Operations and Project Management Report: Amazon Inc. Analysis

This report delves into the operations and project management strategies employed by Amazon Inc. It begins by reviewing and implementing operations management principles, focusing on organization, accountability, variances, change, and quality control. The report then examines the application of Six Sigma and Lean principles to improve efficiency and reduce waste. A continuous improvement plan is developed, analyzing cost, inventory, and delivery processes. Furthermore, the project life cycle is applied, supported by documentation, and analyzed using tools and leadership strategies. The Waterfall model is utilized to evaluate the effectiveness of the project life cycle, and the report concludes with a critical analysis of concepts that differentiate small and large-scale projects. The report provides a comprehensive overview of operations and project management within the context of a large multinational corporation.

OPERATIONS AND
PROJECT
MANAGEMENT

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
TASK1 ............................................................................................................................................1
P1 Review and implement operations management principles in context of organisation....1
M1 Review implementations of operations management in relation with Six Sigma and Lean
Principles................................................................................................................................3
TASK2.............................................................................................................................................4
P2 Develop continues improvement plan based on operations management principles relating
to organisation........................................................................................................................4
M2 Analyse effectiveness of Continues Improvements Plan ................................................7
TASK3.............................................................................................................................................7
P3 Apply stages of Project Life Cycle to project with supporting documents to complete plan7
M3 Analyse tools and leadership within PLC for project....................................................11
TASK4...........................................................................................................................................12
P4 Using Waterfall model to analyse effectiveness of Project Life Cycle for project.........12
M4 Critically analyse use of concepts in PLC that will differentiate small and large scale
projects.................................................................................................................................13
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................14
REFERENCES ............................................................................................................................15

INTRODUCTION
Operations management is concept which includes planning, organising, coordination
and controlling of operations in an organisation. It is concerned with transforming raw materials
into goods or services as outcome efficiently to increase profitability of business. Amazon Inc. is
American multinational company based in Washington and deals in E-commerce, digital
streaming, artificial intelligence and cloud computing. This report will include implementations
of operations management principles in an organisation and evaluate them critically (Artto,
Ahola and Vartiainen, 2016). It will also include continues improvement plan based on
operations management principles in business. Project life cycle will prepare supporting
documents for completion of project and apply it to each stage to examine project. Different
theories, concepts and models use to review effectiveness of project life cycle will also be
included in this study.
TASK1
P1 Review and implement operations management principles in context of organisation
Operations is process of transforming raw material, labour and other resources into goods
and services as outcome of procedure. It involves all those activities which are concerned with
converting inputs like resources and manpower into finished goods or services that will satisfy
customers needs. On the other hand, operations management is management concept which plan,
organise, control operations of business effectively so that profit can be maximised. It is process
of planning, executing and controlling operations of organisation so that it become effective in
nature. The principles of operations management are aligned with scientific management
principles of F.W. Taylor which are used to improve productivity of employees so that efficiency
can be achieved. Amazon Inc. is one of big multinational companies operating at global level so
there is need that its operations are managed properly so that revenues can be increased. There
are principles of operations management which lays down fundamentals for activities and
elements while planning processes for business, some of them are as follows:
Organisation: Processes in E-commerce and connected with each other and there is need
that they are organised. This is proving out to be beneficial for Amazon Inc. as organising
operations of business will lead to reduce duplication of activities and tasks gets completed on
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time. This operations management principles have aligned with Equal Division Principles Of
Scientific Management so that managers does planning and employees are responsible for
executions by organising resources so that there is no delay in delivering systems.
Accountability: One of most essential principles of operations management is
accountability in processes of business. Managers of Amazon Inc. are expected to be accountable
for their teams and all activities should be directed towards organisational goals. This will help
company to reduce errors, defects, increased quality, motivated employees are team leaders have
responsibility. Although this may increase work load on team leader and members which may
result in conflicts and dissatisfactions. This can be reduced by applying Co-Operation Principles
Of Scientific Management which states that employees should work collectively to achieve
objectives.
