Eastern Food - Critical Aspects of Operational Planning That the Company Needs to Consider - Case Study Example

REPORT ON EASTERN FOOD al Affiliation) Operations management has proven to be a hard concept for many players in the foodmanufacturing industry to successfully conceive, particularly on the management of resources. (Benjamin, N. 2004) This is despite the fact that managers have systems and tools at their disposals. There is a new characterization of the global market place through dynamic makeup and substantial size. To maintain their optimal performance in the ever changing global landscape, Eastern food operation management needs to grasp this reality that is facing the entire industry. This is the only way that would ensure that they not only remain relevant in the industry, but also remain competitive. It is incumbent upon the operation management at the Eastern Foods to stay side by side of the trends and to engage proactive systems that would ensure Eastern Food takes advantage of the changes. Some specific challenges that the Eastern Food is faced with include, but not limited to; technological advancement, globalization as well as redefined marketplace. Globalization has no doubt radically changed the manner in which the operation managers conduct their businesses in daily life. (Benjamin, N. 2004) This has also been the same case with the Eastern Foods, which has been forced to appreciate different techniques to deal with the change. It is clear that business is no longer defined by the distances, the time zones as well as landforms. These were the original barriers that separated people from the information regarding the markets and other aspects of trade. Because of these changes, corporations, particularly food manufacturers, can- and in most cases, must- , base their operation in many other countries or other new locations in order to minimize cost of operation and also maximize efficiency of the performance. This approach has been used by other companies, which are also outside the Food industry, such as Toyota Company, which is an automobile company with headquarter in Tokyo in Japan. This company has made several investments in other countries including the United States of America. However much companies like Ford and GM, would assume pride on being stooge domestic manufacturers, Avalon, which is a Toyota model is appreciated as one of the American-made cars. (Benjamin, N. 2004) Avalon Company, which is assembled in Kentucky, has nearly 85% parts from North American. This is a demonstration on how Globalization has turned many companies into big investors in the United States, and would perfectly be said that the American companies have been pushed out of business. The fact that availability of information is now instantaneous would be attributed to the advancement in the modern technology. These are similar changes that are now facing Eastern Foods. The company needs to advance its management in an evaluative manner, by venturing into modern technology, especially in the realms of communication. Technological advancement such as global positioning, systems (GPS) and the Radio-frequency Identification (RFID) have transformed the manner in which inventory management is now conducted by many companies. Several companies can now have the ability to obtain real time inventories regardless of the dispersion that it has. Further, the technological advancement have transformed the manner in which planning is undertaken and as such, most of the planning done by corporate are now precise, and with the ability to narrow margin of error that may be realized by the operations managers. Technology currently moves at a fast speed. Eastern Foods needs to appreciate this in order to advance its moves considerably. Failure to consider these facts may be catastrophic to Eastern Foods. It is also clear that the global marketplace remains a new priority so far as redefining is concerned. With the increasingly growing population, which also depends on the resources that are limited, companies have been forced to focus their priorities on sustainability. Considering that there are social and political pressures that companies face, Food manufacturing companies such as Eastern Foods have tried to include other forms of food that are nutritionally recognized to be healthy. Some of these foods include those with low calories. It calls for a company with savvy operation managers to realize that these changes in the marketplace are inevitable and requires flexibility. Another issue that needs to be addressed insofar as challenges facing Eastern Food is concerned is human resource management. Human resource management needs to be strategic, particularly when in food manufacturing Industry. This kind of strategy needs to be concerned with creation of plans to source, plans to store and plans to disposing off materials that may be needed in the process of doing business. Food manufacturing business has overtime been faced by new challenges which are unique to the industry especially in the field of strategic resource management. This is because the industry is dependable and produces basic commodity to people. One of the ways in which the food manufacturers can try to address the challenges that they face is by first understanding the nature of those challenges they face. To this end, the study will attempt to highlight on specific issues that surround ethics in the supplier sourcing. First, all companies would benefit much through application of strict guidelines in the selection process of their suppliers. This process however poises challenge to food manufacturers. Sourcing of raw food can be a hard task to companies like Eastern Food particularly in places where the companies have to rely on small scale suppliers of the food. This challenge usually comes regardless of the ethical considerations that the