Final Draft

Rough Draft

Cameron Burns

Rasmussen College

Author’s Note

This assignment is being submitted by Cameron Burns on January 27, 2019 for Tom LeNeau’s Operations Management course.

The quality and efficiency of products and services play a crucial role in customers’ decisions on products to buy or services to consume. Every time customers purchase commodity from the market, they often look for quality products and services. This behavior forces producers and service providers to improve the quality of services they offer to their clients in order to increase their customer base. This paper intends to look at the transport and service provision industry. It will analyze FedEx’s and services. It describes FedEx’s company and the transport and service provision industry, concepts related to its operational management; it will consequently explain how these concepts directly relate to management in FedEx as a Company. It will also analyze how the concepts of operational management help in solving business problems at FedEx it further explains how the concepts reflect effective management and efficiency as well as evaluation of operational concerns in global markets. Lastly, will offer an evaluation of corporate social responsibility issues with regard to quality and industry standards.

FedEx is an international Courier company with its headquarters in Memphis, Tennessee. FedEx is dedicated to providing the best special courier delivery to customers in more than 200 countries (Marston, Bandyopadhyay, Zhang & Ghalsasi, 2011). Superiority is the single and most important core value exhibited through FedEx mission statement. Through this value, the company strives to ensure that it produces high quality and efficient services hence outstanding her competitors (Krajewski & Ritzman, 2001).  No matter the economic and financial challenges, the company is committed to provide quality services to its customers. Provision of meaning courier service experience is thus its main target. Companies and business organizations within express distribution industry operate in a highly competitive environment with strict regulations from the government. This environment however requires effective and efficient ventures and activities that help in providing effective and efficient services to customers. It is only through provision of quality services that a business organization can outweigh its competitors in the market. The industry has experienced innovations and inventions of various kinds from the key players thus making it a vibrant and highly competitive industry.

FedEx’s success and rise to be the biggest player in the industry has been as a result of various courier services it offers to her customers. The company offers reliable and effective courier services to its customers a factor that has increased its floor of operation. Its critical services include; e-commerce, transportation and business service worldwide. It consequently provides support services to her customers (Marston, Bandyopadhyay, Zhang & Ghalsasi, 2011). FedEx’s success over the years has been as a result of simple practices geared towards production of quality products and services that satisfy the customers’ wants. Simplicity is the first practice that FedEx engages in. The company offers quality products that are very simple to use. Secondly, the company offers great customer service and in-store experience. This offers a plenty of time for their clients to shop for the quality products they desire (Krajewski & Ritzman, 2001).  FedEx’s operational opportunities are driven from its ability to be ahead of the competitors in the market. These operational principles are responsible for the company’s success. The company observes strict adherence to these principles and consequently acquires its success from them.

Innovation is another imperative concept within the company related to operations management. Rapid advancement in technology has created competitive pressure among the organizations. However, FedEx has directed its competing strategy on innovation. This, for instance, has been done through bringing together new ideas and technological knowledge (Krajewski & Ritzman, 2001). These two new features have created a lot of competition in the market hence making FedEx ahead of other companies in the industry. The Company does not spend so much on research and development but rather spends about 5% of its revenue only as compared to other related companies which invest much in research and development. The founders of the company did not believe that innovation is all about investing in research and development but pointed out that innovation is all about the idea, skills, and knowledge of the people in the company and how to deploy such knowledge (Marston, Bandyopadhyay, Zhang & Ghalsasi, 2011).  Unlike other courier service providers that focus on the existing methods of service provision, FedEx main competitive strategy is about innovating of new methods design of service provision done with consideration of their efficiency to customers.

FedEx’s Locational Excellence is the last but most important concept that helps in operations management. The company’s location permits it to provide courier and other services any customer in America no matter their location or at retail stores. With stores and branches all over the world, often in the center of a city or commercial center, the experience combines prime real estate with a chic experience (Krajewski & Ritzman, 2001). Even online, the process is polished to allow the consumer to see exactly what services they expect from company in a way that makes them feel reassured about what they are paying for

Simplicity is an important in Company’s operations management. All products and services within the corporation are made in a manner that is simple to be used by the clients. Simplicity is related to management in that all activities within the company are tailored towards meeting the objectives of the organization while adhering to the mission and vision of the company. Customer service and in-store experience is another vital practice that has played a critical role in operations management within the company. This practice gives the company an opportunity to evaluate customers’ feedbacks and reactions on the products and services offered to them. The company’s activities are thus tailored towards satisfying the special needs of clients depending on their feedbacks and reactions.

