Operation Management is an ever vital aspect of business to which few, if any, individuals have given much attention. It is primarily responsible for a huge number of critical functions of an organization, such as: Managing the flow of goods through the supply chain and logistics systems. Managing and guaranteeing product quality throughout the manufacturing process. Monitoring and correcting process efficiencies as they arise.
There are three key stages in business operations management that determine how well a manager does his job. The first is planning. In this stage business operations managers create and develop their strategic business plans. They examine the goals and objectives of the organization and work out a strategy to achieve those goals. Planning also involves identifying the resources needed to implement the business plans and hiring the appropriate staff and executives.
The second stage in business operations management is execution. This is where the manager makes his/her plans come true. Executives perform managerial duties such as: Setting goals and objectives, determining how to achieve them, analyzing the resources required to achieve them, creating a schedule of activities and monitoring the progress of the project. Supervisors monitor the activities of their staff and assign duties to their employees according to the needs of the company. Managers delegate managerial duties to their lieutenants.
The third stage in business operations management is monitoring. Here managers watch the performance of their staff and ensure that goals and objectives are being met. They do this by checking on the productivity of workers, checking the operation frequency and quality of the products supplied. To make sure that their staff is following properly the plans and procedures laid down by them, business operations managers employ various techniques and systems of control. Examples of these include quality management systems, labor statistics monitoring and reporting systems and production reporting systems.
The fourth stage in business operations management is maintaining discipline within the organization. Managers must maintain a good relationship with their staff and ensure that they are in harmony with each other. They encourage employees to be vocal in expressing their opinions. They also help their employees keep abreast of new developments within the company by regularly publishing company news and articles on company website and distributing newsletters. They also set high standards for themselves, both personally and professionally, ensuring that they meet them consistently. In fact, some companies even require their personnel and heads to take a minimum of ten days of unpaid leave each year.
In order to succeed at running a business operations manager needs to have excellent people skills. This is why communication is so important. Businesses often operate at the speed of change and this often leads to communication problems between management and staff. Effective communication skills include effective listening skills and constructive criticism, both of which can be extremely difficult to implement in many cases.
The last and final stage of business processes management is the implementation phase. Once all the systems, processes, and people have been identified, managers will need to determine how best to implement these. There are two ways in which managers can implement their strategies. One method is to delegate the tasks to different individuals within the organization and monitor the success or failure of these tasks. The other method is for managers to create work schedules and allocate budgets to their teams and departments to ensure that these tasks are completed as allocated.
All in all, the role of business operations managers requires a great deal of skill, judgment, and interpersonal skills. Business managers are often the ones responsible for training their people, implementing complicated business processes, budgeting and controlling costs, and interacting with staff and executives. As a result, most business operations managers find themselves at the center of the action for their organization. Being the proverbial “managing leader,” a business operations manager must possess certain personal characteristics to ensure that he or she is successful in his or her role.