NMIMS Sem 3 April 2025 Operations Assignments
Procurement Management
Q.1 ABC Healthcare is a mid-sized pharmaceutical company that specializes in producing over-the-counter (OTC) medications. With steady growth and diversification into new product lines, the demand for various raw materials, packaging supplies, and third-party services has significantly increased. However, the procurement system at ABC Healthcare has not adapted to these changes, resulting in sourcing delays, inconsistent purchasing practices, and potential cost inefficiencies. Identify and describe the various requisition types that ABC Healthcare may encounter in its procurement operations, emphasizing the importance of requisition categorization for effective procurement planning and execution. Additionally, propose a structured process for issuing an RFx (Request for Proposal, Request for Quotation, or Request for Information) to ensure optimal supplier selection and contract negotiation for ABC Healthcare.
Q.2 SolarBright Ltd. is a global manufacturer and distributor of solar energy equipment, sourcing components from international suppliers and delivering products to clients worldwide. Despite its success in the renewable energy market, the company faces significant challenges in managing its transportation and logistics. Issues such as inconsistent shipment traceability, high transportation costs, and discrepancies in documentation have resulted in delayed deliveries and operational inefficiencies. Explain the concept of INCO terms and their importance in global supply chain management by analyzing how selecting the appropriate INCO terms can influence SolarBright Ltd.’s transportation costs and responsibilities. Additionally, evaluate the potential risks associated with inaccurate or incomplete shipping documentation and propose strategies or technologies to improve shipment visibility and traceability.
Q.3 GreenHarvest AgriTech, a rapidly expanding agritech company specializing in sustainable farming solutions, is encountering challenges in sourcing reliable suppliers for eco-friendly materials, streamlining supplier onboarding, and evaluating supplier performance. These difficulties threaten the company’s ability to maintain operational efficiency and meet growing market demands.
a) Discuss the significance of conducting spend analysis for GreenHarvest AgriTech to uncover cost-saving opportunities and explore strategic sourcing options by outlining a step-by-step approach to improving the supplier selection process.
b) Discuss how understanding Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) can aid GreenHarvest AgriTech in making strategic decisions regarding supplier and product selection.
Service Operations Management
Q1. List and explain in detail the various Service dimensions through organisations are analysed and judged for Quality by customers? Elaborate your answer with a reference of any Professional educational institute of your choice.
Q2. Discuss the concept of the ‘Service Design; highlighting in detail the different approaches through which organizations can implement ‘Service Design’? Support your details with a reference to a Fast-food chain or a restaurant setup (you can choose any reference of your own choice) (10 Marks)
Q3. The Healthcare sector has become a very critical service sector domain in recent times, especially post Covid scenario. Hence it is very obvious for Healthcare Institutes to plan their operations in several ways to provide the best services to their target customers. Explain the following aspects of these organisations in context of the following areas as given below.
a) Discuss the different elements that need to be considered in a Service Framework of the setup.
b) Discuss the concept of a Service Design (Blueprinting) in context of healthcare setups for their service operations.
Enterprise Resource Planning
1) Your organization is implementing an ERP system for the first time. However, the finance team is resistant to adopting the new system due to concerns about complexity. Discuss why it is important to provide training to the team members of Finance department. Discuss the benefits of ERP System and explain phased implementation of ERP.
2) AcademiGO is an emerging training company with few modules of HR and Finance for its operations of providing training for on-job training requirements of various companies. The specified functionalities only cater to a particular requirement with limited integration of functionalities. Most of the processes are complex and time consuming. They decided to reorganize its system and processes to improve its efficiency by adding more modules to ERP system with modules for all operations of the AcademiGO. Idea is to make it automated system and integrated, flexible, and scalable. Discuss which other modules can be added to existing ERP system for AcademiGO with what functionalities and what could be the challenges in ERP implementation.
3) ITThink is an IT Company with the motive of providing solutions to different Organisations by catering to their specific product related requirements. They have decided to implement ERP system in their organization to integrate the various business processes and to enhance the efficiency of the organization. Considering the above scenario, discuss the following:
a) What could be the major reasons for ITThink to switch to ERP system?
b) Discuss the need of vendor selection for ERP implementation.
