Reference no: EM133895466 , Length: word count:2500

Operations and Project Management

The Basics

You have to use Operations Management tools

A business in Blackpool, UK - possibly a coffee shop

The Brief

A lot of Operations and Project Management is about making things better; finding better ways to deliver the same products or finding ways of making products better.

An important skill within industry is being able to identify operations improvements and then propose those improvements in the right way. The "right way" is the way that encourages people to understand and adopt your ideas. This is a chance for you to develop that skill.

Your brief is to make things better; propose an improvement in the operations management of an organisation. It can make things cheaper, quicker, improved, more flexible or dependable. It can involve goods, services, or both. It can be an organisation you work in, an organisation you have worked for, or you have seen or even one you have researched out of interest. The vital thing is you need to have sufficient information to do the following:

Find a problem or an opportunity for improvement.

Use appropriate Operations and Project Management tools to develop your proposal. Analyse what is happening, what is needed and what could be better. Use the tools to show how things can be improved. - FOR EXAMPLES 5 PERFORMANCE, 5 WHYS, FISHBONE, Cost-Benefit Analysis, Gantt Chart (Project Planning), Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (FMEA),ect.

Develop your proposal into a complete plan; what should be done, why, how and when.
Present it well:
Create a written proposal that includes all of the relevant details that you need to clearly explain what you are recommending.
Create a clear summary to help inform readers to be enthusiastic about your proposal; a summary should make a reader interested about the topic and explain the key parts of the proposal.

Use visuals: Diagrams, charts, and maps help persuade and clarify.
State assumptions clearly: If you lack real data, explain what you're assuming and why it's realistic.
Base in reality: Choose a company you know or can easily research (your workplace, a local business, etc.).
Keep it focused: One clear improvement is better than trying to fix everything.

Your Work

You should include a brief outline of your chosen organisation and the products/services to which your initiative relates.
You should present your initiative for change, describing what, how, why and when it could be implemented.
You will support your initiative using analysis including operations and project management tools.
You will need some data and you will need to explain how you gathered it, what assumptions you have made and any other data you would like before implementation (more details provided within lectures).

Guidelines

A reminder of a standard report format is suggested at the end of this briefing to remind you of what typically gets included. I believe a summary is critical as it gives people a way into the report but for this assignment there is no fixed structure.
To score higher marks I am looking for you to use your judgement to structure your proposal so that it is compelling reading.
There is a limit of 2,500 words equivalent but only write up to this limit if you have valuable content.
There is no penalty for short proposals and well-written more concise proposals are likely to gain more marks for persuasion.
Use appendices for extra information.
Reference all data and work you have used using the Harvard format.

Standard Structure

This is a mediocre, standard structure provided for guidance. It will not lead to a great proposal but may help as a starting point. People often ask what sections to include. The choice is yours; you need to make a compelling written proposal. Here is a guide for a simple structure.

Title page
This should look good with an interesting title. You can use a front cover from the options in Microsoft Word. Include the usual info like your name, student number, the date etc. Quite often this is a good place to include a very short abstract or key tag line.

Executive summary
50 - 250 words to sell your whole proposal.
Short, interesting and explaining the whole proposal.
This creates the first impression of your proposal and sets the tone. Write it last.

Introduction
Interests the reader, give them plenty of info on what they will read and leave them ready to read the core of the proposal.
An introduction should put your work in context (what industry, company etc.) and explain the whole proposal in limited detail, aim, methods and an indication of the recommendations. It should also indicate the structure.

Main section
Maybe start with a background section giving details of the market conditions or the developments leading to the current position.
You might have a section titled "the problem" or "the opportunity" pointing out how the problem situation can be seen. Get online assignment help to achieve academic success!
Perhaps follow this with the analysis you have carried out showing the tools you've used, explaining why, and the results. (Don't waste time explaining in detail how the tool works, keep the information here concise.)
You may have a section describing and analysing a range of options.
Somewhere explain the improvement initiative in detail and how and why it is relevant to the company. Does it align with the strategy? What does it make better and why should they care? You should show how the initiative will be implemented. Give a simple plan.
The titles will vary but never call this ‘main section'. Guide the reader by using appropriate headings. One word may be too brief, a sentence too much.

Conclusions and recommendations
This should bring together all the man sections. Don't bring in anything new, you should summarise and develop what is in the main sections clearly and concisely.
Clearly state the potential benefits and any drawbacks.

Appendix
All the things that may be important. Detail of the data, company history etc, include in appendix.
Of course, whatever you do needs to be referenced rigorously using the Harvard style.

Appendix (General Guidance)
The appendix should include any supporting materials that strengthen your proposal but are too detailed for the main body. It can contain:
Operational analysis tools (e.g. process maps, fishbone diagrams, 5 Whys, lean audits).
Timelines or plans (e.g. Gantt chart, implementation schedule).
Financial estimates (e.g. cost-benefit analysis, assumptions).
Visual aids (e.g. photos, layout diagrams, charts).
Data sources (e.g. review summaries, interview notes, external reports).
Place the appendix after the main report and refer to each item clearly in the main text (e.g. "See Appendix A1").