Programme & Unit Catalogues - University of Bath

School of Management, Unit Catalogue 2007/08

MN50233 Operations management

Credits: 6

Level: Masters

Modular: no specific semester

Assessment: EX 100%

Requisites:

Aims: This unit studies the ways in which any type of organisation must marshal and manage both internal and external resources in order to operate as a successful business. The performance of the organisation is then explored, using theories and techniques for managing work quality and minimising unproductive activities. Looking ahead, the concepts of continuous and breakthrough performance improvements are investigated and debated.
Learning Outcomes:
On completion of this unit, students should be able to:
i. analyse key business processes within any organisation;
ii. appreciate the role of the supply chain and the need to optimise the balance between internal and external activities;
iii. measure productivity and analyse the causes of non-productive activities;
iv. apply benchmarking techniques in order to prioritise areas for improvement and manage the moves towards best practices;
v. appreciate available improvement methodologies and their selection;
vi. be aware of suitable approaches to the management of change.
Skills:
Students will have at least three years of professional career experience and, generally, be in full-time employment. Consequently, the following overall transferable skills will be enhanced by this unit (and the other five units making up the Postgraduate Certificate in Engineering Management).
* Ability to design and complete a personal programme of study;
* Ability to research learning material;
* Team working with colleagues and communications skills;
* Ability to apply reflective learning to their company and own personal circumstances;
* Ability to challenge the status quo and find innovative solutions to business problems. Against this background, this unit will encourage particularly:
* The intellectual skill to evaluate and interpret information and engage in problem solving, thereby demonstrating a capacity to think clearly and logically about business processes;
* The professional skill to select and apply appropriate analytical techniques objectively and access data from a wide range of sources;
* The key ability to present, debate and agree a business case for changing process management methods.
Content:

1. Marshalling resources
1.1. The role of the operations manager: 1.1.1. Types of operations: manufacturing and services; 1.1.2. Direct responsibilities of operations managers; 1.1.3. The transformation process; 1.1.4. Contribution to strategic objectives of the organisation
1.2. Supply chain management: 1.2.1. Trends in supply chain management; 1.2.2. Porter's value chain; 1.2.3. Consideration of value added; 1.2.4. Retaining expertise: the informed buyer
1.3. Internal trading: 1.3.1. Concept of internal trading; 1.3.2. Formal procedures?; 1.3.3. Funny money and real money; 1.3.4. The living business plan
1.4. Process management and the customer: 1.4.1. The design process; 1.4.2. Concurrent engineering; 1.4.3. Quality Function Deployment; 1.4.4. Organising resources
1.5. Functional management and organisation capabilities: 1.5.1. Development of new skills; 1.5.2. Professional support; 1.5.3. Organising resources; 1.5.4. Assessing capabilities
2. Performing
2.1. Planning and control: 2.1.1. How much planning and control is needed?; 2.1.2. Capacity planning; 2.1.3. Scheduling theory; 2.1.4. Inventory planning
2.2. Measuring productivity: 2.2.1. Capital; 2.2.2. Labour; 2.2.3. Materials; 2.2.4. Facilities
2.3. Support services: 2.3.1. Marketing and sales; 2.3.2. Research and development; 2.3.3. Human resources; 2.3.4. Accounting and finance
2.4. Failure prevention: 2.4.1. Failure detection and analysis (FMEA); 2.4.2. Improving operational reliability; 2.4.3. Recovery; 2.4.4. Business continuity
2.5. Waste management: 2.5.1. Definitions; 2.5.2. Just-In-Time; 2.5.3. Materials Requirement Planning; 2.5.4. Recycling
3. Improving
3.1. Priorities for improvement: 3.1.1. Cost-benefit analysis; 3.1.2. Decision making; 3.1.3. Breakthrough v. continuous; 3.1.4. External influences
3.2. Benchmarking and best practices: 3.2.1. Concept of benchmarking: process benchmarking; 3.2.2. Business Excellence Model; 3.2.3. Design of benchmarking programmes; 3.2.4. Internal and external performance measurement
3.3. Continuous improvements: 3.3.1. Quality control; 3.3.2. Quality assurance; 3.3.3. Total Quality Management; 3.3.4. Leadership and culture
3.4. Starting again: 3.4.1. Concept of business process redesign; 3.4.2. Mapping and redesigning processes; 3.4.3. Introducing changes; 3.4.4. Successes and failure
3.5. Introducing improvements: 3.5.1. Negotiating skills; 3.5.2. Change management; 3.5.3. Empowerment; 3.5.4. Encouraging, yet managing, innovation.