Operations Management Course Research Articles

Integrated Marketing and Operations Team Projects: Learning the Importance of Cross-Functional Cooperation

Increasingly, U.S. businesses are breaking down barriers between functional departments and focusing on interdepartmental teams aimed at providing customer satisfaction. Cooperation between marketing and production/operations is critical to this objective. This article describes integrating a marketing elective and a required operations management course through coordinated instruction that integrates topics and projects. This approach teaches business students that effective management involves close cooperation between these two functional areas in providing competitive and profitable products. Teamwork is emphasized by utilizing self-managed teams of students who work on functionally integrated projects that include locating a facility, aggregate production planning, and monitoring and improving service quality.

Effectiveness of an Internet‐Based Graduate Engineering Management Course

AbstractThis research provides engineering educators analytical evidence as to the effectiveness of Internet‐based course instruction. The research examined the University of Missouri‐Rolla's Internet‐based Advanced Production and Operations Management course, with a focus on determining the effectiveness of the Internet‐based education tools used. Over 100 students in five Internet‐based classes and one traditional, in‐class control group were given three sets of surveys, learning style assessments, a course pre‐test, and a course final examination. Multiple conclusions were drawn from this study based on analyses of the data collected. First, the Internet‐based students performed equally as well as the control group as measured by the difference between pre‐test and post‐test scores. Second, the Internet‐based students were found to have had exaggerated time requirement expectations for taking a course in the Internet environment. Third, the students rated the effectiveness and satisfaction positively for the Internet classroom format. Initially, the Internet‐based students were skeptical of electronic lectures but their experiences were positive.

Empirically Based Guidelines for Developing Teaching Materials on the Web

A recent study showed that Web-based materials enhanced teaching and learning in an introductory operations management course. Evidence gained from the study provides the basis for several guidelines concerning the early stages of implementing such a course. Faculty should understand why students visit the Website, time the availability of materials to match usage patterns, and provide information in appropriate detail and in an appropriate format. The Website facilitated students' note taking and studying, enhanced class discussion, and aided retention; it did not encourage students to miss class, as some faculty feared. Students tended to print out materials from the site, so that printing costs for courses were not reduced, just transferred from an academic department to the computer lab or the students. While traditional "chalk and talk" approaches will continue in the short term, students will increasingly see such an approach as outdated and find the Web their instructional medium of choice.

Quality: a critical introduction

Quality: A Critical Introduction, fourth edition, continues to provide a complete knowledge platform for all those wishing to study the development of the theory and practice of quality management. Exploring the basics of management theory and the work of the quality gurus, who have formed the foundation of current practice, this new edition builds upon the previous editions’ unique critical perspective of quality. A number of key management practices are considered including the new ISO9001:2015 standards, EFQM, systems thinking, systems practice, business process reengineering, six-sigma, organisational learning, intelligent organisation, skills based quality management and service quality management. An extended, in-depth case studies completes the text, exploring organisational performance transformation through the use of key methodologies, such as: soft systems; viable systems modelling; process analysis, job design and statistical methods. Replete with examples, vignettes and diagrams this comprehensive textbook is ideal for those new to the field of quality management and for students on undergraduate and postgraduate courses in Operations Management where quality management is taught.

Internet Usage in Undergraduate Management Science and Operations Management Courses

We surveyed 1,353 professors to learn if and how they use the Internet in instructing their introductory undergraduate management science (MS) and operations management (OM) courses. We surveyed the faculty instructing these courses, since the same faculty often teaches both areas. Thirty-five percent of the faculty teaching introductory MS or OM courses use the Internet in their instruction. The most reported applications of the Internet were: searching the Internet for information/data, gathering data about a specific company, retrieving an article, reading or downloading homework problems, and downloading a syllabus. The most common reasons for not using the Internet as part of course pedagogy were: lack of student access to computer laboratory resources, lack of faculty training in Internet-related areas, lack of relevant Websites, and faculty not being convinced about the learning students receive from its use.

Learning to solve problems on the Web: aggregate planning in a business management course

In this paper, we articulate a model for designing learning environments that engage learners in solving problems and can be delivered to learners at a distance via the World Wide Web. These environments include a problem (including representation, context, and manipulation spaces), related cases, information resources, cognitive tools, and collaborative support. We apply this model to an environment on aggregate planning in an operations management course. Students represent the problem, collect resources and experiences, and solve the problem using a spreadsheet, which can be machine scored. Field trials showed that students were challenged, and they liked being able to see the results of their manipulations instantly.

