The Final Project

Introduction

The background of operation management is tightly hinged on the idea of administration of business practices with the aim of creating optimum efficiency levels within a company. Arguing from a wider perspective, operation management largely addresses the issues of conversion of labor and materials into finished goods and services ready for consumption and in a more efficient way, so the sake of maximizing profit. Individuals that oversee operation management within organizations always try hard in balancing costs with revenue so that the highest possible profits can be attained. The organization under consideration in this paper is the Metropolitan Transport Authority (MTA). Through a deep focus of general business practices of the MTA, the paper seeks to address a number of issues such as understanding the history and trends of operation management with the objective being elucidation and comprehensive assessment of forces that significantly have shaped operation management over the years. The paper also highlights some of the obstacles that are likely to confront the business environment of MTA while at the height of implementing the revolutionizing ideas and finally, the paper will spend considerable effort in issuing intricacies surrounding changes, key noticeable trends and business operations.

Significant Forces

Operation management (OM) is a discipline in motion, meaning that it is subject to forces that cause gradual change within it (Reid & Sanders, 2015). Significantly, it enables organizations to realize their objectives through observation of efficiency in resource acquisition and utilization. Historically, the word operation management was loosely translated to mean the actual manufacturing process that takes place within factories. However, such a position changed over time as the field moved to encompass service systems and a whole lot of organization operations which include marketing, information management, purchasing, accounting, human resource management, and engineering. Today, it is universally appreciated that OM is a significant strategy tool that has helped organizations to apply techniques that result in the achievement of goals. For instance, in the case of MTA, the body over the years has been enhancing its operations to increase its profit margin (Metropolitan Transportation Authority, n.d.). At one point, it replaced the cash collection system with the then-popular cashless and electronic payment models. With time again, it realized that its “open gangway cars” will result to an increase of 8 to 10 percent of the number of passengers at any given time of operation hence informing the idea to face off the subways cars with closed doors. Such dynamism is what now characterizes operation management as a discipline within business management spectrum.

In light of the above, while recognizing that OM is now a multidisciplinary area of function within an organization coupled with activities of finance and marketing, it guarantees effective utilization of all inputs to be it raw materials or labor and maximizes output. To this far, it is no longer a secret that the dynamic element of OM is influenced by various forces. These forces are discussed below;

Digital Revolution

The world embrace of digitization sent every company into restructuring mode. Digital revolution extended computational power from big companies to small companies since the cost of automation drastically dropped hence could now be afforded by small and new industry entrant companies (Gabor & Brooks, 2017). The exclusive advantage that was enjoyed by the big companies was now open to everyone in the competition space. Such changes threw almost all established and not yet established companies into a frenzy of re-strategizing. MTA was not left behind with this frenzy too. The body took advantage of now a relatively affordable digital platform to enhance its internal operations. There were various changes effected by MTA ranging from internal management practices which saw the introduction of a new Information system. Payment mode also went from cash collection to electronic payment; surveillance operations were improved and other several changes. The good or bad thing with technology or just change factors as one would broadly refer to them is that the same way they give advantages to an organization is actually a replication of how competitors also benefit from also draw benefits. To be precise, MTA now faces fierce competition from technology driven companies such as Uber which never existed before. Digitization or technological advancement likewise influence all sectors entertainment, art, business, as well as society, and it’s essential on the way commodities are designed, produced, and dispersed. It’s basic to how consumers collect and disseminate information, and to how firms handle their operations and finances.

Globalization

Globalization has also been another change accelerating factor as far as operation management is concerned. Globalization has literally brought each country of the world into one financial framework as well as similar economic patterns. Aided by social networking, a large number of people from diverse backgrounds are currently taking part in an intervened social framework too. Thus, every organization’s strategy becomes obligated to address a globalized market-space where a growing number of individuals take part in social and business networks that rise above national limits.

In the face of that, MTA, for instance, has adopted a lot of globally shared business practices resulting from its expanded understanding of the global market. To be precise, the idea of a diverse workforce is a global practice that has brought forth a lot of benefits to the organizations. MTA workforce today is a true face of a diverse workforce. It should be noted that there are a lot of change factor forces within operation management that can further discussion beyond, but the two discussed forces in this paper are believed to have heard a lot of impact on MTA than others.

