It is not to be denied that any business works on taking advantage of the opportunities that it comes across and handling the threats that it is posed with. However, these are the external factors that govern the working of any business. The elements that actually give the control and hold over your business are the internal factors, like the resource management and the core competencies of your organization. A strategic audit is always conducted to know how well these factors are dealt with in a company.
In this organization the operation for audit is actually a primary activity of the value chain. This operation is actually an activity that is directly involved with the assembling of the product of the company. The organization is actually an export house that is taking orders from the top brands of the apparel industry for the manufacturing process of the garment. The audit shall be of the operation for the manufacture of a particular order meant for a similarly reputed brand.
The manufacturing under scrutiny is of the development/sampling of shirt dresses for the season forthcoming. The production process will be checked for the quality of the product that is being made and the condition of the workers who are involved in the process. The company not only deals with the manufacture of the garments but has developed a sourcing centre for itself as well. This helps it in procuring the raw material easily. Also it houses a few product developers who are involved in the designing of new products for a few companies who put these responsibilities on them.
Hence we can see that the organization knows all about the whole process of garment manufacture, they deal in the development of the product, management of the raw materials and the production of the finished goods. The present operation shall include fifteen workers in total working at different levels, ruling out the managers, for the production of the samples meant for display to the brand/client. Analysis of the operation The operation that we are dealing with employs ten tailors meant for the assembling of the actual product.
Since this operation is a sampling process hence they are not working as different levels for the assembly of the parts of the product. Each person is responsible for the development of a complete product. This operation comes in succession to the process of designing, where the product developers decide the actual design of the product and what it shall constituter and look like. These product developers use these samples for the presentation made to the clients/ the brands that then would place their orders on the presented samples.
In this case the operation that we are analyzing hold s a great importance in the sense that it actually involves in the development of the samples. , what the product developers are taking care of is the paper work, but the actual sample that gets the order to the company is made by those ten tailors in the sampling department of the company, under this project. The objectives in terms of performance It is expected that every operation that is there in any organization should maintain a standard for the proper functioning of the other operations and to ensure the working of the business structure (Kaplan & Norton, 2001).
The particular operation that we are dealing with needs to take care of the fact that the designs on the paper are realized in the similar form. For this it is required that the people who are involved in the structure development of the product take very precise decisions. Then it is responsibility of the tailors to take care of the assembly of the product in the right way. This stage involves some very important decisions for any change in the tool used for achieving the effect desired can bring about a great change in the way the product turns out to be.
Another requirement of this operation is the management of the records and the data regarding the designs that are made. This is very important for the case if any other department needs to take the information regarding the product; this document helps them get all the information easily. This way it is also very important to maintain records as there are times when a particular sample is needed to be recreated. In that case this documentation helps you replicate the sample as it is. And the last priority to take care of is the management of time.
Most of the time these processes are much crunched up and it is required for the workers to be very proactive in their working so as to get the samples completed before the deadline. The business strategy that shall apply in this area of work would be the operational strategy (Chase, R. , B. , 2004), which shall manage the resources of the company for the development of the business opportunities. In this case the strategy is to present the best possible samples with the incorporation of the latest design details and the technological solutions to the clients.
This shall also involve the least usage of the resources in the process so that there are maximum benefits in the whole process. Therefore, it is the responsibility of the designer to develop the designs which involve the least labor and the most of the effect, and the people in the actual operation are required to omit the superfluous in the process. For example the pattern masters are required to get the effect of the designs with the least amount of work at the next level, also taking notice of the raw material consumption in the process.
And at the level of the tailors it is required that they reduce the amount of stitching processes getting the finish that is required. Also they are the people who are really dealing with the management of the time in this operation. In the area of managing the performance objectives what comes across as the major conflict is the human error and the restrictions. The people who are majorly involved in the production are humans and with almost no computer to monitor the whole process. Hence in this stage there are a lot of losses and omissions due to human error.
Also, there are times when management of time is not absolute, in this case there are times when the workers have to stay longer for, do overtime to meet the deadlines. This way the company has to pay extra for the work that was to be completed in the stipulated time. The resource capabilities of the operation At present we know that the company is having its own units that manage the raw materials and help in the easy procurement of the same. They are also able to manage the quality management of the raw materials on their own.
