S/OM/29. Operations Management and Business Solution

�Any business can be viewed as a factory employing and consuming materials to deliver a product. The same basic operations management problems occur in all industries and similar solutions are applicable whatever the businessŽ. Operations management, which is a very important function of all organisations, is concerned with creating and seeking to continually improve the products and services we all depend upon. (Slack, Chambers and Johnston, 2001). It has developed to become a central function in most modern day businesses and is crucial to most modern-day organisations. Before discussing the topic of this essay it is necessary to clarify how we should interpret this subject in relation to the role of operations management within business. It would be impractical to list and compare the vast amount of similar basic operations management problems and solutions which exist across many organisations. However, using examples we should look at where such solutions may or may not apply. It would also be helpful if we commented on some of the relevant developments or possible future trends on this area. . We should then be better equipped to comment as to whether or not common solutions are applicable to common business problems and at what level.