UPDATE 2026
operations management (OM) - Answers the management of those activities that use
the transformation process to create value in the form of goods or services
transformation process - Answers activities that turn inputs into outputs
supply chain management (SCM) - Answers the management of the flow and storage
of inputs, raw materials, and goods from their point of origin to their point of
consumption
10 critical decisions - Answers 1. service and product design
2. quality management
3. process and capacity design
4. location
5. layout design
6. human resources and job design
7. supply-chain management
8. inventory, material requirements planning, and JIT
9. intermediate- and short-term scheduling
10. maintenance
three essential functions of an organization - Answers 1. marketing
2. production/operations
3. finance/accounting
four eras of operations management - Answers 1. cost focus (1776-1980)
2. quality focus (1980-1995)
3. customization focus (1995-2005)
4. globalization focus (2005-2020)
Adam Smith and Charles Babbage - Answers the division of labor; led to
specialization of skills
Eli Whitney - Answers standardized parts
Frederick Taylor - Answers father of scientific management
Henry Ford, Clarence W. Avery, Charles E. Sorenson - Answers assembly line; led to
mass production
Henri Gantt - Answers Gantt charts; facilitated the coordination of time and resources
within systems
, Frank and Lillian Gilbreth - Answers time and motion studies; as artisans get better at
doing their jobs, they learn the single best way to do it
Walter A. Shewhart and W. Edwards Deming - Answers quality control
characteristics of goods - Answers -tangible
-consistent definition
-production is separate form consumption
-can be inventoried
-low customer interaction
characteristics of services - Answers -intangible
-production and consumption at the same time
-often unique
-high customer interaction
-inconsistent product definition
-often knowledge-based
-frequently dispersed
productivity - Answers the ratio of outputs (goods and services) divided by the inputs
(resources such as labor and capital) that it took to produce them; measure of
efficiency
labor productivity (single-factor productivity measure) - Answers measures
efficiency as a ratio of units produced to labor-hours used to produce those units
multifactor productivity (total factor productivity) - Answers measures efficiency as a
ratio of outputs to many different inputs
efficiency measurement problems - Answers -quality may change while the quantity
of inputs and outputs remains constant
-external elements can cause a change in productivity
-there may be no precise units of measurement
forecasting - Answers the process of predicting future events
short-range forecasts (tactical forecasts) - Answers forecasts that cover periods of
time up to one year but generally cover less than three months
medium-range forecasts (intermediate forecasts) - Answers forecasts that cover
periods of time from three months to three years
long-range forecasts (strategic forecasts) - Answers forecasts that cover periods of
time greater than three years