Variances: There is always some deviations in processes which needs rectifications and
actions so that effectiveness is maintained. These variations should be seen as scope for
creativity so that new innovative ways can be introduced to increase efficiency and reduce errors.
This aligned with Development Of Employees Principles Of Scientific Management which lays
emphasis on training staff and motivating them so that they can introduce innovative ways to
complete processes (Chih and Zwikael, 2015). This need to be adopted by Amazon so that new
innovative procedures are introduced in operations to achieve business goals and develop brand
image at global level.
Change: This principle is assisted by variances, as it create scope for changing present
methods and introducing new innovative techniques to perform that task. This allows flexibility
in processes so that they can be change according to need of business environment. Amazon Inc.
with the help of this principles can be innovative in industry and gain competitive advantage
over other companies.
Quality Control: Controlling quality of activities is one of main objectives or aim of
organisation so that its brand image increases. This also ensures that customer specifications are
met and customer loyalty towards brand is increase. This completely aligned with Rule-Of -
thumb Principles of Scientific Management which states that methods for quality control should
be based on scientific study. Business who fails to achieve quality in operations suffer losses and
survival related issues. Amazon Inc. by this principles will make sure that quality is under
controlled and customer demands are met on time.
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M1 Review implementations of operations management in relation with Six Sigma and Lean
Principles
SIX SIGMA: This approach was developed in 1980's by Motorola and Bill Smith. It is a
methodology used by different organisation for detecting and removing any present errors. Also,
it is a quality management tool which will enhance processes of Amazon and reduce wastage of
resources. Explanation of methodology is given below:
 First comes Define, which focuses on identifying related problems, defining scope,
collecting resources and making plans. Amazon Inc. then have complete understanding of
present problems and resources to achieve objectives efficiently and effectively.
 Next up is Measure, here information of processes and current state of organisation is
assembled. This will help Amazon Inc. to understand how they can make improvements
in systems to attain defined plans.
 Analyse, stage focuses on core reason which is causing problem, it also is the most
important part of six sigma methodology. By this Amazon Inc. can get idea about root
causes and elements causing problems and affecting company's operations.
 Fourth step is Improve, after knowing all problematic elements Amazon Inc. will identify
and implement corrective actions for attaining better results (Fleming and Koppelman,
2016).
 Last but not the least Control, objective of this phase is to monitor and balance results
obtained at improvement level. Monitoring all changes done in previous stage will help
Amazon Inc. to retain those changes.
Lean Principles: It is framework for bringing efficiency and effectiveness in processes
of organisation, there are five principles which are explained below:
 First up is define value, here value means what customers are able and willing to pay.
Identifying consumer needs and setting prices in relation with paying capacity of end user
is what Amazon Inc. can attain.
 Second step is map value stream, objective of applying this principle is to reduce waste.
Therefore, in this step managers of Amazon Inc. will identify activities which are not
adding value and eliminate them to minimal level.
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 After reducing waste managers take actions to create flow and smooth running of other
stages. Minimum waste of resources automatically reduce cost incurred by Amazon Inc.
in smoothing it processes (Harrison and Lock, 2017).
 Establish pull, use of just-in-time strategy suits here. Amazon Inc. should produce goods
when they are needed and in quantity asked by customers, creating balance between
needs and supply.
 After applying four above steps last and most important step is to seek perfection.
Amazon Inc. can make lean principles its continuous process which enhance its
efficiency for delivering best value and motivate employees to learn new things.
