Balancing Effectiveness vs Efficiency within the Business - Essay Example

Operations Management Today’s businesses are being faced with great challenges when it comes to balancing effectiveness versus efficiency within the business. In order for companies to regain the capital they invested it becomes necessary that they identify opportunities that would deliver returns that cover the initial capital invested. The challenge is basically to embrace the available opportunities while at the same time ensure that the company operates within the preset operational margins with minimal costs. The company that I work for is no exception. It has been a great challenge to meet the objectives and targets of the company while at the same time maintaining operational excellence. Efficiency has been defined as measure of productivity or operational excellence concerned with operational margins improvement and cost minimization. Effectiveness on the other hand is associated with the business’s ability to identify and embrace opportunities of business via exchange relationships. As a result effectiveness is concerned with a company’s plan to develop a growth that is sustainable within its market (Stefanos, 2007). My organization has invested heavily and made tremendous efforts in balancing these two critical aspects of operations management all in an effort to increase the market share and maintain competitive advantage. The objectives of my organization are essentially to increase the market share and decrease the overall costs of running the organization. The target is to increase our market share from the current 15% to 20% within a period of two years. Another target is to introduce certain changes within the organization such that the overall costs would reduce by 5% within a period of one year. These changes include reducing field managers by 50% and employ more Close protection officers with advanced qualification. The organization had an objective of increasing its market share. The company embarked on a market wide research effort to identify client needs that were not being met. The organization realized that many business entities with huge capital bases required specialized protection service from the protective security firms. This service required CPO’s with a special kind of skill set which many security companies lacked. This created a need for the company to hire more CPO’s with the necessary skill set resulting in increased operational cost. After a thorough cost and benefits analysis, the company decided it would be more profitable to hire five specialized CPO’s to meet this need while at the same time minimizing the cost of operating the business (including those associated with hiring the 5 CPO’s) and minimizing the risks associated with the new venture. Total words: 420 Managing Change With all the modernization and technological changes occurring worldwide, there are so many changes taking place globally. This changes come with an ever increases demand for newer methods of dealing with pertinent issues close to the mission of the organization. I work in a protective security company which has had to make quite a number of changes in order to maintain its competitive advantage in the market. The organization had an objective of increasing its market share. This would come with a number of changes deemed suitable and necessary by the company. The company identified a new market consisting of clients with a special kind of need. This new demand necessitated the hiring of new CPO,s with a special skill set and the retrenchment of 50% of the field managers in an effort to keep operational efficiency low. The company through a process of cost and benefits analysis, it would be most profitable, efficient and effective to reduce field managers by 50% and increase CPO’s with special skills by 10%. This change would be effected by the general manager of the company. In executing this organizational change, the company stands to gain a lot although it will incur some forms of cost. The parties involved in this change include the company and the field managers. The field managers are divided into two groups: those that will be retrenched and those that will retain their jobs. The field managers who will loose their jobs would not gain anything out of it. On the other hand the field managers who retain their jobs would have more responsibility on their hands and to them this is a cost. The company on the other hand (one of the parties), stands to gain a lot out of this change. They gain from the increased market share, and with good management, the company stands to benefit from; better response to client needs, better resource management, the organization’s efficiency and effectiveness are optimized with a resultant increased operational excellence and achievement. In many organizations such changes are accompanied with a variety of challenges. In every change that occurs within an organization, there arise problems. How this change is managed is of utmost importance as it determines whether there will be gainful outcomes of the change being implemented. Some of the barriers that may arise include: inability of employees to identify solutions to problems arising from the change and persistently referring to the tradition that used to be; other employees and managers alike may fear making mistakes or even failing and in the process avoid taking risks (some of which may be necessary if the business has to grow); there may be an inability by the company management to solve arising problems which are complex in nature which may result in the avoidance of some of these problems which are essentially good ideas; inability by the company management to engage in critical thinking as regards the change being implemented so as to develop better strategies to map the way forward; inability to generate new ideas which would auger well with the change; the lack of essential support for change arising from people who fear change and perceive it as a threat to them; people who cannot take criticism positively and instead ‘self destruct’; management that fails to listen to employees who may have vital information regarding the change and its progress. Other barriers to the change include: making decisions based on inadequate data and wrong application of the strategies designed by the company in an effort to solve any emerging problems as the change is being implemented and effective communication which is necessary for the business change implementation plan to work (Recklies, 2001). Then an important question