4.1 Introduction and Motivation

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来自 Northwestern University 的课程

Scaling Operations: Linking Strategy and Execution

68 个评分

Northwestern University

Scaling Operations: Linking Strategy and Execution

68 个评分

Over the past several decades, operations strategy has played an increasingly important role in business’ success. In this course, we will equip you with concepts and tools to build operations in a way that not only supports your competitive strategy, but also allows you to create new opportunities in the market place. Scaling operations: Linking strategy and execution is a five-week course dedicated to making strategic decisions that are grounded in operational reality. Together, we will study how to build and evaluate the “operating system” of the firm to maximize value. This involves tailoring the firm’s operational competencies, assets, and processes to a specific business strategy. Each week, we’ll explore case studies, engage in discussions and examine realistic data. Thanks to our data-driven approach, you’ll be able to implement your learning directly into practice. At the end of this course, you’ll be ready to build an effective, actionable plan to scale your department or organization.

从本节课中

Process Strategy: Strategic Sourcing

In the previous modules, we introduced the VCAP framework for operations strategy and studied value and capabilities. We learned how to invest assets in the face of uncertain demand. Now we turn our attention to structuring operational processes. In this module, we will analyze two essential components of operations strategy: the questions of who should perform an activity or process in the value chain, and how we should manage the supply relationship.

4.1 Introduction and Motivation4:11

4.2 Forecasting and Modeling Uncertainty3:26

4.3 Tools to Incorporate Uncertainty into Capacity Analysis4:27

4.4 Optimal Capacity Sizing5:22

与讲师见面

Gad Allon
Professor of Managerial Economics and Decision Sciences
Jan A. Van Mieghem
Harold L. Stuart Professor of Managerial Economics; Professor of Operations Management

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The first three modules of the course introduced the VCAT framework for

operation strategy, and outline the main diagnostic tools.

We discussed how operations creates value and

the role of capabilities in a competitive environment.

In this module, we adopt a resource view, and

we turn our attention to the assets that comprise the operating system of the firm.

Our main topic is capacity sizing and the capacity investment decision.

After discussing the key trad-offs and challenges in a capacity strategy,

we will study how uncertainty impacts capacity valuation.

Maximizing this value suggests guidelines on how we can tailor

an operation's capacity-sizing decision.

All organizations have a bundle of real assets or

resources that perform their activities.

Few real assets are available abundantly.

A resource's limitations and processing are quantified by its capacity,

which typically represents the maximum sustainable output rate of that resource.

The level at which we choose to operate that resource at any given time

is the resource capacity utilization.

This is typically a fraction of the resource capacity.

>> For example,

Mercedes plant in Tuscaloosa had a capacity of 65,000 vehicles per year.

If the economy slowed down so that annual demand decreased from 60,000 to 40,000,

Mercedes could choose to reduce utilization from 92% to 62%.

In reality, however, Mercedes had underestimated demand, and

even though the plant ran its full utilization, some demand could not be met.

In the short run, this meant that a customer had to either wait or

buy another vehicle made by Mercedes or a rival.

Similarly, most hospitals operate at a capacity utilization between 70% and 85%.

A capacity strategy is a long-term plan to developing

assets that answer at least four questions.

One, what do you want your capacity size to be, one to five years from now?

What overall capacity do you aim for?

Two, how do you plan to get there?

How do you expand or shrink capacity over time?

What are the dynamics, year to year?

Three, what kind of assets do you plan to use, specialized or

flexible, manual or automated?

And four, where will you locate the assets and

which global network will you configure?

>> In this module, we focus on making strategic decisions about type,

location, and size for the next several years.

While the capacity sizing problem is clearly dynamic in nature and

interrelated with the timing, type, and location decisions.

It is important to understand the aggregate strategic sizing decision.

How much capacity does a firm need for

the next several years when it is planning to grow?

In this module, we thus focus on one initial capacity sizing decision

in a static, aggregate setting.

When firms decide on capacity investment, they face a rather simple trade-off.

The higher the capacity, the more likely it can meet market demand, yet,

the more costly and risky it is.

To make this trade-off, we must forecast future market demand and

determine the factors that impact capacity.

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