Operations and Sales Management: Quality Management and Technology

This report focuses on the implementation of operations management practices, specifically quality management and technology, in Tesco. It discusses the importance of quality management standards and systems in improving efficiency and effectiveness. It also explores the use of technology in enhancing operations and interrelation with supporting functions such as production, finance, HR, R&D, sales, and marketing.

Operations and Sales
Management

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
MAIN BODY...................................................................................................................................1
Operations management practice.................................................................................................1
Embeddment of technology.........................................................................................................3
Interrelation with the Supporting functions.................................................................................5
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................7
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................8

INTRODUCTION
Operations and Sales Management refers to making the use of various methods and
techniques by the organizations which ensures that a higher-level of efficiency and effectiveness
can be maintained by them (Choi, Wallace and Wang, 2018). By using it properly the managers
of the firm can make sure that they are able to achieve the goals and objectives without problems
and issues. For this report Tesco has been selected. It is a British Company which provides its
customers with groceries and other related products. In this assignment, detailed focus will be
made on operation management practice, critical analysis of operation management practices,
evaluation of technology. Additionally, detailed focus will be made on supporting functions and
their link with operations management practices as a part of this project.
MAIN BODY
Operations management practice
Quality management standards and systems is an Operations management practice which
is quite necessary to be adopted by the organizations so that they are able to bring more
efficiency and effectiveness in their quality of goods produced by them and the services which
are provided to the customers (Cummins, Peltier and Dixon, 2016). In Tesco, there have been
certain complaints by the customers that the quality of its goods and services has fallen. With
regards to efficiency, this practice can impact the organization in the following manner-
 Setting of quality standards and systems- By setting standards for them the
organizations can ensure that they can work in the right manner towards the attainment of
goals and objectives (Darmawan, Wong and Thorstenson, 2018). Therefore it is required
from Tesco that it can set these standards for people to follow so that goods and services
are provided accordingly to the customers. When these standards and systems are set the
efficiency of the employees is boosted as their performance is regularly assessed against
them. For the company it is essential to meet out the needs and requirements of the
customers so that they are able to satisfy them which will be quite helpful for them in
attaining a much-desired strategic edge over the competitors.
 Assessment of performance- After the setting of quality standards and systems it
becomes important for the organizations so that the level of performance can be assessed
effectively and efficiently. Thus, In the context of Tesco it is crucial that it is able to
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assess the performance level of its workers and thereby make sure that it is according to
the quality standards and systems. If there are any deviations and variations then they can
be quickly identified and corrective actions can be taken so that they can be removed.
This therefore results in an increase in the efficiency level of the workers thereby helping
the organization. In the firm, the performance level can be used as a parameter to see the
way it is performing in comparison to its different competitors in the market. Thus in this
way operations management practice related to quality can be very helpful.
 Removal of deviations and variations- The deviations and variations identified by the
organization against the standards can be removed by making the use of various
rectification techniques and methods (Feng and Shanthikumar, 2018). Therefore this can
result in boost of efficiency level in Tesco as it will help the managers to ensure that an
improvement in the performance can be brought once these deviations and variations
have been removed. In the company, it is useful that the practice related with quality can
be used properly because it can lead towards ensuring that standards are achieved. This
can be achieved through removing these deviations and variations in the products.
 Identification of areas of improvement- As Operations management practice of Quality
management standards and systems is an important area it can lead towards providing
improvement in the organizations (Gölzer and Fritzsche, 2017). In the companies, it can
be highly useful to make sure that they are able to facilitate an improvement by
identifying specific areas for this purpose. For example- In Tesco, there are various areas
like Marketing, Finance, Sales etc. which may require improvement and thus by focusing
on them the managers will be able to bring an improvement in the efficiency level easily.
In these areas there has to be a use of
 Proper management of inventory- The use of Operations management practice of
Quality management standards and systems ensures that the level of stock in the
organization is managed effectively and efficiently (Lee and Tang, 2018). Therefore, it is
quite important for Tesco so that the proper management of inventory can be done which
will help in attainment of higher-level of efficiency and effectiveness. Also in this way
the right goods can be provided to the different types of customers.
 Improvement in processes- By making the use of Operations management practice of
Quality management standards and systems the overall improvement in the processes can
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be made. For Tesco, it is quite important that it brings an improvement in them by
ensuring that its products and services are up to the mark. Thus in this way the
management of the organization will be able to help in the achievement of goals and
objectives.
Embeddment of technology
The use of technology can be made in the organizations so that they are able to bring a
substantial improvement in the operations effectively and efficiently. For enhancing the quality
of products and services through the setting of Quality management standards and systems the
management of Tesco will be able to make sure that it can make the functioning of the company
even more better. The use of technology for this purpose will be as follows-
 Advanced system- Through the use of advanced system the tracking and managing of
quality of the goods and services can be done more efficiently (Matthias and et.al., 2017).