Both theories help in operations management principles by making their application more
effective and providing efficiency to operations of Amazon Inc. Six sigma principles are used to
reduce wastage and eliminate activities that does not provide any value to operations. On the
other hand, Lean principles brings efficiency and effectiveness in all those operations which adds
value to business and its operations. There are other theories as well which will help Amazon
Inc. to effectively improves plans, some of them are as follows:
Flexible Specialisations is strategy which organisation undertakes to become more
competitive by employing workforce with multiple skills. Companies also acquire machinery
and equipments which are of multi use. This will help Amazon Inc. to have ability of adapting
changes quickly in ever changing business environment. This will provide assistance to company
for rapidly changing plans and strategies so that demands can be meet.
Mass Customisation deals in changing product or services so that segment of market can
be satisfied and their expectation can be met. This can be either a small modifications or
completely new product development. This allows companies to combine personalisation and
flexibility so that custom based products can be deliver to consumers. Amazon Inc. can use
different software for this so that while ordering products it allows customers to ass some
specifications or functions according to their needs. This will improve customer satisfaction and
revenue for company.
Agile Manufacturing is a term which refers to method of manufacturing so that it can
respond to clients needs within specified time. It uses different software and tools which allows
marketers to analyse issues in production process and take actions to rectify. This will help
Amazon Inc. to address issues at lower level so that it does not hinder quality of operations.
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TASK2
P2 Develop continues improvement plan based on operations management principles relating to
organisation
Continuous Improvement Plan: It is process of continual improvements which
introduces changes gradually in organisations processes. It brings changes in processes, plans,
procedures, techniques, services and product by continuously analysing, measuring and taking
corrective actions. As a philosophy, continues improvements plans was used by Japanese car
manufacturer in their processes, under this philosophy they wanted to engage each and every
employee to perform tasks by introducing continuous improvements in areas of scope. This
philosophy is now used by process in many organisations worldwide. With the help of
continuous improvements plan Amazon Inc. will ensure that operations are improved in terms of
efficiency, quality and able to achieve business targets. This plan will assist company to identify
weak areas and scope of improvements on continues basis (Turner, 2016). This section will
explain Continues Improvements Plan for Amazon Inc. for its different operations so that new or
changes can be purposed for business aspects.
Particulars Current methodology Proposed methodology
Cost Amazon Inc. has adopted
management principles of
accountability to control cost
related aspects for different
departments. This makes
divisions efficient to perform
within allotted budgets and
increase profitability. There is
issues as managers are
focusing more on cost control
rather than working to achieve
quality.
Company need to identify
areas where cost is higher than
usual and apply principle of
variances and see it as scope to
introduce innovative processes
to control costs with enhancing
quality. In this deviations are
identified so that changes can
be implemented in every
department.
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Inventory Company lay most emphasis
on keeping inventory as low as
possible so that its cost can be
controlled. For this Amazon
Inc. uses lean principles of
pull which includes Just-in-
time concept. This principle
allows business to produce
product or service when there
is demand so that cost is less.
Amazon Inc. is applying one
of best principles in controlling
inventory and its cost. There is
just need to manage that due to
keeping stock low there are no
delays in delivering and
demand are met on time
(Hazır, 2015).
Delivering Amazon Inc. applies
organising principles of
operations management so that
at the time deliver all elements
are assembled together to meet
demand on time and
maintaining quality with
keeping cost as low as
possible.
Organisation is effective in
managing its delivering
systems by this principles and
gained competitive advantage
in industry. This improvement
plan will recommend that there
should be proper review on
regular basis so that perfection
could be attained and changes
are implemented. It is
recommended that Amazon
Inc. apply Supply Chain
Management which plan,
execute and control so that
flow of production is effective.
This will help in distributing
product in such a way that it is
easily accessible to consumers
within short period of time.
Another recommendation is
Customer Relationship
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Management which is
combinations of strategies and
technology which manages
customer grievances and
complaints. This can be used
to build relationships with
consumers by taking feedback
and addressing their issue
while shopping with Amazon
Inc.
Quality Company has adopted
principles of Quality Control
which is creating rigidity in
whole system. This makes
measure of quality rigid and
there are no changes to
improve processes in
organisation (Turkulainen and
et. al., 2015). Because of this
issues sales of Amazon Inc. is
decreasing affecting its
growth.