is, how will the communication be communicated and implemented in such a manner that it would minimize any adverse effects? The management through all the communication channels that it has including memos, letters, meetings, etc would inform the employees of the changes to be made as clearly as possible and give adequate reasons as to why it was a necessary action. A small information resource center is then created that would offer advice and insight to the employees who may still have difficulties in adjusting to the new way of operation. People are encouraged to embrace change as they are requested to take note of all the positive experiences taking place within the organization. As more employees continue to note all the benefits and problems that come with the change, they become more comfortable with the new way of doing things as the problems are solved. Their worries are eliminated as they learn the new ways. They then become less resistant to the change and start embracing the new way of operation. They become more committed to the new system and in the process they start taking more risks and make more decisions under uncertainty. They develop more creative solutions and realize the benefits that came with the introduction of change within the organization. In the process of implementing change, the employees and managers are encouraged to be open minded to the ideas emanating from each party, focus on new mode of operation and avoid referring to the previous traditions, learn from the mistakes committed in the past, avoid over criticizing of new ideas, build on the ideas being suggested, and allow all the employees to participate and be part of the change implementation process. This is of great importance as it helps the employees adjust to the change and eliminates their fear of communicating with the management which would a big barrier to effective communication, essential for good change management (Recklies, 2001). In conclusion, effective communication between the management and employees is critical in managing change within any organization. Any of the barriers arising and impeding the effective management of change can be addressed using good communication and team work. Involving all the employees in the change management process would create a sense of ownership and hasten the adjusting process. Total words: 1002 Marketing Every business today faces great challenges in maintaining or increasing their market share. The company has to identify its competitors and quantify their market share. They can then compare the market share and decide on whether there is need to increase the market share or maintain it. Many companies seek to gain a competitive advantage over their competitors in an effort to increase their market share. The protective security industry for instance, has many business firms offering protective security to the various categories of clients. The firms make an effort to introduce products/services that suite their clients needs. The firms explore the market and develop strategies that enhance their position within the market. My organization is a business firm that offers tailor made protective security services to our clients. Our clients or customers range from local business men and politicians to international businessmen and international organizations. Our clients have security needs that vary to a great extent. Some would require our services fulltime while others would require our services only when hey believe they are visiting certain areas that are high risk. They would also vary in terms of their security needs, that is, some would require heavy security while others would require minimal security. The organization develops products that are of high quality and satisfy the customer’s needs. In order for my organization to succeed and operate profitably, it identifies its competitors, analyzes their product range and develops new products that offer a lot more than the competitors in order to maintain a competitive advantage over them. Although there are many methods of identifying competitors, my organization prefers to use the market method of competitor identification to identify its competitors. Clark, Montgomery, and David (1999) noted that there are many ways of identifying competitors, they include: group strategy method, market method and industry method. The market method is my organizations method of choice as it gives a much broader list of competitors compared to the other two. The market method identifies a competitor as an entity that meets the same customer need as you. This means that it all firms that offer a service that meets a basic security need of people are our competitors, even though they may be an entirely different kind of organization. For instance using the marketing method to identify competitors of my organization, the police, and the army to some extent may be identified as competitors. Using other methods like the industry method, the police and army may not really be viewed as competitors. With the ever increasing competition within the security industry, there is need for a security firm to critically look at their services and make honest and realistic analysis. Any company wishing to operate profitably and with optimized efficiency and effectiveness, may find it prudent to critically evaluate their market position and share. Adopting and using the market method of competitor identification allows my organization to identify all forms of competition including those ones that other methods of competitor identification overlook. One of the pressures affecting my organization’s market is the ever changing consumer needs. The consumers who need protection are on the increase but their threats keep changing. As much as technology has come with benefits that may outweigh its costs, there certain sectors of the economy which continue to suffer at the hands of the changing technological capabilities. Technology allows fewer people to commit crime on a much wider scale. It exposes our clients to risks of attack by people who are much further away and may not be physically within your vicinity to attack your client. The resources that it takes to handle or manager such a crisis may be much more than would normally be needed and it is becoming harder to deal with this kind of challenges arising in the industry. Customers increasingly need much more specialized forms of protection that require a lot of resources to pull off. It requires the use of expensive equipment and at threats that have equipment capable of inflicting