Therefore In Tesco, the use of advanced system is helpful in making sure that the quality
of its goods and services can be monitored and if problems and issues are identified then
appropriate steps can be taken to solve them which will therefore be very helpful in the
attainment of goals and objectives.
 Monitoring of efficiency- Technology can be very useful for the purpose of monitoring
of the level of efficiency in the organization. Thus for a company which deals in multiple
products and services it can be useful to ensure that it can be enhanced. Thus, In the
context of Tesco it is very important that its monitoring can be done so that the
employees can work according to the Quality standards which have been set in the
company. If the level of efficiency of the staff members if found to be low then it can be
raised by using it. Thus in this way the overall level of operations can be made better in
the organization.
 Tracking of the movement of goods- With the use of technology a track can be kept on
the movement of goods can be kept. Therefore for a firm it is important that it uses a
software for this purpose which can be helpful in the tracking of the way the goods can
move within a company. Thus In the context of Tesco it can be useful in enhancing the
operations management practices because by setting Quality standards the track on the
way these products move can be kept. Therefore it can be ensured by the management of
the company that it can enhance the quality of products effectively and efficiently.
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 Proper management of functions- Using technology, a track of functions can be kept
within the organizations (Pedroso, da Silva and Tate, 2016). Thus Tesco can make sure
that by using Departmental Management Software it can identify the way its departments
function. Therefore by making its use operational deficiencies and variations in
Production, HR, Finance and Marketing departments of the organization can be found out
and thus suitable rectifying actions can be taken to remove them so that the operations
can be managed smoothly.
 Stock management- Technology is helpful in the stock management in an organization.
Thus Tesco can make use of Inventory Management Software which is helpful in
ensuring that movement of goods can be tracked and thus any deficiencies and variations
in stock can be removed. This will make sure that the Operations management practice of
Quality management can be successful as by keeping a track on stock the quality of the
items under it can be judged properly and improvement can be made if necessary.
 Improvement in processes- The processes in the organizations can be improved when
the use of techniques and methods in the Operations management are used. Thus using
technology, the management of Tesco can make sure that it is able to bring an
improvement in the overall processes and thus help in raising of the standards of goods
which are being provided. Also errors and defects in the goods can be identified when
technology is used which helps in ensuring that they are removed and thus customers are
satisfied.
 Performance management- In the organizations the management of performance is
necessary so that they are able to ensure that appropriate steps are taken so that it can be
enhanced. By using Quality management standards the managers of Tesco will be able to
ensure that the quality of goods can be monitored through the assessment of performance
of workers in manufacturing department. Further, operations management practices are
helpful in ensuring that suggested improvements in the performance can be implemented
which will lead to better quality of goods and services from the company thereby
ensuring satisfaction of the customers.
 System transformation- In the firms the transformation of the system can be very useful
for the purpose of targeting higher-level of profitability. Thus In the context of Tesco it
becomes quite crucial that technology is used by it in Operations management to bring
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system transformation which will help it in achieving short-term, medium-term and long-
term goals and objectives.
 New business processes- The firms can ensure that by setting of Quality standards and
systems they can achieve a higher-level of efficiency and effectiveness without problems
and issues. For this purpose the management of Tesco can set new business processes to
be used. This will help the management of the company as it will ensure that with an
improvement in these processes good-quality goods are provided to the customers which
can help in the enhancement of their overall satisfaction level.
Interrelation with the Supporting functions
As Tesco wants to implement Quality Management System and Standards as its
Operations management practice its management needs to make sure that it is able to deal
effectively with the interrelated functions so that the implementation process can be carried out
smoothly-
 Interrelation with the Production department- As quality of the goods in a company is
directly linked with the Production system it is essential for the organizations that they
are able to pay attention to it (Pereira and et.al., 2020). Therefore for the implementation
of operations management practice related with quality the Production department of
Tesco has to cooperate and coordinate by ensuring that the regular check of the products
which are being produced can be kept and if errors and defects in the goods are identified
then they can be removed. For the organizational success in the future, it is quite
important that the Production department is able to follow the standards which have been
set and provides goods accordingly which will be helpful in ensuring that the customers
are satisfied.
 Interrelation with the Finance department- For the implementation of system related
with Quality it is required from the Finance department that it is able to provide the
desired funds for this purpose (Roscoe and et.al., 2020). Therefore, In the context of
Tesco it is very crucial that the management is able to specify its requirements related
with funds related to implementation of this practice with the Finance department which
will help in releasing the required funds thereby ensuring the attainment of quality in the
goods for the organization.
