SOLUTION MANUAL FOR
Managing Operations Across the Supply Chain, 5th Edition Swink
Chapter 1-16
Chapter 1
Introduction to Managing Operations Across the Supply Chain
Suggested Answers to Discussion Questions
1. Review Fortune magazine’s ―Most Admired‖ American companies for 1959, 1979,
1999, and the most current year. (The issue normally appears in August each year.)
Which companies have remained on the top throughout this period? Which ones have
disappeared? What do you think led to the survival or demise of these companies?
The companies that have stayed on top throughout this period are Southwest, Berkshire
Hathaway, and Proctor and Gamble. UPS, Coca Cola, and GE were some of the companies
that disappeared. The companies that were able to stay at the top of the list were the ones able
to deal with major changes in the industry easily. In order to stay afloat in harder times, they
were managed by people who understood operations management; they had a winning value
proposition that was continually revitalized by the introduction of new products and services.
12-1
,The companies that did not stay at the top unable to make the necessary changes so easily;
perhaps their operations management was not at the caliber of the other companies able to stay
at the top of the list.
2. Select two products that you have recently purchased; one should be a service and the
other a manufactured good. Think about the process that you used to make the decision
to purchase each item. What product characteristics were most important to you? What
operational activities determine these characteristics?
12-2
,Student answers to this question will vary. The following is an example from one student:
―Two products I have recently purchased were a sweater and a haircut. The process I used to
make the decision to purchase the sweater was trying on the sweater in different colors,
contemplating the purchase at home, waiting for sweater to go on sale, and then purchasing it.
The process I used to make the decision about where to get my haircut included researching
pictures of how I wanted my hair to look, asking advice about where to go from friends,
researching online for reviews about stylists, and getting my haircut by that stylist. I wanted to
make sure both products were going to satisfy me enough so that I wouldn’t regret either
purchase. I had to be comfortable with both my sweater and my new hair style, luckily I was! I
also wanted both my sweater and my hair style to last for a while to make them worth the cost.
The operational activities that determine these characteristics are the manufacturing, shipping
and selling the sweater in stores. If the sweater was poorly made and didn’t fit correctly, I
would not have purchased it. If it was not available (on the shelf) I could not have purchased it.
The operational activities that determine the characteristics of my hairstyle are the stylist
arriving to work on time for my appointment, washing, cutting and blow drying my hair in a
way that I was expecting (having sufficient capacity so that I did not have to wait too long).
Since my hair was cut and styled the way I requested, I will be returning to that hair stylist.
3. What are the primary operations management decisions in each of the following
corporations?
Again, student answers will vary but may include the following elements.
a. Marriott Hotels and Resorts: How to greet and treat customers during their stay, what
services to supply to customers, how to check customers in so that they are not waiting for
12-3
, ong Nperiods Nof Ntime Nto Nget Nto Ntheir Nrooms, Nhow Nto Ndeal Nwith Nunhappy Ncustomers Nin
order Nto Nkeep Nthem Ncoming Nback, Nhow Nto Nmeasure Ncustomer Nsatisfaction.
N
b. A Nprivate Ngolf Nand Ntennis Nclub: NHow Nto Nserve Ncustomers Nwhile Nplaying Ntennis/golf Nso
they Ncontinue Nto Nspend Ntheir Nmoney Nand Nplay Nat Nthis Nprivate Ncourse, Nwhat Nservices Nto Noffer
N
in Norder Nto Nkeep Ncustomers Nhappy. NHow Nto Nbest Nmanage Nthe Nfacilities Nand Ntrain
N
employees.
N
c. Ben N& NJerry’s: NWhat Nflavors Nto Nmake, Nhow Nmuch Nof Neach Nflavor Nto Nmake, Nhow Nto
keep Nup Nwith Ndemand, Nwhat Nsuppliers Nto Nuse, Nhow Nto Nmeasure Ncustomer Nsatisfaction.