Key Obstacles

The proposal under the pipeline from the face value creates a lot of mixed talks but critically does not cause a significant shift from the previous regime. The only thing that the new dispensation promises are improved efficiency and capacity. The new gangway car project will utilize spaces that were previously occupied by door barriers in a better way as extra seats will occupy them hence increasing the total number of individuals in each transit by 8 to 10 percent. However, from an organization perspective, few internal operation adjustments must be made to accommodate the perceived changes (Brakewood, Macfarlane & Watkins, 2015). One of the expected obstacles would be customer resistance to the new open subway cars. The old models have been in use for a very long period of time making passengers to cultivate strong connections with them.

Employee resistance is another obstacle the management is contending with. The change is likely to cause reorganization of staff to conform to the delivery system of the new dispensation. New regulations and policies will have to accompany the implementation of the new project. As would be expected, the management will also endeavor to seal existing loopholes that can prevent the new proposal from excelling. Due to such reasons, employees will always become uncomfortable with all manner of changes proposed with the aim of improving efficiency in the internal working environment of the organization.

Another expected obstacle is a push for pay increment among the employees. Traditional with MTA, every change effected by the authority that either directly or indirectly had a resultant effect of causing a change in internal operations always invoked calls for pay increment to the employees. It is another possibility that is bound to take place again after the successful implementation of the new system.

The rationale for Selecting the Business

In the gone years, business ideas are considered viable based on their ability to attract good profits. However, today, such a notion is increasingly becoming exploitative and self-centered. People become rejuvenated with ideas that create social impact as well as have economic value. That gives a little background about the idea behind examining ways with which MTA can continue operating on profit while at the same time continuing to impact on people as it has always done socially. While recognizing the vitality of the fact that business entities, organizations or even public bodies must find ways of operating on a self-sustaining model, taxpayer-funded bodies like MTA bear a supreme objective which is to serve the people in the best way possible before thinking of reaping profits.

That being said, it would be wise to expose the full length of having an efficient public transport system in a city like New York. The validity of this choice is cemented by the fact that the city of New York has a huge population where about 55 percent of that population relies on public transport as their primary transportation means as opposed to private transport since it is less expensive. The average cost for basic items in the city is high, and in this manner, a chance to spare a dollar becomes all important (Fricke and Gualini, 2018). This implies the proposal of bringing new generation metro vehicles will affect a huge populace residing in New York. The authority is going for acquiring open metro autos that will, essentially, improve individual numbers carried in one transit. One of the variables that made MTA think of this methodology is the congestion of individuals in vehicles and at the stations.

Justification of the selected forecast method

The forecast method utilized was the market experiment method, which basically helps in determining the previous demand forecast for the new proposal. Before implementing the project, it would be wise to run a market analysis to get the clear effect the proposed changes are likely to create, whether an improvement or a decline in the business sense. Open gangway car prototypes, in this case, should be used to provide the much-needed reaction and to set up if their proposal is resulting in a solution. The possibility of the open corridor cars is simply straightforward in light of the fact that via fixing the spaces between the vehicles will prompt an expansion in space and permit greater development in the vehicles.

More space implies more travelers, and it is theorized that the venture will help improve the number of travelers with 8 to 10 percent. Because of the few from the clients concerning the capacity of the open path vehicles to deal with bends is an issue that needs an examination (Field, 2018). The investigation will give MTA perspectives and encounters of clients with respect to the open passage autos, and this can be utilized to foresee the future interest of the vehicles. In spite of the fact that the organization may believe that the open passage vehicles will be superior to anything, the present one’s analyses are required. Particularly pilot runs ought to be executed to get the clients to encounter with the new autos and the old. The market depends on vulnerability, and completing a market figure is fundamental to abstain from putting resources into disappointment.

