BUSINESS NOTES - OPERATIONS

SECTION A: Role of Operations Management

● Strategic role of operations management – cost leadership, good/service

differentiation

Operations - business processes that involve transformation or production.

Transformation - conversion of inputs (resources) into outputs (goods and services).

➔ Manufacturing businesses - turning raw materials and resources into outputs of finished goods or
products
➔ Service businesses - actually carrying out the service
➔ Inputs - the raw materials, components and parts used
➔ Outputs - what is made or supplied by the operations process

Value adding - creation of extra or added value as inputs are transformed into outputs

Operations processes include:

- production of goods and services
- production controls and associated quality controls on processes → input management and
capacity (volume of output) decisions
- inventory controls
- supply chain management
- logistics and distribution
- management decision making in terms of operational processes

Operation and customer focus

Over time, there has been a focus on customers and customer relationships, as customers also desire
firms to engage in processes that:

● Waste minimal resources in their production — lean production

○ Lean production - aims to eliminate waste at every stage of production.
○ Involves analysing each stage of the production process, detecting where inefficiencies are
and correcting them
○ Waste is non-value adding but adds cost → improved efficiency
 ○ E.g. under use of labour, overproduction, errors and defects requiring remediation or
creating lost product, under utilisation of machinery, slow lead times and waiting times
within processes, and carrying of excess inventory
● Reflect fair value for any labour used in processes
○ It is important for businesses operate fairly and compensate and treat employees
appropriately
○ Customers advocate for operations processes to integrate notions of a fair price, decent
working conditions and local sustainability → Fair trade movement
● Operate at low cost so as to maximise affordability
○ Capture market share by lowering cost → minimising production costs
● Integrate environmental awareness and a need for ecologically sustainable practices
○ Growing awareness for state of the environment → want the processes used by business to
reflect ecologically sustainable practices
○ E.g. reduce greenhouse gases, reduce waste, save electricity and use materials that can be
recycled
● Reflect changes in the needs of consumers over time
○ Consumers seek innovative goods → businesses create innovative products

Strategic role of operation management - Operations managers contributing to the strategic direction or
strategic plan of the business

Analysis of revenue and cost → profit centres- directly derive income and cost centres- do not directly
derive income but do incur cost → finance and marketing target revenue whilst HR and operation target
expense minimisation

Cost leadership

Cost leadership - aiming to have the lowest costs or to be the most price-competitive in the market

➔ A key aspect is that although trading with the lowest cost, the overall business should still be
profitable

Overhead costs - expenses necessary to the on-going functioning of the business (rent, advertising etc.)

Ways to achieve cost leadership:

- Products that are basic, no-frills type with fewer features, perhaps lower quality and using low-
cost packaging
 - Outsourcing product servicing so that the business focuses on its core function rather than after-
sales service and warranty administration
- Exclusive access to a large source of low-cost inputs
- Distributing the product using dealers who work with lower profit margins

Economies of scale - cost advantages that can be created as a result of an increase in scale of business
operations

➔ Typically the cost savings come from being able to purchase lower cost per unit of input and from
efficiencies created through improved use of technology and machinery

Disadvantages of using cost leadership:

➢ Usually only for standardised products
➢ Competitors can use the same strategy and may achieve even lower costs → small businesses are
able to implement strategies to reduce costs much faster
➢ Products are perceived differently by customers compared to competitors due to better
technology, features and service
➢ ↑ costs from suppliers
➢ Developments in technology change consumer preferences
➢ Consumer preferences change and the market for a ‘low-cost, low-quality’ product shrinks → feel
that they are not environmentally sustainable
➢ A strong competitor uses aggressive marketing with heavily discounted prices or loss leading
prices
➢ Being ‘leapfrogged’ by a business that can afford a large financial investment in research and
development

Goods/service differentiation

Product differentiation - distinguishing products (goods or services) in some way from its competitors

Product differentiation: goods (capital intensive)

- Varying the actual product features
- Generally, goods will come in one basic variety and then in other varieties of ↑ complexity
or option
- For electronic goods, products are made with remarkable variation as a means of
differentiating the market
 - Varying product quality
- Making a low-quality model that is very affordable and ↑ the quality + price
- Higher quality alternative may be sold under an alternative trade name so market
perceives both products as being produced by different producers
- Varying any augmented features:
- Add-ons or additional benefits associated with particular goods
- Typically seen in electronic goods and motor vehicles
- The service along with the product

Product differentiation: services (labour intensive)

- Varying the amount of time spent on a service
- Varying the level of expertise brought to a service
- ↑ level of expertise then = ↑ specialised service
- Varying the qualifications and experience of the service provider
- ↑ qualified and experienced service providers = ↑ quality of service
- Varying the quality of materials/technology used in service delivery
- Computer-based technologies such as accounting software, CAD and CAM programs,
medical technologies, ICTs can significant affect the quality of service provided

Cross branding - adds value to products (goods and services) by offering consumers added benefits from a
cross-branding arrangement (e.g. Coles-Shell alliance)

● Goods and/or services in different industries

Standardised goods - those that are mass produced, usually on an assembly line

➔ Uniform in quality and meet a predetermined level of quality. These are generally produced with a
production focus

Customised goods - those that are varied according to the needs of customers

➔ Produced with a market focus rather than a production focus

Operational processes vary between sectors:

Perishable goods and operational processes

- High standards of quality, safety and cleanliness in all operating processes
- Very short lead times and distribution that is as quick and effective as possible
 - Appropriate and robust packaging and cold storage processes both through production and
distribution

Non-perishable goods and operational processes

- Manage all aspects of quality in the process, from sourcing through to production and distribution
- Implement effective inventory management strategies and be highly responsive to market
demand in order not to over produce

Services in different industries:

Self service - encouraging the customers to take the initiative to help themselves

● Interdependence with other key business functions

Interdependence - mutual dependence that the key functions have on one another

Marketing - meeting the needs and wants of consumers through provision of products at prices that the
market is prepared to pay

➔ Research identifies the nature of goods consumers desire and marketing strategies encourage
purchases → Operations must supply a product that has the features and quality consumers
demand as well as reliably distributing this product to the market
➔ Design a product that is competitive and meets the needs of customers → Operations determines
the most efficient and effective design

Finance - recording and summarising financial transactions into a series of reports that can be easily
interpreted

➔ The finance manager will create budgets and make funds available to purchase inputs, equipment,
repairs and maintenance → Production costs need to be minimised to maximise profit margins

HR - deal with the people the business employs and the issues arising from their employment

➔ HR ensures that enough employees with the appropriate skills are available for the operations
function. HR manager use their leadership style and rewards to ensure quality work is done by
employees in the operations → results in better products and services

SECTION B: Influences
 ● Globalisation, technology, quality expectations, cost-based competition,
government policies, legal regulation, environmental sustainability

Globalisation

Globalisation - the removal of barriers of trade between nations

➔ Characterised by an increasing integration between national economies and a high degree of

transfer of capital, labour, intellectual capital and ideas, financial resources and technology
➔ Provides market opportunities and reduces costs through establishing global supply chain but acts
as a threat as (businesses with cost leadership principles can undercut the market and dominate)
➔ Forms regional trading blocs that form an economic alliance → businesses can share costs and
reduce the expense of developing, producing and distributing products to the global market

Global consumers seek global brands and standardised products → businesses must ensure product
design must meet the needs of global consumers; the choice of location for manufacturing facilities,
quality management, logistics and inventory management processes, are all oriented towards a global
market.

