Introduction
We as human beings consume many different products and services in our daily lives. But where do these products come from? Operation managers produce the services that we avail and the products we use. Operation Management is the creation of products and services using the company’s resources. It is an area of management that helps an organization to be efficient and organized. Product development is a complex process. Your company can achieve it with proper operation management.
Operations Management is the paramount department of any organization. It involves the production of products, managing machinery, and automation using technology. It also ensures high efficiency in every company’s resources. The roles and responsibilities of every operation manager were so crucial. As they manage all core functions of any company that impacts the company’s growth. They have to use all the resources to produce any products and services. They always think about the future development and innovation of the company.
In this comprehensive guide, you will learn a lot about Operations Management 101. I also give some highlights on historical data. And why operations management is so important in a company. Will discuss some of the principles, tips, and techniques used in operations management. So let’s get started!
Definition of Operation Management 101
Products and services like cell phones, laptops, or booking a cab or any flight ticket help in our daily work. But have you thought about how manufacturers produce mobiles and laptops? Or how are you able to book a cab in 5 minutes? So, all these activities come under the operation of any organization. Besides, managing human labor, technology, and company resources comes under operation management.
It is the process of human activities to produce goods and services.
The management of different processes is nothing but Operation Management 101. It includes many factors such as where to get the raw material for the final product. And how to produce products, and where or when to produce a product. It also consists of when, where, or how to deliver a product to the company’s potential customer.
Operations Management 101 is managing the development of any organization’s products and services. This process offers the greatest profits to the organization’s goods and services. Moreover, the operation management team also manages the company expenses. It also generates the largest profits for the organization. It also ensures products’ quality and prevents the wastage of company resources. Now let’s delve deeper into some overview of the history of Operations Management. Like where or when it originated.
The Historical Overview of Operation Management 101
Back in 5000 B.C., we can see the origin of operation management. First-time Sumerians tracked transactions, inventories, and taxes. After it, Romans built pyramids with the help of operation management. Read More Historical highlights: –
- During the Industrial Revolution, division of labour laid the foundation for efficient production. Eli Whitney invented the cotton gin and manufactured 10000 muskets.
- In 1883, Frederick Winslow Taylor used a stopwatch for analyzing productivity and efficiency.
- In 1992, Frank and Laid invented PMTS that help to predict the times for a task.
- In 1913, Henry Ford invented a moving assembly line that helped to save the manufacture time of the car.
- After World War 2nd in Japan, Toyota developed a just-in-time production system. It helps to drop waste cars and increase productivity.
- In 1971, FedEx started a one-day delivery system for improving sales. Nowadays, amazon also started a one-day delivery system.
Why is Operation Management so Important?
Operation management is important for both small businesses and large corporations. It helps to manage, supervise goods, control, plan and drive manufacturing or services. To survive in an ever-changing market, a business needs to maximize productivity, efficiency. Moreover, it also increases the effectiveness and profits of the company. Many large businesses have a big team and a large budget. So, they can change according to the market.
As per Forbes 2021 magazine, 1/3rd of CEOs come from an operational management background.
To grow a company operations management helps in various aspects like
- Market competition
- Profitability
- Customer service
- Quality of product
- Management of Current-functioning process
- Understanding of Technology advancement
Principles of Operation Management
In the growing age of the business world, operation management is one of the top necessities. We already learned a lot about operation management. It holds the company’s development.
Now highlight some major principles of operation management 101. And you will also be able to understand or use the ability of operation management. Let’s start with the learning of core principles of operation management.
Better Understanding of Customer
The operation management team must keep an eye on their competitors. They always track the competitors and always know what they are doing. Also, make a list of competitors’ strengths and weaknesses. This principle helps you to get more ideas to make the best products and services for your customers.
Organization Resources
One of the crucial roles of the operation team is to manage or organize the company’s resources. They need to use resources to meet all the requirements of the industry. The companies make sure that they have all the assets used in production. Primary organizational resources such as people, money, raw materials, and capital.
Team Up With Customer
Operational management 101 teams know their customers and their needs. They have to figure out what the customer wants to buy from the company. They have to manage their resources as per the market demands. coordination with your company’s customer team is necessary to figure out customer feedback.
Maintain Equipment
Don’t buy new equipment every time for your organization. If your current equipment doesn’t work then have to use some lubricants to start your equipment. The operational Management 101 team can maintain all equipment to reduce expenses.
Total Quality Control
The company’s growth and development depend on its products and services. And the total control of quality is in the operation management team’s hands. Thus, the operational management team must inspect the quality of the products.
