Running Head: PRODUCT-BASED OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT ASSESSMENT 1

Option #1: Product-Based Operations Management Assessment

Jean Celestin

OPS400 – Operations Management

Colorado State University – Global Campus

Peter Billington

June 7, 2020
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Organization

Universal Harvester Incorporated (UHI) is a Filipino company started by manufacturing

Sulphate of Potash until it progresses to straight manufacturing, local dispensation, importation,

and exportation of quality fertilizers. It was established in 2003 and has already manifested its

strength and persistence to grow with an optimistic future through the use of state-of-the-art

technology.

One of its mission is to offer the best quality fertilizers at the most reasonable cost to

protect the interest and welfare of its primary consumers, help make farming an honorable and

beneficial venture, and aid farmers in keeping abreast with the up-to-date technology.

Its vision is to recover and develop the Philippine's agriculture for its main consumer,

which are the Filipino farmers, through allocating it's human and resources technologically. The

company is committed to helping the Philippines materialize as the major agriculture player in

the world.

Overview

In this portfolio, I will focus on analyzing the said company’s operations management

(OM) practices and strategies that they are using to have a sustainable business distinction. I will

identify the company’s OM, forecasting, line of operation, quality of management, human

resources, management of supply chain, and inventory management.

Operation Management

To plan, organized, lead, staff, and control activities are the main objectives of operations

management discipline. It will benefit the organization in meeting the needs and satisfaction of

the customer at the same time. According to Heizer et al. 2017, operations management defined
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as “the set of activities that establishes value in the form of goods and services by converting

input into outputs.”

On the other hand, project management is the application of essential skills, techniques,

and tools to meet the project objectives through project activities. It is necessary for the success

of an organization if both operations management and project management will work together.

UHI’s success in terms of organization is inspiring and innovative for their customers

through their efficient and effective operations management. UHI management frequently

examines how to improve efficient managing monotony that plays a strategic role in the

organization (essays, UK, 2018). UHI uses ten strategic decision areas of operations management

to utilize their company efficiently and effectively. According to Ferguson, these areas are

involved in the main decisions in managing operations and products that effectively address

business goals and objectives.

To enhance productivity measurement, UHI uses strategy of a product quality system.

The organization’s expertise is producing fertilizers being their company as a very-labor

intensive manufacture sector, which results to have certain measurement criteria for the

organization’s performance and results to successful alternatives to some of their necessary

problems.

UHI's primary production involved turning raw materials into physical products, which

will be sold to customers. The company starts its operation by looking for credible suppliers for

the sources of quality raw materials.

The company's operation management focuses on providing products. They assure the

quality of production of the company's product. They are also using ideas and technologies to

increase productivity and lessen costs, enhance flexibility to meet customer needs that changes
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rapidly on time, assure the employees' welfare and safety in their workplace and assure high-

quality customer service.

UHI profoundly cares about what their customers think and value about their products and

satisfies their customers. It expertly utilizes the strategy of quality products produced, which

meets or exceeds the customers.

OM Forecasting

As it defines, forecasting is a technique used by companies wherein they predict the

company’s future in terms of economic conditions. It is the combination of the company’s

previous gathered information, its present economy so that they will come up with a prediction

of the future company’s status (Landau, 2018).

UHI is a company that do the forecasting. The company comes up with a prediction

through analytics, data, insights, and experience as well as respond to different business needs.

They are using the predictions they have gained so that the company can operate and optimize

the process of the business. It uses forecasting in decision-making by considering what has

happened and make an assessment of what will happen in the future.

Technically, UHI uses its past data, and mostly do statistical models in processing its

forecasting. With the help of its data and assessment, they will be able to most likely assure the

correctness of its prediction.

With the use of forecasting, the company can predict the product demand. It is an

excellent way to know the product needed to fulfill customer orders on-time. It makes keep the

customer satisfied if the product is readily available.

Quality Management
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Quality management deals with the way to look at the quality and about corporate

performance and product quality. “The main objective of the operation manager is to establish a

total quality management system that identifies and satisfies the needs of customers.” (Heizer, et

al. 2017) The reason why customers nowadays go for quality rather than quantity is that a

company such as UHI expectations f customers of an extremely high-quality product. Condition

is now defined as the overall quality and characteristics of a product or service that conveys the

ability to satisfy stated or implied needs (Heizer et al. 2017) UHI throughout their history and

build reputation and brand image. The UHI’s quality management department focuses on quality

in all processes and products since it is the main objective of its strategic decision to satisfy

customers expectations. Moreover, the operations management of the company raised these

concerns through high-quality standards as well as the application of total quality management

(TQM) in their production.

Quality management is vital for UHI so much that they conduct team meetings with their

managers just to disseminate their plan in terms of quality. This strategy can be decisive in

developing and distributing quality plans to the entire company since variety is the essential

aspect for UHI. To allow the company to stay at the spearhead of total quality management,

promoting new work processes, and developing continuous improvements are needed (Geotsch

& Davis, 2014). To improve customer satisfaction, they maintain product quality by cutting

down costs and innovating technology. They can exploit their capabilities to further their

advancement. UHI promotes TQM that inspires innovation and creativity; without those, UHI

will not create and release high-quality agricultural products.