Expected Changes

As initially indicated, the new strategy does not come to cause an overhaul to currently what is in use. However, few changes are bound to happen. First, internal staff reorganization for purposes of creating congruence with new system delivery prompts. Another change expected is a move from the old generation subway cars to the newly proposed gangway open subway cars. The open subway cars allow freedom of movement and more space because there are few doors on the vehicle (Technology, SNHU. 2018). The new generation subway cars also help to unify people because it satisfies the demand of people of all the categories. Staff reorganization would automatically result from the change in information flow, but that would remain speculative as of now.

Business Operations

A summarized take on business operations is a highlight of activities that involve resource acquisition, combined with the function of labor to generate output which is consumed to bring forth ultimate price which is various aspects is money. Extrapolating such a highlight to the MTA business environment, it should be possible to track the major divisions of operation which are resource acquisition and processing, labor element, and finally the output. The MTA oversees all bus operations in New York City. The company came up with an integrated management system that helps it to manage operations of the over 5000 buses plying the 234 local routes, 71 of which are express routes and another 18 select bus routes in a 24/7 operation model. Key activities include handling departures, dispatches, revenue collection, bus servicing, and customer feedback tracking (Brakewood, Macfarlane & Watkins, 2015). The security surveillance system also runs parallel with an integrated management system. Organization activities are organized into five key departments, which include accounting and finance, IT department, human resource management, and mechanical and logistics department. There is also a customer care department that is majorly concerned with customer issues such as complaints, feedbacks, and inquires.

Key Trends

The authority operations have gone through a period of significant changes that have seen service delivery quality improvement of the years. For instance, a discernible pattern has been witnessed, especially with respect to the infusion of technology in enhancement of service delivery. During the nascent years of operation, the mode of revenue collection was based on cash payments either over the counter or during transit. The method was clouded with a lot of financial losses. Today, there is a strict cashless mode of payment very popular with passengers at the same time is efficient and accountable.

Customer care in the company has also moved from an age where customer complaints and feedbacks were deposited in a suggestion box to a USSD powered medium where customers only spend a matter of seconds to have their grievances heard and determined. There are also social media handles on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram where customer care department, which also doubles up as the information department of the authority constructively engage customers and other Americans making inquiries. The authority’s integrated information management system maintains an up to date employee profile and database records with detailed information regarding daily working modalities (Gabor & Brooks, 2017). The system eliminated redundancies among the workforce, leaving only those with active profiles. In summary, technology use depicts a clear trend that dates back to 2008 to date.

Another clear trend in the organization is a deliberate act of employing young people aged between 18 years and 26 years. 85 percent of the company workforce are young people who by all standards are technology enthusiasts and have high work rate abilities.

Impacts of the Key Trends on the business function of the MTA

The authority has utilized technology in perfecting some of the previous misgivings that existed within its line of operation. Quantification of the general impact of technological trends and HRM strategies currently in practice in the authority can be a tedious work to overcome, but one clear thing about it is that it is enormous in terms of benefits. To be precise, the company is a 24/7 operation with a lot of problem-solving type of work description across the board. Elderly individuals would definitely find it rough to cope. Additionally, the significant number of redundant positions have been faced out since the time the information system was adopted.

Promptness in issuing responses to queries raised by customers have also enabled for quick resolution of problems and satisfaction among customers. Social media interaction have also given the authority a wider space from which they collect customer feedbacks and further perform analysis on the very responses to determine areas to improve.

The Potential Cost

Operationalizing the business idea of MTA is projected to cost five million one hundred and eighty-five thousand United States dollars (USD 5,185,000). The idea is to introduce a new generation of subway cars to replace the partitioned ones. The strategy is to implement the idea by first engaging a prototype comprising 20 buses plying various sampled routes. The amount available will be divided into two project phases: purchasing twelve new generation subway cars and conversion of some of the nine already available old generation cars into the new generation ones. The first phase, being larger than the second phase, will consume 70 percent of the allocation along with budget vote heads such as the purchase of the subway cars, customization which includes servising to be fit for use and finally the acquisition of registration and licensing status. Also included in the first phase will be the realignment of internal operations to conform to the new strategy. The phase is meant to benefit from a whopping total of three million, five hundred and ten (USD 3,510, 000).

