Operations

Businesses have to obtain, organise and use a variety of resources, including people and equipment. The operations department is responsible for producing goods and services by making the best use of so-called inputs, which are:

• Buildings and land - for example, offices, factories, shops, farmland.
• Equipment - for example, vehicles, computers, machinery.
• People - for example, operators, managers, support staff, specialists.
• Materials - for example, products for retailing, raw materials.

These inputs then go through a process which converts them into outputs. The correct inputs must be found and used, and the process must be carefully managed.

The level of stock must be controlled within a business. There are problems with having either too much, or too little stock. Therefore the operations department must devise an appropriate method for controlling this.

The operations department must also ensure that quality is checked and improved upon.

Some businesses may use automation or computer-aided systems in their production process, such as robots or CAD/CAM.