Through customer service and in-store experience, alongside other services, the company has been able to effectively manage its operations. Innovation and location are other practices that closely relate to operations management. The company specializes in production of modern products and provision of the best courier services. Introduction and subsequent use of technology in the management of the various operations within the company has thus made the process simpler hence the relationship. Lastly, the location of the company enables it access of various markets across the world hence making management of different operations easy.

Business organizations often operate in an environment full of stiff competition, numerous government policies as well as other challenges. The success of a business therefore depends on how it overcomes the various problems faced. Simplicity, customer service, and in-store experience, innovation and location work effectively for FedEx to overcome several challenges it faces. Customer complains, dissatisfaction and need for quality services is an outstanding challenge that faces many business organizations. In the bid to solve this problem, FedEx uses simplicity, customer services and in-store experience and innovation to ensure that their clients get quality services (Chase, Aquilano, & Jacobs, 2001). Through simplicity, the company produce products and services that are simple to use hence few customers complain about the user-ability of the products. The clients therefore enjoy using their products hence solving the challenge.

Innovation on the other hand helps the company to stay ahead of its peers in the industry thus reducing the level of competition. Through innovation, the company produces high quality products that reflect the current technological requirements. It is thus through high level of innovation that the company has maintained the high number of customers since the products and services it provides meets all the special needs of the customers (Krajewski & Ritzman, 2001). Lastly, the company uses customer services and in-store experience to get feedbacks and customers’ feelings and special needs from the company. Through the practice, FedEx is able to identify the modifications and improvements required to be made in their products (Marston, Bandyopadhyay, Zhang & Ghalsasi, 2011). Smooth coherence and coordination amongst the four practices is thus established to achieve a robust and comprehensive method via which the various challenges facing the company in the industry are solved.

Effective and efficient management is essential in the success of any business organization. Efficient coordination of various activities and process within an organization is however an effective way through which efficient management is reflected. A continuous production and provision of products and services which a very simple to use is a perfect method through effective management. It is through an able management that FedEx. has been able to produce several products that are very simple to use (Chase, Aquilano, & Jacobs, 2001). The management has also ensured continuous innovation within the industry. Innovation is an expensive venture and practice. Organizations will ability to maintain their level of invention must had a quality and able management body with the ability to coordinate various activities involved in the management. The company’s maintained profit margin is there thanks to its effective management and coordination of the four concepts vital in both operations and management.

The current market in the industry requires several practices for effective operation. It is therefore important for the company. and other companies within the industry to act effectively to meet the global market concerns. High innovation capability, unique design, powerful brand image, and talented and able personnel are among the operational concerns in the global market.

Effective Human resource management strategies are another imperative concern in the Global markets. Through a strong human resource management, business firms are able to increase workforce capacity for design and product development. Fedex also operates in conjunction with its suppliers for efficiency in its processing and adequate capacity for good operational management. The company also focuses on innovation in its resources to maximize capacity and efficient process (Krajewski & Ritzman, 2001). Also, location strategy for the company is very selective where its major stores are situated in urban areas to optimize its brand image exposure and easy access to its customers. Other concerns include; government policies, international trade laws, trade unions, and healthy competition.

Organizations often operate in an environment full of people and other elements. It is therefore vital for such organization to be responsibility for the development of the society around its premises. The corporate responsibility issues include; fairness, accountability, independence, transparency and responsibility (Marston, Bandyopadhyay, Zhang & Ghalsasi, 2011). Organizations must therefore abide by these elements to establish themselves effectively in the society. Care and responsibility to the environment is another imperative corporate factor worth noting. Effective corporate governance in works towards protecting individuals and other stakeholders from dishonest. No law on earth is 100% effective in preventing corruption and other dubious behavior (Chase, Aquilano, & Jacobs, 2001). Environmental laws are an exception it is therefore through corporate governance that environmental laws can bridge the gaps through which dishonesty and other underhand practices occur within the system. In order to support corporate governance in ensuring absolute responsibility and effectiveness of environmental laws.

References

Chase, R. B., Aquilano, N. J., & Jacobs, F. R. (2001) Operations Management for competitive advantage (Vol. 9). Boston, MA: McGraw-Hill Irwin.

Krajewski, L. J., & Ritzman, L. P. (2001). Operations management: strategy and analysis. Pearson College Division.

Marston, S., Li, Z., Bandyopadhyay, S., Zhang, J., & Ghalsasi, A. (2011). Cloud computing-The business perspective. Decision support systems, 51(1), 176-189.