Production Management Thursday 22 November 2012 Operations and Production Management Professor Robert Shaw School of Management Guangdong University of Foreign Studies

Course objectives At the completion of this course students will be able to: Understand the vocabulary and key concepts in use in operations and production management. Appreciate the historical development of operations and production management globally. Discuss key issues in operations and production management, such as globalization and outsourcing. Display research skills, including the ability to define a topic of enquiry, locate resources for an enquiry, analyze and summarize relevant material, and draw conclusions.  RESEARCH REPORT

Today (Session 13, Lecture 11) Thursday 22 November 2012 Today (Session 13, Lecture 11) Lecture: (1) Completion from last time: Corporate Social Responsibility and Operations Management (2) Conducting surveys in operations management 2. Writing your paper How are you doing? Keep going

Course Outline (Syllabus) Weeks 14 & 15 topics 1. Human aspects of operations a. The advent of humanistic management in the West b. Introduction to ethics in operations Management Operations and corporate social responsibility a. Definitions of corporate social responsibility b. Impacts of operations c. Local examples d. Global examples

Corporate social responsibility in Operations Management What is CSR? Stakeholder theory How CSR involves OM & PM Find some examples China Overseas

Surveys in Operations Management

Survey research in business Range of situations Operations and production management Quality control Output measures Facts about the world, not conceptual relationships (for example)

Key words Research questions Populations & samples Validity Construct validity Face validity Reliable Consistency of instruments Consistency of measurement situations Temporal consistency Sample problems in reliability

Key words Subjects & respondents Structure and semi-structure Interviews (face-to-face, telephone, video) Instruments (open? closed?) Data Raw Derived

Key words Some common kinds of studies Perceptions Public opinion Others Research management and the researcher Interviewer training Interviewer reliability Incentives for interviewers Types of questions Open ended Closed Precision

Process – initial steps Managers needs Purpose Relationship to the business / plans Feedback on production Stakeholders Ethics of research

Process – instruments Selection is important Key considerations Adequacy Time Cost Your capabilities Delivery mechanism and instruments Telephone vs face-to-face Interview vs precise questions Web vs telephone

Process – instrument construction Initial scoping Item production Research question alignment with purpose and objectives Language problems Pretesting Vital Expense considerations Administration of instrument

Process – item construction What is wrong with this question?

Process – data Integral part of planning Trial runs Interview data Statistical tests - stick to the basics Packages, for example SPSSX http://www.spss.com.cn/ http://www.surveymonkey.com/

Process – data – surveymonkey http://www.surveymonkey.com/

Process – the art of interviewing Preparation Arrangements Formal approvals Indicate use of the information Appropriate people Time-frame In the interview Set the tone Recording methods Professionalism Indicate follow-up

Task for the week Send me an email with your current draft. It must show: some references in APA format the introduction the proposition you are arguing for, and some work towards the arguments (that is, some drafting of the main part of the paper. At least 1000 words! (Remember your test in two weeks!)