It opens up new markets and operations may need to change the features, design, quality or information
for a good or service → product needs small changes to suit target market

● Supply chain management

Supply chain - range of suppliers a business has and the nature of its relationship with those suppliers

Businesses need very predictable and reliable supply chain that is highly responsive to changes in
demand as experienced by the business → sourcing suppliers needed so production flows smoothly

Global web - network of suppliers a business has chosen on the basis of lowest overall cost, lowest risk and
maximum certainty in quality and timing of supplies

➔ Refers to the network of suppliers a business has, chosen on the basis of lowest overall cost,
lowest risk and maximum certainty in quality and timing of supplies

A strategy in which the business aims to minimise cost across the range of its suppliers → opt for a
location in appropriate proximity to the suppliers

- Manufacturing may be located where inputs and labour are cheapest

 - Raw materials may be sourced from where they are most abundant
- Finance is controlled from headquarters situated in one of the world’s financial centres

However, when operating in multiple countries → depreciation of AUD against the currency of the
country inputs are being sourced from = ↑ costs

● Imitation, innovation and the supply chain

Reverse engineering - taking the product of a competitor that has already been released into the market
and then take it apart to see how it is made

➔ The imitating business then tries to make their own version of the product from the component
parts, but does so using different materials and at a lower cost

Innovation - business creates novel (new) products, and in doing so leads the market

- improve an existing product or it may lead to an easier way of life through the creation of products
that solve a problem in a way not previously done
- Make a technological breakthrough that allows for a leap in the quality of life and opportunities for
consumers

Technology

Technology - the design, construction and/or application of innovative devices, methods and machinery
upon operations processes

- At an administrative level: technologies assist with organisation, planning and decision making
- At a processing level: technologies are used in manufacturing, logistics and distribution, quality
management, all aspects of inventory management, supply chain management and sourcing

New technology saves time, reduces waste and makes business more efficient and profitable → however
must consider speed/length of change, finance available and whether staff will need to be retrained

Robots - machines that can be programmed to perform a variety of repetitive tasks

➔ ↑ efficiency and preciseness and ↓ HR costs

➔ Computer-aided design (CAD) and computer-aided manufacturing (CAM) → ↑ efficiency and ↓
errors and staff
➔ E-commerce, internet and intranet
Quality expectations

Quality - how well designed, made and functional goods are, and the degree of competence with which
services are organised and delivered

➔ International Standards Organisation (ISO) defines quality: the totality of features and
characteristics of products and services that bears its ability to satisfy stated or implied needs

Quality expectations of businesses determine the way that products are designed, created and delivered
to customers

Goods
● Quality of design
○ How well concept has been developed - customer needs/expectations
○ Nature of materials used
○ Innovation in design (waste minimisation)
● Fitness for purpose
○ How well the product does what it is designed to do
○ How easy it is to use
● Durability
○ How reliable and long-lasting
○ How easily it can be repaired and maintained (efficiency of after-sales)

Services
● Professionalism
○ Cleanliness and layout of physical facilities
○ Courtesy of staff
● Reliability
○ How efficient the service is performed
○ Overall levels of competence
● Level of customisation
○ How well the particular needs of customers are fulfilled

Cost based competition

Cost-based competition - determining break even point and then applying strategies to create cost
advantages over competitors
Cost leadership approach → focus on ↓ costs while maintaining profit margins → works best for
standardised products and there is little difference in products offered by competitors

Ways costs can be reduced

- Eliminate waste - Produce ↑ volume output
- Use automated production systems - Bulk buy inputs
- Produce standardised products for large markets - Use economies of scale

Government policies

Government policies change (changes in government or change in social expectations) → significant

influence on business operations

The government provides grants/tax concessions to support innovative benefits (AUSTRADE for
Australian businesses that wish to export and expand into the global economy) → removal of tariffs,
quotas and other types of protection = more competition

Government policies that impact businesses:

a. Taxation rates b. Required materials handling practices c. Public health policies
d. Occupational health and safety standards e. Training and rules
f. Environmental policies g. Employment relations h.Trade and industry policies

Legal regulation

Compliance - range of laws with which a business must comply

Compliance costs - expenses associated with meeting the requirements of legal regulations

The operations function involves transformation and value adding → the use of labour, technology,
finance, machinery and energy

In many industries regulations have been removed to enable firms to ↑ efficiency and ↓ number of
restrictions hampering competition. Major laws are principally to ensure 3 objectives: safe business
operations, minimise/avoid negative impact on environment and claims by a business must be true

Laws relating to labour and labour management, environment and public health:
- Occupational Health and Safety (OH&S): in the use of machinery and in interacting with the
business environment. Safe and healthy working conditions require that employees be given
 appropriate safety training, use of protective equipment, and work with machines that abide by
noise, pollution and safety standards
- Training and development: in the use and application of technology and in the appropriate
methods required to work effectively
- Fair work and anti-discrimination laws: requiring that employees be treated with dignity and
respect
- Environmental protection: in the use of minimising pollution, eliminating and safely disposing of
any toxic residues
- Apply rules related to public health: including any fair trading rules which influence product
safety standards and fitness for purpose of products

Environmental sustainability

Environmental sustainability/ecological sustainability - business operations should be shaped around

practices that consume resources today without compromising access to those resources for future
generations

➔ Sustainable use of renewable resources , ↓ use of non-renewable resources, ↓ pollution caused by

machinery and removal/storage of waste

Operations management is significantly affected by the rise in climate change awareness and the need to
integrate a long-term sustainable view of resource → reduce and minimise waste; recycle water, glass,
paper and metals, and reduce their carbon footprint

Carbon footprint - the amount of carbon produced and entering the environment from operations
processes

● Corporate social responsibility

Corporate social responsibility - open and accountable business actions based on respect for people,
community/ society and the broader environment

➔ Involves businesses doing more than just complying with the laws and regulations
➔ Places value on financial returns as well as social responsibility and environmental sustainability
➔ Concerned with human rights, corruption and payment of bribes, corporate transparency and
honesty and labour standards
 ➔ Weaker in developing countries due to fewer regulations and support for multinational
corporations can stimulate economic growth

The government creates laws with an expectation that they will be followed → penalties for breach of
business laws act as a deterrent and assist businesses to understand their obligations

