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Q:
How has global competition affected productivity? Cite specific examples and reference the productivity equation to support your thesis.
Q:
In order to utilize the capabilities of the internet of things, the organizational roles of ________ and ________ will have to become more aligned, although they are traditionally two separate functional areas.
Q:
Half of the world's greenhouse gases are produced by only ________ nations.
Q:
Productivity is defined as ________ divided by ________.
Q:
The utilization of sensor data to detect deteriorating machine parts prior to product failure is an example of which operations management application?
A) Product design and development
B) Inventory management
C) Preventive maintenance
D) Logistics
Q:
The question of whether a manufacturer has rights to utilize data collected from a health monitoring device to improve future versions of the product is a concern of:
A) privacy.
B) technology.
C) security.
D) hardware costs.
Q:
Which of the following statements about "big data" is false?
A) The data must be organized and analyzed to be of any use.
B) Firms use high-powered analytical models to sift through the data
C) Data may be collected instantly or over a period of months.
D) It is not necessary for operations managers to be involved in implementation of "big data" processes.
Q:
Companies that do not have operations in China find it difficult to compete based on the basis of low prices with companies that do. Instead those companies tend to compete based on:
A) quality and social responsibility.
B) speed and small production runs.
C) luxury.
D) quality and small production runs.
Q:
With regards to globalized operations and cost advantages, what China is to manufacturing, India is to:
A) services.
B) human resources.
C) finance.
D) supply chain.
Q:
Which of the following would be considered an advantage of global competition?
A) ability to safeguard proprietary technology in working with offshore suppliers
B) a recent climate of low political risk and lessening nationalization
C) high levels of worker skills in foreign countries mean less required training
D) strong global competition and increased worldwide demand
Q:
It takes the Blacksburg shipyard twenty six weeks with 500 workers to build a small tanker. Material costs are $32 million and overhead costs are $2 million. Workers cost $40 per hour including benefits and work 40 hours per week. The ship sells for $75 million. What is the multifactor productivity ratio?
A) less than 1.0
B) greater than 1.0 but less than or equal to 2.0
C) greater than 2.0 but less than or equal to 3.0
D) greater than 3.0
Q:
Table 1.2 The Abco Company manufactures electrical assemblies. The current process uses 10 workers and produces 200 units per hour. You are considering changing the process with new assembly methods that increase output to 300 units per hour, but will require 14 workers. Particulars are as follows: CURRENT PROCESS NEW PROCESS OUTPUT (UNITS / HOUR) 200 300 NUMBER OF WORKERS 10 14 MATERIAL COST / HOUR $120 $150 Workers are paid at a rate of $10 per hour, and overhead is charged at 140% (or 1.4 times) labor costs. Finished switches sell for $20 / unit. Use the information provided in Table 1.2. Based on your productivity calculations, what decision should you make? A) implement the new process B) stay with the current process C) need more information to make a decision D) Either process is acceptable (since the multi-factor productivities are the same).
Q:
The details of weekly output and input for a fabrication process are as follows: output is 400 units, with a standard selling price of $100 per unit. For the week, total labor costs are: 10 workers at 40 hours for the week, are paid $15 per hour. Total material costs for the 400 units are $5,000. Weekly overhead is charged at the rate of 1.5 times the labor costs. What is the multifactor productivity for the week? A) 0.02 B) 0.75 C) 1.50 D) 2.00
Q:
A manufacturing process requires 12 minutes of labor to make 10 units of product. Which of the following actions will increase productivity?
1. Increase labor per 10 units of production
2. Decrease labor per 10 units of production
3. Increase number of units per 10 minutes of labor
4. Decrease number of units per 12 minutes of labor
A) 1 and 3 only
B) 2 and 4 only
C) 1 and 4 only
D) 2 and 3 only
Q:
In an assembly operation at a furniture factory, six employees assembled an average of 450 custom chairs per 5-day week. What is the labor productivity of this operation?
A) 90 chairs per worker per day
B) 20 chairs per worker per day
C) 15 chairs per worker per day
D) 75 chairs per worker per day
Q:
The Internet of Things is a trend that affects operations and supply chain management in a minor way.
Q:
The increased global presence of many firms has lessened the burden to behave ethically.
Q:
Most products today are composites of global materials and services from throughout the world.
Q:
Name the three competitive priorities for time and give an example of each.
Q:
Name the two competitive priorities for quality and give an example of each.
Q:
Explain what an operations strategy is and the importance of competitive priorities. Give an example from an organization (public or private, manufacturing or service).
Q:
Every sub-contractor knew that their quality had to be excellent to be considered for the project; it was their ability to deliver on time that would secure the lucrative contract. Quality was recognized as being an ________, but on-time delivery was the ________.
Q:
________ is the ability to accelerate or decelerate the rate of production quickly to handle large fluctuations in demand.
