Operations management is the management of the processes or systems that create goods and services. During this course, we will be discussing forecasting, capacity planning, scheduling, managing inventories, quality assurance, employee motivation, transportation and logistics, as well as numerous other topics. Operations management is needed in both production and service settings, in customized and mass-production environments, and in both for-profit and not-for profit organizations.
We will be studying both the qualitative and quantitative aspects of operations management. A good understanding of statistics is essential. Please look carefully at the course prerequisites listed in the syllabus to ensure you have met these requirements. Our schedule is posted at Production and Operations Schedule. Please be aware that this schedule is subject to change so you should check it on a regular basis.
The course is taught on-line. You should be prepared for a class that requires even more self-motivation than those that meet in a traditional setting. It will be more easy to get behind and more difficult to catch up. It is essential that you actively participate in all class assignments and check out this site for Announcements and changes every day or two. You are responsible for checking the contents of the announcement page. No other method of announcing changes will be used. If modifications are made to the schedule, notification will be posted at this site.
Supplemental lecture material will be provided for each chapter. These pages will highlight the most important chapter concepts, but will also provide additional readings, web sites and other ancillary material for your use. Chapter assignments will be included in this section.
Following the due date of each assignment, once assignments are completed and submitted to me at nfloyd@ncwc.edu you may check your work by going to the The Solutions Page where answers will be posted. Please keep a copy of your work so that you may verify your answers. Work will not be returned. Grades will be posted however on the Grades Page. Posting will be by aliases. Once solutions are posted, the assignment will not be accepted for any reason.
You may hold discussions with other class members at Discussions on Operations Management which supports threaded discussions. Discussion questions based on assigned material and outside research will be posted by the instructor weekly. You are expected to participate in the discussion