Processes like dyeing and printing are outsourced. The printing is done by the well managed firm that takes orders on a much planned basis. However, the dyeing is manual which has its own errors from time to time. The other process for surfaces is the embroidery which also they manage on their own. Since the operation in consideration is a small scale operation with only fifteen workers under it, the embroidery is not mechanized. Also this helps in the exploration of new ways of doing the things as the designer can sit with the worker and get the work done to their content.
This can later be formulated for the production processes by the same embroider who is doing the sample pieces. Then is the delivery of the products to the required places. This service is also outsourced. They are taking help of the courier services to handle the movement of the raw materials and the finished products from the place of issue to the place of delivery. Other than that we know that the workers that are working in this account are permanent employees of the company hence they are always available and can also be called for work on the non working days.
This way they are able to handle all the difficult deadlines, and the sudden deliveries that they are posed with. If we talk about the whole operation and the resource capabilities of the company (Slack, Chambers, Johnson, & Betts, 2009), then we can say it is very well managed with little place for any errors. However, this audit is to take care of those errors and hence the major trade off in this case can be the manual working of the whole operation. This leaves a lot of space for errors and restrictions due to human capabilities. The principal strategies at work
The principal strategies (Hill & Jones, 2009) are similar to that working in any operational strategy at work. They have to take care of the wastage of the raw materials, get the maximum benefits out of the available resources. Apart from the material resources they must also take care of the resources like time. Management of these resources is also very functional ion the maintenance of the quality of the product. Apart from the management the strategy also involves the adoption of new and innovative ways of carrying out the processes that shall reduce the usage of the resources and still maintain the quality of the product.
Also, it is not necessary to keep the things the old ways. The introduction of new looks and effects in this area shall also be appreciated, but this shall be in accordance with the requirement of the client and the capability of the company. Audit The process design of the operation is discussed to help you understand the situation in which the audit has been carried out and hence also comprehend with the recommendations (Daft, 2007). The operation under scrutiny is placed between the developments of the designs on paper to the delivery of the product.
Hence this operation directly deals with the development or the realization of the product. There is involvement of the raw materials, the labor and the other resources of the company involved in this operation. The objective of the whole operation is to get the product similar to what was given to it on paper and in turn get the actual buyers to the company. They are actually dealing with all the dirty and the handwork that is required for the getting of the clients top the company.
The major constraint that this operation is facing is the carrying out of all the processes manually, and the same set of workers is also working on other accounts. This way their attention gets diverted and it is not possible to get a single project done before the deadline. Dealing with one process at a time shall be very helpful in this case as they would not be crunching up all the work and getting lenient on the quality of the work dome. Then the other constraint that gets in to the way is the lack of management of the processes. There are times when getting a particular raw material on time gets very difficult.
Then the closure of the markets and such things bring up new type of difficulties in the completion of the project in time. In such case it is very helpful if the source of the basic trims and finishes be stocked up or the market is in easy connection. Also the manager on board who handles and data and the records and also takes care of the smooth functioning of the processes needs to be assigned an assistant. For the management of the quality the major thing needed in place is the records of all the products that are developed in the company in the account.
There should be a good management of the details of the products and all the things that shall be needed for the replication of the sample as this is very important in the time of production or the calculation of cost by the other departments. Then there are certain resources that need to be allotted to the particular project instead of a whole department. This way the workers shall not be made to wait to use a particular machine or get a particular process dome in time. The current risk management is not very effective for there are times when the planned amount of output is not shown to the client.
There is always the stretching of the deadlines that make it comprising on the part of the company to present its work to the clients. Hence it is required that there is a strong management of the surprise situations as well. Then another thing that very majorly contributes to the risk management part of the operation, that has been discussed, is the management of the records. Sometimes they are very necessary to maintain the standards of work and the quality of the product. There are times when the buyer reorders a certain product; in such situations there is a need to get the quality of the product exactly the same as the previous piece.