- The difference between legal compliance and ethical responsibility

The difference between legal compliance and ethical responsibility

➢ Legal requirements require that a business follows the letter of the law
➢ Ethical responsibility sees businesses meeting all of their legal obligations and taking it further by
following the intention and ‘spirit’ of the law (morally correct)
○ Supporting charities and local community organisations, consulting the community prior to
implementing a significant change, promoting human and civil rights
○ Minimising harm to the environment, reducing waste, recycling and reusing, Producing
value-for-money, quality products and improved customer service

Legal compliances:
- Labour law compliance: such as minimum wages, award wages, working hours, breaks, pay for
various forms of leave, other on-costs associated with labour, workers compensation and health
and safety laws
- Environmental and public health compliance: such as regulations stopping dumping, pollution
(air, land and water), requiring certain standards of operating and disposing of waste.
- Business licensing rules: requiring particular levels of training or certification and those placing
conditions on operations
- Taxation: levies and duties and taxes imposed on profits (Superannuation) → can encourage
particular practices or penalise particular activities
- Trade practices and fair market dealings: address issues of market power, misleading and unfair
conduct, price collusion, monopoly behaviour, market concentration and product safety
- Migration and rules around the use of offshore skilled labour: aim to ensure minimum standards
are applied to labour brought in from other nations
- Intellectual property: copyright, patents, trademarks, designs and other original ideas and artistic
works
 - Financial and accounting regulations and corporations law: aim to standardise methods and rules
around financial records and reports, and businesses follow particular rules as fiduciaries (a
person in a position of financial trust with respect to others’ money)
- Human rights: rules restricting discrimination on the grounds of disability, culture, sexual
preference, gender, age or any other distinguishing feature

Businesses reduce compliance costs by outsourcing → take advantage of significant cost savings as
compliance requirements are different between nations ∴ ↓ taxation rates, standards of labour and
environmental and intellectual property regulations

Outsourcing - the use of outside specialists to undertake one or more key business functions

➔ Onshore outsourcing - use of domestic businesses as the outsourcing provider

➔ Offshore outsourcing taking the activities to a provider in another country

Businesses can guide their decisions on having ethical responsibility when laws and regulations differ
between nations after consulting with guidelines set by international bodies

● International Labour Organisation (ILO)

They hold annual conventions called the International Labour Conference and raises matters of
importance to workplaces → if ⅔ of the members agree to the report’s recommendations → becomes
International Labour Standards and nations are expected to pass laws

- Environmental sustainability and social responsibility

Environmental sustainability - balance between economic concerns and environmental concerns

Businesses must take responsibility for the protection of the environment → social conscience to adopt
policies of conservation, recycling and restoration

➔ The Australian SAM Sustainability Index determines the performance of companies in

environmental sustainability and social responsibility. They are publically available and put
pressure on Australian businesses to improve

There is a growing customer expectation that products should be ‘clean, green and safe’ → changes
management practices to produce new and better products in an ecologically sustainable manner to
coincides with stakeholder expectations
 a. adopt greenhouse abatement (reduction) measures
b. encourage the development of long-term sustainable strategies
c. Water recycling → Externalities - when the community bears the cost rather than the business
d. Waste management - the collection, transport, processing and recycling of waste materials
.

Social responsibility - taking actions or making decisions that are morally and ethically correct and are in
the best interests of the community

Socially responsible business tries to achieve two goals simultaneously: (1) expanding the business and
(2) providing for the greater good of society → customers will reward socially responsible businesses by
purchasing their products

SECTION C: Operations Processes

● Inputs

Common direct inputs:

1) Labour - human effort, both mental and physical
2) Energy - energy, in the form of electricity or fuels, which can be converted into heat,
3) movement, light, sound or other forms of energy → required to transform and distribute inputs
4) Raw materials - wood, unprocessed agricultural products, natural resources in the form of
minerals and fossil fuels, water
5) Machinery and technology - machinery is used to process raw materials and design and make
products
➔ Capital-labour substitution - machinery and technology displace people by doing the work
they do

- Transformed resources (materials, information, customers)

Transformed resources - inputs that are changed or converted in the operations process

● Materials

Materials - basic elements used in the production process

➔ Raw materials - essential substances in their unprocessed state

➔ Intermediate goods - goods manufactured and used in further manufacturing or processing
 ● Information

Information - knowledge gained from research, investigation and instruction, which results in an increase
in understanding

➔ value lies in its ability to influence behaviour or decision making

It acts as a transformed resource when it is used to inform how inputs are used, where they are drawn
from, which suppliers and supplies are available etc

External information - information from market reports, statistics from industry observers and industry
bodies, official government statistics from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), media reports,
academic papers and commentary, management journals, and comparative studies

Internal information - information gathered from internal sources within the business e.g. financial
reports, quality reports, and internal key performance indicators (KPIs)

- Key performance indicators (KPIs) - specific criteria used to measure the efficiency and
effectiveness of the business’s performance
- Lead times, inventory turnover rates and production data
- Acts as a transformed resource when it informs processes and creates process improvements

● Customers

Customers become transformed resources when their choices shape inputs (consumer orientation which
takes the preferences and interests of consumers as the starting point to production processes)

Customer relationship management (CRM) - the systems that businesses use to maintain customer
contact

➔ Improve customer service, increase competitiveness, and identify changes in consumer tastes
➔ Improves services, cuts production costs and the customer feedback makes the operations process
more responsive to customer desires

- Transforming resources (human resources, facilities)

Transforming resources - inputs that carry out the transformation process

● Human resources
Staff that are well qualified, hard working and disciplined = great productivity and efficiency →
effectiveness of HR can determine the success of transformation and value adding

Good job designs, extensive training programs, flexible work practices and good communications can all
assist to maximise performance and enable the business’s objectives to be achieved

● Facilities

Facilities - plant (factory or office) and machinery used in the operations processes

Business must decide:

- whether the required facilities should be located in one or two large sites or divided among
numerous smaller sites
- Impacts of zoning and other restrictions on facilities size and location
- Special conditions e.g. energy and water requirements
- Most efficient plant design
- Optimum plant and process layout — the arrangement of machinery, equipment and people

Plant and machinery can make a very significant difference to a business and its capacity to transform →
determines the nature of the operations environment

● Transformation processes

Transformation - conversion of inputs (resources) into outputs (goods and services)

➔ Implies physical changes, also includes the conversion of resources into services

Transformation process differs between manufacturing businesses and service businesses

- A manufacturer transforms inputs into tangible products (goods that can be touched) → tends to
be highly automated or mechanised → manufacturers use machinery, robots and computers to
transform inputs into outputs
- A service organisation transforms inputs into intangible products (services that cannot be
touched) → service providers rely heavily on interaction with the customer and their processes
tend to be more labour-intensive

Value Adding

Costs are incurred when something created by manufacturing is processed or when a service is created.
As inputs are added and processed into final goods for consumption, value is added.
 ➔ Easy to see how value is added in a manufacturing situation. But difficult to see in the services
sector, where it occurs through knowledge, skills and expertise