The second phase will not be capital intensive as the first one. It will involve the conversion of the door demarcated buses into space free ones that will add eight more passenger seats with some more spaces in between the seats for relaxation. Another important intervention within this phase also includes the addition of more staff or reducing their regular working hours. There will be certain changes that will come with migration from the current generation of cars to the new generation subway ones. These changes will also require some financial intervention for them to be addressed in the best way possible. For instance, there will be a need to improve the company database system as well as the principal company information system. The new dispensation will require real-time backup system, limited or zero-rated buffering, cloud-based platform with all security issues addressed conclusively. The second phase will benefit from an allocation of one million six hundred and seventy-five dollars (USD 1, 675, 000) of the total money allocated. The table below represents the breakdown of the expenditure regarding the MTA’s proposed strategic move.

A careful analysis on the activities that make up the two phases, phase one introduces the project implementation and comprises activities that do not promise an immediate return on investment but lay down fundamental structures that enable for successful implementation of second phase activities. The activities of the second phase promise huge expectations on investment returns as the phase tends to its ending which is to come eighteen months after successful completion of the phase one activities as outlined in the project operationalization timelines. It is also important to mention the fact that the process defines variables in the business idea of the MTA in the most exact way. This, in the long run, provides increased quality in the results while at the same time, issues the full extent of the design process of the authority (Reid, & Sanders, 2015). The authority stands a chance to greatly benefit from the operationalization process, especially if all the timeline requirements are well met together with the intuition of cost to the main activities of each phase’s activities.

Besides, the on goings in authority currently, without any a doubt, are the reasons behind enormous mental preoccupation among the MTA chief strategists. Operationalization of a whole company business idea is never a one-off activity but several interrelated activities, tasks, and subtasks that consume resources and whose execution can turn out successful or failure (Anwar, Shah, & Hasnu, 2016). In the course of implementation of these activities, new revelations are usually encountered. Some of the revelations can be in the form of some other important subtasks that were overlooked yet are of great significance and also have costs related to their implementation. If the team operated on a strict budget line, then such overlooked tasks can never be revisited hence causing gaps in the final output.

The operationalization process must also be live to acceleration factors, potential constraints, as well as factors with inhibitory characteristics. These factors must be keenly tracked, monitored, and addressed, or taken advantage as soon as they are identified. The leadership must find the best ways of infusing such factors into the authority’s strategic plan and in a way that supports the achievement of the objectives and goals of the organization. The authority anticipates benefiting from the operationalization of its idea in various ways. However, it is important to issue a reminder that there is an uncharacteristic way in which business idea operationalization turns into risk factors in the event that the implementing entity fails to address critical milestones conclusively.

Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)

Work Breakdown Structure is a concept popular with project management. It assists in organization of the significant activities and smaller activities into modules that are easy to manage (Khanna, 2015). Operationalization process a typical project management process which comprises phases, stages, tasks, and sub-tasks. Without the WBS concept, the process can be slow, chaotic, and costly. In this case, the concept will help the team to understand the scope of the operationalization process and also improving the comprehension of the activities, tasks, and subtask of the project as a whole. The MTA strategic opportunity operationalization involves some of the critical functions such as procurement of new generation subway cars, recruitment of new employees, internal operation alignment and customization of the newly acquired buses all belonging to phase one. Then the second phase involves the conversion of nine old generation buses to new generation buses, information technology infrastructure (Database, IS, etc.), regulations and licensing, servicing the twelve cars. Every single activity comprises other smaller activities within them, which eventually results in a step-by-step process. The acquisition of new generation subway cars contains other smaller tasks within it such as the procurement related processes, and testing them if they are fit for purpose.

Work Breakdown Structure

Testing and handing over

Conversion of old buses to new generation buses

Streamlining internal operations

Hiring new Employees

Procurement of New Subway Buses

Interviews

Tender Evaluation & Awarding

New IS Acquisition

Validation

Study of the Prototype

Verification

Data Consolidation

Customization

Orientation

Delivery

Consequently, the recruitment of new employees contains other smaller tasks within it; three of each include advertising vacancies, shortlisting of candidates, and interviews. Internal operation alignment and customization of the newly acquired buses is another main activity of the operationalization process with sub-tasks such as pimping seats and doors. Below is the WBS diagram for the MTA operationalization process.

