Gleyse Operational planning As2

Operational Planning Assessment 2. Question 1: You have been approached by the procurement manager who proposed that you may save operating costs by using one product key of MS Window and Microsoft Office package to multiple computers in the office. Do you accept the procurement manager’s idea? No, using one product of MS Window and Microsoft Office package will put various computers at risk of losing data if they are not configured to accommodate the same type of product key of MS Window, thus it may cost much to repair. Furthermore, security of vital information that has to be shared between the management will be lost as everyone who can access the computers will be able to access the information too, which they could do damage that will be costly to the Store. Therefore I do not support the procurement manager’s idea. Question 2: Required : a. Assess whether the store can achieve the targeted monthly sales ($1,000,000). Looking at the trend analysis, when the number of staff no shows was low at 3 and the rate of customer satisfaction was high at 8.9, the monthly sales were high at $940,000. That shows that if the store can focus on reducing the number of staff no shows and increase customer satisfaction, the targeted monthly sales of $1000, 000 can be achieved. b. Assess whether there is a relationship between customer satisfaction and the number of staff no shows.

The trend analysis depicts that when the customer satisfaction was low at 7.4, the number of staff no shows was high at 12, and when the customer satisfaction was high at 8.9, the number of staff no shows was low at 3. Indeed there is a direct relationship between the two. c. Assess whether the company’s net profit ratio can achieve the targeted net profit in the scenario. In the trend analysis, whenever the store reduced the number of staff shows, the customer level increased and the net profit ratio also went up, for example when the number of staff no shows was 3, the customer satisfaction was at 8.9 and the net profit ratio was 13%. That shows that if the store can focus on minimizing the number of staff no shows then it is possible to achieve the targeted net profit of 15%. Question 3: You are using the Gantt chart to organize all tasks in operational plans. Explain the benefits and drawbacks of the Gantt chart. (KE 6) The benefits of Gantt chart are:  Gant chart has a visual format style that is to understand, it shows the overview of various tasks and the time they need to be performed.  They organize tasks and subtasks into categories showing the starting and ending time of the tasks.  There is break down of activities and thus able to set realistic time frames.  It improves communication during project work as every team member is able to comprehend their scope of work. The drawbacks are:  All tasks cannot be represented in one spreadsheet

No Issues Benefits Drawbacks 1 Customers must use their smartphones to enter the store and to purchase goods. Many customers are techno-savvy thus they will be happy about it and hence make more purchases which will be to the advantage of the store. Elderly customers and those that don’t have smartphones will be disadvantages thus they will seek other places to make purchases hence the store will lose clients. 2 Customers safety may not be guaranteed Customers will now plan their schedules to come early to the store and make purchases which will reduce the congestion experienced during the late hours. Customers that usually have time to make purchases at the store during the late hours will seek somewhere else to shop thus the store will lose clients 3 The investment funds for the system can be recovered in a 6- months period The investments funds recovered can be used to invest in other areas such as marketing Where the system does not perform as expected, then those funds will have been lost which will drag the store behind and it will take a long time to recover the funds. 4 Customers may feel freedom as no staff watching over them Customers will be confident to make more purchases as they are not afraid or feel shy and tensed. Customers may waste a lot of time choosing among several products thus causing congestion at the store. 5 No concerns for staff no shows, sick calls The management will be relieved to now concentrate with other issues that are a priority to the store instead of worrying about staff no shows. There is no interpersonal relationship between the management and staff thus, the management does not have touch with the staff. 6 Do not have to manage staff roster the time spend to manage duty roster can be spend in other productive tasks at the store There is no one on one interaction between the management, staff and customers hence immediate feedback is difficult to achieve.

7 Security of the system must be upgraded on a regular basis Upgrading the security of the system will ensure that it functions smoothly thus customer satisfaction will be increased. Upgrading of the system is time consuming and during this time, services need to be stopped thus customers will feel frustrated and will go to shop somewhere else. 8 Other shift staff may feel low job security The staff will be motivated to perform better so as to secure their job which will be good for the store The staff may opt to leave and look for job vacancy somewhere else where job security is guaranteed. Question 6: From your answers for Question 2 and 5, you are required to conclude whether you will implement the unmanned operating system. Provide reasons. The unmanned operating system will be implemented because it will minimize the time spend by customers in long waiting queues , increase customer satisfaction which will have a ripple effect of increasing sales for the store thus achieving the target net profit ratio of 15%. Moreover, the funds used for the system of $545,000 can be recovered in 6 month period thus it will also enable the store to smoothly pay the redundancy settlement fee of $1,070,000 at $98167 per month. .

 Social media marketing increases customer satisfaction as there is one on one interaction between the sales representatives and customers in the social media platforms.  Social media marketing is relatively cheap compared to traditional marketing thus saves costs which can be used in other sectors in the store.  Social media marketing increases brand awareness and create brand loyalty which is important in attracting and retain customers.  The business is on top of other competitors as it able to know the trends of the market in real time basis.  Also most millennial are techno savvy and when the store is on social media, it is able to tap on this market and attract more customers. Question 9: Required: Write an email to the CEO, and in your email, the following must be explained. Cost benefits analysis for the unmanned operating system The benefits of social media marketing activities How the customer service monitoring is processed Email From: projectmgt@7/24Aus.store To: ceo@7/24Aus.store Subject: Implementation of the unmanned Operating system, Social media marketing activities, and Customer Service monitoring process. Dear Ceo,

I hereby write to inform you that the project team has decided to implement the unmanned system, Customer service monitoring process and social media marketing activities. The social media marketing activities will be implemented because it will increase brand awareness that will attract and retain customers and make the store have a competitive advantage over its competitors. The other reason is because it is cost effective compared to the traditional marketing method and there is one on one interaction between customers and the company’s sales representatives which allows for immediate feedback and improves customer satisfaction. Implementation of the unmanned operating system will also take place since it minimizes the long queues of customer waiting to be served and increase efficiency of time management as there is no need to manage staff duty roster. Furthermore, it is cost-effective in the long run as the investment funds for the system can be recovered in a 6-month period and thereafter continues realizing profits. The team will also implement the Customer service monitoring process. The process works by first collecting customer feedback each month and records onto each staff file; evaluation of customer satisfaction is done against each staff; reflection of the evaluation against their performance reviews, staff who receive excellent feedback are congratulated and awarded, they are then celebrated in the staff newsletter; those that need improvement will be called for a meeting to identify the shortfall skills they need; trainings will be done for them and the training evaluated to see if they met the required needs. Hence the store will be able to make more profits and cut down costs if the three processes are implemented. Therefore, we seek for your approval sir. Regards, Project manager- 7 Twenty four Australia.