Operations and Project Management: A Review and Critique of Tesco's Operations Management Principles and a Case Study on Project Life Cycle

Operation and project
management
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Table of Contents
Introduction ....................................................................................................................................3
Part 1 ‘Review and Critique of Operations Management’..............................................................3
An introduction to chosen organisation..................................................................................3
An explanation of operation vs operations management.......................................................3
Review and critique of the implementation of operations management principles within Tesco
................................................................................................................................................3
Analysis of the extent to which the operations management of the organisation meets the
requirements of the organisation............................................................................................5
Discussion on continuous improvement as a philosophy and description of the Lean principles
................................................................................................................................................5
A continuous improvement plan based on review and critique of operations management
principles................................................................................................................................6
Justified recommendations which could improve the operations functions...........................7
Part 2 ‘Project Life Cycle’...............................................................................................................7
An overview of the case study................................................................................................7
A description of the PLC and an explanation of each stage...................................................8
Evidence of how each stage of the PLC applies to your given project, including supporting
documentation for each stage.................................................................................................8
Critical evaluation of the effectiveness of the PLC using the appropriate theories, models and
concepts................................................................................................................................11
Conclusion.....................................................................................................................................11
References.....................................................................................................................................12
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Introduction
The purpose of this report is to develop understanding on the concepts of operation and
project management. Operations management refers to the practices involved in transformation
of raw material into products and services. Project management refers to the process including
various stages from initiation to planning and project closure etc. In this report, Part A consists
of the principles and theories of operation management in context to an organisation. The chosen
organisation for this report is Tesco, which is a UK based multinational company dealing in
manufacturing of supermarket commodities. In Part 2, the concepts and stages of project
management is discussed in context to a case study of the same company.
Part 1 ‘Review and Critique of Operations Management’
An introduction to chosen organisation
Tesco is a leading supermarket brand which is headquartered in the Welwyn Garden
City, United Kingdom having its operations in various countries. The company deals in a wide
range of product portfolio offering various alternatives catering to the requirements of
consumers. Tesco was founded in 1919 and is a well-established business having a renowned
brand image and is a market leader in the retail sector.
An explanation of operation vs operations management
Operations in a business enterprise refers to the functions which are related to the
creation of value in order to fulfil requirements of consumers. While operation management is
defined as supervision and monitoring of all those practices which are involved in conversion of
outputs (Lee, 2018). In context to Tesco, the major practices that are involved in the operations
management includes inbound and outbound logistics, marketing and sales as well as supply
chain management. It is the responsibility of operations managers to review these procedures
through implementing operation management principles in order to ensure productivity and
efficiency of the organisation.
Review and critique of the implementation of operations management principles within Tesco
Tesco operates in various locations and its major operations are based in its parent
country implying that it conducts its practices through translating and localising the format of its
stores according to the patterns of its headquartered location (Lohmer and Lasch, 2020). The
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major practices of the organisation is supported by firm infrastructure, HRM department,
technical personnel as well as its suppliers. The major principles of the operations management
which is associated with the practices of Tesco are explained below in relation with ensuring
high efficiency.
Six sigma
It refers to a methodology which facilitate the function of operation management and
ensures productivity through detection and reduction of errors while minimising cost as well as
saving time. Six sigma is a relevant approach and principle of operations management which is
helpful in improving quality of procedures through statistical analysis. In context to Tesco,
through application of six sigma the company attempts at identify variants serving as barriers
and focusing upon devising strategies to overcome shortcomings (Tay and Loh, 2021). The
following points describes the application of six sigma:
 Defect: The organisation try to detect errors and the areas in which it is lacking in
accomplishing practices effectively.
 Capabilities of processing: The enterprise focuses upon analysis and evaluation of
results attained through practices adopted by it. It try to examine effectiveness of their
operations by checking the quality of its commodities as well as determining costs
involved along with time consumption.
 Stability in operations: The enterprise aims at improving production processes in order
to increase satisfaction of customers and ensuring minimisation of costs and time.
Lean principles
Lean principles allow an organisation to pay attention on enhancing activities which
generates commercial value for customer while alienating waste activities as much as possible.
In relation with Tesco, it is an effective model which helps in management of teams in
manufacturing processes through considering following stated points.
 Identification of value: This is a collective activity where every teams must identify
what value they are serving which adds to enhancement of customer's satisfaction
(Gaikwad and Sunnapwar, 2020).
 Map value stream: This is a procedures where teams must identify the steps helps in
determining workflow and it mainly includes stages of requested, in progress and done.
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