Question

What factors have contributed to the importance of international markets on Operations Management?

In what areas have these factors impacted Operations Management?

Think of a company or a product. How would you determine the demand for this product?

Choose a different product. Would the way you determine the demand for this product be different than the way you determined demand for the first product? Why or why not?

Answer 1

1. The factors that have contributed to the importance of international markets on Operations Management are:

- High monetary value in international trade/markets.

- Competition is less in international markets

- Availability of different product varieties (product lines)

- Customer needs are increasing

- Availability of resources (raw materials, labor,etc)

- International markets is a great source to generate revenue

2. The areas of Operations Management that have been impacted by these factors are:

- Quality Management – as there is a focus on CI (Continuous Improvement) on quality enhancement.

- Process and production capacity design- there is a changing customer trend and the production methods need to be altered to meet the strategic change in demand.

- Inventory Management- availability of resources has a great impact on inventory management in international market. It is important that the right quantity is delivered at the right time.

- Supply Chain Management- this is interrelated with inventory management.

- Human Resources Management- is essential to be mastered in a diverse workplace in international markets.

- Pricing and Economies of Scale- is important to understand Return on Investment (ROI) for the firm.

3. The product that can be thought of is automobiles. Demand can be determined through different methods such as time series, trend analysis, applying simulation model and surveys.
4. A different product is chocolates. Yes, way you determine the demand for this product be different than the way you determined demand for the first product because of the type of the product. The consumer/customers for automobiles is not the same for chocolates. Also, the demographic and physiographic factors are totally different for each product. In brief, the nature of the product is the foundation of determining the demand for the product.

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