Exam 2: Operations and Supply Chain Strategies

Your employer prepares a request for proposal that describes in vivid detail all of the capabilities that a new computer system should possess.A software product that can meet this request for proposal has performance characteristics that can be described as order qualifiers.

A business is defined by its structural and infrastructural elements.

Lieutenant Columbo donned his raincoat and hopped into his 1959 Peugeot,hot on the trail of another condescending millionaire murder suspect.The Peugeot always drew stares,not because it was a rare automobile,but because it was an eyesore.It had one redeeming quality; every time he sat behind the wheel and turned the key in the ignition,it would start.Thus,the car scored well on the:

Provide a specific example of an order winner that has evolved into an order qualifier.Then provide a specific example of an order qualifier that has remained an order qualifier for many years and remains one to this day.Which situation do you think is more natural,the eventual conversion from winner to qualifier or the static status of "once an order winner,always an order winner"? Justify your conclusions.

Damron Inc.wants to purchase a shear for their sheet metal shop and chooses dimensions of cost,reliability,and flexibility as critical to their long term success.They evaluate three different shears and rate their performance on each criterion on a scale from 1 (poor)to 5 (excellent).What is the value index for the shear made by Belsky Manufacturing?

Policies and decision rules are infrastructural elements.

The vision statement addresses a company's reason for existence,core values,and domain.

Darrell and Dave were fierce competitors,which drove both of them to overpay for many of their inputs,resulting in increased prices at their own stores.Dave realized this,and pondered how he could be recognized as a cost leader by his customers and maintain his reputation for quality merchandise.Sacrificing one element of his strategy at the expense of another is recognized as a trade-off in operations management.

If a logistics firm consistently makes deliveries within the agreed upon delivery window,they are exhibiting delivery reliability.

A(n)________ is an example of an infrastructural element.

The ability to produce a wide range of products or services is:

Damron Inc.wants to purchase a shear for their sheet metal shop and chooses dimensions of cost,reliability,and flexibility as critical to their long term success.They evaluate four different shears and rate their performance on each criterion on a scale from 1 (poor)to 5 (excellent).Which shear should be purchased?

Electra wants to purchase a laptop for use in her MBA program so she can work on assignments and surf the web while the professor drones on endlessly.After consulting with her colleagues,she chooses the dimensions of cost,weight,processor speed,and touchscreen capability as critical to her long term success and amusement.She evaluates four different laptops and rates their performance on each criterion on a scale from 1 (poor)to 5 (excellent).She is struggling with her assessment of the importance of the Cost criterion.As an avid lottery player,she is pretty sure that tonight's drawing will mean at least two numbers match on the ticket she bought on the way to class and it could possibly mean a three-number match.Given her uncertainty,she would like to choose the laptop that performs the best overall across the entire spectrum of possibilities of the outcome of tonight's lottery.Which would you recommend?

The externally supportive stage of alignment is more desirable than the externally neutral stage of alignment.

A major retailer wants to sell items as cheaply as possible while maintaining an attractive and enjoyable shopping atmosphere.Spending too much on ambience will raise prices and drive away shoppers but spending too little will drive shoppers away also.Clearly,the retailer is faced with a(n)________.

Define mission statement and business strategy and describe the relationship between the two.

Which of the following statements about functional strategies is best?

"I've never seen flavored marshmallows this size before!" Alice squealed as she emptied the shelves at the local grocery store.The rest of the shoppers would have to make do with the other seventy bags of miniature and standard-size marshmallows during this winter's hot chocolate festival.For Alice,the jumbo size feature is an order winner.

A university is evaluating options for an enterprise information system to replace their antiquated systems.The CIO has developed the following criteria: At a minimum,the system (or system provider)must be capable of: Technical support available 24/7 Have successfully installed and maintained systems in universities of similar size. Beyond this,systems will be evaluated according to initial cost,annual maintenance and support costs,and ease of use. The three companies that are vying for the university's business supplied the following information about their performance on these criteria. Create and analyze a graph showing each competitor's performance with regards to order winners and order qualifiers.Which firm should get the business and why? If you were consulting with the three potential system providers,what advice would you give each one?

What are the three primary objectives of an operations and supply chain strategy?