What is operation? It is “the making and delivery of any product or service.” (Operation, Mahesh Nagarajan) To be more specific, I think the essence of operation is that we need plans and actions to create value in the form of products and services. The set of activities requires the transformation of converting inputs into outputs.

There are three core functions for operation, which are production, finance, and marketing. Take a supply chain of Air Jordan sneakers shoes for example. The manufacturers need resources to produce and then distribute to warehouse around the world. This is the process of production. Meanwhile, they also need to consider the cost for the production. Therefore, finance plays an important role because it enables the company to track its capability. After shoes are produced, the company needs to figure out a specific selling plan for its product in order to maximize the profit. So they need marketing to generate demand. At last, shoes are sold to customers.

So, why should we study operation? In my opinion, operation is one of the major functions of any organization. We want to study how people organize themselves for productive enterprise in an efficient manner. For example, a company sells its product directly to its customers. During this process, there is no cost for middleman. Besides, the company can get useful information directly from its customers, such as the feedback provided to improve its product, and the demand that it can use to predict the future demand. By catering to the taste of customers and less stock, the company can actually have more demand and cash flow. In conclusion, I believe it is important and beneficial for us to understand operation more specifically.

Source: https://blogs.ubc.ca/courseblogcl_ubc_comm_101_101_2014w1_44739-cl_ubc_comm_101_101_2014w1_44739_2045960_1/files/2014/05/Class-06-Operations.pdf