Ops/571 Week 1 Process Desing Matrix

Process Desing Matrix

Fatima Qazi

April 04, 2016

University of Phoenix

Professor Wayne Moore

OPS/571

        The primary approaches for delivering services includes: the production-line approach, self-service approach, and the personal-attention approach (Jacobs & Chase, 2011). In order to produce a successful product, fims must consider the correct format and structure (Jacobs & Chase, 2011). In this brief the appropriate design approaches for fast food products and “Build a Bear” services will be identified in a process design matrix. (See Process Design Matrix)

Appropriate Design Approaches for Services

Fast food utilizes the production-line approach. This approach assumes that the food construction process is more like a manufacturing process rather than a service (Jacobs & Chase, 2011). Fast food companies apply a variety of manufacturing technologies and lean science concepts to their operations. As a result of this manufa ccturing approach, fast food companies are abel to deliver quality food that is standardized in preparation consistently.

Another approach to fast food service design is the self-service approach.  This approach refers to the customer acting more within the production processs such as preparing his or her own drinks or even allocating food from self sevice bars (Jacobs & Chase, 2011).  Buffets are an example of the self-service approach. This approach is useful and can be combined with different approaches in fast food such as having salad bars along with the production line approach making other products (Jacobs & Chase, 2011, p. 227).

Another approach is the personal-attention approach. This approach refers to providing the customer with a unique experience in order to entice the customer to repeat the experience. Fast food such as McDonalds utilizes a number of strategies in this area such as giving away toys to children, playgrounds inside of the stores, games for adults, etc. The personal-attention approach creates a method of developing a relationship with customers using these tactics (Jacobs & Chase, 2011). This service approach provides a means for encouraging customers to return to the store in order to relive the experience.

Appropriate Design Approaches for Products

In the approaches for products, a good company to study is “Build a Bear”.  This company consists of workshops which customers utilize to create their own stuffed toy bears using the supplies provided.  This is what is known as a job shop approach and it focuses on a particular part of operations (Jacobs & Chase, 2011). The job shop approach incorporates the workcenter or manufacturing area in to the daily operation (Mazzone, 2012). This creates a customer service area for working, building, and creating toys but eliminates the shipping and receiving function as well as the marketing for specific toys.  Once the bear has been personalized in fabrication in the store, the customer then pays for the bear.

Another approach is the assembly line approach which is also incorporated into the Build a Bear layout.  This product design works by allowing the customers to create certain aspects fo the product through a progressive set of steps in manufacturing (Jacobs & Chase, 2011). For instance, all materials such as buttons and small items for assembly will be on a line to choose during the initial planning stage of the bear. This method creates order and standardization to the process while reducing the cost of having large amounts of materials scattered throughout the store.

The continuous process is another design approach used for these products. This is a method that is similar to the assembly line but instead is utilized with only a few aspects of the production flow such as glueing small parts (Jacobs & Chase, 2011). By conscentrating on these aspects in a special process the entire production of bears is made faster because the customers are not all waiting to utilize the limited gluing process. This process reduces cost by performing the process limitedly on large numbers of the products.

Conclusion

In the examples of fast food and Build a Bear one can see that delivering services using the the production-line approach and the self-service approach can make companies more cost effective and increase the customer satisfaction.  These approaches are also flexible in many instances allowing for the incorporation of other approaches such as the personal-attention approach and workcenter layout.  By using these approaches approapriately, both types of companies are able to reduce cost and create a more effective operations that is both satisfying and consistent for the customer experience.

References

Build A Beear. (2016). Build a Bear Shoppin. Retrieved from         http://www.buildabear.com/shopping/search/Outfits/d/?q=Star%20Wars

Jacobs, F. R. & Chase, R. (2011). Operations and Supply Chain Management (13th ed.). Boston,

        MA: McGraw-Hill Irwin.

Process Design Matrix

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