Operations management

Operations Management at Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) Name Tutor Institution Course Date Contents TOC \o "1-3" \h \z \u 1.0 Introduction PAGEREF _Toc157789434 \h 31.1 Industry Background PAGEREF _Toc157789435 \h 31.2 Organizational Background PAGEREF _Toc157789436 \h 41.3 Report Objective PAGEREF _Toc157789437 \h 42.0 Current Operations and Quality Management Issues/ Business Challenges PAGEREF _Toc157789438 \h 52.1 Sustainability PAGEREF _Toc157789439 \h 52.2 Supply Chain Struggles PAGEREF _Toc157789440 \h 72.3 Consumer Behavior Changes PAGEREF _Toc157789441 \h 72.4 Human Resource Challenges PAGEREF _Toc157789442 \h 83.0 Implications of the Issues PAGEREF _Toc157789443 \h 93.1 Implications of Sustainability Problems PAGEREF _Toc157789444 \h 93.2 Implications of Supply Chain Issues PAGEREF _Toc157789445 \h 93.3 Implications of Consumer Behavior Changes PAGEREF _Toc157789446 \h 103.4 Implications of HR Challenges PAGEREF _Toc157789447 \h 104. Operations and Quality Management Improvement Approaches in Resolving the Issues PAGEREF _Toc157789448 \h 104.1 Total Quality Management (TQM) PAGEREF _Toc157789449 \h 104.2 The Six Sigma Framework PAGEREF _Toc157789450 \h 125. Conclusion PAGEREF _Toc157789451 \h 14Reference List PAGEREF _Toc157789452 \h 15 Operations Management at Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) 1.0 Introduction Operations and quality management play a pivotal role in the success and sustainability of businesses across various industries. Operations and quality management are integral components of business success, influencing efficiency, customer satisfaction, competitiveness, resilience, innovation, compliance, and employee engagement. Investing in robust operations and quality management practices is essential for businesses to thrive in today's dynamic and competitive business landscape. However, to achieve the ultimate benefits of efficient operations and quality management, business organizations must explore some of the challenges that they face to the effect. This analysis focuses on assessing operational and quality management issues like sustainability, inventory management, human resource management, and supply chain issues at Jaguar Land Rover (JLR). Exploring the challenges facing efficiency in organizational operational and quality management practices is a critical step in steering success through enhanced competitiveness, customer satisfaction, production efficiency, and sustainability outcomes for a business entity operating in a dynamic industry such as the automotive industry. 1.1 Industry Background The automotive industry is one of the most monumental industries in the world bearing its impact on consumers and other stakeholders. Conventionally, the automotive industry remains a leader in innovation (Taylor, 2018). It is among the industries that lead in the creation of new products and the invention of new markets. However, the trends are changing gradually for stakeholders in the automotive industry. In 2024, there are 758 global car and automobile manufacturing businesses (ReportLinker, 2023). That number is a 1.7% decline from the 2023 numbers according to ReportLinker (2023). Notably, the automotive industry is oligopolistic with a few major manufacturers dominating the sales indices. The industry is also changing considerably to match some of the challenges it faces. For instance, there is an industry-wide adoption of electric vehicle (EV) manufacturing to tame the industry’s high greenhouse gas emission index. 1.2 Organizational Background Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) is renowned for its blend of luxury and off-road prowess of its vehicles. While it maintains a strong legacy and dedicated following, JLR confronts various operational and quality management hurdles within the fiercely competitive automotive setting. JLR was founded in 1922 (Jaguar) and 1948 (Land Rover) (Taylor, 2018). The organization’s intertwined narrative characterizes its automotive distinction. Legendary models such as the Range Rover, Defender, and F-Type have positioned JLR uniquely relative to its competitors. In 2008, Tata Motors acquired JLR, a move that signaled a change in the company’s operational trajectory. Presently, JLR has a wide operational base spanning across 130 nations (Taylor, 2018). The organization also boasts manufacturing hubs in the UK, China, and Brazil. As of 2022, JLR held a 3.3% share of the global premium car market. Notably, despite facing persistent challenges, its revenue soared to £23.1 billion in 2022, marking a notable 23% year-on-year surge, albeit with profitability pegged at £1.2 billion (Deloitte, 2022). While JLR has the potential to be a leader in luxury automotive manufacturing, it also faces challenges that could lead to its complete failure. 1.3 Report Objective The objective of this report is to analyze and discuss the present operational and quality management issues in the automotive industry and on JLR’s organizational scale. The role of this report is to provide recommendations for the identified problems. 2.0 Current Operations and Quality Management Issues/ Business Challenges JLR is faced with a range of current operations and quality management issues/ business challenges. In this analysis, the issues/challenges that will be addressed include sustainability, supply chain issues, inventory management, and human resource issues. 2.1 Sustainability Sustainability is a universally agreed move towards the protection of the environment and natural resources. All the industries contributing damage to the environment have been cautioned to change their operations (Meng et al., 2018). Partly, the reason why organizations are exiting the automotive industry is the unpredictable operational and quality management issues. For instance, the automotive industry is struggling to steer sustainability. As shown in Figure 1, transportation is the leading industry in greenhouse gas emissions. Also, industries as well as commercial and residential properties contribute significantly to GHCs. Unfortunately, the automotive industry is a contributor to almost all the key GHG emissions matrices (ReportLinker, 2023). Enhancing sustainability, hence, has been a key objective for the industry even though little has been achieved to the effect. Figure 1: Sources of Greenhouse Gas Emissions The automotive industry has steered efforts to aid in addressing the sustainability issues. There is a shift towards electric vehicles (EVs). While the future is undoubtedly electric, the transition presents challenges. Data from the International Energy Agency (IEA) shows that in 2022, EV sales soared by 108%, yet battery production capacity struggles to keep pace thereby impacting production schedules (Deloitte, 2022). Additionally, sourcing sustainable raw materials for battery production raises ethical and environmental concerns. The sustainability issues affect operations at JLR considerably. JLR's automobiles, notably its larger SUVs, make substantial contributions to greenhouse gas emissions. In 2017, the mean tailpipe CO2 emissions for newly sold JLR vehicles in the EU stood at 162 g/km, surpassing the EU fleet average of 127.5 g/km (Meng et al., 2018). Even though positive steps have been made, JLR manufacturing establishments still contribute significantly to GHCs. Also, motor vehicle manufacturing vehicles use a significant amount of materials, including steel, aluminium, and leather whose extraction and processing of materials can harm the environment (SMMT, 2022). Ultimately, JLR is subject to waste generation as its manufacturing and other operations generate waste, which needs to be managed responsibly. 2.2 Supply Chain Struggles There is also a supply chain struggle with the impacts of COVID-19 and geopolitical tensions still looming. 80% of automotive executives experienced supply chain disruptions in 2022, leading to production delays and cost increases (Statista, 2022). The semiconductor shortage, for instance, caused major automakers to lose billions in revenue and forced production stoppages (SMMT, 2022). The above supply chain challenges trickled down to individual organizations. For instance, in 2022 alone, 50,000 JLR units were lost due to supply chain constraints (Deloitte,...