Q:
________ measures the frequency with which delivery-time promises are met.
Q:
________ is the elapsed time between receiving a customer's order and filling it.
Q:
A firm gains competitive advantage by outperforming competitors in terms of competitive priorities, which fall into four major groups: ________, ________, ________, and ________.
Q:
A company's ability to support varying rates of production is best described as:
A) volume flexibility.
B) variety.
C) consistent quality.
D) development speed.
Q:
For students not wanting a traditional major in marketing or accounting, for example, the college decided to create a general business major, which allowed any combination of the easiest business courses to comprise the program. The competitive priority achieved in this example is:
A) customization.
B) delivery speed.
C) consistent quality.
D) low-cost.
Q:
A popular haberdashery could take a customer's measurements in the afternoon and produce a dandy suit ready for customer pickup by next morning. Their competitive priority was:
A) variety.
B) top quality.
C) delivery speed.
D) on-time delivery.
Q:
While other suppliers bidding for the contract brought bids with lower per unit costs, Orchard wanted to take delivery based on the fact that the components they were using were machined to their exacting specifications 99.99999% of the time. Orchard's competitive priority was:
A) top quality.
B) consistent quality.
C) on-time delivery.
D) delivery speed.
Q:
A business focusing on increasing the efficiency of its operations is more directly addressing:
A) volume flexibility.
B) variety.
C) consistent quality.
D) low-cost.
Q:
A company's ability to quickly introduce a new service or product would be best described as:
A) volume flexibility.
B) variety.
C) consistent quality.
D) development speed.
Q:
Using an airline example for competitive priorities, the process capability of handling service needs of all market segments and promotional programs would be best described by:
A) top quality.
B) variety.
C) consistent quality.
D) delivery speed.
Q:
You are interested in buying a laptop computer. Your list of considerations include the computer's speed in processing data, its weight, screen size and price. You consider a number of different models, and narrow your list based on its speed and monitor screen size, then finally select a model to buy based on its weight and price. In this decision, speed and monitor screen size are examples of:
A) order winners.
B) a mission statement.
C) a needs assessment.
D) order qualifiers.
Q:
Competitive priorities:
A) may change over time.
B) are the cost, quality, time and flexibility dimensions that a process or supply chain actually possesses and is able to deliver.
C) are used to distinguish between a service that is considered and one that is actually purchased.
D) are developed by a review of internal operations capabilities.
Q:
You are interested in buying a laptop computer. Your list of considerations include the computer's speed in processing data, its weight, screen size, and price. You consider a number of different models, and narrow your list based on speed and monitor screen size, then finally select a model to buy based on its weight and price. In this decision, weight and price are examples of:
A) order qualifiers.
B) a needs assessment.
C) order winners.
D) a mission statement.
Q:
The first three cars I bought all fell apart around 50,000 miles. It was called planned obsolescence and no one seemed to care until companies entered the market that promised 70,000, then 80,000, and finally 100,000 mile warranties. What sets a great car apart from a good one now is not the quality, which is assumed, but performance, safety and fuel economy. A car that can achieve all three is highly sought after. In the automotive market, performance, safety and fuel economy are sterling examples of:
A) order winners.
B) a needs assessment.
C) order qualifiers.
D) a mission statement.
Q:
Admission to the prestigious school had become so competitive that a high GPA is no longer enough to separate one fresh-faced high school student from another. Today's outstanding candidate must also demonstrate their involvement in a myriad of extracurricular activities in order to be admitted. It seems that good grades are now:
A) a needs assessment.
B) order qualifiers.
C) order winners.
D) a mission statement.
Q:
A firm once made purchasing decisions based on which supplier had the lowest cost. But once cash flow was healthy, purchasing decisions were made based on the fastest delivery of goods and services by firms. In this case, delivery speed is clearly the order qualifier.
Q:
Flexibility is a possible competitive priority.
Q:
Competitive priorities are the means by which operations implements the firm's corporate strategies.
Q:
What are four core processes in a firm and how are they related?
Q:
One form of strategic alliance is the ________, in which two firms agree to cooperate to produce a product or service together.
Q:
The Gap, Inc. has targeted teenagers and young adults in need of casual clothes, and through its GapKids stores, the parents or guardians of infants through 12-year-olds. This is an example of:
A) market segmentation.
B) a collaborative effort between the company and its customers.
C) a needs assessment.
D) a mission statement.
Q:
Price, quality, and the degree of customization are all examples of:
A) volume needs.
B) other needs.
C) product needs.
D) delivery system needs.
Q:
Which of the following is an example of a core competency?
A) facilities
B) top quality
C) low-cost operations
D) on-time delivery
Q:
Core competencies are:
A) product or service attributes that represent the needs of a particular market segment.
B) another name for competitive priorities.
C) various flow strategies.
D) the unique resources and strengths that management considers when formulating strategy.
Q:
A company realizes that recent layoffs at its primary company reflect potential falling demands for its customers' products, and hence for its own products. The company has engaged in:
A) flow strategy.