COMMUNICATING IN THE POM CLASS: AN AUTHOR'S PERSPECTIVE

The author, who has written nine textbooks in 26 editions over the past two decades, discusses his ideas of how to bring a production and operations management course alive. He introduces a model that ties together the use of text with both ancillary materials that accompany that book as well as with other tools available independent of the text. Some of these tools are technology driven (e.g., CD ROMS and the Internet), while others bring real business exposure to the course (e.g., field study consultancies, guest speakers, and plant tours).

TEACHING OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT FROM A SCIENCE OF MANUFACTURING

Recently, there has been much concern over the dumbing down of production and operations management (pom) courses in response to the repudiation of the theory‐heavy operations research (or) approach that became dominant during the 1970s. However, although almost everyone agrees that a new POM framework is needed, there is as yet little agreement on what it should be like. As a result, there is currently a huge variance among POM courses at different universities, ranging all the way from traditional OR courses to almost purely anecdotal case‐oriented courses. Although academics have struggled with the search for an appropriate level of methodological rigor in POM courses, our customers (i.e., students and the firms that hire them) have been inundated by a blizzard of management buzzwords. Although many of these undoubtedly contain kernels of truth, the very nature of the buzzword approach is such that it provides little balanced guidance as to what methods work well in a given situation. In recognition of these disparities, POM researchers have begun trying to systematically describe the underlying behavior of production systems. The goal is to provide a framework that will help organize educational approaches and business practices in a consistent fashion. In this paper, we describe our attempt at the needed “science of manufacturing,” which we call factory physics, and illustrate how it fits into a new paradigm of POM teaching.

TEACHING THE PRODUCTION/OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT CORE COURSE: INTEGRATING LOGISTICS PLANNING ACTIVITIES

This paper discusses the benefits of restructuring the introductory undergraduate production and operations management (pom) course to improve its pedagogical effectiveness and to better convey the importance of integrating logistics planning activities. The introduction of a dynamic integrative semester‐long case study which involves students in applying pom concepts and tools through a simulation game is reported.

Closing the Loop on Instructional Improvements

This article shows how to close the loop on instructional improvements by measuring improvement in the management skills of students. We developed behavioral expectation scales and tested them for reliability and validity. Students evaluated their skills at the beginning and end of an introductory course in operations management. Results showed that student skills improved significantly during the term in managing quality, productivity, and responsiveness to customers. In a follow-up study, former students documented how they applied operations management skills on the job.

Simple formulas for the expected costs in the newsboy problem: An educational note

This educational note presents closed-form (or near closed-form) formulas for computing the expected cost and the optimal expected cost of the newsboy problem. The formulas are sufficiently easy to be used in undergraduate OR and MBA operations-management courses.

A Tabletop Flexible Manufacturing Cell for Use in the Production/Operations Management Classroom

A simple tabletop flexible manufacturing cell (FMC) was developed for use in senior level operations management and quality assurance management courses. This article explores the use of this FMC in a variety of classroom situations, such as (a) in demonstrations and integrative case studies designed to increase student understanding of how to apply class materials and information; and (b) in MBA students' directed studies in the management of technology.

Modeling the Method — The Deming Classroom

This article discusses the application of Deming's philosophy and methods to teach a course in operations management at Fordham University's Graduate School of Business Administration. Deming's view was that the introduction of joy in learning enabled students to acquire knowledge that stays with them. Deming followed this notion in his own courses at New York University's Graduate School of Business. The author experimented with several methods that fit into the Deming concept and found that they enhanced the learning process. Survey results suggest students learn more.The first half of this article outlines Deming's philosophy of education, which includes a discussion of grades and brain theory; Deming's model for education, which includes in-depth exploration of the concepts of joy in learning and cooperative learning; and Deming's teaching methods, which focus on continual improvement in education. The second half of this article outlines the application of Deming's philosophy and teaching methods to a graduate class in operations management. Discussion includes applying the concept of cooperative learning in the classroom, grades, and students' reaction to what may be considered nontraditional teaching methods.

