What Is Ops & Scm

Professor Thomas Traub

Chandana Nambiar

 DECS.743.01 - Ops & SCM

Assignment 1

6th   June 2015

“What is Ops& SCM”

Operations and supply chain management plays a pivotal role in the competitive success of virtually every business in the world. “Operations and Supply chain is link to a customer.” (Thomas Traub, Adobe Live session, 06/03/15). I look at operations and supply chain as a thread, which connects the business to its customers.

Finance, operations and marketing are the three basic functions, which overlap each other and are interrelated functions of the organization. “Operations” as a function is responsible for the production of goods/products and delivery of services to the customers.  I can compare operations as a function of the organization to heart as a function of human body; we cannot survive without the heart beating and helping the flow of blood and oxygen in the body.  “Operations” is the heart of every business and organization. Like heart manages the core functions of the human body, operations manages the core functions of the organization.  Operations management is all about the company’s ability to look at the interface between human and equipment. It ensures production of the right goods/products with the best quality of raw material, best process of production, and delivery of the final product to the customers at the best price.  It ensures that organizations are efficient in terms of using minimal recourses and effective in terms of meeting customer requirements. Hence, “operations management is the management of systems or processes that create good and/or provide services.” (William J Stevenson, Operations Management 12th ed).

“Supply chain is a sequence of activities and organizations involved in producing and delivering a good or service.” (William J Stevenson, Operations Management 12th ed). In case of a simple product it is a chain of activities, which starts from supply of basic raw materials from supplier to the producer, in the production, the  raw materials are converted to final products by using one or more transformation processes (e.g- storing, repairing, transporting) and then after production, the good or service is distributed and delivered to the customers, who are the final consumers.  “Great Companies aim to maintain consistency of quality of delivery of products and services”(Thomas Traub, adobe live session, 06/03/15) which can be achieved, by maintaining a proper supply chain. Some companies have a great supply chain which is heavily involved in making data-driven and new product decisions; which, in return aims at improves the quality of products/goods produced and also provides better service to the customers. For example: Their recent decision is to serve only chicken which is raised without any antibiotics within the next two years.  McDonald’s has also started with the 60 second delivery at most of it’s drive thru pick up windows in Florida, which has reduced the time the customers will have to wait in order to get thru the order. In countries like India they have also stated with the home delivery system, which no other American fast food joint has offered in the Indian market. Such services have made it possible for McDonald’s to keep its customers for generations.