Three questions: exploratory inquiry and analysis

Marketing

The definition of quality when used in the workplace scenario determines how good the product is made or manufactured. Many times quality is determined by the manufacturer according to standards set by the industry or by industry organizations. Efficiency is determined when (in regards to both quality and expense) the ratio of time and cost in manufacturing the product is as efficient as it can become. The efficiency ratio is also determined by standards and numbers based on the length of time and expense of manufacturing the product. Productivity is also a measurement concerning the time it takes to create a finished product.

To manage the quality of a certain product certain events must take place that allow for the easy flow of communication regarding the methods and process of creating the product in the first place. This can be accomplished by establishing a quality control program that allows a quality control manager to verify the quality of the product by (for example) pulling a number of random samples of the manufacturing line to check whether the established standards are being met. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) is an organization that frequently establishes standards for its members that (outside the United States) oftentimes become law. The organization often deals with digital geographic information. In order to achieve statistical process control an application of statistical methods needs to be implemented that will identify and control the cause of variation in any particular process.

Buying is a function of a buyer who searches for the components necessary to build or manufacture a certain product. The buyer will attempt to negotiate the purchase of these products for as low a price as possible. The selling of finished product is accomplished by sales representatives who have been employed to find buyers for the product. Transporting the product to the wholesale and retail outlets for consumer purchase is the job of the transportation manager who must find the ways, define the least expensive routes and ensure that the product reaches the marketplace in a timely manner.

Storing the product is primarily accomplished (usually in the warehouse) by a method of first in first out and computerized control. Oftentimes the product will be graded as to its quality and shelf-life of the product. Financing is usually accomplished before the product is even manufactured, often the financing is obtained before a plant is built or the first finished piece rolls off the assembly line. To obtain effective financing a market research study can be done that will spell out the need for the product as well as the presumed selling price, and can often include a market survey to gauge the potential sales of the finished product. Many times the financiers will use the market research to decide how much risk they will be assuming by affording the capital necessary to build the product. One of the risks is that the financiers will be stuck with a product that is unprofitable, that is why the finance plan and the market research go hand in hand, and are of great importance to the venture capitalist(s).