NORTHERN KENTUCKY UNIVERSITY

Department of Management & Marketing

MGT. 305-03 Operations Management in Business

Spring 1999 - EVENING Section


Dr. William M. Lindsay                          Communications: 572-5157 (Office); 572-5150 (Fax)
Office: BEP 480                                 e-mail:LINDSAY@NKU.EDU     331-0817 (Home)
Office Hours: M-W 11:00-12:00 noon.;            Web page: http://www.nku.edu/~lindsay
M 5:30-6:15 p.m.; Others by appointment

Course Pre-Requisites:

MAT 111 and MAT 212, junior standing.

Required Text:

Russell, Roberta S. and Bernard W. Taylor (1998). Production and Operations Management, 2nd ed. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.

Course Objectives:

BY THE END OF THE TERM, STUDENTS SHOULD BE ABLE TO DEMONSTRATE:

Class Format and Course Delivery:

Lectures; group activities; case development, presentation and discussion; Internet use for research and appreciation; problem solving; discussions which integrate topics and current business activities; plant tour and reporting; and personal TQM project development and reporting.

Methods of Assessment:

These are the methods used for assessment in this course.

Case Studies

One case situation will be analyzed and presented by each student group. A formal presentation, (business dress required) with visual aids, will be made concerning issues that appear in the case and proposed solutions. Some outside research on the case situation or its context will also generally be required to add depth to the case, unless otherwise directed by the professor. For example, if your team has a case about planning for a hamburger outlet, you would be expected to do some research on hamburger chains and perhaps visit a local outlet to find out how things are done, in practice. A brief written case report is required (approximately 5 pages in length, plus attachments, in business format, to be discussed). Everyone in the class is "responsible" for preparation and discussion of all cases. Feedback (with class involvement) on the group's performance will be factored into the group's grade and will be given to the group by the professor, within one week (or less) after the presentation.

Plant Tours

Everyone will be required to attend one plant tour, outside of class time, and submit a brief written analytical report of approximately 5 pages, using a "business" format. Evaluating the operation, offering suggestions for improvement, and giving an educational critique will be emphasized.

Participation

We will do a number of in-class problems and exercises every class period. Obviously, if you aren't in class, or aren't prepared for each class, you can't be involved, and your learning will suffer. BEHAVIOR, like service quality, is a measurable variable. Also, participation will probably have a major impact on your ability to perform well in the course and retain your knowledge after you leave it. Participation and team activities will include both in-class and out-of-class activities. There will be peer (team member) evaluations of performance that will count as part of this grade. Get your money's worth! Attend class and team meetings, faithfully!

Participation will count as an important component of your grade. In-class participation and team activities will not appear on the course syllabus, so if you are not present or do not actively participate with your group, your grade will be zero (0) for those assignments. In-class or out-of-class team or individual assignments cannot be "made up". A more detailed description of participation expectations will be provided.

Homework and notes - Homework and class notes should be kept in a binder or folder large enough to hold your entire term's work. There will be numerous handouts and problems that are designed to help you understand the subject matter and problem-solving techniques. The notebooks (or at least the current handouts and homework) should be brought to class so that you may discuss them with your group. Notebooks will not be graded, but solutions to the assigned problems will be made available. At a minimum, you should work every assigned problem and some non-assigned problems in each chapter, and be prepared to answer any of the end of chapter discussion questions. If you wish to check the answers to non-assigned problems, the departmental secretary in BEP 475 has a solutions manual for loan in the immediate vicinity of her office.

Personal TQM

A method for improving individual and classroom performance called personal Total Quality Management (TQM) will be introduced by the professor, and will be an ongoing class assignment during the semester. You will be asked to periodically report on your results. A brief progress report (in a "business" format) around mid-term and a final report at the end of the semester will be required.

Process Methodology

The application of the various tools of process improvement including Statistical Process Control (SPC) is a basic theme throughout the course. Student are required to integrate these tools into the traditional POM framework throughout the entire course.

GRADE DISTRIBUTION AND STUDENT LEARNING

Grades and Class Attendance

The following grading structure will be used:

                                                                   % WTs.
        Exams (best 2 out of 3)                                        30
        Final exam                                                     25
        Personal TQM (2 reports @ 3 & 7 pts, each)                     10
        Case presentation and writeup                                  15
        Plant tour report                                              10
        Participation (timely submission of 
         problems/homework, as req'd;attendance; etc.)                  5
        Peer & Instructor Evaluation                                    5

                TOTAL                                                 100

Note: When the final [weighted] grade average is calculated, an "A" will be 89.5 to 100 points, "B" will be 79.5 to 89.49, "C" will be 69.5 to 79.49, "D" will be 59.5 to 69.49, and "F" will be below 59.5.

For example, if your grades are 90 and 80 on the two exams, a 92 on the final, 95 on each of the PTQM reports, 100 on the tour report, 85 on the case, 85 on participation and 88 on peer and instructor evaluation, your final grade would be calculated as:

.30*[ (90 + 80)/2 ] + .25 * [ 92 ]+ .10*[.3* 95 + .7* 95] + .10 * [ 100 ] + .15 * [ 85 ] + .05 * [ 85 ] + .05 * [ 85 ] = 89.25, which is a "B" average for the term.