With the help of continues
improvements plans it is
recommended that principles
of change should be adopted so
that there are scope of
enhancements and process
becomes flexible so that
further changes can also be
implemented. This will make
Amazon Inc. to achieve
customer expectations in
changing environment. It is
recommended that Amazon
Inc. uses Enterprise Resource
Planning as it integrates data of
different operations in single
information. This will help
company to control qualitative
aspects of each activity.
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M2 Analyse effectiveness of Continues Improvements Plan
Effectiveness of CIA: It can be enhanced by applying different six sigma and lean
principles in every stage of improvements plan so that efficiency can be increased. Cost and
quality aspect of CIA can be more effective with the help of Six Sigma and New Product
Development. Six Sigma is process by eliminating unrelated activities so that there is less or no
expense on waste activities and quality can be maintained. On the other hand, inventory and
delivery aspects of plan will be enhanced by Lean principles by introducing flow in tasks and
seeking perfection so that plan can be improved more effectively. New Product Development is
process of bringing new product in market place due to opportunities in market and changes in
customer taste and preferences. This will help Amazon Inc. to capture market share and increase
sales revenues.
TASK3
P3 Apply stages of Project Life Cycle to project with supporting documents to complete plan
Project Life Cycle (PLC) is process which contains sequential steps to complete project
effectively and achieve its targets. Portakabin provides services related to modular buildings fin
UK markets from more than 50 years. Company will apply PLC to achieve success in completely
project of latest product Yorkon Building System (YBS):
Initiation Phase: This is foremost step in PLC which finds out problems, objectives, solutions
and feasibility study (Heizer, Render and Munson, 2017). For this Portakabin will develop
business plan in this stage, explanations are as follows:
Particulars Applications
Company Overview Portakabin is example of innovative
commercial business which meets customer
expectations from more than 50 years. It
provides services related to modular building
in UK market effectively.
Vision and Mission Vision statement is to provide peace of mind to
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customers in Europe while maintaining quality
of services.
Mission is to achieve this by committed to
maintaining quality by enhancing customer
experience and providing after sales services.
Objectives The only objective is to design building
systems that benefits traditional buildings for
the ability to increase by 30% to get fit into
any footprints and external walls without
columns in 5 years (Todorović and et. al.,
2015).
Strategies Different strategies like market research,
research and development, marketing strategy
so that competition can be reduced and growth
is enhanced with increasing profits margins.
Portakabin will target those customers who
believes in environment sustainable building
and are of upper middle class.
Planning Phase: In this stage whole project is divided into smaller tasks so that controlling
techniques are effective (Huemann, Keegan and Turner, 2018). This also provides complete
understanding of projects and related activities. Portakabin in this stage will prepare Project Plan
for each tasks:
Particulars Application
Cost It is estimated that Portakabin need to invest
£1500 for organising all resources and starting
up modular buildings.
Communication There will be different marketing at every stage
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so that competition can be reduced and sales
will be increased.
Scope Portakabin is already enjoying success due to
its services and by this they are targeting new
segments of markets.
Quality Portakabin strives for quality in work which
making its services best in modular building in
UK market. For this it uses lean principle of
Seeking perfection.
Portakabin will prepare Gantt Chart and Work Breakdown Structure which will divide
whole project plan into smaller tasks within specific time so that efficiency can be achieved and
objectives are attained.
Gantt Chart: It is managerial tool which is used in scheduling plan to represents it in graphical
manner so that all tasks are directed towards achieving organisational objectives (Takey and de
Carvalho, 2015). It also control activities so that controlling techniques can be applied in case of
deviations.
Work Breakdown Structure: In this teams are formed and assigned to different tasks so that
project gets completed on time to achieve objectives effectively (Kerzner, 2017). It represents
activities into visual design so that their full coordination between teams members.
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