Operations management involves planning, organizing, and supervising of production and

manufacturing. Good operations management enables a company to be efficient and effective

by using the fewest resources and meeting customer demands. The field of operations

management is challenging and requires a deep understanding of the business processes to

allow operations managers to deliver value to their customers.

THE CHALLENGES THAT OPERATIONS MANAGERS ARE FACING IN TODAY’S GLOBAL

ENVIRONMENT

 QUALITY ASSURANCE AND DEFECTS:

Processes can never me made perfect and flawless, so there is always a certain level that

defines the quality. Out sourcing from other countries bring complexity and variability in

processes for operations managers as they are not sure whether or not they will adhere to

quality level. It can open up questions and disputes as to who will be held liable in case of
abnormal defects. It can be avoided by providing a list of potential defects in quality and asking

supplier to self-identify and correct any defective.

For example: any electronic product has damaged wiring and is malfunctioning. Now it’s on

operations managers to find out who is responsible for that, Raw material supplier,

manufacturer or if it’s damaged during distribution.

 COST MANAGEMENT:

Managing cost is an important challenge for operations manager. Keeping it as minimum as

possible is the main task of manager. Cost can increase as products is transported globally

which includes many costs like labor costs, material handling costs, production & distribution

cost, warehouse and inventory management, different taxes & tariffs and transportation costs

(air, train or road). Cost can be saved by planning strategically without compromising in quality.

Managers faced intense pressure in 2021 due to Covid-19 to further cut costs to ensure the

survival of the organization. FOR EXAMPLE, different airlines went with no fringes attached

approach where they stopped providing any kind of services other than the seat to save cost.

They stopped giving food and different kinds of drinks, only offer water that too if anybody asks
for it. Operations manager for airline took a strategic decision by doing this in order to save

cost.