- The influence of volume, variety, variation in demand and visibility

(customer contact)

Influence of Volume

Volume - how much of a product is made

● Volume flexibility - how quickly the transformation process can adjust to increases or decreases in
demand

Lead time - time it takes for an order to be fulfilled from the moment it is made

If businesses cannot quickly adjust to changes in market demand → over produce → wastage and
increased inventory costs.
Alternatively, if back orders cannot be quickly fulfilled → lost sales

Influence of variety

Mix flexibility - mix of products made, or services delivered through the information process

● Known as product range or variety of choice

The greater the variety → more the operations process needed → May be difficult to achieve and a large
plant may be required

Influence of variation in demand

↑ demand = ↑inputs from suppliers, human resources, energy use and use of machinery and technology

However it may be hard to meet if:

- Suppliers cannot supply quickly enough
- Labour is not flexible enough, skilled or available
- The adopted machinery cannot adjust to increased capacity quickly (it is not designed to or
because it breaks down)
- Increased energy and power are not able to be readily sourced
↓ demand = operational flexibility as staff may need to have their hours reduced, production may need to
slow to avoid inventory build up and suppliers may put on pressure due to contractual agreements

● Predicting Demand: businesses will try to forecast demand so that adjustments can be anticipated
and a business can act accordingly (e.g. christmas and seasonal factors)

Influence of visibility (customer contact)

Customer contact or ‘feedback’ can directly affect transformation processes → shape what businesses
make
- Direct contact takes the form of customer feedback given through surveys, interviews, warranty
claims, letters, wikis and blogs and verbal contact
- Indirect feedback comes through a review of sales data that gives an indication of customer
preferences and market share data, through an observation of peoples’ decision-making processes
and through consumer review

- Sequencing and scheduling – Gantt charts, critical path analysis

Sequencing - the order in which activities in the operations process occur

Scheduling - the length of time activities take within the operations process

An understanding of both are necessary for operations managers, scheduling tools will b be used when
involve activities central to transformation:

● Gantt Chart - a type of bar chart that shows both the scheduled and completed work over a period of
time
○ Often used in planning and tracking a project → processes that has several steps and
involves a number of different activities that need to be performed
○ Outlines the activities that need to be performed, the order in which they should be
performed and how long each activity is expected to take
○ Can be for one employee or a team of employees
○ Advantages:
- Force a manager to plan the steps needed to complete a task and to specify the time
required for each task
- Make it easy to monitor actual progress against planned activities
 ● Critical Path Analysis (CPA) - a scheduling method or technique that shows what tasks need to be
done, how long they take and what order is necessary to complete those tasks
○ Critical path - shortest length of time it takes to complete all tasks necessary to complete
the process or project (some tasks can be performed simultaneously) → as each activity
must be completed to make the final product
○ Business will be able to see in what order activities need to be done and which tasks can be
done at the same time
○ Gives direction and organisation to operations processes, provides overall coordination
and enables a means of control

- Technology, task design and process layout

Technology

Business technology - use of machinery and systems that enable businesses to undertake the
transformation process more effectively and efficiently → assists employees to work more productively

- Manufacturing sector: used to speed up processes and enable fuller utilisation of raw materials →
cost effective
- Services sector: office and communications technology have enabled whole markets to open up
and allow for a small to medium business to trade globally

↑ cost due to loss of workers due to acquisition of technology and training and upgrading of skills for
workers to adapt to the technology

● Office technology

Common technology items in the office include computer, printer etc → allowed people to do more work
in less time = greater range of tasks can be completed =

Telecommute - ‘commute’, or travel to work, electronically

➔ Home or another location becomes the worksite and work is delivered via email or the internet

● Manufacturing technology
Robotics - highly specialised forms of technology used in engineering and specialised areas of research, as
well as on assembly lines where a programmable machine capable of doing several different tasks is
required

➔ Produces very high quality products of a consistently high standard, efficient and minimise waste
➔ Degree of precision and accuracy generally unmatched by human labour
➔ Robots work without complaint or demands for wage rises in conditions that would be repetitive,
boring and often dangerous for employees

Computer-aided design (CAD) - a computerised design tool that allows businesses to create product
possibilities from a series of input parameters

➔ Assists both the designer and the end user to visualise what will be produced
➔ Material usage can be calculated and time for the task to be completed → allows costing of the
project to be quantified
➔ Linked to printers so paper copies can be made and distributed to the client for assessment
➔ Fast speed → easy to customise a series of options that meets the client’s or customer’s needs
➔ Can design the sequence of steps that would need to be taken to create the desired product in the
shortest possible lead time using the least amount of material

Computer-aided manufacturing (CAM) - software that controls manufacturing processes

➔ CAD can be linked to CAM → instantaneous manufacturing of designs

➔ Used more broadly to calculate how much of each input resource would be required
➔ Can store historic purchasing records to assist with present purchasing decisions

Task design

Task design - classifying job activities in ways that make it easy for an employee to successfully perform
and complete the task

Separation between manufacturing and administrative operations

Necessary to group skills and competencies to helps when obtaining staff → employees will be screened
against these skills and competencies to ensure a match
However, a business may formalise the task design process while a job is already being done → The task
is analysed to see whether it could be done more efficiently → Job analysis to determine who does what
in the business and why to improve the business’s productivity

● Skills audit

Skills audit - formal process used to determine the present level of skilling and any skill shortfalls that need
to be made up either through recruitment or through training

Occurs when the business has existing staff that may not have the requisite skills

Plant (factory/office) layout

Plant layout - arrangement of equipment, machinery and staff within the facility (either a factory or an
office)

Operations manager needs to consider the best layout to ensure:

1. Enough physical space for the projected volume of production
2. Effective use of production equipment
3. Use of appropriate technology
4. Adequate location of stock and warehousing requirements
5. Links between processes or stages of production → efficient flow of the good or service through
the system
6. A work environment for employees that is of sufficient quality for the task
7. Conformity with legal regulations concerning site and building constraints
8. Conformity with occupational health and safety (OH&S) standards

There are alternative ways to lay out machinery, depending on what is being made and what volume of
production is required.

