Essay Sample on Operational Strategy: Key for Business Success

Introduction

An operation strategy is a plan that shows the details of how resources that support production and infrastructure are allocated in an organization. Its primary goal is to minimize costs and maximize production effectiveness in the organization following the overall strategy of the business (Baroncelli & Ballerio, 2016). Businesses are defined by the operational strategies they choose towards achieving their goals. An operational strategy augments the overall business strategy of an organization as it aligns the quality, availability goals, and cost whose targets are achieved through specified focal points like supply chain management, inventory management, and logistics.

Is your time best spent reading someone else’s essay? Get a 100% original essay FROM A CERTIFIED WRITER!

Save 25%

Operations management includes setting up a plan, implementing, and overseeing the production. An operations strategy covers a segment of an overall business strategy that is very important in ensuring success and the company's competitiveness. The business environment is very competitive, and companies work around the clock in setting up strategies that make them the best in the market.

The development of new products and services sets up the competitive journey of an organization. Several operational strategies must be put in place by an organization to have a competitive advantage in the business environment. The organization must ensure that it produces new products and services into the market more frequently (Baroncelli & Ballerio, 2016). There is a need to meet the compliance standards of the vendors so to overcome the competition in the market. And this requires the company to set up flexible internal operating systems that fit the needs of individual vendors in the market, and the ability to successfully serve vendors gives an upper hand to the business in terms of competition.

An operation strategy must seek to optimize the whole process of the supply chain that involves improving inbound and outbound supplies to reduce operation costs. The organization needs to set up and enforce policies for vendor compliance and push for implementation for value-added services such as ticketing and packaging. In turn, these actions reduce the cost of production, minimize rework, and reduce the delivery time of the products to the customers.

Organizations need to seek ways that reduce the cost of labor and increase productivity. The management should share the company targets with the employees so that they understand why certain steps need to be followed (Baroncelli & Ballerio, 2016). The management should also develop a clear career path with the employees that reduce turnover and the cost of hiring new staff. Setting up mechanisms for an incentive system in an organization increases output among employees. The cost of labor covers almost half of the total cost of production, and these actions ensure that the best employees remain in the organization.

Bridging the manager gap within the organization is another strategy that has become common for organizations to reduce the cost of hiring and overcome their competitors. Organizations are being encouraged to identify, train, and retain managers from the pool of their employees (Baroncelli & Ballerio, 2016). The organization needs to identify the needs of individual employees that will make them effective and allow them access to online educational content to sharpen them.

Technology is a key factor in meeting the targets and automating operations within an organization. Companies are being encouraged to invest in cloud-based technologies as compared to ERP and OMS because they are flexible and easy to fit in the overall plan towards improving productivity, tracking, and effective management of the inventory (Baroncelli & Ballerio, 2016). The operation strategies, when set in place, enables the organization to operate with clear goals and achieve targets within a short time in the competitive market.

Reference

Baroncelli, C. & Ballerio, N. (2016). WCOM (World Class Operations Management): why you need more than lean. Switzerland: Springer. Retrieved from: https://books.google.co.ke/books?id=ifMgDAAAQBAJ&pg=PR6&lpg=PR6&dq=WCOM+(World+Class+Operations+Management):+why+you+need+more+than+lean.+Switzerland:+Springer.&source=bl&ots=1EiBl3hBIm&sig=ACfU3U1LGRDs_eFUjhMJVnHRQ-eDvEpvng&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwisxIuTmI_nAhVMZcAKHbAxAnoQ6AEwA3oECAoQAQ#v=onepage&q=WCOM%20(World%20Class%20Operations%20Management)%3A%20why%20you%20need%20more%20than%20lean.%20Switzerland%3A%20Springer.&f=false