N
d. ExxonMobil NCorporation: NHow Nto Nmanage Nexploration, Nextraction Nand Nrefinement
operations Neffectively Nand Nefficiently. NWhat Nservices Nare Nto Nbe Ndelivered, Nhow Nto Nkeep
N
retail Ncustomers Nhappy, Nhow Nto Ndeliver Ngoods.
N
4. Consider Nthe Nfollowing Nprocesses Nthat Nyou Nfrequently Nencounter Nas Na Ncollege Nstudent.
Describe Neach Nprocess Nand Nits Ninput, Nactivities, Nand Noutputs. NWhat Nis Nbeing Nconverted
or Ntransformed Nin Neach Nprocess? NWho Nare Nthe Ncustomers, Nsuppliers, Nand
N
stakeholders Nfor Neach Nprocess?
N
a. Enrolling Nin Nclasses: NClasses Nmust Nbe Nscheduled Nso Nthat Nstudents Ncan Nenroll Nin Nthem,
students Ncommunicate Nwith Nadvisor Nabout Nnecessary Nclasses, Nstudents Nsign Nonto Nwebsite
N
and Nfind Nsuitable Nclasses Nthat Nfit Ntogether Ninto Nschedule Nfor Neach Nsemester. NThe Ninputs Nof
N
this Nprocess Nare Nthe Nstudent’s Nand Nadministrators’ Ntime Nand Nproblem Nsolving Neffort. NThe
N
activities Nare Ndecision Nmaking, Ncommunicating, Nand Nscheduling Nso Nthat Neveryone Nhas Na
N
chance Nto Ntake Nthe Nclasses Nthey Nwant Neach Nsemester. NThe Noutput Nis Nthe Nstudent’s Nschedule
N
and Nenrollment Ninto Nclasses. NThe Nstudent’s Nschedule Nis Nbeing Ntransformed. NThe Ncustomer
N
is Nthe Nstudent, Nthe Nstakeholders Nare Nthe Nprofessors Nwho Nget Npaid Nto Nteach Nthe Ncourses Nand
N
12-4
Managing Operations Across the Supply Chain, 5th Edition Swink
Chapter 1-16
Chapter 1
Introduction to Managing Operations Across the Supply Chain
Suggested Answers to Discussion Questions
1. Review Fortune magazine’s ―Most Admired‖ American companies for 1959, 1979,
1999, and the most current year. (The issue normally appears in August each year.)
Which companies have remained on the top throughout this period? Which ones have
disappeared? What do you think led to the survival or demise of these companies?
The companies that have stayed on top throughout this period are Southwest, Berkshire
Hathaway, and Proctor and Gamble. UPS, Coca Cola, and GE were some of the companies
that disappeared. The companies that were able to stay at the top of the list were the ones able
to deal with major changes in the industry easily. In order to stay afloat in harder times, they
were managed by people who understood operations management; they had a winning value
proposition that was continually revitalized by the introduction of new products and services.
12-1
,The companies that did not stay at the top unable to make the necessary changes so easily;
perhaps their operations management was not at the caliber of the other companies able to stay
at the top of the list.
2. Select two products that you have recently purchased; one should be a service and the
other a manufactured good. Think about the process that you used to make the decision
to purchase each item. What product characteristics were most important to you? What
operational activities determine these characteristics?
12-2
,Student answers to this question will vary. The following is an example from one student:
―Two products I have recently purchased were a sweater and a haircut. The process I used to
make the decision to purchase the sweater was trying on the sweater in different colors,
contemplating the purchase at home, waiting for sweater to go on sale, and then purchasing it.
The process I used to make the decision about where to get my haircut included researching
pictures of how I wanted my hair to look, asking advice about where to go from friends,
researching online for reviews about stylists, and getting my haircut by that stylist. I wanted to
make sure both products were going to satisfy me enough so that I wouldn’t regret either
purchase. I had to be comfortable with both my sweater and my new hair style, luckily I was! I
also wanted both my sweater and my hair style to last for a while to make them worth the cost.
