Exam 10: Operations Management, Productivity, and Quality

How does the use of statistical process control methods help to improve the quality of a firm's products?

One of the key differences between service and manufacturing operations is manufacturing products are characterized by intangibility and customization. manufacturing operations feature a unique link between process and outcome. manufacturing operations are less storable. services are performed, but goods are produced. services focus on the outcome of the production process.

Murray had his car repaired the other day. This is an example of a low-contact service process.

Which is the best description of competitive product analysis? A company looks at all the competitors' products and rates them on a scale of 1 to 10. An independent testing service, such as Consumers' Union, is hired to test and rate a group of similar products. A competitor's product is purchased, disassembled, and the components tested in order to generate ideas for improving the quality of products. An independent firm conducts consumer research in order to rate competing products. This is the result of a consumer survey by the marketing department.

Planning for quality begins before products are initially designed or redesigned.

In a custom cake bakery, blending of ingredients is done in the mixing area, baking occurs in the oven area, and decorations are applied in the finishing area. This is an example of which layout? Cellular Customer Process Fixed-position Product

What is the meaning of "operations control"? Planning and organizing the flow of materials Purchasing the right raw materials, in the right quantity, at the right price, and at the right time Checking to ensure that production decisions are being implemented Stocking items needed for production that are themselves produced within the firm Monitoring production performance by comparing results with plans and schedules

What is re-engineering?

The clerk at the 7-Eleven store and the morning radio announcer are examples of people who work in ___________, while companies that make things like radios and automobiles are engaged in __________. minimum wage operations; maximum wage operations goods production; service operations service operations; goods production high-contact operations; low-contact operations none of the above

Identify and briefly discuss the three characteristics which differentiate services from goods.

Toys for Pops is a small business that focuses on indoor and outdoor games intended for an adult male clientele. It stocks a range of fantasy action figures and models, low-impact athletic accessories such as Frisbees and croquet sets, and a wide range of video games. The business has grown to the point that a larger location is needed. Recently, a location has come up for rent at a nearby strip mall at a favorable rate. The facility would provide the business with much needed shelf space and more room for employees behind the counter. However, the strip mall is in an area that has also seen a rapid increase in petty crime. The CEO feels that the advantages of the new location support the decision to relocate. Which of the following, if true, might justify the relocation as a prudent move from the human resource point of view? Developing a Facebook page made the business known to a large group of potential customers living in a much wider regional area. Federal crime reports show that the greater metro area has seen an increase in car thefts. The new location is located near a major freeway interchange. Fantasy action figures are often remaindered for below wholesale cost because their popularity is short-lived. Anonymous notes in the firm's suggestion box repeatedly cited cramped conditions and lack of privacy as the most annoying factors in working conditions at the present site.

When analysts at Farbex spot-check the weight of samples at several points in the production process, they are engaging in value-added analysis. quality/cost studies. benchmarking. statistical process control. getting closer to the customer.

Transforming raw data into management reports is a synthetic process.

Control charts are used to monitor the process during production in order to detect the time at which the process becomes unacceptable.

The three characteristics of services that distinguish them from goods production are intangibility, customization, and unstorability.

Identify and describe the five major areas in materials management.

A software development company is designing an evaluation plan for its software programmers. The company feels that changes are necessary because it lacks the facts it needs to distinguish outstanding software programmers from those that are only average, or worse. Previously, the company paid software programmers a flat salary and based evaluations on supervisors' opinions. Now, however, the company is considering the following measures for its software programmers: Measurement Strategy Alpha: Software programmers will be evaluated based on the total number of lines of code that they produce. Measurement Strategy Beta: Software programmers will be evaluated based on their ability to produce computer code that is free of errors. Measurement Strategy Gamma: Software programmers will be evaluated based on the market success of the products they produce. The choice to use only Measurement Strategy Beta would be vulnerable to criticism because it would give the software programmers an incentive to do what? Make overly optimistic commitments to customer-facing employees at the company Spend too much time checking their code in order to eliminate any possibility of error Develop projects that meet programming requirements but not market requirements Skip the quality assurance checks that reveal the most damaging software errors Produce more lines of code than are required to perform a given function

When comparing manufacturing and service operations, it is correct to say that only manufacturing operations transform raw materials into finished products. most service operations are pure service. service operations are more complex than goods production. quality considerations are defined and managed in a similar way in both the service sector and in manufacturing operations. All of these statements are correct.

Outsourcing has led to increasingly global supply chains. Describe three ways that a more global supply chain might be risky for a company that outsources.

Labour productivity is determined by dividing GNP by the total number of workers in a country.