1.8 Discussion and Practice

Despite recent changes, L.L. Bean’s customer satisfaction guarantee is one of the best in the world. What are the operations implications of such a promise? How would you design a customer satisfaction guarantee that will give you a competitive advantage in the mind of customers but not be subject to excessive abuse?

Think about your own purchase behavior. How important are each of the five value dimensions—cost, quality, delivery, agility, and innovation—to the decisions you make? Explicitly weight each value dimension. Be sure your weights add up to 1.0. Discuss your thought process for weighting each value dimension. Under what circumstances would you change your weightings?

Think about a DIY project you have done. Go back to the table in the introduction and fill it out in detail. Graphically depict the “black box” of operations management. Now, consider the various design decisions discussed in the chapter: product design, process design, facility location, and facility layout. Ask and answer, “How could the process and the outcome be improved by employing hints suggested by each design decision?”

Go to a favorite restaurant. Order your favorite meal. Consider the design and control decisions discussed in the chapter. Draw a simple map that shows how your meal is prepared and delivered to you. Now that you have thought about all that went into making your meal, calculate its cost. How much profit did the restaurant make off of your order?