Logistics
Essays

Operations Management: Balancing Ethics With the Bottom Line

HLL, a subsidiary of Lever, is a cosmetics company that operates in India. The company markets a number of products in the Indian market, including a "fairness cream," which purports to lighten the skin of the user.

Up until the sixteenth century, Japan had been cut off from the rest of the civilized world and the strongest economic powers of the time had no idea of the abundance of treasures and resources possessed by the Japanese…

The two discussions of Napoleon's invasion of Egypt differ widely in terms of tone and details. These differences derive from differences in structure, cultural perspective, and with respect to which side of the…

The Theory of Constraints (TOC) as defined by Eli Goldratt (Bernardi, 2010) has a multitude of uses throughout retailing in general and in food and electronics product distribution specifically. The intent of this analysis is to evaluate how the TOC makes significant contributions to the areas of Supply Chain Management (SCM) for food and grocery distribution in addition to high tech electronics. The emergence of the Internet as a viable supply chain platform and retailing channel is also leading to a complete re-ordering of the grocery and high technology industries based on TOC-based contributions and insights (Hofacker, 2008). The first and most significant area of contribution is in the area of Supply Chain Management (SCM). The TOC is the basis fo many of the logistics strategies and systems within Kroger and Circuit City and many of the businesses in their industries (International Journal of Physical Distribution & Logistics Management, 2002). For Kroger and food grocery and retailing companies in this industry, the shelf life of many of their most valuable products are dependent on how well they manage replenishment and continual planning of new perishables purchases (International Journal of Physical Distribution & Logistics Management, 2002). How well a grocery company manages the perishable products it sells at often the highest margins possible will very often dictate the level of profitability achieved over the long-term as well (Bernardi, 2010). For Kroger and other businesses competing in this industry the ability to accurately predict demand with forecasting and automated replenishment systems is in large part predicated on the foundational elements of TOC (Gupta, Boyd, 2008). Getting forecasting and replenishment right for grocery retailers is a continual challenge however as the velocity of sales can change drastically based on customer preferences and seasonality (International Journal of Physical Distribution & Logistics Management, 2002). Being able to manage this aspect of variation and have it reflected back to suppliers, many of them several layers deep into their supply chains, is a continual process of improvement (Bernardi, 2010). Supply chains for perishables underscore the value of TOC in terms of optimizing inventory and mitigating loss due to spoilage brought about by not being in step with market requirements as closely as possible from an operations management standpoint (Gupta, Boyd, 2008). This same dynamic holds true for electronics distributors and retailers, who comprise in large part the most profitable areas of the high tech value chain globally. The need for having a very clear idea of inventory exposure and costs used as the basis of operations management strategies are critical to these companies staying profitable (Gupta, Boyd, 2008). The TOC serves as the theoretical foundation for these and many other industries in getting their operations management strategies to be as effective and profitable as possible.

Diabetes is the fourth leading cause of death worldwide (International Diabetes Foundation, 2007). Diabetes is a condition that can cause serious side effects, in addition to the potential for death, if not managed…

As integral components of any effectively managed supply chain, packaging, handling, storage and transportation are of fundamental importance. By identifying opportunities for improving the manner in which these supply…

The study explores how the move from the Juvenile Delinquents Act to the Youth Criminal Justice Act leads to changes in the youth justice system in Canada. The paper evaluates the JDA and YOA, and the shortcomings identified within the Acts led to the enactment of YCJA. The enactment YCJA is to address the major concerns of YOA. The YCJA aims to reduce the use of courts for young offenders and address the over-reliance on incarceration of young offenders leading to the improvement of youth justice system in Canada.

Variable-cost, traditional cost and Activity-based costing systems all use material cost as product cost. They only differ when it comes to computation of other costs. Activity-based costing is known to be the most sought costing system since it offers information which is mostly useful in cost management, so as to enhance on their profitability; to deal with capacity issues, to become more accurate in assigning the cost linked to the prevailing high levels of operating complexities, and to develop more appropriate pricing schemes.

General Motors (GM) is one of the largest automobile companies in the world. Over the years GM has been able to carve out a corporate identity, to become one of the most recognizable brands in America.