Business School
Masters Degree in Business
Administration, Diploma in Management
studies and other awards
Module Handbook for full and part time
post graduate groups
Module:
Operations Management
Module Code: BSB20124-M
Module Leaders:
Roy Edwards
Stephen Kelly
1
2009 - 2010
1 Introduction.
Welcome to the modules with varying lengths – “Operations Management.” (OM). We
have delivered Operations modules at post graduate level for many years – on-campus,
in-company, Malaysia and in China, to full and part time students. We have changed the
diet and structure of this operations modules many times. This time the module contains
large components of Operations Strategy, Supply Chain Management and is mainly
directed at ‘service operations’, although we will be paying attention to manufacturing
companies and operations too.
I think that you will find this module as challenging as your predecessors found the other
OM modules
The tutor for this module is Roy Edwards & Stephen Kelly. our contact details are as
follows:
Roy Edwards
Faculty of Business and Law
Room 283,
Brindley Building,
Leek Road,
Stoke-on-Trent.
ST4 2DP
Stephen Kelly
Faculty of Business and Law
Room 385,
Brindley Building,
Leek Road,
Stoke-on-Trent.
ST4 2DP
Telephone: 01782 294142
Email: roy.edwards@staffs.ac.uk
Telephone: 01782 294348
Email: stephen.kelly@staffs.ac.uk
This modules actually cover several distinct fields: “Operations Management”and
Operations Strategy”. The latter will be of great benefit to you when you start the 2 nd year
or stage of your award.
Below are just a few reasons why we believe the field of operations are important.
Operations Management: There are many people who misunderstand or are unaware of
the scope of this discipline. It is often perceived as being confined to manufacturing
operations and, by implication, that it is a low grade discipline. There are also other
pockets of ignorance relating to operations and ‘service’; one can frequently find an
opening phrase in an august journal article which goes something like this: “….after all
services are intangible…”; and this kind of stuff usually goes unchallenged. Without
wishing to enter the ‘product’/‘service’ debate; let me pose one question: supermarkets are
in the ‘service’ sector; what are the predominant services ‘intangibles’ or ‘products’? ‘The
distinction between (products) and services is redundant’ The Economist, (2005).
Important: ‘Operations’ is concerned with the creation of products and services upon
which we all depend.Operations are the only rationale for an organisations existence.
In addition, the ‘operations’ function is the area where most of the organisations
financial resources are spent.
Exciting: Operations is at the very centre of changes affecting the Business world. I.e.
changes in customer preferences, changes in supply chain management, Business
and Process innovation and changes in the Human dimensions of organisations. We
are in a period of rapid change: Operations, particularly in service and product supply
chains, is at the centre.
Challenging: Creativity is the prime task of Operations Managers. It is they who have to
respond to the many changes in the business world, such as globalisation,
environmental challenges, pressure to be socially responsible and the almost
indefinable areas of ‘knowledge management’.
2
Ubiquitous: The Concise Oxford Dictionary (1995) defines ubiquitous (adj. & n) as
“present everywhere or in several places simultaneously”.
‘Operations’ are everywhere. We would argue that everything has to be
‘operationalised’. For example, business strategy is sometimes defined as, a process
of moving the organisation from where it thinks it is now, to where it believes it ought
to be, e.g. a more competitive position - this is a ‘process’, an operation! And this is
not the end of it; ‘Operations’ and ‘Operations Management’ can be found in all
business functions, industry sectors and supply / demand chains.
From the above you may have come to the conclusion that we are ‘Operations/Supply
Chain Management’ proselytizers [converting you from one belief to another] and that
the aim of the module is to convert you into ‘Operations people’ (in particular). It isn’t.
But the module is designed to examine how Operations ideas can be used to support
business/organisational objectives. In this respect, whatever your speciality –
Marketer, Human Resource Manager, Financial expert, or whatever, I hope that on
completion of this module you will appreciate the significance of your decisions in
both general Management and Operational terms.
But here’s a bit of propaganda: “Everything has been reinvented – distribution, new
product development, the supply chain (all in the field of operations). But Marketing is
stuck in the past”
Elliot Ettenberg (2001)
“Marketing theory is still largely based on the days when Proctor & Gamble’s brands
dominated America, and its advertising agencies wrote the rules. Those rules focus
on the product and where to sell it, not the customer”
The Economist, (2001) – ‘Special report on brands: who’s wearing the trousers?’ Sept
8th
3
2 Teaching and Learning Strategy
Masters Operations Management
Semester 2 Programme
2009 - 2010
W/C
Lecture
o
Tutorial
Intro to Management in
Workshop: How to deal with
Organisations Module
Case studies
Process Design
 Video cases
Organisations in context
18 January
1
25 January
2
1 February
3
o
Process Design
 Case: Too Short the Day
8 February
4
o
Inventory / Capacity
 Case: Glastonbury Festival
15 February
5
o
HRM and Organisations
22 February
6
o
Quality Management in
Organisations
1 March
7
o
Operations Challenges o
Case: On the right track
8 March
8
o
Strategy revisited
Tutorial / Reading
o
Supply chain
Management
Benchmarking
Tutorial / Reading
15 March
o
9
o
22 March
10
Case: Volvo Village
 Case: Eastern Gear
Student Assessed Presentations
Easter Vacation (non-teaching time) 2 Weeks
23 March
11
Student Assessed Presentations
30 March
12
Revision and Exam Preparation
The teaching and learning strategies for this module will be a combination of
conventional lectures by a multi-disciplinary team; “contextual” activities, and student
led analysis of case studies and contemporary Operations issues. This will take the
form of group student presentations and will be part of the ‘formative’ assessment.
