Operations Management of a Line Manager
Assignment 1
Assignment Introduction
The Operations Management function has the role of providing the required products or services in a way that satisfies the criteria imposed by the market. Efficient operation of this function is therefore important if the organisation is to be successful. An understanding of the main operational tasks is an essential starting point in this process. The organisation may not have an operations/production department defined in such terms, but it will still produce something for the use of somebody.
The Task
The student can choose one topic from the following and apply this topic to their organisation. Complete a brief report to your CEO. How does your chosen organisation apply one of the three topics below to their process areas and why?
- Lean Operations p 515
- Continuous Improvement p 548
- Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) p 41-5
(Textbook: Slack, N., Brandon-Jones, A. and Johnston, R. (2019) Operations Management 9th Edition Pearson.)
A company of your choice
You should choose a company that you are familiar with, perhaps your own company or one that is in the public domain and use that one company as your focus for each of the below tasks. Choose a company that you are happy to work on throughout the module. Your submission should be 300 words in length (+/- 10%)
Tasks- that must feature in the submission for both assignments relating to company of choice:
- Create a transformation diagram for a process that is regularly carried out in the company of your choice.
- Create a polar diagram comparing two operations, one of which must be the company of your choice.
- This week, you have already practiced creating Hayes and Wheelwright's four-stage model of operations contribution. Now create a four-stage model for the company of your choice.
- Create a supply chain diagram for the company of your choice.
- Create EOQ for the company of your choice (Economic Order Quantity)
- Create a work breakdown structure for the company of your choice. (WBS)
- Create a quality cost table for the company of your choice
Assignment 2
Critically review and reflect upon your understanding and appreciation of operations management for a Line Manager from completing this module. With reference to the seven tasks above and contemporary operations management theory, what are the main challenges facing Line Managers. Write a reflective essay of between 300-500 words (+/- 10%).
Please note:
- Assignment 1 writeup only covers tasks 1-5 (i.e., week 1 to week 5)
- Assignment 2 writeup should cover tasks 1 to 7 (all weeks)
- Below are for context while writing up the assignment. (Thanks)
Operations Management of a Line Manager
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Operations Management for a Line Manager
Introduction
Operations management plays a central role in providing the much-required products and services in ways geared at satisfying clients’ needs and expectations. A properly executed operations management function is essential to organizational success and sustainability. Understanding the principal operational activities constitutes a critical starting point in operations management endeavors. This paper includes figures designed to explain the continuous improvement activities of Coca-Cola and also reflects on challenges facing line managers based on AMO theory and insights gained from the already completed creative endeavor.
Assignment 1
Coca-Cola employs Six Sigma to achieve continuous improvement goals. As the company scales up its product portfolio and supply base, it needs optimal processes and standards to deliver top-notch and consistent quality. Implementing Six Sigma and integrating a continual improvement culture would ensure high-quality products and services are consistently produced and maintained. Coca-Cola uses the DMAIC (Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, and Control) approach to six Sigma (Wartati et al., 2021). The DMAIC methodology typically entails optimizing current business processes and includes five phases to ensure continual improvement. The company defines the system, the project goals, and the insights and requirements of its customers. The company then measures the fundamental issues within the existing process, gathers relevant data, and computes the “as-is” Process Capability. Third, the company optimizes or improves the existing process based on the data analysis utilizing techniques including mistake proofing, as well as everyday work to create new, future states processes. Accordingly, Coca-Cola controls the future state processes to ensure any discrepancies or deviations from the objectives are addressed before defects are recorded. A control check is executed to monitor how the process is progressing (Wartati et al., 2021). Several quality management tools, including transformational diagrams, polar diagrams, a four-stage model of operations contribution, supply chain diagrams, economic order quantity (EOQ), work breakdown structure, and quality cost table.
The figure below depicts a transformation diagram for Coca-Cola. It is an increasingly complex endeavor because of the incredible variety of products the company deals with. Before the customer can receive any product, the company implements the following transformation process geared at ensuring continuous improvement.
The polar diagram below compares the business models for Pepsi and Coca-Cola distribution operations. Both firms boast outstanding distribution processes and strategies and have efficient decision-making processes central to continuous improvement efforts.
The figure below is a product life cycle of Coca-Cola products. It illustrates that Coca-Cola products go through the introduction, growth, maturity, and decline phases. The sales revenue for the products is indirectly proportional to the time factor.
The following is a supply chain diagram for Coca-Cola. The bottler plan secures materials from sugar suppliers, concentrate plans, and packaging manufacturers (plastic bottles, glass bottles, or cans). After packaging the products, the bottler channels them to supermarket chains, hypermarkets, and other distributors from where retail outlets and consumers can source them.
The Economic Order Quantity (EOQ) for Coca-Cola is depicted below. Coca-Cola uses the EOQ model to establish a balance between the volumes of products to sell and the amount spent managing the supply chain activities. It is the point at which the ordering cost intersects with the holding cost.
The figure below shows the work breakdown structure for Coca-Cola. It comprises three decomposition tiers that can be expanded depending on the project’s complexity. Coca-Cola utilizes this continuous improvement tool to break down its vast projects into manageable components that incorporate project outcomes or deliverables to be completed.
Coca-Cola uses the cost quality table as a continuous improvement tool to express its purpose. It emphasizes client desires and ensures they are considered in the design process and distinct quality assurance steps implemented across the product life cycle. The company can create specific connections between the design parameters and ...