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Assignment in TQM
Assignment in TQM
Assignment in TQM
ASSIGNMENT # 2
1. Functions and Roles in Operations Management
• Forecasting for planning – the organization would also need to forecast the
performance of the business in the future by evaluating its performance in the
past and present.
Example: The management predicting that the next year’s sales would increase
by 30% based on their performance this year.
• Planning for capacity – After the forecast, the management would take on the
capacity planning. They would be identifying and measuring the overall capacity
of production. This would ensure that costs are maintained at a minimum
possible level without affecting the quality of the product or service.
Example: If your company has 10 employees who each work 40 hours per week,
then the company has 400 hours of weekly capacity. Without factoring in
overtime, this company could handle a maximum of 400 hours of business each
week.
• Analyzing the value chain – The management will be recognizing the activities
that are valuable as well as those activities that could still be improved in order to
provide competitive advantage.
• Optimizing resource usage – Efficiently organizing and allocating personnel
and equipment for different purposes while at the same time avoiding idle
resources. In order to optimize effectively, allocating the right resource to a
specific activity would help to know whether that resource would be able to
perform a particular task.
• Use of Data: Analytics are essential for strong planning, adjustments, and
decision making. Two common types are efficiency metrics and effectiveness
metrics.
• Inventory Analysis: To manage inventory in the supply chain, ABC analysis
(also called Pareto analysis) comes into play. It divides inventory into three
categories A, B, and C; “A” has the most value and tightest controls, and “C” has
the least. Example: ABC Analysis
• Data Challenges: Data is often siloed, which makes it difficult to compare.
But newer systems and setups are making this easier and helping analysts and
managers examine data in new, helpful ways.
• Process Design: Researching, forecasting, and developing a sound process
takes expertise and energy, but the results can be lasting.
• Forecasting and Goal Setting: The best forecasting often combines a look
at historical data with analysis of changing conditions. Example: a company might
use its past sales information to make predictions about what its sales volume will
be for the next 12 months.
• Collaboration Among Departments: With good communication and
collaboration, operations management can work effectively with finance, sales,
marketing, human resources, and other departments. Example: Human
Resources Department cooperating with the Marketing Department about the
performance of the employees.
• Being Green: Ecological soundness has become a strategic and legal
necessity at companies nowadays, especially in manufacturing.
• Managing People: With all the advancements in machinery and technology,
people remain critical to the equation, though often in different types of jobs.
Example: Meeting with the workers about their opinions and suggestions to the
company.
Another set of operations management principles comes from author Dr. Richard
Schonberger. His 16 principles are:
• Team up with customers. Know what they buy and use. – Being aware of your
customer’s wants and needs would enable you to develop and improve your
products and services.
• Engage in continual, rapid improvement.
• Maintain a unified purpose. Involve employees in strategy. – It is important
that your employees would know the strategies to be implemented by the
organization in order that they would be able to help achieving the objectives and
goals of the organization.
• Know the competition. – Do not rely on your own products. Know who your
competitors as well. With this, you’ll have an idea as to what to improve and what
to avoid as such.
• Focus. – Focus on the main priorities of the organization.
• Organize resources. – Organizing the resources would help in carrying out the
production processes of the organization
• Maintain equipment.- Always keep the equipment properly maintained at all
times.
• Use the simplest, best equipment. – As long as your equipment would work in
order to satisfy the needs, choose the best and simplest equipment as possible.
• Minimize human error.
• Cut times. Shorten the product path to the customer.- This would reduce costs
and improve efficiency.