MACE30462 Management 3:

Introduction to Operations
Management (Week 1)

Dr. Paul W Chan

Pariser Building Room E17
paul.chan@manchester.ac.uk
+44 0 161 275 4319 or +44 0 774 783 5506
Combining the strengths of UMIST and
The Victoria University of Manchester

Learning Objectives
At the end of this session, you will be able to:

Define what operations management means and
explain the importance of operations management to
business organisations;

Discuss the fundamental theories and models that are
used to analyse the operations function in business
organisations;

Trace the historical development of operations thinking
and contemporary influences that shape shifts in
current thinking, and;

Discuss the role engineers play within the context of
the operations function.
Combining the strengths of UMIST and
The Victoria University of Manchester

Key Questions

What is operations management all about? And why is
this important?

How do we study the operations function in
organisations?

How has operations thinking changed over time? And
why?

Why is operations management relevant to engineers?

Combining the strengths of UMIST and

The Victoria University of Manchester

1
 Open Discussion

So, what do engineers

actually do?

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Recap on Management Spine

Management 1: Introduction to management
principles

Management 2: Planning and control

Management 3: Operations management

Management 4: Legal issues

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The Victoria University of Manchester

Recommended Reading
Slack, N., Chambers, S. and Johnston, R. (2009)
Operations management. 6 Ed. Harlow: FT-Prentice
Hall. (I draw my material mostly from the 4th edition
in 2004.). Read Chapter 1.
Naylor, J. (2002) Introduction to operations
management. 2 Ed. Harlow: FT-Prentice Hall. Read
Chapter 1.

General Reading
Schön, D. A. (1991) The reflective practitioner: how
professionals think in action. Aldershot: Ashgate.
The Economist and The Financial Times
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The Victoria University of Manchester

2
 What is Operations Management?
“Operations management is concerned with creating,
operating and controlling a transformation system that
takes inputs of a variety of resources and produces
outputs of goods and services needed by customers
(Naylor, 2002: 5).”

“[…] we treat the core operations function as comprising

all the activities necessary for the day-to-day fulfillment
[sic] of customer requests. This includes sourcing
products and services from suppliers and transporting
products and services to customers (Slack et al., 2004:
9).”
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The Victoria University of Manchester

Why is Operations Management so vital?

Accounts for >80% of what employees do

Adds value to what you sell to customers

Influences revenue streams and cost bases for
all organisations (in business, in NGOs, in
government)

Connecting technological innovation with the
economy and overall well-being for society

Enables the deployment of your skills and
knowledge
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The Victoria University of Manchester

Key Trends at the Onset of the Downturn

Disparities across age-groups and gender

Rise of Self-Employment

Rise in Part-time and Temporary Employment

Rise in Unpaid Home-working

Willingness to enter into alternative forms of
employment (apart from full-time, permanent
employment)

Combining the strengths of UMIST and

The Victoria University of Manchester

3
 Thoughts on Emerging Employment Trends

Experiences of women (in relative terms) somewhat positive…

… but women still constitute a sizeable proportion of part-time
and temporary workers and are under-represented in engineering

Increase marginalisation of men

Sources of discontent with e.g. migrant workers

Preference for older (more technically experienced?) workers

Perpetuation of non-traditional forms of employment

Dissolution of security (job, personal lives, retirement plans)

What is the future of employment and what skills do you need in
the age of hybrids? – See Guardian article on the “Future of jobs”
to be posted on Blackboard

Combining the strengths of UMIST and

The Victoria University of Manchester

Coursework

Backdrop of changing employment trends

Provide a better understanding of what it is you might
actually be doing in the future

Prepare you for crafting your job applications and
custom-make your CV

An organisation you want to apply to

What do they actually do?

How can you be of use to them?

Draw upon stuff covered in the syllabus!

Read the coursework specification carefully!

Submission online Midnight Friday 8 April 2011
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The Victoria University of Manchester

Examination

Answer three essay-type questions out of five in 2 hours.

Each question is of equal weighting.

Critical reflection of Theory is required! Theory does not always
work as organisations constantly reconfigure in the changing
world!

Draw upon the work you have done for the coursework, as you
need to refer to a particular organisation in your answers.

Gradings:
 40%: regurgitate from lecture slides
 50%: read the recommended list and make a coherent
argument based on own understanding
 60%: read outside the recommended list and make a
coherent argument based on own understanding
 >70%: demonstrate critical understanding and originality
Combining the strengths of UMIST and
The Victoria University of Manchester

4
 Recap on Learning Objectives

What is operations management all about? And why is
this important?

How do we study the operations function in
organisations?

How has operations thinking changed over time? And
why?

Why is operations management relevant to engineers?

Combining the strengths of UMIST and

The Victoria University of Manchester

Homework before Next Lecture

Pick an organisation and find out what their
mission statement is. Can you give examples of
how the organisation’s activities reflect the
mission statement (or not)?

Combining the strengths of UMIST and

The Victoria University of Manchester