B) market segmentation.
C) mission statement redefinition.
D) environmental scanning.
Q:
In response to social and political moves to discourage cigarette smoking, major cigarette manufacturers have had to diversify into other products. Identifying the pressures against smoking is an example of:
A) environmental scanning.
B) market segmentation.
C) flow strategy.
D) mission statement development.
Q:
The framework for carrying out all of an organization's functions is:
A) the competitive priority.
B) the corporate strategy.
C) the market analysis.
D) the organizational design.
Q:
Firm A wants to enter a foreign market and has a skill that is difficult to duplicate. Firm B desires this skill, so Firm A works with Firm B in an arrangement known as a joint venture.
Q:
A firm's core competencies should determine its core processes.
Q:
________ provide vital resources and inputs to core processes.
Q:
The cumulative work of the processes of a firm is a(n) ________.
Q:
Which of these business processes typically lies within the realm of operations?
A) complaint handling
B) customer relationship
C) help desks
D) waste management
Q:
The process that includes the activities required to produce and deliver the service or product to the external customer is called the:
A) customer relationship process.
B) new service development process.
C) order fulfillment process.
D) supplier relationship process.
Q:
The process that facilitates the placement of orders and identifies, attracts, and builds relationships with external customers is called the:
A) customer relationship process.
B) new service development process.
C) order fulfillment process.
D) supplier relationship process.
Q:
Budgeting, recruiting, and scheduling are examples of a:
A) development.
B) core process.
C) support process.
D) system.
Q:
A set of activities that delivers value to external customers is a:
A) supply chain.
B) core process.
C) support process.
D) system.
Q:
One distinction between core processes and support processes is that core process can cut across the organization while support processes do not.
Q:
The supplier relationship process selects the suppliers of services, materials and information, while the order fulfillment process facilitates the timely and efficient flow of these items into the firm.
Q:
A core process is a set of activities that delivers value to external customers.
Q:
Identify a large employer in your hometown. Describe this organization's inputs, processes, and outputs.
Q:
List and briefly describe five differences between services and manufacturing. Processes provide examples to illustrate your arguments.
Q:
A(n) ________ is any activity or group of activities that takes one or more inputs, transforms and adds value to them, and provides one or more outputs for its customers.
Q:
Service processes usually have:
A) physical, durable output.
B) low levels of customer contact.
C) output that can be inventoried.
D) shorter response times.
Q:
Manufacturing processes usually have:
A) physical, durable output.
B) high levels of customer contact.
C) output that cannot be inventoried.
D) low levels of capital intensity.
Q:
Which one of the following statements is more of a general characteristic of a service organization, as compared to a manufacturing organization?
A) Output can be inventoried.
B) The response time is longer.
C) There is less customer contact.
D) Quality is not easily measured.
Q:
Which of the following statements is more of a general characteristic of a manufacturing organization, as compared to a service organization?
A) Short-term demand tends to be highly variable.
B) Operations are more capital intensive.
C) Outputs are more intangible.
D) Quality is more difficult to measure.
Q:
Which of the following is an example of a nested process?
A) At the start of the new semester, a student first pays tuition and then goes to the bookstore.
B) A customer service representative verifies a caller's account information.
C) A candidate's intent to graduate is checked for financial holds by the Bursar and for degree requirements by Advising before the diploma mill prints their sheepskin.
D) A stockbroker calls a client and advises her to sell silver short.
Q:
Use the information provided in Table 1.1. An example of an external supplier is:
A) the lumber company.
B) the Receiving Department at ABC.
C) the Customer Service Department at ABC.
D) the toy store at the mall.
Q:
Table 1.1 You are the Production Manager for the toy manufacturing process at the ABC Company. Use the information provided in Table 1.1. An example of an external customer is: A) the lumber company. B) the Customer Service Department at ABC. C) the Shipping Department at ABC. D) the toy store at the mall.
Q:
Operations management is part of a production system that can be described in the following manner: Organization: inputs→processes→outputs. Which one of the following correctly describes a production system? A) Airline: pilots→planes→transportation B) Bank: tellers→computer equipment→deposits C) Furniture manufacturer: wood→sanding→chair D) Telephone company: satellites→cables→communication
Q:
Which of these statements about processes is not true?
A) A process can have its own set of objectives.
B) A process can involve work flow that cuts across departmental boundaries.
C) A process can require resources from several departments.
D) A process can exist without customers.
Q:
At the level of the firm, service providers do not just offer services and manufacturers do not just offer products.
Q:
Contact with the customer is usually higher in a manufacturing process than in a service process.
Q:
Quality is more easily measured in a service process than in a manufacturing process.
Q:
Manufacturing processes tend to be capital intensive.
Q:
At the process level, it is much easier to distinguish whether the process is providing a service or manufacturing a product.
Q:
At the level of the firm, service providers offer just services and manufacturers offer just products.