Operations Design
Henry Ford’s assembly line was a stepping stone for the pivotal lean supply chain strategies invented by Toyota. Sam Walton’s focus on low prices set the stage for the bulk purchasing practices many retailers employ today. And of course, it was Amazon’s logistics expertise that helped it begin today’s consumer-driven retail apocalypse. In this discussion, you will have the opportunity to assess how such innovations advance the field of operations management and the impact they have on jobs, consumers, and the economy.For this discussion, first read New Goals for Advanced, Flexible Manufacturing (Link: https://corporate.ford.com/articles/history/moving-assembly-line.html),
and then watch Why Are There Still So Many Jobs? (18:51).
(Link: https://youtu.be/LCxcnUrokJo)
Then address the following in your initial post:
Choose a specific innovation (e.g., assembly line, JIT, interchangeable parts) that you believe is the most important innovation to have advanced the field of operations management
Explain why you believe this is the most important innovation to have advanced the field of operations management
Make sure that you thoroughly describe how that innovation has advanced the field of operations management and how it has affected jobs, consumers, and the economy
Respond to at least two of your peers by respectfully critiquing and debating their positions, supporting your statements. Share whether you find their arguments convincing, explain why or why not, and ask any questions that their post has raised for you. To successfully complete this assignment, view the Discussion Rubric document.
