Final Project Guidelines

Overview -

The final project for this course is an operational analysis of a service organization demonstrating your ability to assess and critique operations management activities within a U.S.-based service organization. The project is supported by three milestones, which will be submitted at various points throughout the course to scaffold learning and ensure quality final submissions. These milestones will be submitted in Modules One, Four, and Seven. The final product is due in Module Ten.

Upon completion of this project, you will have demonstrated your mastery of the following course outcomes:

• Recognize the nature and importance of the service sector in the U.S. economy and in other countries
• Understand the basic issues and problems arising in service operations delivery processes and how they differ from a manufacturing setting
• Use analytical thinking in the identification, modeling, and resolution of basic problems in service operations
• Apply the frameworks, quantitative tools, and techniques in the design, improvement, and evaluation of service processes
• Make effective decisions in the management of service operations

Prompt -

After selection and instructor approval of an organization in the service sector, you will provide a critical assessment of the organization's operations and strategy, including the organization's service strategy, components of the service enterprise design, and service operations management. Your analysis must deal with specifics and not be concerned with the description of basic terms (i.e., no definitions or explanation of the service terms are necessary). It will also identify specific challenges in the organization's service operations management and provide detailed recommendations for improvements in overall service as well as organizational management.

Specifically, the following critical elements must be addressed in your final submission:

I. Background:

A. Organization Context: Include a brief history of the organization during the last 10 years. When was the organization formed, and who are the founders? What is the mission of the organization? Include a few sentences on the employees, products/services, and growth over the last 10 years. Describe the culture, values, and future goals.

B. Industry Sector Context: Determine the competitive intensity and attractiveness of the industry sector to which your selected organization belongs by using Porter's five-force model.

1. Force 1: Existing competitive rivalry between suppliers

2. Force 2: Threat of new market entrants

3. Force 3: Bargaining power of buyers

4. Force 4: Power of suppliers

5. Force 5: Threat of substitute suppliers

C. Competitiveness of the Organization Within Its Industry Sector: How does the organization fit within the service process matrix framework? Explain your thoughts for the following:

1. Classify the organization within the framework of the service process matrix.

2. Evaluate the organization's strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.

D. Rationale for Choice of Service Organization: Justify your choice of service organization. What is the importance of this service sector to the U.S. economy?

II. Introduction:

A. Service Sector Challenges: Using distinctive service organization characteristics, contrast the operational issues of the specific organization with those faced by a typical manufacturing firm. Issues such as service encounter, supporting facility and process flows, management of capacity and demand, managing waiting lines, and service relationships may be used.

B. Assessment of the Service Strategy: Assess the organizational service strategy based on the elements of the strategic service vision (e.g., target market, service concept, operating strategy, service delivery, system competitive strategy) for its relevance to the growth and success of the business.

III. Discussion:

A. Analysis of the Service Design Elements: Assess the current issues and possible problems arising from the design of the service operations for this organization.

1. New service development

2. Service encounter

3. Supporting facility and process flows

4. Service quality

5. Facility location

6. Information technology

B. Assessment of the Service Operations Management: Assess the current issues and possible problems that can occur as management tries to match demand and supply in this organization.

IV. Conclusions:

A. Recommendations for Change-Overall Service Design: Detail how you would apply the frameworks, quantitative tools, and techniques to improve the overall design of service operation in this organization.

B. Recommendations for Change-Operations Management: Detail how you would apply the frameworks, quantitative tools, and techniques to improve the management of service operations in this organization.

Milestones -

Milestone One: Organization Selection

In task 1-3, you will submit a brief document (one to two pages) with basic information on the organization (name and industry sector) that you have selected for your project and provide a rationale for why you selected this particular organization.

Milestone Two: Service Strategy and Design Topics

In task 4-2, you will submit a brief description of your paper in terms of what you intend to analyze and discuss by providing an overview of the topic areas that you will address and how they relate to your chosen firm/service. You should provide a description of the four areas above (Background, Introduction, Discussion, and Conclusions).

Milestone Three: Final Project Draft

In task 7-2, you will submit a rough draft of the paper. Include a Background, Introduction, Discussion, and Conclusion sections as outlined in the critical elements above. This is a draft of your paper. You should use the feedback to revise your draft for the final submission in Module Ten.

Final Project Submission: Operational Analysis of a Service Organization

In task 10-1, you will submit your final project (15 to 18 pages). It should be a complete, polished artifact containing all of the critical elements of the final product. It should reflect the incorporation of feedback gained throughout the course.