Total Quality Management
Q1. Discuss on the relevance of the statement ”Quality always comes at a cost’ in context of the concept of the Cost of Quality (CoQ), explaining in details the four components of CoQ. Illustrate the concept with references from any industry/ organisational instance of your choice.
Q2. Discuss the relevance of Supplier relationship and explain the various approaches for supplier sourcing and evaluation as applicable to any organisation targeting total quality. Support your answer giving suitable references from the industry.
Q3. Quality Function Deployment (QFD) is a strategic method of comprehending customer`s choices, translating the choices into product features and design the products. The concept is extensively used in both manufacturing as well as service industries. Assuming any reference of a manufacturing or service industry of your choice, explain the following aspects of QFD.
a) Discuss in brief the process of concept of ‘Quality Function Deployment’ and highlight its benefits.
b) Explain how the concept of Poka yoke be applied to ensure Quality being deployed into products and services.
Operations and Supply chain strategies
1. PQR, a multinational retail company, recently launched new private-label products that have been well-received by customers. While customer demand is growing due to the diverse product mix, the company’s operational performance has not kept pace, resulting in inefficiencies in meeting this demand. Analyze the potential supply chain challenges contributing to this performance gap. Propose specific supply chain strategies to improve efficiency, meet growing demand, and enhance overall performance.
2. Last month, you launched a new electronics business. As part of your growth strategy, you plan to expand by opening additional branches both within your city and in other locations. To further boost revenue, you are considering entering international markets. However, the dynamic marketplace presents tough competition from both online and offline competitors. Analyze and suggest a different level of strategies that you will implement in the firm that can improve overall business profit.
3. A toy company has been operating successfully in the Indian market for several years, with multiple branches across cities. The company is now considering establishing its own manufacturing unit, aligning with the government’s push for domestic manufacturing under the ‘Make in India’ initiative.
a) Identify and explain the critical competitive dimensions the company must focus on to enhance market share and achieve excellence in its supply chain operations.
b) Given the management’s uncertainty regarding the production process, recommend the most suitable production method (e.g., job, batch, mass, or continuous production) to improve efficiency, and justify your choice based on the company’s business goals.
Project Management
1. What is a project charter? Develop a project charter for a Metro-rail project (e.g. Bhubaneswar Metro-rail project) and discuss the typical elements of the charter.
2. India is set to launch its own space station, named “Bharatiya Antriksh Station,” by 2035, as announced by Jitendra Singh, Union Minister of State for Science and Technology. Construct a WBS (Work break-down structure) for the project.
3. Budget 2024 Highlights: Road infrastructure project Bharatmala Pariyojana gets a boost Budget 2024: Budget 2024 raised the allocation for the Road Ministry marginally to ₹2.78 lakh crore from Rs 2.7 lakh crore. Out of the outlay, ₹1.68 lakh crore is earmarked for investment in NHAI for the development of national highway corridors under Bharatmala Pariyojana.
The Bharatmala Pariyojana is an ambitious infrastructure project of the government. It was launched in 2015. The programme aims to transform the country’s road infrastructure by building a robust, safe and efficient network of highways to connect major industrial zones, state centres and remote areas across the country. The programme is being executed under the administrative control of the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH). The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation, and the roads wing of the ministry are the implementing agencies for Bharatmala Pariyojana.
To give a boost to the road infrastructure, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had increased the allocation to the Road Transport Ministry by 36% to ₹2.7 lakh crore in Union Budget 2023 from ₹1.99 lakh crore in FY 2022-23.Budget 2024 raised the allocation for the Road Ministry marginally to ₹2.78 lakh crore. Out of the outlay, ₹1.68 lakh crore is earmarked for investment in NHAI for the development of national highway corridors under Bharatmala Pariyojana.
a) Explain the various characteristics/features of Bharatmala Pariyojana.
b) Discuss in brief the different activities to be executed during the project life cycle of the Bharatmala Pariyojana project.