Human Resources, Job Design and Work Measurement

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UHI uses a dynamic approach in recruiting its best employees. The company issues job

design that specifies the producers and descriptions of different tasks. The company also

established a work measurement models in assessing the level of productivity of its employees.

Supply Chain Management (SCM)

Operational supply chain management (OSCM) talks about the coordination of all

activities within a supply chain that encompasses raw materials and ends with satisfied

customers (Heizer et al., 2017). OSCM activities include the following such as sourcing

materials, operational planning, logistics, distribution, retail, demand forecasting, and fulfilling

orders. The OSCM’s main objectives are more on structuring the chain to maximize competitive

advantage that will eventually benefit the consumers (Heizer et al., .2017). It is indispensable

since it enlarges relationships between organizations and suppliers in terms of a long-term basis

and improves innovation, speedy design, and the eventual reduction in costs.

UHI has an excellent supply chain that expedite efficient support on production. UHI

expanded to three factories around the country. Each factory acquires their materials from their

central office so UHI can reduce costs and increase profits.

Dispensing customers the right product at the right moment and cost is the main focus of

supply chain management. UHI gives focuses on managing the customer relationship, demand,

and customer service to meet the customer’s needs. UHI SCM’s basis is the manage demand,

hand disruptions, and inventory. To fulfill the customer’s request, the company uses technology.

Inventory Management

According to Heizer, the objective of inventory management is to afflict a balance

between investment and customer service. Inventory management is considered critical in the
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company’s success as recognized by operations managers worldwide since it is regarded as one

of the most expensive assets a company can have.

To be well-managed, UHI relies more on its inventory management. It is not only a one-

time thing. It is involved in the whole process of the company, such as placing orders for

products and shipping orders to customers. The task of operations managers is to have the full

knowledge of inventory management so that it will be easy to face challenges such as tracking

inventory and supply and demand that they may encounter in the context of inventory

management.

One of UHI’s inventory managers’ goal is to establish a strategy to minimize their

inventory costs while maximizing effectiveness and efficiency. Ceaseless monitoring and

inventory movement from the supply chain to distributors and retailers are the perpetual methods

used by UHI’s inventory management. The fixed inventory costs include product cost from

suppliers, taxes, import taxes, insurance, and logistics. UHI keeps updating its inventory

management software to understand which, among its products, sell, utilizing more historical

data that creates a forecast. UHI fixes its software problems in demand forecasting that they did

not know what customers wanted or needed that lead to excess inventory. Fixing their software

issue with demand forecasting and using economic order quantity, UHI formulate their inventory

level reasonably, which gave them a margin of near-zero error.

UHI uses global inventory models such as conventional inventory models, which include

quantity of orders, ABC classification system, and re-order point models. UHI takes a high level

of confidentiality, privacy, and accuracy when in terms of its inventory management.

Operations Manager
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Technically, it is defined as the process of planning, organizing, and supervising, as well

as making necessary enhancement for the betterment of the organization (Belyh, 2016).

Operation manager needs to have a clear job description to fulfill its duty. The tasks of an

operations manager in UHI are as follows:

 Contribute inspired leadership for the organization,

 Construct essential policy, planning, and strategic decisions,

 Develop, enforce, and review operational policies and procedures,

 Hand assistance to HR with recruiting when needed,

 Support promote a company culture that encourages top performance and high morale,

 Eye budgeting, reporting, planning, and auditing,

 Deal with senior stakeholders,

 Certify all legal and regulatory documents are filed and monitor compliance with laws

and regulations,

 Work with the board of directors to conclude values and mission, and plan for short- and

long-term goals,

 Classify and address problems opportunities for the company,

 Establish affiliation and partnerships with other organizations and

 Reinforce worker communication with the management team.

Conclusion

From Universal Harvester Incorporated (UHI) 's humble beginning until the time it has

already manifested its strength and persistence to grow with an optimistic future through state-

of-the-art technology, which has a mission of carrying inspiration and innovation to every
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Filipino farmer. The operations management team's main objectives are planning, staffing,

leading, and controlling activities that profit their organization while meeting customer's needs.

The organization utilizes different strategies such as operations management forecasting,

quality management, design of services and goods, human resource management, inventory

management, and supply chain management to effectively improve their productivity,

performance, profits, quality, brand image, value and eliminating any unnecessary while

concurrently maximizing the desire of the customers. To ensure that every employee has a clean

and safe workplace to earn a decent living, UHI uses a code of compliance requirements that

desire their suppliers' factories with standards as employee rights, health and safety, practices,

wages, and freedom of association.

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References

Belyh, A. (2016, June 22). Operations Management: Definition, Principles, Activities,

Trends. Retrieved from https://www.cleverism.com/operations-management-definition-

principles-activities-trends/

Goetsch, D. L., & Davis, S. B. (2014). Quality management for organizational

excellence. Pearson, retrieved from,

http://abufara.com/abufara.net/images/abook_file/back/Ch1.pdf Economics. Vol.155, pp.109-

113

Heizer, J., Render, B., & Munson, C. (2017). Operations management: Sustainability and

supply chain management, (12th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, Inc.

Landau, P. (2018, November 7). Business Forecasting: Why You Need It & How to Do It.

Retrieved from https://www.projectmanager.com/blog/business-forecasting.