The operational activities that determine these characteristics are the manufacturing, shipping
and selling the sweater in stores. If the sweater was poorly made and didn’t fit correctly, I
would not have purchased it. If it was not available (on the shelf) I could not have purchased it.
The operational activities that determine the characteristics of my hairstyle are the stylist
arriving to work on time for my appointment, washing, cutting and blow drying my hair in a
way that I was expecting (having sufficient capacity so that I did not have to wait too long).
Since my hair was cut and styled the way I requested, I will be returning to that hair stylist.
3. What are the primary operations management decisions in each of the following
corporations?
Again, student answers will vary but may include the following elements.
a. Marriott Hotels and Resorts: How to greet and treat customers during their stay, what
services to supply to customers, how to check customers in so that they are not waiting for
12-3
, ong Nperiods Nof Ntime Nto Nget Nto Ntheir Nrooms, Nhow Nto Ndeal Nwith Nunhappy Ncustomers Nin
order Nto Nkeep Nthem Ncoming Nback, Nhow Nto Nmeasure Ncustomer Nsatisfaction.
N
b. A Nprivate Ngolf Nand Ntennis Nclub: NHow Nto Nserve Ncustomers Nwhile Nplaying Ntennis/golf Nso
they Ncontinue Nto Nspend Ntheir Nmoney Nand Nplay Nat Nthis Nprivate Ncourse, Nwhat Nservices Nto Noffer
N
in Norder Nto Nkeep Ncustomers Nhappy. NHow Nto Nbest Nmanage Nthe Nfacilities Nand Ntrain
N
employees.
N
c. Ben N& NJerry’s: NWhat Nflavors Nto Nmake, Nhow Nmuch Nof Neach Nflavor Nto Nmake, Nhow Nto
keep Nup Nwith Ndemand, Nwhat Nsuppliers Nto Nuse, Nhow Nto Nmeasure Ncustomer Nsatisfaction.
N
d. ExxonMobil NCorporation: NHow Nto Nmanage Nexploration, Nextraction Nand Nrefinement
operations Neffectively Nand Nefficiently. NWhat Nservices Nare Nto Nbe Ndelivered, Nhow Nto Nkeep
N
retail Ncustomers Nhappy, Nhow Nto Ndeliver Ngoods.
N
4. Consider Nthe Nfollowing Nprocesses Nthat Nyou Nfrequently Nencounter Nas Na Ncollege Nstudent.
Describe Neach Nprocess Nand Nits Ninput, Nactivities, Nand Noutputs. NWhat Nis Nbeing Nconverted
or Ntransformed Nin Neach Nprocess? NWho Nare Nthe Ncustomers, Nsuppliers, Nand
N
stakeholders Nfor Neach Nprocess?
N
a. Enrolling Nin Nclasses: NClasses Nmust Nbe Nscheduled Nso Nthat Nstudents Ncan Nenroll Nin Nthem,
students Ncommunicate Nwith Nadvisor Nabout Nnecessary Nclasses, Nstudents Nsign Nonto Nwebsite
N
and Nfind Nsuitable Nclasses Nthat Nfit Ntogether Ninto Nschedule Nfor Neach Nsemester. NThe Ninputs Nof
N
this Nprocess Nare Nthe Nstudent’s Nand Nadministrators’ Ntime Nand Nproblem Nsolving Neffort. NThe
N
activities Nare Ndecision Nmaking, Ncommunicating, Nand Nscheduling Nso Nthat Neveryone Nhas Na
N
chance Nto Ntake Nthe Nclasses Nthey Nwant Neach Nsemester. NThe Noutput Nis Nthe Nstudent’s Nschedule
N
and Nenrollment Ninto Nclasses. NThe Nstudent’s Nschedule Nis Nbeing Ntransformed. NThe Ncustomer
N
is Nthe Nstudent, Nthe Nstakeholders Nare Nthe Nprofessors Nwho Nget Npaid Nto Nteach Nthe Ncourses Nand
N
12-4
