Components of the Study of Business - Essay Example

Operations Management: A Critical Review The area of operations management is the component of the study of business that is concerned with the production of goods and services, and which involves the responsibility of ensuring that all business operations run smoothly. Operations management also "refers to the production of goods and services, the set of value-added activities that transform inputs into many outputs." ("Wikipedia", 2006). The key element of operations management is to ensure that things are running efficiently and effectively, and must be careful to maintain the proper management of resources as well as the distribution of goods and services to customers. Operations management is the systematic direction and control of the many processes which transform inputs into finished goods or services. Operations is one of the most important and primary functions in any sort of firm or business. "While marketing induces the demands for products and finance provides the capital, operations produces and delivers the product (goods and services)." (Hall, Johnson, & Pyke, 2005). There are many components and elements involved in operations management, and in order to more thoroughly understand these and other factors, the following questions must be addressed: 1. What is the nature of inefficient processes management 2. What is the role of operations management 3. What is the role of resource management 4. What is the role of project management 5. What are some conclusions that can be drawn from this review By discussing these five questions, we can come to a clearer and more knowledgeable viewpoint on the subject matter. The aim of this paper is to discuss all of this, while also examining the other key elements which fit within this profile of subject matter. This is what will be dissertated in the following. What is the Nature of Inefficient Processes Management Inefficiency drains valuable components such as money, time, quality, and talent. There is no chance in optimizing or making more positive any of the steps involved in the process if the process itself is deemed as inefficient. "Incidentally, process optimization is a continuous phenomena. It is not like you can do it once and forget about it. External conditions keep changing, other dependant processes keep changing, and so on." ("TopSigma", 2005). The nature of inefficient processes management is to make sure that these valuable components (money, time, etc.) are not wasted, but rather are used to the fullest extent possible; the ideal is to have all members working at their absolute top strength, which creates a cycle of efficiency, which in the end creates a positive result. What is the Role of Operations Management The role of 'operations' varies from business to business, but the basics always remain: the operations management looks at every process in the business, breaks it down, analyzes it, and makes it better. Their goal is to have overall customer satisfaction, and to continue the business in a positive, efficient, and effective way. "Operations management revolves around the design, organization, leadership and control of the productive assets of the enterprise, including people and technology." (Merrett, n.d.). Regardless of the size or type of business, there are always processes and operations issues that must be dealt with. Operations managers find the inefficiencies or problems in the work flow of the business, and re-engineer these processes in order for them to be more efficient and profitable for the company. Operations management involves all of the tools and processes of the business, including components such as: the supply chain, product quality, manufacturing, sales and marketing, safety and health, and environmental concerns. "Operations managers use tools like performance measurement, flowcharts, best practices information, and benchmarking to determine where the problems are and the best methods to correct them." (Obringer, 2006). Some of the processes that are linked to the operations management are: new product research and development, manufacturing and production, supply chain, quality measurement, sales and marketing, finance, human resources, and facility management. The techniques used and incorporated by operations management are perhaps the most important of the entire business. This is because it is their job to keep everything running efficiently and effectively - which is the key necessity for any business. There are various principles involved in operations management, such as the examining of problems which may be encountered in planning, operating, and controlling the production of goods and services. Those involved in operations management must understand the logistics of the efficient delivery of goods and services, and how to properly use the material and supply chain management in manufacturing and service organizations in order to reduce inventory levels while still providing adequate service to all customers. They must focus on the management of complex projects and the tools and techniques which have been developed in the past 25 years in order to assist managers with such projects. Operations management examines such things as system theory, project design, and strategic decision-making in a teaming environment. Operations managers use means such as mathematical and scientific data to improve and re-engineer all the processes in the business. This process analysis allows the operations management to do many things, such as: identity improvements in their product production processes that will turn into cost savings; streamline their company's infrastructure; streamline their inventory and supply chain issues; and identity problems in their administrative, accounting, purchasing, and other departments to eliminate those that do not add value to the company. Operations management focuses on carefully managing the processes involved which are used to produce and distribute products and services. It is not fairly often that small businesses talk about 'operations management', however they do carry out the activities that management schools usually associate with the phrase 'operations management'. While major, overall activities often include product creation, development, production and distribution, related activities often times include elements such as managing purchases, inventory control, quality control, storage, logistics and evaluations. "A great deal of focus is on efficiency and effectiveness of processes. Therefore, operations management often includes substantial measurement and analysis of internal processes." (McNamara, n.d.). What is the Role of Resource Management Resource management is the efficient and effective use of an organization's resources when they are needed. One resource management technique is that of resource levelling. Resource management is literally defined as "the considered use of renewable and non renewable