Undergraduate Academic Teaching and Manufacturing Industry Requirements: A Comparative Analysis

The United States has been losing its manufacturing base because of severe international competition. One way to help improve the US economy is to revitalize its manufacturing sector. Training workers and equipping managers with the necessary tools and competencies to help organizations improve production and operations will be vital in this effort. We conducted a study with two purposes: (1) to obtain a list of required and elective courses in operations management (OM) and industrial management (IDM) programs offered by US universities at the undergraduate level, and (2) to rank these courses in order of importance in different programs and for five proposed concentrations.

Needs Assessment For Modelling And Simulation Techniques Incorporated In Postsecondary Curriculum

AbstractRobert Morris College, a business-focused institution offering both undergraduate and graduate programs of study, is currently undergoing curriculum reform to develop an operations management/ decision sciences (OM/DS) major under the B.S.B.A. program. An attempt to measure Pittsburgh-area firms’ preferences regarding curriculum components was made in spring 1993. A listing of topics in the major areas of OM/DS, including specific topics in techniques of modelling and simulations, and a cover letter explaining the reasons and method of response was originally sent, with a follow-up letter to those who did not send back the questionnaire after a set time. This resulted in a response rate of approximately 20% (64 usable questionnaires). Results indicated that two of the three proposed OM/DS courses-system analysis and the operations management courses- were rated the highest by management and engineering personnel who participated in the study. The four topics that received the highest rating were w...

Teaching operations research in North American business schools

This paper examines the results of a survey concerning some aspects of quantitative courses offered by North American business schools. In particular, we look at the proliferation of statistics, operations research, and production and operations management courses as well as specific operations research topics and their coverage in undergraduate curricula. This information is analysed and compared to the use of operations research models and techniques in practice as reported in the literature.

A Proposed Typology for the Production and Operations Management Core Course

In many business programs, a single production and operations management (POM) course is included in the core curriculum to provide a brief overview for students who do not pursue the subject as a major. This article offers a simple two-dimensional, four-cell typology, well grounded in various POM sources, for facilitating instruction under the constraints and requirements of such a course. The typology can also serve non-POM faculty who might be asked to teach the course, as well as authors and instructors providing reviews of POM in management principles courses and texts.

Quality Management and POM Textbooks: A Review and Assessment

A continuous reorientation towards quality by US firms should be facilitated by the infusion of business and engineering school graduates having a solid conceptual foundation of quality and quality management. Examines a sample of the textbooks used in the standard under‐graduate course in production and operations management to assess the coverage and orientation provided towards quality and quality management. While the traditional quality model is still dominant, expanded coverage providing a more balanced view of the operational and strategic faces of quality is seen.

INTRODUCING INTERNATIONAL ISSUES INTO OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT CURRICULA

As the world moves toward a global economy, it is increasingly important that operations management courses prepare students to address globalization issues. The purpose of this paper is to contribute to the dialog concerning how international topics are best incorporated into operations management curricula. On the basis of the results of a survey of operations management academicians worldwide, current course offerings are cataloged and topic areas critical to the globalization of operations are identified. Four major reasons for studying international operations management are proposed, which provide the basis for recommendations on how international topics can be introduced into established operations courses and for the design of an elective course in global operations. Finally, teaching materials relevant to international operations are surveyed.

An empirical comparison of two pedagogical tools for teaching production/operations management courses

This paper reports the results of a study that experimentally compares the effectiveness of two pedagogical tools for teaching Production and Operations Management (P/OM) courses. The first pedagogical tool is a commercial manufacturing information system, known as the “Manufacturing Accounting and Production Information Control System” or “MAPICS”. MAPICS runs on an IBM minicomputer, such as System/36, or System/38, and is comprised of many application modules typically used for accounting and production planning and control in a manufacturing organization. The second pedagogical tool tested in this study is a computer-assisted learning system, called the “PC-based MAPICS Emulation System”. This system consists of a set of BASICA programs, and was designed to emulate the MAPICS system. However, the PC-based MAPICS emulation system cannot perform any planning runs (e.g. MRP planning run) as the real MAPICS system does. An experiment using both undergraduate and graduate students was conducted to compare the pedagogical effectiveness of the two systems with respect to three selected criteria: students' mastery of the subject matters, ease of use, and students' attitude toward the systems. The results indicate that, for educational purposes, the PC-based MAPICS emulation system is as effective as the real MAPICS. Thus, as an alternative to a real manufacturing information system, a low-cost PC-based MAPICS emulation system can be used as a pedagogical tool for teaching the basic concepts of production planning and control.