Discuss the critical issues in technology selection and implementation. Search the Internet and provide an example of a company using technology to stay ahead of their competitors. Please do not
"Customer Service" Please respond to the following:
From the Zappos video, analyze the role that customer service plays in business and determine the service management skills at Zappos. Evaluate the different way(s) that Zappos creates a superior customer service experience. Evaluate how OM activities impact the management of goods and services that Zappos provides.
OM Activity | Goods | Services |
Forecasting | Forecasts involve longer-term time horizons. Goodsproducing firms can use physical inventory as a buffer to mitigate forecast errors. Forecasts can be aggregated over larger time frames (e.g., months or weeks). | Forecast horizons generally are shorter, and forecasts are more variable and time-dependent. Forecasting must often be done on a daily or hourly basis, or sometimes even more frequently. |
Facility Location | Goods-producing facilities can be located close to raw materials, suppliers, labor, or customers/markets. | Service facilities must be located close to customers/ markets for convenience and speed of service. |
Facility Layout and Design | Factories and warehouses can be designed for efficiency because few, if any, customers are present. | The facility must be designed for good customer interaction and movement through the facility and its processes. |
Technology | Goods-producing facilities use various types of automation to produce, package, and ship physical goods. | Service facilities tend to rely more on information-based hardware and software. |
Quality | Goods-producing firms can define clear, physical, and measurable quality standards and capture measurements using various physical devices. | Quality measurements must account for customer's perception of service quality and often must be gathered through surveys or personal contact. |
Inventory/Capacity | Goods-producing firms use physical inventory such as raw materials and finished goods as a buffer for fluctuations in demand. | Service capacity such as equipment or employees is the substitute for physical inventory. |
Process Design | Because customers have no participation or involvement in goods-producing processes, the processes can be more mechanistic and controllable. | Customers usually participate extensively in service creation and delivery (sometimes called co-production), requiring more flexibility and adaptation to special circumstances. |
Job/Service Encounter Design | Goods-producing employees require strong technical and production skills. | Service employees need more behavioral and service management skills. |
Scheduling | Scheduling revolves around the movement and location of materials, parts, and subassemblies and when to assign resources (i.e., employees, equipment) to accomplish the work most efficiently. | Scheduling focuses on when to assign employees and equipment (i.e., service capacity) to accomplish the work most efficiently without the benefit of physical inventory. |
Supply Chain Management | Goods-producing firms focus mainly on the physical flow of goods, often in a global network, with the goal of maximizing customer satisfaction and profit, and minimizing delivery time, costs, and environmental impact. | Service-providing firms focus mainly on the flow of people, information, and services, often in a global network, with the goal of maximizing customer satisfaction and profit, and minimizing delivery time, costs, and environmental impact. |
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