resources bearing in mind both the needs of people and the conservation of the resource base for the future." ("Glossary", 2006). The required data are: the demands for various resources, forecasted by time period into the future as far as is reasonable, as well as the resources' configurations required in those demands, and the supply of the resources, which are again forecasted by time period into the future as far as is reasonable. "The goal is to achieve 100% utilization but that is very unlikely, when weighted by important metrics and subject to constraints, for example: meeting a minimum service level, but otherwise minimizing cost." ("Wikipedia", 2006). What is the Role of Project Management The idea of project management was used as an isolated concept before the Sputnik crisis of the Cold War, and has been updated and continuously revitalized in many different ways since then. The role of project management deals with many elements and responsibilities. It is the discipline of defining and achieving targets, and is quite often the responsibility of an individual project manager. One of the most primary focuses in this realm is to optimize the use of resources such as time, money, people, materials, and space. Project management is composed of several different types of activities such as: planning the work involved; estimating the allotted resources; organizing the work involved; acquiring human and material resources; assigning tasks; directing various activities; controlling project execution; reporting progress achieved; and analysing results based on the facts gained. The key element for project management is to gain control over things, especially over five variables in particular: time, cost, quality, scope, and risk. The time involved in completing a project is of the utmost importance, and it is up to project management to create an efficient time quota. The cost component must be related from and calculated to the time variable, and the cost of a project must be multiplied among the team members appropriately. The amount of quality put into a task must be somewhat even with the time variable, in that the project management must enforce the fact that although both time and quality are of significant importance, one must never override the other; if a project was completed in record time but with poor quality, then the entire project has failed. The scope of a project consists of the requirements which are specified for the end result. The scope is "The overall definition of what the project is supposed to accomplish, and a specific description of what the end result should be or should accomplish." ("Wikipedia", 2006). Lastly, but certainly just as important, is the component of risk. All of the potential risks of failure are considered in this category, and the project management must be not only aware of all of these risks, but must also have means and understanding of how to overcome or resolve these failures if they do occur. What are Some Conclusions That can be Drawn From This Review From this review, we can see that the entire process of operations management is one of significant importance, and that each of the processes involved within this must be separately understood not only solely, but in regards to how they fit in to the overall process as a whole. Each leader of each separate process must be thoroughly learned, and must take every step possible in an effort of making and maintaining a high level of satisfaction, in order for the whole process to flow smoothly. Operations management focuses on carefully managing the processes which are necessary in order to produce and distribute products and services. Often times, small businesses don't talk about 'operations management', but they do carry out the activities that management schools typically associate with the phrase 'operations management'. The major, overall activities often include such things as product creation, development, production, and distribution - to name a few. Related activities to this include things such as managing purchases, inventory control, quality control, storage, logistics and evaluations. A great deal of focus in this area is on the efficiency and effectiveness of the overall processes. Therefore, operations management often times includes substantial measurement and the analysis of internal processes. Ultimately, the nature of how operations management is carried out in an organization highly depends on the nature of products or the services in the organization itself. Operations management may be applied to numerous different areas, but the overall ideal and concept of the term remains steadily the same, as do the elements which are involved within it. The universal goal is customer satisfaction, which can only be achieved through the improving of quality, efficiency and ultimately the reducing of costs for everyone. Add to this the research which can create innovative new products and you will result with the perfect product with the perfect manufacturing process and the perfect marketing plan. All of these elements which fit into the overall scheme of operations management are each just important as the next, and all must be running efficiently and effectively in order for the overall result to be a positive one. References Donk, D. P. V., & Fransoo, J. C. (2005). Operations Management Research in Process Industries. Retrieved April 12, 2006, from http://www.sciencedirect.com/science_ob=ArticleURL&_udi=B6VB7-4FK42R0-1&_user=10&_handle=V-WA-A-W-D-MsSWYWW-UUW-U-AAVDVAAZUV-AAVVEEWVUV-DEVBWDZWY-D-U&_fmt=summary&_coverDate=04%2F30%2F2006&_rdoc=2&_orig=browse&_srch=%23toc%235919%232006%23999759996%23618894!&_cdi=5919&view=c&_acct=C000050221&_version=1&_urlVersion=0&_userid=10&md5=567502076c0967409429a84fcc5247e2 "Glossary". (2006). Resource Management. Retrieved April 12, 2006, from http://www.forest.nsw.gov.au/education/glossary/default.asp Hall, J. M., Johnson, E., & Pyke, D. F. (2005). Operations Management. Retrieved April 12, 2006 from http://oracle-www.dartmouth.edu/dart/groucho/tuck_mba_program.syllabusp_id=OM McNamara, C. (n.d.). Operations Management. Retrieved April 12, 2006, from http://www.managementhelp.org/ops_mgnt/ops_mgnt.htm Merrett, D. (n.d.). Operations Management. Retrieved April 12, 2006, from http://72.14.207.104/searchq=cache:iN_-FmSpYRIJ:www.management.unimelb.edu.au/programs/bcom/OPS_spec.pdf+what+is+the+role+of+operations+management&hl=en&gl=ca&ct=clnk&cd=5 Obringer, L. A. (2006). How Operations Works. Retrieved April 12, 2006, from http://money.howstuffworks.com/operations.htm "Project." (n.d.). Project Roles and Responsibilities. Retrieved April 12, 2006, from http://www.hraconsulting-ltd.co.uk/project-roles-responsibilities.htm "TopSigma." (2005). Cost Savings. Retrieved April 12, 2006, from http://www.topsigma.com/cost_savings.htm "Wikipedia." (2006). Operations Management. Retrieved April 12, 2006, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operations_management Read More