Operations Management: Creating Value Along the Supply Chain 2nd Canadian Edition by Roberta S. Russ
b) technological investment.
c) operating strategy.
d) all of the above.
Answer: d
Difficulty: Easy
Learning Objective: Calculate and interpret productivity measures used for measuring competitiveness.
Section Reference: 1.4 Productivity and Competitiveness
Blooms: Knowledge
AACSB: Reflective Thinking
57. Productivity can be increased by
a) increasing outputs.
b) decreasing labour input.
c) decreasing energy input.
d) All of the above.
Answer: d
Difficulty: Easy
Learning Objective: Calculate and interpret productivity measures used for measuring competitiveness.
Section Reference: 1.4 Productivity and Competitiveness
Blooms: Knowledge
AACSB: Reflective Thinking
58. A firm who is adept at recognizing global windows of opportunity, acting on those very quickly, with tight linkages can be said to be competing on
a) flexibility.
b) speed.
c) quality.
d) cost.
Answer: b
Difficulty: Hard
Learning Objective: Discuss the process of developing, deploying, and monitoring the success of an operations strategy.
Section Reference: 1.5 Strategy and Operations
Blooms: Comprehension
AACSB: Reflective Thinking
59. When purchasing a car, what might be order winners?
a) Price.
b) Quality.
c) Design.
d) All of the above.
Answer: d
Difficulty: Easy
Learning Objective: Discuss the process of developing, deploying, and monitoring the success of an operations strategy.
Section Reference: 1.5 Strategy and Operations
Blooms: Knowledge
AACSB: Reflective Thinking
SHORT-ANSWER ESSAY QUESTIONS
60. Briefly describe how operations can be viewed as a transformation process.
Answer:
Difficulty: Easy
Learning Objective: Describe what the operations function is and how it relates to other business functions.
Section Reference: 1.1 The Operations Function
Solution: Operations is often defined as a transformation process. Inputs such as raw materials, labour, equipment, and capital are transformed into outputs (goods and services). Customer feedback is used to adjust the transformation process. An objective of the operations manager is to ensure that the transformation process operates efficiently, and the outputs of the process have greater value than the sum of the inputs. In this way the transformation process creates value, making it possible to view the transformation process as a value chain extending from supplier to customer.
Blooms: Comprehension
AACSB: Reflective Thinking
61. Briefly describe the four primary functional areas of a firm. How is operations related to them?
Answer:
Difficulty: Medium
Learning Objective: Describe what the operations function is and how it relates to other business functions.
Section Reference: 1.1 The Operations Function
Solution: The four primary functional areas of a firm are marketing, finance, operations, and human resources. For most firms, operations is the technical core or “hub” of the organization, interacting with the other functional areas and suppliers to produce goods and services for customers. For example, marketing provides sales forecasts to operations and operations provides marketing with product availability information, lead time estimates, and delivery schedules. Operations provides finance with inventory and production data, capital budgeting and equipment requests, and technology plans. Finance provides the capital resources for financing inventory and securing more capital equipment. Operations relies on human resources to meet its personnel needs—hiring, training, and evaluating workers.
Blooms: Comprehension
AACSB: Reflective Thinking
62. What is electronic commerce?
Answer:
Difficulty: Medium
Learning Objective: Discuss the key factors that have contributed to the evolution of operations and the initiation of supply chain management.
Section Reference: 1.2 The Evolution of Operations and Supply Chain Management
Solution: Trade that occurs over the Internet (or any other computer network) is called electronic commerce, e-commerce, or e-business. Electronic commerce can take the form of trade between businesses (B2B), between consumers, or between business and consumers (B2C). B2B trade typically involves companies and their suppliers while B2C trade can take the form of online retailing. Companies that integrate both B2B and B2C are said to have a fully integrated value chain.
Blooms: Comprehension