assume the role of a manager in the operations function of the organisation that you work for (or one with which you are otherwise familiar).

Task: Report [no more than 2,500 words] In this assignment you are asked to assume the role of a manager in the operations function of the organisation that you work for (or one with which you are otherwise familiar). In the last top management meeting the outgoing CEO requested that you write a report (of no more than 2,500 words) introducing the operations function to the incoming CEO, who is new to the organisation. She has specifically requested that you include the following three parts in your report: Part 1 An overview of operational activities, including: 1. the type of good or service that the company provides (including a summary of the order qualifiers and order winners of those goods/services and the related operations strategy) 2. the production process of that good or service 3. the key performance objectives of operations 4. and a brief overview of the supply chain network and/or any key business processes that are outsourced. Part 2 An explanation of how the operations function collaborates with other business functions (such as human resources, sales & marketing, or financial management) to improve efficiency and customer service. Add examples for clarity. Part 3 A summary of the core challenges that the operations function faces (and why) and, based on that summary, a proposal for one improvement accompanied by a strategy for the implementation of that improvement. Guidelines For this TMA, focus on the organisation you work for or an organisation that you are familiar with. In your daily working environment you are surrounded by operational processes that could be improved to enhance the service to the customer or to reduce the costs to the organisation. Such processes exist regardless of the type of organisation you are discussing (i.e., whether it is a service sector organisation or a manufacturing one). Comparing those processes to those in other similar organisations or to the theory/models discussed in the module may provide you with interesting ideas for improvement. If you find that your organisation does not provide you with enough material to perform such an analysis, you may choose to analyse an organisation you know well. Remember that you will be assuming the role of a manager in the operations function who should provide the new CEO with relevant information to help him or her make decisions concerning the overall strategy of the organisation. It is therefore important that your report addresses the following aspects: Part 1 should consist of an overview of the main goods or services the organisation produces and their key characteristics from an operational perspective (when the range of products that the organisation produces is broad or diverse, focus on the main goods/services or families of goods or services). You should explain how these goods or services are produced (referring to the transformation model and the production process types) and why it is done in that way. Lastly you should also include some comments on how the performance of the production process is measured and identify key supply chain partners who provide goods or services that are crucial to the goods or services that your organisation offers in the market. The intention of this part is to provide the new CEO with a brief yet comprehensive overview of the operations function. Part 2 requires you to reflect on and explain how the operations function works (or should work) as part of the organisation as a whole. In other words, how the function integrates and collaborates with the other business functions so that the organisation best serves the needs of the customers and does so in the most cost-efficient manner. Part 3 asks you to critically assess the performance of the operations function (in the light of both the competition in the market and the demands in the market) and to identify an improvement in the operations domain that will benefit the performance of your organisation/an organisation you know (and make sure that the new CEO will give due attention to the operations function whenever he or she has taken over). Use your overview of Part 1 and your reflection of Part 2 as bases to propose one aspect in particular that should be improved. Explain why it should be addressed over other possible improvements, how it should be implemented (as gradual/continuous or as radical change) and the expected challenges for implementation. Remember that while the assumed audience for this report is the new head of the organisation (i.e., a non-academic audience) it is also an academic assignment for assessment and, as such, it should contain full references to all materials that you use from external sources. References and appendices do not count within the word count for this assignment.