The Definitive Guide to Manufacturing and Service Operations: Master the Strategies and Tactics for Planning, Organizing, and Managing How Products and Services Are Produced

1. Operations Management Defined

Defining Operations Management

Every business is managed through multiple business functions each responsible for managing certain aspects of the business. Figure 1-1 illustrates this by showing that the vice president of each of these functions reports directly to the president or CEO of the company. Marketing is responsible for sales, generating customer demand, and understanding customer wants and needs. Finance is responsible for managing cash flow, current assets, and capital investments. MIS is responsible for managing flows of information. Most of us have some idea of what finance and marketing are about, but what does operations management do?

Figure 1-1 Organizational chart

Operations management (OM) ...