OPS performance

Question 1

what does operations management involve

Answer 1

managing the process of turning inputs into output

Question 2

labour intensive
vs
capital intensive

Answer 2

a high proportion of production is done by labour
a high proportion of production is done by capital machinery

Question 3

what is the supply chain?

Answer 3

the series of activities involved in turning inputs into outputs

Question 4

what can operations involve

Answer 4

gathering analysing and distributing data
storing and transporting products
producing goods

Question 5

what is the operations decision making process

Answer 5

set ops objectives
analyse ops data
make ops decisions
implement ops decisions
review

Question 6

name 5 examples of ops objectives:

Answer 6

costs
flexibility
dependability
speed
quality

Question 7

internal influences on ops decisions/objectives

Answer 7

marketing
finance
HR

Question 8

external influences on ops decisions/objectives

Answer 8

PESTLE - C

Question 9

calculate labour productivity

Answer 9

total output
__________________
number of employees

Question 10

calculate unit cost

Answer 10

total costs
____________
total output

Question 11

calculate capacity utilisation

Answer 11

existing output
____________________________ x 100
maximum possible output

Question 12

what is capacity

Answer 12

the maximum output of a business at a moment in time given its resources

Question 13

what does efficiency measure

Answer 13

how well inputs are used to generate outputs

Question 14

what is labour productivity

Answer 14

measures output from employees over a given period

Question 15

why is efficiency important

Answer 15

increased efficiency can bring down unit costs which will either increase profits or allow the business to decrease prices

Question 16

how can a business increase labour productivity

Answer 16

training
new tech
new methods of working
new reward systems
better management

Question 17

difficulties in increasing labour productivity

Answer 17

quality may suffer
met with resistance from employees
employees may demand higher pay

Question 18

define lean production

Answer 18

when managers reduce waste and therefore ops become more efficient

Question 19

how can production become more lean?

Answer 19

kaizen - continuous improvement
Andon - transparency and everyone learns from each others mistakes
changing the layout to make timings quicker

Question 20

difficulties of adopting lean production

Answer 20

no inventory if there is ever disruption
employees may not want more responsability

Question 21

how is quality measured

Answer 21

measured by the extent to which an operation meets its customer requirements

Question 22

what does a quality ops process require

Answer 22

clear targets
systems to achieve targets
training of staff
ongoing measurement of current progress
action to be taken if targets are not being met

Question 23

what’s the importance of quality

Answer 23

to stay competitive
to have a good reputation

Question 24

how to improve quality

Answer 24

by understanding customer requirements
training
investing in tech
new processes
selecting the right partners

Question 25

quality control vs quality assurance

Answer 25

checked at the end of the process, items are discarded if not fit for purpose checked along the process, all employees are responsible,

Question 26

consequences of poor quality

Answer 26

extra cost of correction damaged reputation legal costs if sued

Question 27

ops objectives for supply chains

Answer 27

speed of response dependability becoming more flexible

Question 28

what is mass customisation

Answer 28

producing on a large scale but being able to meet individual customer expectations/wants

Question 29

what is inventory?

Answer 29

stock a business holds as well as raw materials

Question 30

influences on the volume of inventory held

Answer 30

warehousing space opportunity cost potential dead stock

Question 31

what do inventory control charts measure

Answer 31

buffer inventory lead time re-order level re-order quantity

Question 32

when demand can vary enormously, how can a business meet this

Answer 32

employing a flexible workforce use queuing systems or waiting lists outsourcing increasing prices to loose demand accepting orders to produce for others if demand is low producing to order

Question 33

part time vs temp staff

Answer 33

work a few hours every week work for a few weeks only in contract

Question 34

list some influences on choice of suppliers

Answer 34

cost of materials quality dependability ethical considerations

Question 35

what is outsourcing

Answer 35

when a business uses another provider for part of the production process

Question 36

benefits of outsourcing

Answer 36

makes use of specialists can increase business capacity

Question 37

drawbacks of outsourcing

Answer 37

poor quality will reflect badly on the business has to stay accountable for suppliers more expensive than in-house