What Is Operations Management?

Operations management (OM) plans, organizes, and revises business practices to achieve maximum efficiency and pඣrofitability. Operations managers oversee multiple departments in a company to help them coordinate with one another to work toward the company’s goals.

Operations management teams balance costs with revenue to achieve the highest possible net 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:operating profit.

What Operations Managers Do

Operations managers coordinate new processes while reevaluating current structures. Organization and 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:productivity are two key drivers, and the work often requires versatility and innovation. They may determine the size of manufacturing plants or implement the structure of information technဣology networks.

Operations managers may oversee inventory management processes, 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:work-in-process levels, 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:raw materials acquisition, 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:quality control, materials handling, and maintenance policies. As part of their daily responsibilities, operations managers must possess a variety of skill sets, including:

• Technical expertise in production automation, data entry, budget tracking, and design
• Organizational ability to track project files, employee reports, budgets, schedules, and other details related to company processes
• Motivational prowess in the form of strong leadership skills that provide the expertise to motivate others, inspire ideas, and foster a supportive and diverse team
• Analytical aptitude, including risk analysis and mitigation when initiating new projects. Operations managers must analyze processes to identify challenges and offer solutions.
• Decision-making proficiency, especially under stress, when there is very little time to assess all factors
• Maintain quality standards, including raw materials, machinery, manufacturing procedures, packaging, delivery processes, and the finished product.

Operations Management Tools

• Business Process Reengineering (BPR): Focused on analyzing and designing workflow and business processes within a company. BPR seeks to optimize processes and eliminate redundancies. BPR (also known as business process redesign) helps companies dramatically restructure the organization by designing the business process from the ground up.
• Six Sigma: Introduced by Bill Smith at Motorola in 1986 to improve manufacturing quality. The term “six” references the control limits at six 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:standard deviations from the normal distribution mean. Tools used within the 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Six Sigma process include trending charts, potential defect calculations, and other ratios.
• Lean Manufacturing: Aims to reduce waste and improve continuity in 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:supply chain management. Lean manufacturing targets the flow of products from the production stage to customer delivery.

Operations and Supply Chain Management (OSCM)

A critical function of operations management relates to 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:inventory flow through the supply chain. This process is known as operations and supply chain management (OSCM). Operations management professionals understand 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:logistics, global trends, customer demand, and availabl🐼e resources for production.

🌟 Operations management approaches the acquisition of materials and the use of labor in a timely, cost-effective manner to deliver customer expectations. Inventory levels are monitored to ensure that ample quantities are on hand. Operations managers find vendors that supply the appropriate goods at reasonable prices and that deliver the pღroduct when needed.

Operations managers use numerous formulas, such as the 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:economic order quantity formula, to determine how large an inventory order to process and how much inventory to hol👍d on hand. Managers may follow up with customers to ensure products meet quality and functionality needs. Operations managers take feedback and distribute relevant information to each department for improvement.

The Bottom Line

Operations management (OM) is the process of 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩🌳网:prioritizing and emp🐬loying business practices to achieve maximum efficiency. Operations managers balance the efficient use oജf resources, including staff, materials, equipm🦋ent, and technology.