Ford Motor Company’s Operations Management, 10

Decision Areas
1. Design of Goods and Services. Ford’s goal in this strategic decision area of
operations management is to achieve global consistency. The One Ford
mission requires such consistency in goods and services. This condition contributes
to Ford’s financial efficiency and its ability to optimize customer satisfaction.
2. Quality Management. The main concern in this strategic decision area of
operations management is the satisfaction of quality expectations. Ford Motor
Company does so through standard quality assurance practices. The firm also
conducts random batch tests on its products to ensure quality.
3. Process and Capacity Design. This strategic decision area of operations
management supports production goals. Ford pioneered the assembly line method,
which maximizes production capacity. Also, Ford continues to improve its capacity
by developing new facilities for its production network and supply chain.
4. Location Strategy. Ford Motor Company’s aim in this strategic decision area of
operations management is to ensure strategic benefits of its facility locations. The
company’s strategy involves regional production facilities, such as the Ford factories
in Germany. On the other hand, dealership locations are based on market size.
5. Layout Design and Strategy. In this strategic decision area of operations
management, the objective is to maximize efficiency of workflows and resources.
Ford addresses this objective through automation of production processes, such as
through the use of robotics in production facilities.
6. Job Design and Human Resources. Ford has the goal of maximizing human
resource effectiveness and efficiency in this strategic decision area of operations
management. Ford has a number of programs to support HR capacity and employee
satisfaction. The company ensures continuous improvement and personnel
development in its strategies.
7. Supply Chain Management. This strategic decision area of operations
management focuses on streamlining and cost-effectiveness in the supply chain.
Ford’s supply chain is global and involves company-owned production facilities, as
well as third parties. The company-owned facilities, such as those in the Ford River
Rouge Complex in Michigan, are a result of Ford’s backward vertical integration
strategy. This strategy empowers Ford to control the supply of some of the materials
used for manufacturing its vehicles.
8. Inventory Management. Ford’s inventory management supports just-in-time
manufacturing methods, which require continuous monitoring to adjust the inventory
and minimize its costs. However, in this strategic decision area of operations
management, Ford’s actual inventory management performance also points to
market-based inventory decisions. Different markets present different challenges,
such that Ford has varying inventory management practices in different markets.
9. Scheduling. In this strategic decision area of operations management, the short-
term and intermediate schedules of processes and resources are considered. Ford
addresses these concerns through automated scheduling in its production facilities,
and semi-automated scheduling in its offices, such as corporate offices and regional
offices.
10. Maintenance. The goal in this strategic decision area of operations management
is to maintain adequate business processes to satisfy demand. Ford addresses this
goal through a combination of strategies for HR, IT, manufacturing and other areas,
as well as maintenance teams for facilities and other assets.

Process Focus:

. Another example of a process focus is a restaurant that needs for three processes
to operate optimally: the kitchen, the bakery, and the bar.  Marketing, advertisement
and other dimensions of a restaurant business fall short if the kitchen, the bakery
and the bar are not good. In other words, the process speaks for itself.

Repetitive focus: When a business is based on mass production and consistent

processes you need to focus on how the repetitive processes that take place in
product production are operating. For example, when you run a food truck, a
cafeteria, or a fast food place, there are a lot of consistent and repetitive processes
that need to be optimal. Imagine operating a food truck without a system for folding
bread, stuffing sandwiches, and serving trays? It would mean super long lines, and
lack of organization in the serving of food. In such cases, the focus should be on how
to form patterns of repetition that will ensure that the same product is served the
same way at all times. There will be no other way for the company to establish a
name for itself and form a reputation for customer service.  This process strategy is
also based on modules of operation, meaning on specific areas of focus that need to
be supervised: Ex: putting the food together, serving the food, sending it out. These
are the repetitions that we need to focus on in a business of this time.

The product focus is used when the product is at the center of attention in the
company. Goods or services that are so essential and needed that they need to be
nearly perfect. Therefore, what we want to accomplish in a product focus is lots of
product (high volume), not a complex or extensive set of choices to pick from (low
variety)and continuous production.

Mass customization is a focus that is placed on products that are needed for
specific reasons , for specific periods of time, and for consistent changes. An
example of this type of factories is those that manufacture seasonal objects that
need to be produced differently from year to year to ensure consumption. Think
Christmas trees, Halloween Costumes that need to reflect the current trends, and
Fall/Winter/Spring/Summer merchandise that varies from store to store. Mass
customization is fast production that changes consistently.