● Process layout/functional layout

The process layout - the arrangement of machines such that the machines and equipment are grouped
together by the function (or process) they perform

Process layout for intermittent production

Process production - deals with high-variety, low-volume production

 ➔ Each product has a different sequence of production and the production is intermittent, moving
from one department to another

The necessary machinery is arranged according to this sequence:

- Manufacturing businesses: ‘job lots’ - the manufacture of parts in small quantities
- Service businesses: e.g. banks or insurance companies, process layout is used to accommodate the
handling of customers with different needs

∴ The creation of work cells or work teams to create combinations of machinery and equipment to
produce a single product or a range of similar products

● Product layout

Product production (mass production) - manufacturing of a high volume of constant quality goods

Product layout - the equipment arrangement relates to the sequence of tasks performed in manufacturing
a product

➔ Assembly line is the most common layout as it aims to achieve the best possible combination of
personnel and machine use — ‘assembly line balancing’

As workstations are arranged to match the sequence of operations, and work flows from station to
station, operations managers must set times for the assembly task → requires an understanding of the
nature of the task and the tools and skills required

● Fixed position layout

Project production - deals with layout requirements for large-scale, bulky activities

Fixed position layout - an operational arrangement in which employees and equipment come to the
product

E.g. bridges, ships, aircrafts → more efficient to bring materials to the site

● Office layout

Workstations - desk areas required by office workers, usually fitted with access to a computer monitor,
keyboard, telephone, mouse and mouse pad, storage, and close access to a printer, scanner, and facsimile

➔ Focus: enable the work to be performed efficiently (with minimal unnecessary disruption and
time wastage) in a safe office environment
An office needs to be designed in a way that meets the needs of the business and allows for smooth
workflow. It should also provide a space (lunch room, games room) that enables employees to take a
break from the work environment if required.

- Monitoring, control and improvement

Monitoring

Monitoring - process of measuring actual performance against planned performance

Monitoring typically is arranged around the needs to measure Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) -
predetermined variables that are measured so that appropriate controls to operations processes can be
made
- Lead times/wait times/idle time
- Inventory turnover rates/stock-out rates
- Defect rates, repair rates and warranty claims
- Process flow rates
- Capacity and volume rates/capacity utilisation rates
- IT and maintenance costs
- Direct and indirect cost analysis

Control

Control - when KPIs are assessed against predetermined targets and corrective action is taken if required

If there is a discrepancy between performance and goals, changes and improvements can be made.

All operations managers should exercise strict controls over the transformation processes by setting
challenging but reasonable performance targets and ensure the measurements are regularly scrutinised
→ crucial because it should indicate any issues and, where possible, intervention or corrective action may
need to be taken

Improvement

Improvement - systematic reduction of inefficiencies and wastage, poor work processes and the elimination
of any bottlenecks

Bottleneck - an aspect of the transformation process that slows down the overall processing speed or
creates an impediment leading to a backlog of incompletely processed products
Improvement typically is sought in the following areas:
- Time, through the minimisation of bottlenecks, an assessment of the necessity in all
transformation processes and wait times (including lead times)
- Process flows and smoothness of transitions between transforming processes
- Quality, through the pursuit of quality goals, measurement of product standards and quality and
an assessment of returns and warranty claims
- Cost, through an assessment of per unit costs of production, a review of expenses (fixed and
variable) and an assessment of per unit costs of delivery
- Efficiency, through the reduction of waste and the creation of greater output per unit input

One systematic reduction of inefficiencies is Six Sigma, following the five steps of DMAIC
1. Define: the process that is to be improved
2. Measure: the variables and set improvement goals
3. Analyse: the causes of defects or process problems and alternatives that may create process
improvements
4. Improve: implement changes that will create process improvements
5. Control: the improvement process by consolidating the changes made to transformations
processes

It is beneficial as it helps businesses:

- Align their business strategy to critical improvement efforts
- Mobilize teams to attack high-impact projects
- Accelerate improved business results
- Govern efforts to ensure improvements are sustained

Continuous improvement - an ongoing commitment to achieving perfection → Striving is important to the

business culture as the business sets higher and higher standards in the continual pursuit of
improvement

● Outputs

Outputs - the end result of the business efforts — the good or service that is provided or delivered to the
customer

The output must always be responsive to customer demands → issues of quality, efficiency and flexibility
must be balanced against the resources and strategic plan of the business
Customer service and warranties are subtle outputs along with the service/good provided

- Customer service

Customer service - how well a business meets and exceeds the expectations of customers in all aspects of its
operations

Central to customer service is to make sure the right good or service is delivered or provided at the right
place at the right time.

Customer service is an attitude that should be adopted by all departments and employees within the
business. Exceeding customers’ expectations = key in developing long-term customer relationships

- Warranties

Warranty - a promise made by a business that they will correct any defects in the goods that they produce
or in the services that they deliver

They are made against goods that have defects arising from an issue in transformation → help the
business by giving an indication of problems in the processing

SECTION D: Operations Strategies

● Performance objectives – quality, speed, dependability, flexibility,

customisation, cost

Performance objectives - goals that relate to particular aspects of the transformation processes

1) Quality

Quality is often determined by consumer expectations, which are used to inform the production
standards

● Quality of design
○ Arises from an understanding of consumers and their preferences
○ How well a product is made or a service is delivered
○ Design determines the inputs and how the transformation processes will be arranged
○ High-quality design = high-grade materials used in manufacturing, clear care and
presentation of the good, aesthetically pleasing, functional and robust and long-lasting
 ○ Well designed goods = ↑ cost and price (which consumers may not want to pay)
● Quality of conformance - the focus on how well the product meets the standard of a prescribed
design with certain specifications
○ Measure of how consistently products achieve compliance with the desired specifications
regardless of the standard of the specifications (do not require high quality inputs)
● Quality of service
○ Quality of design and quality of conformance can be applied to the design and delivery of
services
○ Quality of services refer to:
- How reliable the service is
- How well the service meets the specific needs of the client
- How timely or responsive service delivery is.
○ Distinguishes products in the service market
2) Speed

Speed - the time it takes for the production and operations process to respond to changes in market demand

➔ Specifically refers to input levels and processing times

As a performance objective, speed aims to satisfy customer demands as quickly as possible:

- Reduced wait times
- Shorter lead times
- Faster processing times

Requires ↓ in procedural and technical bottlenecks and smooth internal communications. A procedural
bottleneck can occur when internal processes that ensure smooth operations are not followed

3) Dependability

Dependability - as a performance object, refers to how consistent and reliable a business’s products are

Goods - how long the products are useful before they fail
➔ One measure is warranty claim → highly durable product = dependable product; perishable
products can also be dependable if they are of consistent and predictable standard

Services - the consistency of service standards and reliability

➔ A measure is the number of complaints received → fewer the complaints = more dependable
 4) Flexibility/adaptability

Flexibility - how quickly operations processes can adjust to changes in the market

Time and flexibility are related → the quicker the processing time = greater the likelihood that processes
can be adjusted quickly

Goods - best achieved by ↑ the capacity of production to enable the business to better meet a broader
range of consumer desires. Done by:
➢ Using plant and machinery better
➢ Buy new technologies that increase flexibility and capacity
➢ Changing the product design thus creating a broader variety

Services - achieved through ↑ the number of service providers, ↑ the provider’s skill level and through
improving the level of technology used when providing the service

5) Customisation

Customisation - creation of individualised products to meet the specific needs of the customers

A customer orientation to operations = over time businesses would push operations processes towards
customisation.

