Module Learning Outcomes
LO1 Critically evaluate how operations management contributes to the competitiveness of an organization.
LO2 Critically evaluate how quality management processes and supply chain networks contribute to achieving the overall strategic objectives of an organization.
LO3 Critically evaluate the information management/systems in relation to the operation management processes.
LO4 Design a project plan for a given business scenario and implement a project.
Learning Outcome 1:
Critically evaluate how operations management contributes to the
competitiveness of an organization.
§ PC 1.1: Critically discuss the principles, theories, and concepts of Operations Management.
§ PC 1.2: Evaluate the impact of productivity, workflow, and quality on organizational
competitiveness.
§ PC 1.3 Critically discuss the integration of core operational strategies with the overall business
strategy.
Learning Outcome 2:
Critically evaluate how quality management processes and supply chain
networks contribute to achieving the overall strategic objectives of an organization.
§ PC 2.1: Critically discuss the application of principles, techniques, and practices of Quality
Management in operations management.
§ PC 2.2: Evaluate the critical role of Supply Chain network design in aligning the operations
strategy to the overall business strategy.
§ PC 2.3: Develop appropriate performance indicators to effect monitoring, control, and
continuous improvement of company operations.
Learning Outcome 3:
Critically evaluate the information management/systems in relation to the
operation management processes.
§ PC 3.1: Critically discuss how the synthesis of management information systems assist the
operations management process.
§ PC 3.2: Evaluate the use of wide range of ICT applications in supporting and enhancing the
management of operations in organisations.
§ PC 3.3: Critically analyse the appropriate methods, requirements, and the use of current and
emerging technologies for the optimisation of operational processes.
Learning Outcome 4:
Design a project plan for a given business scenario and implement a project.
§ PC 4.1: Analyze the principles, practices, methodologies, and the tools to develop project
specification, schedule, control, and evaluation of projects.
§ PC 4.2: Evaluate the contribution of Project Leadership during change and management of
stakeholders.
§ PC 4.3: Implement and manage a project using scheduling tools and project controls.
GENERAL GUIDELINES
(Please read the instructions carefully)
1. Complete the title page with all necessary student details and ensure that the signature of the student is marked in the declaration form.
2. All assignments must be submitted as an electronic document in MS Word to the LMS (Use 12 Times New Roman script).
3. All assignments must be submitted with an accompanying Turnitin report.
4. Assignment that is not submitted to the LMS by the prescribed deadline will be accepted ONLY under the REDO and RESIT submission policy of Westford.
5. The results are declared only if the student has met the mandatory attendance requirement of 75% and/or a minimum of 50% under extenuating circumstances approved and ratified by the Academic Director. The student has to repeat the module (with additional fees applicable) if the attendance is below 50%.
6. The assignment should not contain any contents including references cited from websites like www.ukessays.com, www.studymode.com, www.slideshare.net, www.scribd.com.
7. Students can refer Wikipedia as a source of information, but the references cited in Wikipedia must be mentioned.
8. Submit the assignment in a MS Word document with the file name being:
First Name Last Name_ abbreviation of the subject.
Scenario:
You are acting as the operations and quality consultant for a chosen organization (preferably where thelearner is currently working or any other organization of your choice). You have been asked by the board of directors to prepare a report to review the operations and quality management processes in the organisation. You are required to look at the existing supply chain networks, operations management and quality management processes, procedures, and systems within the organization, and evaluate the competitiveness of the organization in achieving key strategic objectives. It is also imperative to evaluate the information management/ systems in the organisation in relation to such operations management processes. You should make use of relevant academic literature, theories, current issues, principles and concepts in Operations and Quality Management. Although the report should be centered around one main case organization, students are encouraged to compare various outcomes and scenarios with other organizations within similar or dissimilar sectors. You MUST follow the Report format, which should include an Executive Summary and contain the following sections.:
1. You should provide a brief Introduction to the chosen organisation and highlight the operations management challenges that the organisation currently faces. You should then critically discuss the application of operations principles and their impact on the organization’s success. The quality management framework of the organization must be highlighted, describing its role in ensuring that the organization meets its strategic goals. [20 marks]
2. Within the chosen organization, the impact of productivity and workflow on the organization’s competitiveness, must be discussed. You must also conduct a critical evaluation of the way in which key operations strategies of the organization contribute to the business strategies of the enterprise. With supply chains playing a key role in many operations, you must, through research, describe how a Supply Chain Network design was developed to align with (or to contribute to) the overall business strategy, within the organisation chosen or any other. Examples must also be discussed where the organization would have implemented the necessary performance indicators to ensure that monitoring, control, and continuous improvement within its operations become a standard best practice. [25 marks]
3. Critically discuss the role of management information systems in assisting management towards achieving their strategic goal and operations success within the chosen organization. You should then conduct a critical evaluation of the role of ICT applications in supporting as well as enhancing operations management, again within the chosen enterprise. Finally, you must proceed to analyse several requirements, appropriate methods, and technologies such as AI that could help in the optimisation of the operations within the organisation. [20 marks]
4. This question is project based. You could apply a project methodology to address the challenges the organization now faces as discussed earlier in your report. In doing so, you must analyze and apply the necessary project management scheduling tools, development of the project specifications and other aspects of the project methodology that would ensure that the project was properly controlled, monitored, and evaluated at the end, which would all contribute to a successful project. In concluding, and as part of your project methodology, you must evaluate the contribution of project leadership to effectively bring about the change in attitudes and to help achieve all project goals. The importance of managing the expectations of all stakeholders’ expectations within the project should also be discussed, completing the final aspect of the project’s methodology. [25 marks]
5. The report presentation must afford the reader a critical analysis of the research findings, including the required reference styles, structure, and overall grammatical expectations. [10 marks]