Operations Management
The reorganization of a company involves looking at all areas affecting the business and the implementation of strategies in these areas in order to enhance business access. Businesses have a customer base, a product, business operations and employees. In order to reorganize the company, these four areas require evaluation and change to show the new business image.
An example of an organization that underwent reorganization is Apple Corporation after its founder Steve Jobs passed away. The company first expanded its product line through the introduction of cheaper iPhones. This means that it reorganized it common expensive phones and unleashed cheaper phones amongst its range of products. The company took the step of introducing the cheap phones to target a new market niche, which comprises of the poor and lower middle class members of the society that could not afford the regular phones offered by Apple. The company went ahead to improve its operations to reduce costs of operations so as to break even after selling the cheaper iPhones. Besides, Apple also underwent reorganization in its labor force by increasing the freedom of employees. This allowed the workers to express their ideas freely and come up with prototypes without any limitation. This move was aimed at enhancing the creativity and innovative abilities of the company.
The productivity of a company can be affected by various factors like the labor force, technology and operation efficiency. Thus, productivity can be enhanced by focusing on one or more of these factors based on what is affecting the company.
Employee empowerment is one of the ways of increasing the productivity of a company. Employees who are empowered will have the tools for performing their duties better. Workers can be empowered through proper training and development in their particular fields. Increasing employee freedom will also empower them since they will have the opportunity of solving the problems that come up in their lines of duty individually without strict supervision. This will also contribute towards freeing up time utilized by managers in supervising employees while also enabling them to concentrate on other important areas where their attention is required.
The incorporation of modern technology in the production process will help in improving productivity. This is because technology reduces the loss of output through leakages and spoilages. Technology ensures the extraction of maximum output from the input in the process of production. Besides, technology can also allow for the standardization of the process, thereby increasing the efficiency of the production process eventually enhancing the general productivity of the company.
Productivity can also be increased through filtering the internet. Cutting down the number of websites that contribute to the wastage of time of employees can also improve productivity. By filtering sites like Facebook that are not related to productive work will significantly increase the time spent by employees on actual work, hence, increasing the firm’s productivity.
Total quality management involves a company effort to implement processes that are aimed at ensuring continuous improvement of the products and services of the firm. This management of approach tries to instill accountability in all sectors of the production process so that all parties are held accountable for the overall quality of the products produced. Total Quality Management is aimed at making sure that consumers of the company’s products are always satisfied both in the short and long term. It is focused on how ways through which the company can remain successful in the long run by ensuring that clients always get the required satisfaction in the quality of the products of the firm.
Total Quality Management has not specific format or actions that are considered as prerequisite. However, it has certain common features that characterize it. One of the features of TQM is that the quality of the company’s products is determined by the needs of its target customers. Besides, the top-level management is also involved and responsible for improving the quality of products. Another feature is that the secret of enhancing quality depends on improvement of the work processes in the firm. The last feature is that the process of improvement is continuous and conducted throughout the whole organization.
Project planning tools are tools that are used in the effective creation and implementation of a plan. They help in making sure that the process of planning is smooth and involves all areas of the organization. These tools assist managers in including all the critical areas that are essential in the success of the project. Project planning tools include loading, scheduling, sequencing and controlling.
Loading entails determining the amount of work that should be done. It requires looking at the resources available for the project and the work that should be conducted on them for the completion of the project. Scheduling on the other hand, involves the determination of when the work needed in the project should be conducted. This tool is used in appropriation of the time required to perform critical activities necessary for the completion of the project. It ensures that the project is not delayed. The other tool, sequencing entails determining the order in which the critical activities in the project should be conducted. This tool makes sure that the process of the project execution is effective and efficient, and there is no unnecessary repetition of key activities.
The last tool in the process of project planning is controlling which is involved in making sure that every activity outlined in the project is carried out according to plan. It helps in measuring the actual output of the project, comparing it with the expected output and taking any corrective measures so that everything is as planned. This tool is the easiest to apply among the others since it involves more of reviewing the objectives and processes that had previously been planned. The tool is less demanding as it requires observational skills, only noting any disparity and expected output between the actual and expected output.