The Total learning hours for this on-campus module is 150 hours; i.e. 36 hours of
class support and 114 hours of independent and self directed study (including
assessment preparation and assessment).
2 Methods of Assessment
Assessment is weighted 25/75 between an assessment based on group presentations
and a closed book examination respectively.
4
Group Presentations – 25% weighting
This is assessment will consist of group analysis/presentations of case studies followed
by questions from the tutor. Further details of this can be found in Section 6 – ‘Participant
led seminars’. But in all cases the presenters should, as a group:
Give an overview of the key problems and their root causes.
Use the subject’s theory and language in this analysis and evaluation.
Suggest solutions and provide arguments for choice.
Provide the tutor with a copy of the groups’ presentation material.
Provide the tutor with a synopsis of their analysis and prescriptions (500 to 1000
words maximum).
Presentations will commence during the 5th or 6th week of the Semester
All group members need to be prepared for probing questions by the tutor. These will be
asked, not only to test your understanding of the case topics, but also your ability to
integrate theory and practice. Each presentation will be assessed by one member of the
University staff (i.e. me or a colleague).
Examination – 75% weighting
Closed book examination (75% weighting)
The examination for the module will be divided into 2 parts: part A) 10 `short questions' to
test ‘knowledge and understanding’; each question will have a maximum value of 5%
points and all questions ought to be attempted. The maximum assessment value for part
A will be 50% points. Part B) ‘Analysis’; this will comprise of `seen stimulus material' (e.g.
case study, academic paper(s)) and `unseen questions' which require in - depth analysis.
Candidates will be required to answer one question from a choice of four or five. The
maximum grade for this section of the paper will be 50% points. The main rubrics for the
examination component of the assessment will be as follows:



2 hour closed book examination (see above)
The examination is a `closed book' examination.
If a case study or academic publication is used in part A of the examination;
students will be supplied with a new copy of the `stimulus material'. They may not
bring annotated versions of the `stimulus material' into the examination room.
4. Essential Texts & Reading
Slack, N. Chambers, S. & Johnston, R. (2007),Operations Management [5th edition] FT
Prentice Hall
Recommended
Hill, T. (2005) “Operations Management: Strategic Context & Managerial Analysis” 2nd
edition,
Macmillan Business
Burnes, B. (2000)Managing Change: A Strategic approach to Organisational Dynamics,
FT Prentice Hall [3rd edition]
Johnston, R., Chambers, S.,Cases in Operations Management, FT-Prentice Hall Harland,
C., Harrison, A & Slack, N. (2003 [3rd Edition].
Johnston, R & Clark, G (2001) “Service Operations Management”
Williamson, D., Jenkins, W. ., Strategic Management and Business Analysis, Elsevier,
Butterworth -Heinemann Cooke, P. & Moreton, K. M.,(2003)
5
Case Studies and Papers (all e-copies except where shown. All e-copies are on the
module web site)
Case studies.
“Southwest Airlines” Hill (2005)
“Singapore Airlines” Johnston & Wirtz
“Marsden Community Stores” Moreton in Johnston et al (2003)
“Turnround at the Portland Plant”
“Concept Design Services”
Slack (2003)
in Johnston et al, (2003) -
Birmingham International Airport in Johnston et al (2003)
Jossey Menswear – the supply chain project. in Johnston et al (2003)
Papers
Barnes (2002)
Barnes (2001)
“The Manufacturing Strategy Formation Process in Small and
Medium – sized Enterprises”.
“Research Methods for the Empirical Investigation of the Process of
Formation Of Operations Strategy.”
Bates et al (2003)
“Linking Service to Profit: The Business Case for Service
excellence.”
Bozarth and
Chapman (1996)
Christopher and
Towill (2000).
“A contingency view of time-based competition for manufacturers”.
Chouke and
Armstrong (2000)
Da Silveira and
Slack (2001)
Fawcett
&
Magnan (2002)
Garvin
“Culture: a missing perspective on (SME) development”.
Harris (1998)
Hines et al (2000)
Johnston (2001)
Kim and
Mauborgne (2004
“Supply Chain Migration from lean and functional to agile and
customised”.
“Exploring the Trade-off concept”.
“The Rhetoric and Reality of Supply Chain Integration.”
“A Note on Quality: The Views of Deming, Juran &Crosby.” (hard
copy)
“Cultural dominance: the key to market – oriented culture?”
“Waves, beaches, breakwaters and rip currents: A three-dimensional
view of supply chain dynamics”.
“Linking Complaint Management to Profit.”
“Blue Ocean strategy”.
Kim and
Mauborgne
(1997)
“Value Innovation: The Strategic Logic of High Growth”.
Lee et al (2000)
“The Determinants of perceived Service Quality & its relationship
with satisfaction.”
Leisen et al
(2002).
“The effects of organisational culture and market orientation on the
6
effectiveness of strategic marketing alliances”.
Lele (1997)
“After –sales service – necessary evil or strategic opportunity”.
Lonsdale & Cox
(2000)
Mavondo
and
Farrell (2003)
McCullen
and
Towill (2002)
Moore (2004)
“The Historical Development of Outsourcing: The Latest Fad?”
Porter(1996)
Porter (2001)
Schmenner &
Swink (1996)
Voss (1995)
“Cultural orientation: its relation with market orientation, innovation
and organisational performance”.
“Diagnosis and reduction of bullwhip in supply chains”.
“Darwin and the Demons:
enterprises”.
“What is Strategy?”
“Strategy and the Internet.”
Innovating
within
“On Theory in Operations Management.”
“Alternative Paradigms for Manufacturing Strategy”.
7
established