Standardisation of products is still the most widely used option → Variations in product features such as
colour, size and functionality offer some level of differentiation

Mass customisation - a process that allows a standard, mass- produced item to be personally modified to
specific customer requirements

Full customisation is rare and can only be offered when products are created after an order specifying the
requirements is received → as cost of customisation is higher

6) Cost

Cost - as a performance objective refers to the minimisation of expenses so that operations processes are
conducted as cheaply as possible

During operation processes, cost incurred determines the time → businesses seek to become more
efficient and allocate costs better
 ➔ Businesses seek to acquire new technologies can help a business to lower costs, use inputs better
and minimise wastage (operational costs)
➔ They also seek to reduce supplier costs, manage inventory to reduce cost and maximise flexibility,
and find distribution methods that are most cost and time effective

All performance objects are allocated to particular targets and expressed as KPIs → however not all can
be realised and businesses will target ones that have the best impact on profitability.

● New product or service design and development

Product design and development

1) Consumer approach: the preferences and desires of consumers, as identified by market research,
determine which products are designed and developed
2) Changes and innovations in technology enable new and appealing products as they use advanced
technologies, which give products greater functionality

When designing and developing a product, these must be considered:

- Supply chain management: a new product will draw from suppliers and may extend the range of
supplies sought, the timing or the volume of supplies
- Quality: in market-orientated production, the customers will demand particular quality, and
certain attributes and features
- Capacity management: may increase the use or range of present resources, or require an
investment in new technology and machinery
- Cost: Value is directly related to cost but also includes the customer’s perception of product utility

Product utility - the usefulness and value that a product has from the consumer’s point of view

Service design and development

Explicit service - the tangible aspect of the service being provided
e.g. application of time, expertise, skill and effort

Implicit service - based on a feeling and is intangible

e.g. psychological wellbeing — the feeling of being looked after

By addressing both explicit and implicit aspects → customers feels that their needs are being met →
customer knows they have been specifically catered for → implicit satisfaction

In the delivery of some services, goods may be required → assist with delivery of a service

● Supply chain management – logistics, e-commerce, global sourcing

Supply chain management (SCM) - involves integrating and managing the flow of supplies throughout the
inputs, transformation processes (throughput and value adding) and outputs in order to best meet the needs
of customers

➔ Involves sourcing, logistics and distributions

Sourcing

Sourcing - purchasing of inputs for the transformation processes

Determining which sources to use:

- Assess consumer demand for volume of inputs required
- Determine quality of inputs to match quality of the products that the business would like to
deliver
- Assess how responsive (flexible) and timely the supplier is with respect to changes in demand
- Evaluate the cost of supplies/inputs from the supplier against other suppliers offering supplies of
similar quality

Sourcing strategies
 ● Supplier rationalisation - assessing the number of suppliers in order to reduce the number of
suppliers to the least amount
○ Determines which suppliers are least effective and which can be better utilised
○ ↓ number of suppliers to the least amount possible → ↓ contracting, wastage and
duplication and ↑ timeliness
● Backwards vertical integration
○ Mergers or acquisitions of suppliers
○ Guarantees supply for transformation processes
○ Profit centre that will generate revenues from sales to other processors (less wasteful or
inefficient)
○ Achieve time and cost savings
● Cost minimisation
○ Offshore market = access to low-cost resources/inputs
● Flexible/responsive supply chain processes
○ Lean approach - minimises waste, seeks to continually lower costs or improve
○ do not carry inventory but make order so expenses are not incurred on unnecessary
storage

Global sourcing

Global sourcing - businesses purchasing supplies or services without being constrained by location

➔ In the supply chain management activity, global sourcing means buying or sourcing from
wherever the suppliers are that best meet the sourcing requirements

Benefits - cost and expertise advantages, and access to new technologies and resources

Challenges - possible relocation of aspects of operations, the increased cost of logistics, storage and
distribution, managing different regulatory conditions between nations, and the increasing complexity of
overall operations when sourcing from diverse locations

E-commerce

E-commerce - the buying and selling of goods and services via the internet

● Business sourcing and e-commerce (e-procurement)

○ E-procurement - the use of on-line systems to manage supply, allowing suppliers direct
access to the business’s level of supplies
 ○ Supplier will supply without formal request
○ Business to business arrangement (B2B) - direct access from one business (the supplier) to
another (the buyer), allowing the supplier to assess the needs of the buyer and meet them in a
timely manner
● E-commerce and the consumer
○ Business-to-consumer (B2C) - the selling of goods and services to consumers over the
internet, with payment usually by credit card
○ May use specialist sites to sell or auction to customers
○ Stock levels must be managed well and information exchanged frequently to have accurate
stock levels

Logistics

Logistics - distribution, including transportation modes, the use of storage, warehousing and distribution
centres, materials handling and packaging

● Distribution - the ways of getting the goods or services to the customer

● Transportation and distribution

● Storage, warehousing and distribution centres

○ Storage - involves finding a secure place to hold stock until it is required
- Necessary when there are numerous outlets which stock is sold and demand is
variable
 - May be long term of short term and have particular characters to help preserve the
product
○ Warehousing - the use of warehouses for the storage, protection and, later, distribution of
stock
- Costs associated with warehousing include the premises, insurance and security for
the stock, stacking and moving the stock, carrying excess stock or redundant stock if
not sold, shrinkage costs and losses from theft or reasons not accounted for, stock
subject to damage if not correctly stored
- Save costs and useful for durable items
○ Distribution centres
- Not intended for long-term storage
- Strategically located to minimise the time it takes to supply stock to retail outlets
- May be A/C or have cold-storage or co-located with transportation hubs
● Materials handling and packaging
○ Particular standards and methods of operating need to be applied
○ Some products require particular skills, care or attention when being moved
○ Government has regulations that require dangerous goods be stored and handled in
particular ways, and requires packaging to be of a particular standard and to carry
warnings

● Outsourcing – advantages and disadvantages

Outsourcing → when a service is performed by an external provider that specialises in a particular

business function, it will do so at a lower cost and with a greater effectiveness

Outsourced business processes

a. Operations: manufacturing, value-adding manufactures, design, merchandising, sourcing,
distribution and logistics
b. HR: employee remuneration, employee counselling, pensions, data management, training and
development, and travel and expenses management
c. Administrative work
d. Information technology (IT)
e. Finance and accounting outsourcing (FAO): preparation of financial, accounts and reports,
analytics, and taxation compliance
f. Knowledge process outsourcing (KPO): outsourcing of managerial work
 g. Legal process outsourcing (LPO): paralegal support, legal support

The outsourcing decision

1) Assessing whether the use of outsourcing is cheaper and more efficient

2) Decide which geographical location is favoured and which vendors to use
3) Details such as the management of the outsourcing contract, the length of contract, the KPIs and
service levels are required

Advantages Disadvantages

Simplification: ↓ number of activities performed Payback periods and cost: how long it takes to
within the business repay the cost of organising outsourcing and make
the required organisational changes → may take
Improvements to in-house performance:
years to experience cost saving
focusing on core competencies can improve in-
If a business reduces internal inefficiencies,
house performance → making internal changes to
businesses may become more efficient and
improve profitability
productive without using outsourcing

