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Editor: Dr John Burnett (Daniels College of Business, University of Denver, USA)

Editor: Michael J Pesch (St Cloud University, USA) Reviewer: Ronald F Farina (Daniels College of Business, University of Denver, USA)

Operations management is the management of processes that transform inputs into goods and services that add value for the customer. The goal of operations management is to maximize efficiency while producing goods and services that effectively fulfill customer needs. For example, if an organization makes furniture, some of the operations management decisions involve the purchasing of wood and fabric, the hiring and training of workers, the location and layout of the furniture factory, and the purchase of cutting tools and other fabrication equipment. If the organization makes good operations decisions, it will be able to produce affordable, functional, and attractive furniture that customers will purchase at a price that will earn profits for the company.

In another example, the owners of a restaurant must make important decisions regarding the location, layout, and seating capacity of the restaurant, the hiring, training, and scheduling of chefs and servers, the suppliers of fresh food at the right prices, and the purchase of stoves, refrigerators, and other food preparation equipment. If the restaurant owners make good operations decisions, they will be able to meet their customers’ needs for delicious and affordable food that is served in a pleasing atmosphere. The owners in turn will be able to charge a price that earns a profit and allows the restaurant to stay in business.

One of three strategic functions

Operations is one of the three strategic functions of any organization. This means that it is a vital part of accomplishing the organization’s strategy and ensuring its long-term survival. The other two areas of strategic importance to the organization are marketing and finance . For example, a company that makes team jerseys for sport teams must have strong marketing ability to identify groups of customers, understand their needs, and communicate with them to win their business. The company must also manage its finances so it can pay for building and equipment expenses, bank loans, worker wages, and supplies. Finally, the company must have strong operations skills so it can provide customized team jerseys that are attractive, durable, affordable and delivered on time to the customer.

The operations strategy should support the overall organization strategy. For example, JetBlue airlines is a successful airline that has an organization strategy of providing high-value air transportation service to travelers. JetBlue strives to provide fun, comfortable, and safe air service to popular destinations at a price that middle-income passengers can afford. Given JetBlue’s organization strategy, JetBlue features an operations strategy that focuses on low costs, competent and service-oriented employees, and reliable aircraft.

Questions & Answers

A golfer on a fairway is 70 m away from the green, which sits below the level of the fairway by 20 m. If the golfer hits the ball at an angle of 40° with an initial speed of 20 m/s, how close to the green does she come?
Aislinn Reply
cm
tijani
what is titration
John Reply
what is physics
Siyaka Reply
A mouse of mass 200 g falls 100 m down a vertical mine shaft and lands at the bottom with a speed of 8.0 m/s. During its fall, how much work is done on the mouse by air resistance
Jude Reply
Can you compute that for me. Ty
Jude
what is the dimension formula of energy?
David Reply
what is viscosity?
David
what is inorganic
emma Reply
what is chemistry
Youesf Reply
what is inorganic
emma
Chemistry is a branch of science that deals with the study of matter,it composition,it structure and the changes it undergoes
Adjei
please, I'm a physics student and I need help in physics
Adjanou
chemistry could also be understood like the sexual attraction/repulsion of the male and female elements. the reaction varies depending on the energy differences of each given gender. + masculine -female.
Pedro
A ball is thrown straight up.it passes a 2.0m high window 7.50 m off the ground on it path up and takes 1.30 s to go past the window.what was the ball initial velocity
Krampah Reply
2. A sled plus passenger with total mass 50 kg is pulled 20 m across the snow (0.20) at constant velocity by a force directed 25° above the horizontal. Calculate (a) the work of the applied force, (b) the work of friction, and (c) the total work.
Sahid Reply
you have been hired as an espert witness in a court case involving an automobile accident. the accident involved car A of mass 1500kg which crashed into stationary car B of mass 1100kg. the driver of car A applied his brakes 15 m before he skidded and crashed into car B. after the collision, car A s
Samuel Reply
can someone explain to me, an ignorant high school student, why the trend of the graph doesn't follow the fact that the higher frequency a sound wave is, the more power it is, hence, making me think the phons output would follow this general trend?
Joseph Reply
Nevermind i just realied that the graph is the phons output for a person with normal hearing and not just the phons output of the sound waves power, I should read the entire thing next time
Joseph
Follow up question, does anyone know where I can find a graph that accuretly depicts the actual relative "power" output of sound over its frequency instead of just humans hearing
Joseph
"Generation of electrical energy from sound energy | IEEE Conference Publication | IEEE Xplore" ***ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/7150687?reload=true
Ryan
what's motion
Maurice Reply
what are the types of wave
Maurice
answer
Magreth
progressive wave
Magreth
hello friend how are you
Muhammad Reply
fine, how about you?
Mohammed
hi
Mujahid
A string is 3.00 m long with a mass of 5.00 g. The string is held taut with a tension of 500.00 N applied to the string. A pulse is sent down the string. How long does it take the pulse to travel the 3.00 m of the string?
yasuo Reply
Who can show me the full solution in this problem?
Reofrir Reply
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Source:  OpenStax, Business fundamentals. OpenStax CNX. Oct 08, 2010 Download for free at http://cnx.org/content/col11227/1.4
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