Organizational Process Analysis and Inventory Management Strategies

This assignment provides an analysis of organizational processes, supply chain management, and inventory control. It examines the strategies of Zara and Benihana, focusing on their logistic systems and operational efficiencies. The assignment also explores concepts like the efficient frontier, bottleneck shifts, pull systems, and customer service strategies, including Disney's Fastpass. Inventory control is discussed, including open-to-buy and safety stock calculations. Finally, it covers project management, including critical path analysis to determine project completion time and resource allocation. The document provides insights into optimizing various business processes and improving efficiency.

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a) Organizational process review is regarded as the method through which a company may
organize, collect and review all the data available for better management. It is a process
that enables the strengthening of the organization and as such, is an efficient
methodology when it comes to having competitive advantage. In this sense, it is
important to consider the efficient frontier as it gives the company a chance in
understanding the optimal risks. It ensures that the company understands which risks give
it the best returns and as such, provide a way forward in investment. In such a case,
research shows that Zara is one of the most proficient retailers in the clothing industry.
This only becomes possible because of its logistic systems. There is a need to optimize
the logistic system of the company for better market results. In that case, it has been
shown that the company uses the efficient frontier methodology to determine which of
the ways best suits the supply of clothes. It is understandable since it is the logistics that
may be of more use in the clothing line. Therefore, through the efficient frontier, the
company ensures that it selects the channels that provide great returns with minimal risk.
b) Benihana has been known as one of the best restaurants in the world. However, this is
mainly due to its operation strategies which are known to be central to the success.
Research indicates that the flexibility in operations may be the main cause of its success.
In comparison to McDonalds, the restaurant is more clinical in its operations. More to
this is the fact that the restaurant operates on a low budget, improving its profit levels. It
has been noted that the function of the waiter and the cook are combined and are
relatively low skilled requirements attached. Moreover, it has been noted that the
company has a limited menu. With such a menu, the restaurant is able to maximize on its
productivity while reducing the expenditure. More to this is the fact that most of the food

items are imported. All in all, the restaurant has ensured that its operating system is at an
optimum mainly through the reduction of unnecessary expenditure. Such a design ensures
that there are low maintenance costs and high productivity.
c) A bottleneck shift is a situation where there is a slow rate in the production chain. This
means that any process with the longest cycle time reduces the efficiency upstream.
Consequently, there is usually a delay in the output. However, it has been noted that this
may just be one process that may culminate to more processes in the supply chain. It
reduces the capacity of the whole method and leads to a reduction in the productivity
levels. As an example, it has been indicated that the lack of a smelter channel in the steel
industry leads to a reduction in the productivity of a company. Reducing the number of
workers in another section of the production chain to cover up the needs of the smelter
process may lead to a bottleneck shift upstream.
d) A pull system refers to a methodology of production that aims at reducing the amount of
waste in the production process. In such regards, it has been noted that all the
commodities produced are only replaced after full utilization. All the commodities need
to be sold before any more production can occur. On the other hand, the push system is
not based on the actual demand. As such, the commodities are produced for stocking.
Products are produced in excess to meet any upcoming surge in demand. In such regards,
the two methodologies are different in terms of the production capacity.
e) It has been indicated that Kristen’s cookie company has optimized on the production but
as it has been noted, there needs to be a proper methodology in meeting the demand. In
such regards, the cycle time and the processing time may be less than the 80 minutes that
have been indicated. The processing time and the time for the process are maybe less

that the 80 minutes as has been noted. It might take a shorter time to supply the next
batch of commodities. As such, the statement is wrong. More to this is calculations which
show that the time is 1/10*60=6 minutes
f) The 45 minutes assumption is incorrect. Due to the excellent customer service
management, it may be approximately 30 minutes. A time span of 45 minutes is too
long in service provision. As calculations show, it is the number of customers against the
time requirements. R=1500/900. This gives 1.66 minutes per unit.
g) The flow time is as a result of the of all the processes that a unit uses from inception to
completion. It has been noted that if there is more than one path, then the flow time is the
longest channel. In that case, the statement is true as the flow time is a summation of all
the processes.
h) One way to reduce waiting time may be through better communication. Communication
is a key factor in customer response and with better communication; there is a reduction
in the waiting time. It is a reduction in the response time. Secondly, there is a need to
prioritize the requests of the customers. It ensures that the each customer is prioritized
according to the time he/she has been in the line.
i) It is true that Disney’s fastpass has improved the customer response. It is a digital
ticketing system that ensures that reservations are quick. In this, it ensures that the
customer can skip the line.
j) There is a need to maximize on the utilization of resources. It is essential as it reduces the
expenditure and the costs associated with production. More to this is that it reduces the
amount of waste.

2. Inventory control
a) Looking at the probability distribution, it is clear that the 40% demand may be the
most optimal when it comes to the purchase of the phones. The demand has a
probability of purchase that is 28%.
As it has been noted, the regular price of the commodity is $2000 while the
purchase price from the manufacturer is $900
In such a context, the open to buy inventory control may be the most suitable. It
reduces the chances that the stock will be purchased either in smaller or bigger
quantities as compared to the demand.
Planned sales+planned markdowns+ End month planned inventory+ Planned
beginning month inventory=open+to+buy
Nevertheless, the purchase should be 46 mobile cells
Cumulative (The percentage* Demand)
b) Safety stock calculation is essential when determining the quantity of stock that
will be available after a specific period of time. The 50% rule, in this case, may be
used to determine if there will be stock by the end of the quarter.
0.5*46=23 means that there may still be a remaining number of phones. In such a
context, the service level, based on the rule, is 50%.
c) The average inventory estimates the value of goods moving from the retailer to
the consumers. In such a sense, it is the average of the inventory.
46 mobile phones/90 days
Gives that the rate of movement to be 1 cell for every two days.

Question 3
a) 4 3 weeks
5 weeks 6 Weeks
8Weeks
9 weeks
b) The project completion time has been noted to be the same as the critical path. In
such a case, it is 18 weeks.
c) The critical path
A D G
Question 4
In the production chain, there is usually a delay that is caused by the redundancy
in human resource allocation. In such regard, it may be essential to first determine
the critical path of the project in order to identify the longest period of time the
project is likely to take. After this process, there may be a need to consider skill
specialization within the production chain. It is a concept that has been applied in
the motor vehicle industry with impeccable results. It reduces the production time
and the employee requirements.
Activity A
Activity C
Activity B
Activity D
Activity FActivity G