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 Interrelation with the HR department- Implementation of operations management
system related with Quality requires that more skilful workers are required by the
Production department (Syam and Sharma, 2018). Thus a close cooperation and
coordination is needed with the HR department which will ensure that the skilful workers
are provided to the company so that quality goods are provided to the customers.
 Interrelation with R&D department- R&D department of a company ensures that the
latest quality systems can be researched by it. Thus it is useful for the Production
department to coordinate with this department so that a detailed research can be done on
these systems and the most efficient one can be identified easily. Thus in this way the
system can be implemented in the organization which will help in providing useful goods
to the customers at an appropriate price.
 Interrelation with the Sales department- The Sales department of the company can
benefit a lot by getting quality products to sell in the market. Thus if the Production
department of Tesco coordinates with the Sales department it will be able to ensure that
the operation management practice related to quality can be implemented. Also providing
quality goods to the customers will help in ensuring that the overall level of revenues of
the company are increased and thus in this way a contribution to the overall profitability
level can be made easily. Thus this interrelation is very useful for the company.
 Interrelation with the Marketing department- The Marketing department of the
company can cooperate and coordinate with the Production department so that the quality
management system can be effectively implemented. Tesco's managers will ensure that
their quality goods are able marketed properly so that the customers can be made aware
about them. This will help in raising the level of sales of the products of the company and
can contribute towards enhancing the profits.
 Interrelation with the Operations department- Implementation of a Operations
management practice requires interrelation to be done with the Operations department so
that the organizations are able to ensure that they can effectively implement the desired
change which they want to bring (Thomé, Scavarda and Scavarda, 2016). Thus as Tesco
wants to introduce a change related with Quality of goods its operational managers have
to make sure that the Operations department is fully prepared to handle this change
effectively and efficiently.
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Thus it can be said that the role of the supporting functions in Tesco is quite important as these
functions ensure that the Operations management within the company can be carried out
effectively and efficiently. The company can thus enhance the quality of goods and services
which are being provided to the customers in this way.
CONCLUSION
From the above report, it can be concluded that Operations and Sales Management is a
practice within the firms which ensures that the good quality goods and services are provided to
the different types of customers. It is crucial so that the customer satisfaction level can be
enhanced without problems and issues. Selection of an operations management practice can be
very helpful in raising the overall level of efficiency. Technology has to be applied in the
processes so that operations management can be made better within a company. Also there is a
link of supporting functions with the management so that implementation of Operations
management practice can be done effectively within the company thereby making it even more
better.
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REFERENCES
Books and Journals:
Choi, T. M., Wallace, S. W. and Wang, Y., 2018. Big data analytics in operations management.
Production and Operations Management. 27(10). pp.1868-1883.
Cummins, S., Peltier, J. W. and Dixon, A., 2016. Omni-channel research framework in the
context of personal selling and sales management. Journal of Research in Interactive
Marketing.
Darmawan, A., Wong, H. and Thorstenson, A., 2018. Integration of promotion and production
decisions in sales and operations planning. International Journal of Production
Research. 56(12). pp.4186-4206.
Feng, Q. and Shanthikumar, J. G., 2018. How research in production and operations
management may evolve in the era of big data. Production and Operations
Management. 27(9). pp.1670-1684.
Gölzer, P. and Fritzsche, A., 2017. Data-driven operations management: organisational
implications of the digital transformation in industrial practice. Production Planning &
Control. 28(16). pp.1332-1343.
Lee, H. L. and Tang, C. S., 2018. Socially and environmentally responsible value chain
innovations: New operations management research opportunities. Management Science.
64(3). pp.983-996.
Matthias, O. and et.al., 2017. Making sense of Big Data–can it transform operations
management?. International Journal of Operations & Production Management.
Pedroso, C. B., da Silva, A. L. and Tate, W. L., 2016. Sales and Operations Planning (S&OP):
Insights from a multi-case study of Brazilian Organizations. International Journal of
Production Economics. 182. pp.213-229.
Pereira, D. F. and et.al., 2020. Tactical sales and operations planning: A holistic framework and
a literature review of decision-making models. International Journal of Production
Economics. p.107695.
Roscoe, S. and et.al., 2020. Stakeholder engagement in a sustainable sales and operations
planning process. Business Strategy and the Environment.
Syam, N. and Sharma, A., 2018. Waiting for a sales renaissance in the fourth industrial
revolution: Machine learning and artificial intelligence in sales research and practice.
Industrial Marketing Management. 69. pp.135-146.
Thomé, A. M. T., Scavarda, L. F. and Scavarda, A. J., 2016. Conducting systematic literature
review in operations management. Production Planning & Control. 27(5). pp.408-420.
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