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Please response to the 2 peers discussion of the following questions Cite 2 scholarly authors in APA format.

*****Non-value-added activities are "any steps or tasks in your process that do not transform or add value to the product or service you are delivering to your customers" ("How Do", 2023). The three companies I selected are Starbucks, Delta Airlines, and Nike. 

1A. 1. Starbucks

Non-value-added activity: For Starbucks it is all about efficiency and effectiveness. Customers want their items quickly and they want their items made correctly. One non-value-added activity that Starbucks does is taking manual orders at the register. This requires a worker and takes time away from being able to make the correct drink or food order.  

How to eliminate: One way the company can eliminate this process is to continue to encourage their mobile app ordering. An article from the Medium states, "A recent study found that  Starbucks has the most regularly used loyalty rewards app (48%) among a list of major restaurant chains" (The Manifest, 2018). Since the mobile app is already showing successful numbers it should be an easy way to help reduce in store orders. Another way the company can help with this is by installing self-service kiosks. That way the customer can select their order, allowing all workers to work on getting the products ready in a timely manner. 

2. Delta Airlines

Non-value-added activity: One non-value activity would be having to manually enter information after a flight delay or cancellation. Having to speak to an attendant or call customer service can be a long and drawn out process for a customer. 

How to eliminate: Having a function on the mobile app that is simple for the passengers would be a great way to eliminate this frustrating process. If the Delta app could provide the customer with a cancellation with similar flight options it could help eliminate manually entering information, but also eliminate stress for the customer. According to Bureau of Transportation Statistics in 2025 alone there have been 2,301 Delta flights cancelled and 28,492 delayed arrivals ("On Time", n.d.). While cancellations and delays don't happen every flight, it is a consistent problem that could be made easier on customers and organizations as a whole. 

3.Nike

Non-value-added activity: For Nike a big non-value activity would be seasonal product overstock. Having overstock of these products is not valuable for the company. This typically leads to marked down products or waste. 

How to eliminate: To help eliminate this from happening it is important for the company to pay attention to trends and past seasonal collections to help understand the number of stock that is needed without having a lot of product leftover. According to Supply Chain digital, "sportswear manufacturer and retailer Nike deployed radio frequency identification (RFID) technology to track products flowing through outsourced manufacturing operations. " (Ashcroft, 2023). Nike can utilize this technology along with tracking trends and previous seasonal collection inventory to help eliminate waste and decrease the amount of overstock. 

References

Ashcroft, S. (2023, January 10). Nike - an omnichannel inventory management cautionary tale. Supply Chain Magazine.  https://supplychaindigital.com/digital-supply-chain/nike-an-omnichannel-inventory-management-cautionary-tale

Manifest, T. (2018, June 12). The success of Starbucks app: A case study. Medium.  https://medium.com/@the_manifest/the-success-of-starbucks-app-a-case-study-f0af6709004d

OST_R: BTS: Transtats. BTS. (n.d.).  https://www.transtats.bts.gov/homedrillchart.asp

www.linkedin.com. (2023, September 15). How do you eliminate non-value-added activities in your process?. How to Eliminate Non-Value-Added Activities in Manufacturing.  https://www.linkedin.com/advice/1/how-do-you-eliminate-non-value-added-activities

1B.  

Finding non-value-added (NVA) activities—tasks that use resources but don't improve customer happiness or significantly impact the bottom line of the business—is one of our main duties as managers. Here are few examples: one from Walmart, one from Delta Air Lines, and one from my current position in clinical research at Piedmont Heart Institute, which recently solved a long-standing inefficiency.

1. Delta Air Lines (Ticker: DAL) – Manual Paperwork in Aircraft Maintenance

At Delta, paper-based documentation is still used in some areas of aircraft maintenance. These include compliance checklists and maintenance logs that require manual entry, duplication, and physical storage. This slows down aircraft turnaround time and increases administrative burden—activities that do not directly contribute to passenger safety or service quality (Schniederjans et al., 2018).

Managerial solution:  In addition to streamlining procedures, a fully digital Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul (MRO) platform would enable mechanics to log and access real-time maintenance data on mobile devices. This improves operating efficiency and compliance by cutting down on delays and paper waste.

2. Piedmont Heart Institute—Elimination of Paper Source and Binder-Based Documentation

Even though Piedmont is a nonprofit health system and not publicly traded, I thought it would be great to mention.  When I first joined Piedmont, I learned that the site had already transitioned to a paperless documentation system, which sets it apart from many others in the clinical research space. Traditionally, clinical trials relied heavily on paper source documents stored in binders—an outdated method requiring ongoing costs for physical storage and retrieval. Now, all source documents are scanned directly into the EPIC Electronic Medical Record (EMR) system and labeled “original” upon upload, with the paper copies shredded.

Managerial benefit:  This eliminated an NVA activity—physical document storage and manual record retrieval—and significantly reduced archiving costs. It also enhanced audit readiness and data accuracy while freeing staff to focus on patient care and protocol compliance (Getz & Campo, 2017). This change exemplifies how operational efficiency can be achieved by aligning clinical processes with modern technology.

3. Walmart Inc. (Ticker: WMT) – Repetitive Shelf Restocking from Inventory Inaccuracy

At Walmart, repetitive shelf restocking often occurs due to mismatched data between warehouse and in-store inventory systems. Employees spend additional time addressing overstocks or misplaced items, which adds no value to the customer and drains labor resources.

Managerial solution:  By implementing AI-driven demand forecasting and RFID tracking at the shelf level, Walmart can streamline inventory flow, reduce wasted labor, and ensure products are available when customers need them (Chopra & Meindl, 2019).

By identifying and addressing non-value-added activities in these organizations, leaders can drive operational improvements that save time, reduce cost, and increase productivity—benefiting both employees and end-users.

References

Chopra, S., & Meindl, P. (2019).  Supply Chain Management: Strategy, Planning, and Operation (7th ed.). Pearson.

Getz, K., & Campo, R. (2017). New approaches to reducing paper-based inefficiencies in clinical trials.  Applied Clinical Trials,  26(4), 14–17.

Schniederjans, M. J., Schniederjans, D. G., & Starkey, C. M. (2018).  Business analytics principles, concepts, and applications. Pearson.