Class and group attendance is an extremely important facet of the course. It is very difficult to develop a cohesive group and analyze organizational characteristics in class if students are absent. Group, and class attendance will "count" as part of your participation grade, as will the quality and quantity of class discussion.

Reports are due when assigned and penalties will be assessed for late reports. Please inform the professor ahead of time of planned absences.

OTHER REQUIREMENTS

Use of Computers for Word Processing, Problem-Solving, & Communication

Current computer technology for word processing demands that students in business be "computer literate". Therefore, students will be expected to use a word processor to complete your reports in this course and transparency masters for presentations. The College of Business has adopted the Microsoft Office® package for word processing and presentations. If you are familiar with another software package because of prior knowledge or accessibility at work, it will be acceptable for you to use that package.

A computer package (AB:POM) is included with the textbook. Although you will not be testd over the use of the computer package, assignments will occasionally be given that require you to use AB:POM. You are encouraged to get familiar with the modules that are used in each chapter. At least one of the cases requires the use of the AB:POM software for its solution.

Finally, each student will be assigned an account on the NKU's VAX network for the purpose of accessing e-mail and the Internet (text only from off campus unless you have an internet account with an ISP such as AOL, MSN, Cincinnati Bell, etc.). This is intended to promote communication between class members and the professor. In addition, it is likely new web-based services for the class will be established to facilitate and expand upon classroom learning during the semester.

Ethics

All work except group work is to be done independently unless special arrangements are made, beforehand. Cases of cheating on exams, individual assignments, or plagiarism (copying without citing the source, or representing someone else's work as your own) carry a severe penalty in this courses--an "F" grade for assignments or for the entire term, depending on the infraction. Please don't test the instructor on this policy.


COURSE OUTLINE


NORTHERN KENTUCKY UNIVERSITY

MGT 305-01 &02: Operations Management in Business
(Subject to modification as the class progresses.)


Class Dates 
Week Of:                                Topic                    Readings	         Problems

1/11 Introduction. Course philosophy, learning Ch. 1 None concepts, class structure, other business. Productivity and quality concepts. Personal TQM. Assignment of groups & case. Operations strategy. Chapter Supplement: Ch. 2 Decision analysis & decision making. Sample case: Weighing Options Submit personal TQM objectives via e-mail. at the Weight Club 1/18 M.L. King Day - No Monday class 1/25 Operations strategy. Chapter Supplement: Ch. 2 S2-1, 2, 5, 6, 7 Problem-solving for decision analysis & decision making. Introduction to total quality management (TQM). Ch. 3 3-1, 2, 5, 6 7 Toools in total quality management (TQM). Case: Dave's Hamburgers (p. 179) Personal TQM progress check. 2/1 Statistical Quality Control concepts and Ch. 4 4-1,5,11, 14, 21 problem solving. Case: The Intelligent Highway (p. 223-4) 2/8 Product and service design. Problem Ch. 5 5-6, 7, 10 solving. 2/15 President's Day -- No class 2/22 Introduction to process design and facility Ch. 6 & 7 6-7,10,11,13 layout concepts. Only pp. 272-77 and 284-303 in Ch. 7. 3/1 Project management - PERT/CPM Ch. 17 Case: Streamlining the Refinancing Process (p. 269) 3/5 Last day to drop course with a "W" 3/8 PERT/CPM Problem-solving. Ch. 17 17-6, 9, 13, 14 Case: Moore Housing Contractors (p. 870) (Computer analysis reqd.) Introduction to job design, analysis, Ch. 8 teamwork and work measurement. 3/15 Spring break Week. No classes. 3/22 Job design, analysis, teamwork and Ch. 8 8-3, 5, 6, 12 work measurement. Problem solving. Case: Northwoods Backpackers (Prob.8-15, 16, 17) Supply chain management Ch. 9 3/29 Forecasting and capacity planning Ch. 10 & 11 11-1,2,8 Only pp. 438-44 in Ch. 10 and pp. 500-17;522-26 in Ch. 11. EXAM 2 (Over Ch. 6, 7, 8, 17) 4/5 Elements of inventory management. Ch. 12 12-3, 6, 27, 30 Omit pp. 584- top of 588 4/12 Inventory management (continued) Ch. 12 Introduction to material requirements Ch. 13 planning (MRP) Case: The Texans Stadium Store (p. 607) 4/19 Material requirements planning (MRP) Ch. 13 13-11,12 EXAM 3. (Over Ch. 9,10,11,12) 4/26 Scheduling & activity control. Ch. 14 5/3 Scheduling & activity control. (continued) Ch. 14 14-5,7,9,11 Just-in-time (JIT) and continuous improvement. Ch. 15 5/5 Final examination. Section 003: Monday, May 10, 6:15 - 9:00 p.m.


( Please send comments to Bill Lindsay)
Last modified 1/7/99