Operations
and process management is fundamentally about how organisations produce goods
and services. The persons involved in
the operations are the operations manages while other managers in an organisation are involved in managing
the operation processes such as marketing, sales and finances, making marketing
plans, sales forecasts, budget and others.
A
business organisation is made up of the operation function and the related
operation processes. The operation is
concerned with the transformation of inputs into outputs while the processes
are the component parts of the operation.
The
difference between operations and processes is one of scale and complexity.
Both transform inputs into outputs, but processes are the smaller version. They are the component parts of operations,
so the total operations function is made up of individual processes. Therefore,
within any business, the production of products and services is not just confined
to the operations function; it is also concerned with managing processes.
Aims of the Course
1. It is to study how people organise themselves
for productive enterprise.
2. It is learn how goods and services are
produced.
3. It is to know and understand what operational
managers do.
4. It is to learn that OM provides the major opportunity
for an organisation to improve its profitability and enhance its service to
society.
5. It is to know and understand that OM is the
costly part of an organisation where a large percentage of the revenue is spent
and its strategic importance lies in reducing the cost of production and the
development of capabilities to attain competitive advantage
Course Learning Outcome
After
the successful completion of this module, students should be able to:
·
develop
an understanding of how operations can provide a competitive advantage in the
marketplace.
·
acquire
a knowledge of the issues related to designing and managing operations and the
techniques to do so.
·
analyse
specific situations and propose appropriate operational management strategies.