Operations Management Primer
| Operations are the processes by which inputs
(people, capital, and material) combine to produce goods and services. People are labor
and management. Capital consists of facilities, equipment,
and—recently—intellectual property. Materials include raw materials,
semi-finished goods, and intellectual property. Goods are tangible products, while
services are intangible products. Operations management is decision-making that involves
design, planning, and control of a huge variety of things that determine the success of
operations. Those who manage operations must decide what to produce, what kinds of people
to hire and how many of each, what methods to employ to improve output and improve
quality, and so on. Their ability to adapt to changing requirements has a direct effect on
how successful they will be.
Operations management is part of the larger picture. Other departments—which the
operations manager must interact with—may include accounting, engineering, finance,
human resources, information systems, maintenance, and sales. To be a successful
operations manager—whether at the department level or higher—you must understand
the interaction of these different groups. The better you can manage the white spaces on
the organizational chart, the more successful you will be.
Here are some other things you need to understand:
- How to establish goals and objectives that are measurable and achievable
- Short-range, medium-range, and long-range planning
- The importance of teamwork and how to foster it
- The goals of upper management and how they relate to what you are doing—in terms of
specific actions
- The importance of ethics in decision-making
- The concept of "value-added" and how it affects your products and how you
produce them
- The effect of technology on people and performance
- The boundaries of goods and services, and how to cross over them
- The influence of international competition
- The changing cultural norms and how they affect your workforce
- The changing nature of information technology and how it affects your business
processes—both backoffice and frontline
- Product safety and liability concerns
- The effect of product mix on work stability
- The effect of government
- Public opinion and its impact on sales
- Labor relations
- The effect of economic trends, both short-term and long-term
- Strategy development and implementation
- Communications, both inter-company and intra-company
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Success in business depends on preparation. Those who wing it are those who
fail. But don't prepare just in your area of technical expertise. Prepare there,
yes. But also:
- Keep learning about your own field. There's a reason why
state licensing boards require continuing education. Apply this
same concept to whatever areas you work in. If you are licensed
as, say, a CPA, then continue your education also in the areas
of customer service, productivity, time management, and other
areas that will help you do your job better, faster, and at more
of a competitive advantage.
- Learn about related fields. For example, sales people should
learn about marketing and operations. This helps you when
promotions are considered.
- Network. Get to know people. Ask them about what they do.
Show an interest.
- Establish your presence in your professional organizations.
Join the top two or three of these organizations, and attend
meetings. Become an officer in one, and take that position very
seriously.
- Play nice. No matter how good you are, your career is going
to stall if people don't like you. So show respect and be fair.
Don't worry about popularity, worry about your reputation.
- Know your business goals. Often, people let themselves get
diverted from their business goals. They start staying busy,
instead of focusing their time and other resources on their
business goals. Remind yourself daily about why you are doing
the job you do.
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