Cut Human Error
Training and upskilling your team is the only way to cut human error. Provide training to your employees on a daily basis. And keep maintenance of the company’s equipment to get zero error.
Building Proper Team
Make sure your manpower has skills. They all know their roles and responsibilities very well. A company must invest in an HR team to attract the world’s best manpower.
Mass Customization
Efficient operation management also involves “mass customization” of products. Mass customization helps cater to the different needs of your customers.
What are the Roles of an Operation Manager in any Organization?
The operation manager helps to manage every operation to achieve goals. A company includes the following activities in operation management. For Example: –
Customer satisfaction,
Logistics and inventory,
Coordinating educational assignments for staff,
Product quality,
Fix the problems,
Budgetary information,
Monitoring expense reports, etc.
Read the following roles which the operations manager perform in any company
- Managing process of the project
- Able to create a planning of product or product
- Implementing a Manufacture Plant
- Improve the system, product quality, efficiency, processes, and policies.
- Identify the market or problem and provide solutions
- Managing all the data, inventory, and logistic
- Forecasting for planning (including initiatives geared towards operational excellence)
- Planning for capacity
- Should Have a good communication skill, management skill, or leadership skill
- Have enough knowledge of technology or tools
Some other skills are:
- Creative mindset
- Positive attitude
- Good analytical skills
As well as an operational manager keeps updated with new technology. MBA in operation management helps to become an expert in Operation management. This specialization can help you become successful in this information and technology-driven field.
Tips for Operation Management 101
We know the operation manager handles a bunch of things but read the following tips. And that will help you to focus on the only important thing.
Focus on the Right Operation Metrics
An operations manager handles a variety of goals like production, management, cost control. But you must know customer satisfaction is the primary operation in every business.
It is good to set up a large manufacturing unit. And improve the production or quality of the product or distribution processes. But it’s not valuable to you if you can’t make more sales.
According to operations management specialist Katherine Leonard,
operations managers,
1) Develop or market their product
2) Keep up with the expectations of their customers.
Find answers to the question like What are customers willing to pay for? What do they want? How they expect to get results.
So, avoid focusing on those things that are not necessary. An operation manager expert knows which matrices are important.
Always Focus on Data to Identify Key Problems
It is important for a business to find and remove the barriers that cause problems in our business. Operation managers take all operation decisions by considering all data. Otherwise, it is very harmful to the company and it may be facing big losses in the future.
So, keep maintaining your company’s previous data. Because it helps to identify what all products are in stock. Why is company performance down? Which products do you need to restock?
And if you find the right answer to the problem then it can help you to grow your business.
Many different tools are available in the market to keep storing your data.
Invest in Technology to Save Time and Money
Technology helps a business to reach more customers, generate more sales and profit. With the help of technology, businesses are able to communicate with each other. They are also able to share or store vast amounts of data about operations.
Storing your company’s data helps make the right decisions for the growth of the company.
Thus, investing in the right tools is great for your business.
Must-Have Soft Skills in all Office Staff
Some most essential skills must have In all your office staff to keep running your company. These skills help to create a good office environment. And improve the productivity or efficiency of your operations. Read the following skills
Communication Skills
This is the most essential skill for getting a good business environment. Let’s imagine you have an idea or doubt or problem but if you can’t communicate it then how can you fix it. You can build a good relationship of trust with your employees.
Time-management Skills
Time is a very crucial thing in the world. If you can’t complete your operation on time then you can’t compete with the competition.
Leadership Skills
You must be able to lead your team. You need to go with your team. A good leader must have qualities like empathy, resilience, accountability, humility, vision, influence.
Focus on pre-automation processes
Nowadays, technology and machines play a very important role in the success of a company. They help make operations easier, automated, and more efficient.
This is because setting up automation requires proper planning or process. You need to understand the working of the equipment. There are various tools available to automate your various things.
Conclusion
There are many goods and services that we use in our daily lives. But, have you thought about where these products come from or how are they made? The process of controlling and designing products and services is operation management. Operation management is the key to any successful organization. In this article, you will get to know everything about operation management 101. We will discuss its importance, principles, and some important tips for operation management.
With this, we conclude this article. Hope you get some useful insights on operation management. It will also make you understand the importance of an operation manager for a firm.
To learn more about business operations take beginners’ courses on operation management!
Citations
https://vtechworks.lib.vt.edu/bitstream/handle/10919/70961/Chapter%209%20Operations%20Management.pdf
https://www.pearsonhighered.com/assets/preface/0/1/3/5/0135173620.pdf
https://icmai.in/upload/Students/Syllabus2016/Inter/Paper-9New.pdf
https://www.himpub.com/documents/Chapter911.pdf