suppliers posses or the honestly they observe as they conduct their businesses. Manufacturer in the food industry may choose to reward the suppliers who produce food that is to the standards stipulated by the laws. This kind of food may include the compliance with the laws and policies that govern the production of Genetically Modified Food (GMOs). Such acts are part of the ethics that determine the supplier sourcing that a strategic human resource should consider in the food manufacturing industry. This is the similar challenge that Eastern Foods has faced. There is a strong gamble with the choices of the suppliers that the company has. This puts the company into risk of failing in the compliance. Eastern Foods need to reconsider the dealings that it has with the suppliers to ensure that their sourcing is sustainable and acceptable. Away from the supplier sourcing, another critical observation that needs to be made by the strategic human resource is the pricing. This is one area that Eastern Foods is facing. Pricing of raw materials particularly when it comes to food products can fluctuate much more than the finished food products by the manufacturers. When this happens, the food manufacturing companies face very serious challenges with the pricing of the finished products. One way in which the Eastern Food can deal with this problem of pricing is by pre-negotiating or negotiating time-bound price and placing such on contracts with their suppliers. This can be done through insisting on single purchase price regardless of the fluctuation in the suppliers’ prices. In return, Eastern Food may make promise and guarantee of purchasing from the suppliers without change of other suppliers. The issue of supplier may also present unique challenge to Food manufacturers like Eastern Foods. This is because sometimes production inputs may not be available or be presented in required quantities. An example of this situation may be in a case of processed food manufacturer who may be relying on fish from the local economy. For instance, it is not certain that the local fisherman would bring the same sizes and quantity of the fish that they supply. This may be as a result of the changes in the climate or weather patterns. In cases like this, Eastern Food needs to ensure that they get standby suppliers to help them deal with such problems. This is an attribute that requires strategic human resource management. In some cases, some companies may be forced to resort to suppliers who supply in large quantities though with low qualities than those suppliers with whom they have contracts. This may also come with a higher price considering that there may be fluctuation in the prices. This process may also act as an advantageous process to the companies, since it would help the manufacturing companies to discover new and reliable suppliers. Another very important aspect of human resource management that would resonate with the case of Eastern Food is the human resource as a situation in itself. Food manufacturers may obtain a significant level of financial advantage by outsourcing internationally or in different regions within a country. This approach may present a new challenge particularly to the strategic human resource management. For example, companies may be forced to operate with different legal permits especially when dealing with the human resources that govern employment relationships. Problem with the spreading human resources in different places and regions may also present challenge with the production material and ultimately the quality of the output that identifies the company. This is one of the challenges that the Eastern Foods should be ready to address at all times. For example, in the case where a manufacturer locates their production facility in a place in China, while at the same time sourcing their raw materials at Guatemala. This would mean that the manufacturer also meets the shipment cost Proposed plan for Eastern Foods There are critical aspects of operational planning that the company needs to consider. First, the company needs to consider the four basic issues in operation planning, which entail, funding, organizational structure, physical resources, and planning important dates. For Eastern Food to successfully manage its core business by 1st May, it will mean that the company recreates its programs and plans in a way that is profit oriented, such as increase of trending services within the food manufacturing industry. This will be a determinant of what the clients will be paying for the goods. It therefore follows that for Eastern Foods to successfully formulate a good operation plan, the entire funding spectrum should be evaluated critically. The second thing that Eastern Food needs to consider is the Organizational Structure. There is a need for the company to consider factors that relate to: key personnel in the organization; the type of position that these individuals occupy; the grouping of jobs that is always categorized in terms of the respective committees, or within the sections of the organization; the relationship of the key reporting personnel; and last but not least, the amount of authority that is delegated to the personnel. Observing physical resources is also something that Eastern Food needs to consider in their grand project. The ability of the Eastern Food to implement the project will depend on the tasks and the strategies that have been put in place. These tasks also depend on the availability of the resources. The organization needs to observe that physical resources may be categorized into five main categories. Finally, Eastern Food will need to consider the planning of important dates, which would ultimately be appropriate to ensure proper coordination of resources. Work Cited Benjamin, N. (2004). Operational planning. Frenchs Forest, N.S.W.: Pearson Education Australia. Read More