20 customers every thirty minutes. This cafe had an unstructured queue system with no clear markers or barriers set up that showed customers where they were expected to stand whilst wait for service.

Physical barriers and signs in a structured system better control flow and create efficiency (Adan, Boxma and Resing 2001). This created a situation where customers were forming lines in various places and customers seemed unsure about their place in line. On several times, customers deferred their place in line to other customers, not sure about who was actually there first. Having a waiting line system with clear markers, signs and barriers is important as it creates environment of certainty and efficiency.

Models for waiting lines directly affect customer feelings about service quality and costs of getting serviced. Tam (2004) says that customers have better views of services when perceived service quality is higher than the costs they have to pay to obtain the