The primary objective of the project is to encourage students to explore, in modest depth, the operations function of a community business of your choosing in order to connect real-world activity with theory and principle.
The project involves research, discover and document current operations. Upon completion of the project you should:
- Understand the complete transformation process for a product or service and be able to describe how the product or service is designed, produced and delivered to the customer.
- Have explored the full spectrum of operations activities conducted by the business.
- Learned and used basic project management tools and techniques
- Appreciate group dynamics in project work.
In order to achieve these goals, you are expected to select a local business firm or organization in Australia and complete the following activities.
Field study: by asking questions and gathering flowcharts, operations charts, bill of material, master production schedules, service blueprints, job descriptions, facility blueprints, office layouts, organization charts, operation plans, appointment schedules, mission statements, product/service catalogues, advertising material etc., to determine how the business performs its operations activities. In short, you should identify the business's various inputs, its value adding transformation processes, and its outputs.
Analyse and evaluate the firm/organization's operations practices, procedures and policies: describe how operations management strategy, design and operating functions are performed by your chosen firm/organization and apply tools and techniques that you have learned to analyse the following areas:
- Strategy and competitive setting
- Designing the operating system
- Managing the supply chain
- Ensuring quality