The Narrative

The objective is to convert all the authority-owned subway cars into new generation models. It would have been riskier to recall all the over two hundred buses owned by the authority and subject them into the conversion process. Deciding to go for the first twenty buses as a prototype of the project then test success levels was the best decision ever. It represents 10 percent of the total commuter subway cars the authority manages in the city. To ensure chances of failing are limited, the authority staff, mobilized from all divisions assume various jobs all outfitted towards accomplishing the goal as sketched out in the expert mission and vision explanations. The authority, depending on the idea of venture the executives, built up the above work breakdown structure by distinguishing key expectations and further deteriorating them into frameworks and subtasks. The exercises are sub-partitioned significantly more additionally to a level an individual worker can be designated a unit of work to deal with (Reid and Sanders, 2015).

Reasoning inline of cost, efforts pertaining to each unit will be coordinated as well as consigned to the concerned division as appendage activity that conveys output that is required. Records relating to the cost are shared among the associated departments in a top down way and are by and large financed through spending plans allocated to have the alternative to make the predefined desires.

Key Milestones, Resources, and Deliverables

The main milestones in the entire effort to operationalize the authority’s methodology are three. The principal achievement is the point at which the 12 new subway cars are procured and are taken through the preliminary tests. The subsequent success is the effective conversion of the eight old generation subway cars into the spacious new subway cars. The third is the point at which the internal authority operations are successfully aligned to the bigger picture of the strategic opportunity of the authority. Even though the three are the primary achievements recognizable, some few are integrated to give rise to them. Every unit task has a related success which thusly offers ascent to expectations.

Even as milestones are the accomplishments that originate from the effective implementation of activities, the subsequent outcome of every assignment is the ensuing deliverable. The principal deliverable is the obtaining of the plant. It’s an undeniable fact that many undertakings went before this deliverable. There was the procurement of the twelve new subway cars, the recruitment of new employees, conversion of the nine old generation buses to the new ones, lastly, the streamlining of internal operations.

Risk Mitigation Strategies

The risk mitigation strategies to be relied upon by the authority are three. First is to conduct thorough consultation among the shareholders regarding the operationalization approach the authority management is planning to implement. A consensus from the shareholders will result in a unanimous endorsement or a united voice among them while suggesting corrections to be made. Avoiding shareholder division is one crucial risk mitigation move that the team must be live too. Secondly, resorting to upper limit cost estimations. It helps in cushioning the operationalization process from the cost-related shock that is beyond the control of the authority.

Risks in the Operationalization Process

The MTA operationalization process is likely to attract risks originating from three main types of sources. Those that touch on cost management issues, risks resulting from shareholders of the authority, and finally those that are related to the scope of the operationalization process which is addressed in indicators such as time, expertise resident with the employees and resources availed to oversee the operationalization process. Starting with shareholders, there is always a challenge when it comes to seeking their opinion regarding the operationalization process and also how the idea is packaged. Some view the idea in terms of projected profitability vis-à-vis capital investment while others reason from social impact and general society influence. Shareholder division can hurt current and future business prospects.

Cost management is another risk source. The operationalization process is divided into two implementation phases. The first phase is usually capital intensive as it involves activities that mainly lay down structures for idea actualization. No return on investment is usually expected in the first phase of investment. Exchange rate variations can sometimes cause upsets in the process of business opportunity operationalization. For instance, equipment acquisition can be subjected to most current exchange rates, which in turn may result in higher costs than originally planned for. Wrong cost forecasts are also another potential risk cause. It is always advisable to use higher values while estimating activity costs so that in case there is an increase; the available budget can still support the course. However, it becomes riskier if cost estimation is conducted on exact values or assumed values.

The operationalization process scope may also present several risks. It becomes very critical when activities that form the critical path of the operationalization process are missing in the scope. As initially indicated, there are tasks and subtasks in the implementation process that calls for attention, just like the major project activities. In the event that these integral tasks are by-passed, the team is usually forced to contend …