Then is the planning and control of the operation. This is managed by one person solely, who is managing every small detail and process of the whole department. This becomes a very stressful situation for the employee and also the occurrence of errors is also increased. There is a dire need for an assistant who shall be trained under him and then be allotted to the different projects that are working under the department. This will also solve the problem of the control on the operation is the keeping of the records, as one person would be responsible for one account and hence would be able to concentrate his abilities for the same.
The involvement of such step in the operation shall also solve the problem of wastage of the resources and even though there would be some more people employed, they would be reducing the amount of wastage and the occurrence of surprise situation in the company. This will also help the company to take up more work and get more assignments for it. Recommendation on the basis of the audit To achieve the maximum of the present resources there needs to be a few changes done in the way the things are managed in the present times in the operation.
The first be the allotment of a particular time for the workers employed to concentrate on one project. This shall streamline the working of the whole account and also give clear deadlines for the other departments in relation to get their part of the work done. Also this shall help the person managing the different processes on board. This is because this will make him deal with one process at a time and since every department shall be doing its part of the work beforehand, hence the procurement of all the resources before the start of the process.
Not only this will get streamlined in this case, it will also solve the problem of management of the records for further consultation. Record keeping is very important part of the process design in the development of the product from the start till the end. Considering this importance of this step, it is very necessary that there be some arrangements are done to maintain the records with utter precision and detail. This step might need some assistant to the whole operation manager on board.
He shall ensure the smooth working of the process not only for that project but for all the projects that are handled by that account, or the operation. This will also rule out the possibility of loss of time due to human errors in management. As discussed earlier there are times when the management misses out on the little things required for the starting of the process, like a particular trim and things like that, and if in this case the availability of the runner is not there the whole operation suffers delaying the project and compromising on the quality of the work later on.
Hence it is always suggested that there be enough workforce for working. This help in the better management of the whole operation. Also, at the same time it is required that there be organization of all the levels working for the project, as if this is missing, then the number of people employed just adds to the chaos. Hence the employing of an assistant can be done in a way that he works closely with the on board management of the operation and co-ordinate it with the designer and her requirements for the project. Also, he can be the responsible person for the record keeping hence solving the problem forever.
Another recommendation would be regarding the way record keeping is done for the operation. Generally they look for the details to maintain the records after the process is done. This is what creates the gaps in the whole process. This is because while the product development is in process, it is possible that the material that is used for the development is finished and the similar type is then not easy to get. Also, the little trims that are used in the garments are also very difficult to locate, as they are kept with the workers, and it is done as per their convenience.
When you are there for locating that particular trim in that area it is very difficult, and asking the workers to help you in the process is disrupting their flow of work. Hence it is recommended that the process of record keeping be done once before the allotting of the operation and then once along with the process. This shall also take into account any change in the material that is finally used for the development of the product. The effect of these recommendations on the various areas
The performance objective is bound to be met in this case, as there would be better management of the work that is being handled in the operation. There would be better management of the resources, not only the material ones but also something like the time. The quality of the product shall automatically improve, as there would be checking done at every level as the management of the operation shall more sound. This will also relieve the designer from the petty duties that they were handling in the proper functioning of the operation and the new employed person shall co ordinate all the details with the designer.
The designer shall remain informed about all the details without having to go on board for every small detail. Also it shall help the other departments get more organized as well, bringing in space for new assignments to be taken up with the same availability of time, and may be the resources as well. Hence the wastage of the resources will be reduced to the minimum. The resource capabilities This is well understood what effect this recommendation shall have on the availability of the resources.
There would be reduction in the wastage of the resources and they would be able to involve more processes in the same organization. They would be able to ambitious in other ways of working. Not only this shall help in the taking up of new assignments, but it shall also bring the quality of time spent in the present assignments as well. The principal strategies The basic strategies as already discussed would be of the operational kind in this case. Hence the strategy to reduce the wastage, maximize the resources usage and to the optimum, are a few areas of concern,.
Then they would also be concerned on the timely completion of one project in the operation and the start of the next, providing the deserved break to the employees working in the operation as well. Hence these things are well taken care of by the recommendations that are made after the audit of the operation. Planning and control This recommendation shall have direct impact on the control of the operation and the other processes that work in relation to it. Hence the planning shall also be more precise, hence ruling out all the possibilities for the surprise assignments.
