Group 6

BSMA-3
Briones, Angelique Glenda
Plaza, Shery Mae
Serrano, Kristine Grace
Temblor, Tefanee Therese
Ungab, Deyzel B.

BA107AB

03:00-04:30 PM MW

November 11, 2015

Discussion Questions:
1. Why should one study operations management?
(1)
OM is one of three major functions (marketing, finance, and operations) of any organization and we study
how people organize themselves for productive enterprise.
(2)

We want to know how goods and services are produced.

(3)

To understand what operations managers do.

(4)

It provides a major opportunity for an organization to improve its profitability and enhance its service to
society.

2. Identify four people who have contributed to the theory and techniques of operations management.
Responses include:
The people who have contributed to the theory and techniques of operations management are Adam Smith,
Frederick W. Taylor, Walter Stewart and Henry Ford.
3. Briefly describe the contributions of the four individuals identified in the preceding question.
Adam Smith Contributed work specialization/division of labor, Frederick W. Taylor contributed scientific
management, Walter Stewart contributed Statistical sampling and quality control and Henry Ford contributed
moving assembly line.
4.Figure 1.1 outlines the operations, finance/ accounting, and marketing functions of three organizations.
Prepare a chart similar to Figure 1.1 outlining the same functions for one of the following:
a. a newspaper
b. a drugstore
c. a college library
d. a summer camp
e. a small costume-jewelry factory
5. Answer Question 4 for some other organization, perhaps an organization, perhaps an organization where
you have worked.
6. What are the three basic functions of a firm?
Marketing, which helps promote and sell products or services
Production/operations, which creates the product
Finance/accounting, which tracks how well the organization doing in financial terms
7. Identify the 10 strategic operations management decisions.

Design of goods and services

Managing quality
Process and capacity design
Location strategy
Layout strategy
Human resources and job design
Supply-chain management
Inventory management
Scheduling
Maintenance

8. Name four areas that are significant to improving labor productivity.

Basic education appropriate for an effective labor force
Diet of the labor force
Social overhead such as transportation and sanitation
Training, motivation, team building
9. The U.S., and indeed much of the rest of the world, has been described as a knowledge society. How does
this affect productivity between the U.S. and other countries?
A way to improve productivity is to develop productivity measures for all operations. Productivity is harder
to measure when the task becomes more intellectual. Knowledge societies are societies that are based on the
acquisition and utilization of information and knowledge to enhance economic and social development. A
knowledge society implies that work is more intellectual and which means it is harder to measure. Since the U.S.
and much of the rest of the world have been described as knowledge society, productivity is now harder to
measure. Using labor hours as a measure of productivity for a post- industrial society and for an industrial or
agricultural society is very different. For example, years spent developing a new drug or device or winning a
difficult legal case on intellectual property rights may be significant for a post- industrial society, but not show
much in the way of productivity improvement measured in labor hours.
10. What are the measurement problems that occur when one attempts to measure productivity?
Measurement problems that occur when measuring productivity are: difficulty in measuring input and
output; the changing of some conditions just like continuous change in the price of inputs and outputs, quality of
raw-materials, machines and tools, and quality of labor; and measuring at different periods of time. Productivity is
also difficult to measure because precise units of measure may be lacking, quality inconsistency, technological
changes and the changes of independent variables.
11. Mass customization and rapid product development were identified as challenges to modern
manufacturing operations. What is the relationship, if any, between these challenges? Can you cite any
examples?
Mass customization aims to offer products or services which meet the demands of a specific customer, but
can still be produced and delivered with mass production efficiency (Piller, 2014). Rapid product development, on
the other hand, aims to develop new products or services at a shorter time and a lesser amount of resources (Revcor,
2013). If there's any relationship between them, both require agility within the organization.

12. What are the five reasons productivity is difficult to improve in the service sector?
Improvement of the service sector has been proven to difficult because:
It is labor intensive;
It is frequently focused on unique individual attributes or desires;
It is often an intellectual task performed by professionals;
It is often difficult to mechanize and automate; and
It is often difficult to evaluate for quality (Heizer & Render, 2011).