harm on a much wider scale. It is very difficult for my organization to keep up with the ever changing security needs and be up to date with the latest form of technology in the protective security industry. The changing consumer needs come with a need to obtain more modernized equipment that require huge amount so of capital and worse still, some of these equipment becomes outdated before they live to generate income that covers the cost of obtaining it. Another of the pressures facing my organization is an ever increasing number of firms that offer protective security services. With the ever increasing client security needs and demands, arise other security firms that seek to meet those needs. In the process, the number of firms offering protective security services is increasing making it more difficult for my organization to maintain its market share. It is becoming increasingly necessary for my organization to carry out market research more frequently in order to identify new client needs so as to be able to keep the competitive advantage. The new firms come with more efficient equipment and technology with a much leaner work force dedicated to providing quality services to clients. Implementing organizational structure changes to develop a lean work force so as to compete effectively is a major challenge which the company faces. The organization has to restructure the whole organization structure in order to optimize employee input and quality of service while at the same time minimize operational costs (lean workforce). In conclusion, identifying our clients within the protective security industry, gives the organization a true reflection of its position within the market. Using this information, the organization is in a position to develop strategy that can be used to increase the market share and maintain the competitive advantage. It is also of equal importance for the organization to recognize some of the greatest challenges that it faces within the protective security industry. Identification of these challenges allows the company to critically evaluate them and develop appropriate mechanisms to counter them. Total words: 1007 Managing Projects I am currently involved in a Tuberculosis HIV and AIDS control project. The project focuses on the identification of individuals suffering from tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS. The project supplies antiretroviral drugs to patients who suffer from HIV/ AIDS while at the same time offering drugs to individuals who suffer from tuberculosis (TB). It had been discovered that most of these patients are patients with a history of abusing drugs (substance abuse) and in most cases they get so high that they are unable to regularly take their treatment. As for the TB patients, missing the treatment once requires one to start the whole treatment afresh. It is for this reason that the project coordinator found it necessary to identify certain hideouts where there is abuse of substance and locate patients who have forgotten to follow up their treatment. Some of these places are risky and my role is to provide protection to the medical personnel as they educate the people at risky and deliver drugs to the sick. Planning and scheduling the project is one of the critical phases of the project. The tools used in planning and scheduling include: brainstorming, Ishikawa diagrams, Gantt charts and Critical Path Analysis Flow Diagrams (businessballs, 2010). Brainstorming is the initial stage of project planning and management. It is a free thinking stage which is overlooked and underutilized. This stage allows for development of ideas and suggestion of possible courses of action within the project. The Ishikawa diagrams (fishbone diagrams) are useful to the project as they promote and allow for early planning while identifying factors that are critical to the project and may be hidden within the details. The Ishikawa diagram consists of a central spine around which is a map of certain factors that contribute to the problem or solution. Project Critical Path Analysis is a flow diagram with a linear format and is basically a timeline that seeks to identify activities that are interdependent and related. It assigns time to these project activities and facilitates smooth operation and objective achievement. The Gantt charts are used within the organization as an important tool for scheduling and budgeting. The charts are also of great value when it comes to the presentation and communication of the plans and progress of the project with ease. All these tools are used within the project in the process of planning, implementing strategy and monitoring, evaluating and decision making. Although these tools are utilized to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the project through planning and progress monitoring and evaluation, there are always some unforeseen circumstances. The Critical Path Analysis tool is the main aspect of planning that is central to the project. While planning, there is always room left for the unforeseen. It could be in the form of human resource, financial resources and any other relevant resources. These are always available for immediate use to sought out the problem. Communication and information technology are at the core of the project. Communication backed up by a good and up to date information technology allows for the movement of information from one employee of the project to another. Communication allows for the transfer of information from the planners and management of the project to the field operatives. It also allows for the exchange of ideas between the various employees both in the field and within the whole organization. The information technology allows for data analysis and facilitates decision making based on data processed. Therefore both communication and information technology play a central role in the effective and efficient operation of the project. Total words: 1034 References Businessballs, 2010. Project management, tools, process, plans and project planning tips [online] Available at: http://www.businessballs.com/project.htm [Accessed 25 March 2012] Clark, B. Montgomery, H. and David, B., 1999. Managerial identification of competitors. Journal of Marketing, 63, pp.67-83. Recklies, O., 2001. Problems in managing change [online] Available at: http://www.themanager.org/strategy/change_problems.htm [Accessed 25 March 2012] Stefanos, M., 2007. Efficiency versus Effectiveness [online] Available at: http://www.impgroup.org/uploads/papers/4729.pdf [Accessed 25 March 2012] Read More