Efficiency and cost savings: access to cheaper Loss of corporate memory and vulnerability:
labour, regulatory differences and skilled labour in key knowledge of processes and solutions may be
offshore locations lost with the transfer of business processes to
outside parties → some businesses create ‘shadow
teams’ to retain corporate knowledge and
processing capability and requiring outsourcing
vendor have strategies in place in case there is a
regional crisis that severely disrupts
communication and leads to information losses

Increased process capability: improved Loss of control of standards and information

technologies and highly skilled labour → improved security: feel a loss of control over standards and
process capability also over how the information is used

Increased accountability: service level Hierarchies: a business using outsourcing may be

agreements (SLAs) contractually bind the vendor aiming to eliminate costs associated with
tocpre-determined targets on KPIs hierarchies, but managing complex outsourcing
 agreements can create its own hierarchies

Access to skills/resources lacking within the Organisational change and redesign:

business: access to highly skilled and disciplined outsourcing may be accompanied by a high level of
labour at low cost → No need to spend money on business change and organisational redesign →
training may be downsizing (loss of domestic employment)
There may be job migration for employees who
may be losing work to gain employment in the
outsourcing vendor business (work permits/work
visas may prevent this however)

Capacity to focus on core business or key Information technology: the need for supporting
competencies: business to focus on that which it information technology (IT) grows → cost and
cannot outsource: its vision, purpose, sustainable time associated with the use and adaptation of IT
advantage can significantly reduce any financial advantages
accruing in the short term

Strategic benefits: Communication and language: key issue in

- Get around trade barriers → get around managing the relationship → When negotiating,
barriers that prevent foreign companies the business might focus too much on the decision
from trading rather than consider the ongoing relationship with
- Use of a vendor that outsources for others the vendor (3-5 years) → lead to confusion over
within the same industry can bring the expectations
benefit of expertise gained from Cultural differences, language differences and
outsourcing to competitors differences in the way business issues and
- Trading in different time zones → have problems are managed → misalignment and
processing work done overnight by the misunderstandings about what the agreed service
outsourcing vendor levels are and what KPI measures are acceptable
- Strong partnerships can lead to the vendor
suggesting innovative solutions to the
business that may increase the business
efficiency and productivity

● Technology – leading edge, established

Technology in the operations function may be classified into whether it improves inputs, transformation
processes and outputs; or makes the managerial and administrative functions smoother

Leading edge technology

Leading edge technology - the technology that is the most advanced or innovative at any point in time

By using the best available technologies → help businesses to create products more quickly and to higher
standards, with less waste, and operate more effectively

Established technology

Established technology - technology that has been developed and widely used and is simply accepted
without question

Examples include:
- Barcoding and point-of-sale (POS) data for inventory management
- Robotics for complex and detailed manufacturing
- CAD, CAM and computer-integrated manufacturing (CIM) for transformation processes
- Information processing technologies and information technologies (IT) for administration,
logistics, input modelling, demand analysis and distribution
- Flexible manufacturing systems (FMS) for transformations processes

● Inventory management – advantages and disadvantages of holding stock, LIFO

(last in first-out), FIFO (first-in-first-out), JIT (just-in-time)

Inventory/stock - the amount of raw materials, work-in-progress and finished goods that a business has on
hand at any particular point in time

Advantages and disadvantages of holding stock

Advantages of holding stock Disadvantages

- Consumer demand can be met when there is stock - the costs associated with
available → prevent the consumer from seeking to buy holding stock, including
from an alternative business (risk reduction strategy) storage charges, spoilage,
- If a particular product line runs out, an alternative can insurance, theft and
be offered handling expenses.
- Reduces lead time between order and delivery - the invested capital, labour
 - Give opportunity for business to generate immediate and energy cannot be used
revenue elsewhere as it has been
- Can be distributed to distribution centres, which then used to create the stock
rapidly transport the products to places as indicated by - the cost of obsolescence,
demand which can occur if stock
- A store of stock allows business to promote the use of remains unsold
products in non-traditional or new markets
- Older stock can be sold at reduced prices and attract
sales of other products
- Stocks are an asset and reflecting well on the balance
sheet
- Making products in bulk may reduce costs due to
economies of scale → cheaper than the cost of holding
the stock

LIFO and FIFO

LIFO (last-in-first-out) - method of pricing inventory assumes that the last goods purchased are also the
first goods sold and therefore the cost of each unit sold is the last cost recorded

➔ May overstate costs and understate gross profit (especially when CoGs rises over time) and
undervalued stocks on hand at the end of the period

FIFO (first-in-first-out) - method of pricing inventory assumes that the first goods purchased are also the
first goods sold and therefore the cost of each unit sold is the first cost recorded

➔ Stock costs may be understated and profits overstated and stocks at the end of the period may be
overvalued

Another alternative to these methods is the weighted average cost which uses an average cost for the cost
of goods sold to calculate → all 3 are allowed under accounting standards

Overall, the method of valuation affects both the calculation of the value of the goods sold (and gross
profit) and the value of the unsold.

Just-in-time (JIT)

Just-in-time (JIT) - an inventory management approach which ensures that the exact amount of material
inputs will arrive only as they are needed in the operation process

➔ It aims to overcome the problem of end-of-period stock valuation (lean production method)
JIT approach aims to have the business only make enough products to meet demand. It allowed retailers
to display a wider range of products as they need to store less and can order in response to consumer
demand → saves money as there are no expensive holding and insurance costs, also shrinkage costs and
losses due to obsolescence are also minimised.

However, a JIT approach requires a very flexible operations function with flexible processing and a very
high ability to respond quickly to changes in market demand and reliable supplier deliveries which must
be received at the appropriate time.

● Quality management
- Control

Quality management - the processes that a business undertakes to ensure consistency, reliability, safety
and fitness of purpose of product

Quality control - involves the use of inspections at various points in the production process to check for
problems and defects

A business needs to have defined quality standards/quality targets and parameters broadly applied
across the range of products and processes. Then the quality of products and processes needs to be
assessed against the standards. Any failure to meet the targets set would be reassessed and taken to
correct the issue (reactive approach)

- Assurance

Quality assurance - involves the use of a system to ensure that set standards are achieved in production

A business takes a series of measurements and assesses them against predetermined quality standards.

Aspects of quality important to QA:

- ‘fitness for purpose’/ how well a product does what it is designed to do
- achieve ‘right first time’ so that products do not need to be reworked, which wastes time, energy
and other resources

QA standards have been developed due to globalisation and international emphasis on quality. The ISO
(International Organization for Standardization) 9000 is a widely used international standard. ISO
standards are voluntary but many businesses comply with their requirements to enhance their domestic
and international competitiveness.
 - Improvement

Continuous improvement

Continuous improvement - an ongoing commitment to improving a business’s goods or services

It is the belief that over time processes will be more efficient and effective → improvement through
innovation (at once or incremental) → staff are encouraged to demonstrate initiative and suggest areas of
improvements

Six Sigma - a quality management approach that seeks to identify and remove the causes of problems in the
operations processes, achieving virtually defect-free production

The Six Sigma is used so a business only produces 3.4 defective parts per million opportunities
(perfection rate of 99.9997%)

It uses quality management methods:

- statistical tools to measure variations in the operations processes
- empowerment of staff and training
- a commitment to continuously improving quality through the whole business

Total quality management

Total quality management - focuses on managing the total business to deliver quality to customers

It is a holistic approach in that quality becomes both a commitment and the responsibility of every
employee of the business → ongoing, business-wide commitment to excellence that is applied to every
aspect of the business’s operation

To achieve TQM objectives requires four elements:

1) benchmarking 3) employee empowerment
2) focus on the customer 4) continuous improvement

● Overcoming resistance to change – financial costs, purchasing new equipment,

redundancy payments, retraining, reorganising plant layout, inertia

All businesses are susceptible to change from external environments or from within the business through
initiatie of staff or application of technology. Change is often resisted as it causes uncertainty → stress or
risk. The two principal sources of resistance to change arises are financial and psychological/emotional.
Financial costs

● Purchasing new equipment

A major cost associated with change is that of the investment in plant and equipment. Capital costs are
high and can be recouped through use and through depreciation.

However, there are market advantages from making capital investments:

- Improved processing flexibility
- Improved processing speeds and shorter lead times
- More consistency in production
- Higher overall quality of processing
- Reduced wastage and losses from equipment failure

Prior to making the investment, a business manager may choose to lease the equipment as it does not
require a high upfront payment.

● Redundancy payments

Redundancy - a loss of work arising from job skills that are no longer required or relevant to the workplace

A significant cost is the redundancy payout - the money that is given to employees when they are forced
out of work because their job skills are no longer relevant.

The value depends on:

- The length of employment with the business (under legislation a certain number of weeks of pay
must be paid when a person is made redundant)
- The level of pay the employee is on
- The amount of unused leave that the employee has accrued
- Any outstanding wages

Redundancy can be high when there are many employees are made redundant due to capital replacing
labour (capital-labour substitution)

● Retraining employees

Job roles may change when new technology is implemented, requiring employees to acquire different
work skills. This often requires training training or retraining on new softwareness that may be
performed on the job or off the job.
 ● Structural organisation of business (reorganising plant and equipment layout)

Typically the plant layout is organised around the needs of the product and the transformation processes
required to create the products. Major changes often require extensive reorganisation of the layout
within the facility

High costs associated:

1) Transporting, placing and bringing power to the new plant and equipment
2) Downtime when transferring from the old machinery to the new machinery and when testing new
equipment, machinery and technology
3) Losses of productivity, arising from staff orientating themselves with new work processes and
arrangements

Psychological resistance (inertia)

Inertia - a psychological resistance to change

It can be caused due to feelings of uncertainty or fear of the unknown, when change is imminent or
pressing. People may resist when they find new technological and equipment intimidating and feel like
their job prospects may be threatened or loss of career opportunities.

Managing change effectively

A business must first identify the reasons for resistance to change so the resistance can be carefully
managed. Managers must then anticipate and adjust to changing circumstances.

To be constructive, changes must:

● Occur at a pace at which they can be absorbed by, and integrated into, the business
● Be evaluated thoroughly to assess their overall impact
● Be introduced into a workplace culture that supports employee participation

Change management strategies

1) Identify the source(s) of change and assess whether there is a need to accommodate change
through adjustments to business processes
2) Lower the resistance to change through communicating with employees about the need for change
and getting widespread support for the change
 3) May be a need to use change agents - somebody who initiates change or facilitates the change
process (internal staff or external professionals). If staff are included in the process of creating a
culture of change and setting goals, they will generally be more supportive
4) It may be necessary to apply change models such as Kurt Lewin’s unfreeze- change-refreeze
model:
- Unfreeze: breaks down the forces supporting the existing system and prepares the
business change
- Change: communicate new procedures and behaviours
- Refreeze: positive reinforcement from managers to make sure changes lasts

or the more contemporary Kotter’s eight-step change model:

- Establish a sense of necessity: examine the current business environment to highlight
impending threats or potential opportunities
- Form a guiding group: establish a team of people to act as facilitators
- Create a vision: providing employees with a clear, shared sense of direction to achieve a
common objective
- Communicate the vision: to build cohesion between employees to dispel fear of unknown
- Empower people to fulfil the vision: allow people who have the opportunity to be actively
involved to develop a sense of ownership
- Recognise and reward achievements: recognition and reward should be given to encourage
further risk taking and reinforce the positive aspects of embracing change
- Consolidate improvements: assemble the benefits attained into the business’s operating
procedures and systems
- Institutionalise the changes: Make a clear statement to show the connections between the
new procedures and the success of the business

● global factors – global sourcing, economies of scale, scanning and learning,

research and development

Global sourcing

Global sourcing as an operations strategy involves the sourcing of any business operations that gives the
business cost advantages.
 ➔ It ensures that the outsourcing decision is exposed to the global market so that the best decision is
made based on cost, efficiency, productivity, technical ability and an ability to operate over more
hours of the day

Benefits Challenges

- Cost advantages - Possible relocation of aspects of operations

- Access to new technologies - Increased cost of logistics, storage and
- Expertise and labour specialisation distribution
- Access to other resources - Different regulatory conditions between
- The ability to operate over extended hours nations
- Increasing complexity of overall operations
Financial concerns arise from the risk associated with exchange rate fluctuations.

Contractual concerns arise from language and cultural variations, and regulatory differences and
misunderstanding created by poorly negotiated service level agreements.

Economies of scale

Economies of scale - cost advantages that can be gained by producing on a larger scale.

➔ Businesses can lower their per unit input costs

When a business expands into global markets, the need to source globally becomes a strategic decision as
the scale of production increases, the costs per unit falls. Moreover, product life cycles are extended,
which means there is greater added value on production.

Economies can also be derived in other aspects apart from operations:

● Capital investment and the improved use of technologies
● Marketing, with global branding and global advertising saving costs on duplication
● Field of human resources (HR) through the application of training, and development and range of
HR strategies globally

Scanning and learning

Businesses can benefit from scanning the global environment and learning from the best practice of
businesses around the world.

Kaizen - Japanese for ‘improvement’. It emphasises continuous improvement in all areas of a business,
from the way the CEO manages to the way assembly line workers perform their jobs.
Businesses learn from each other through management journals, industry and business associations,
conferences, and other forums.

Research and Development

R&D helps businesses to create leading edge technologies, and to create innovative products and
solutions which meet the needs of consumers. Government encourages R&D, and may offer taxation
incentives and grants.