Operations Management - Interview - Forecasting and Inventory Management

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You will conduct a 30-minute interview with a business professional who has experience with Forecasting and Inventory Management. During the interview, ask permission to submit their first name, last name, and email address as elements of your interview summary, in case your professor wants to check-in with them on their thoughts of the interview.

As the person conducting the interview, you should dress professionally for the interview, and be prepared with some initial research of the person you are interviewing (review their LinkedIn profile) as well as, their organization (online research, corporate website, etc.). The point is to show up as a business professional, and to be properly prepared and engaged for the interview. You will be asking the questions, and you should be prepared to be an active listener and to ask pertinent follow-on questions.

The three main question sets you are to ask, allowing about 10 minutes of discussion each, are:

Question Set 1: (Forecasting) Does your organization use both qualitative and quantitative forecasting methods? What methods do you use to support your business with forecasting (examples: regression analysis, Delphi Method)? Is there a special team focused on forecasting, or is it a responsibility of each professional within your organization?

Question Set 2: (Inventory Management) How does your organization implement inventory management? What types of information systems does your organization utilize to support effective inventory management? Does your organization implement JIT, Just-In-Time, or some other form of lean applied to inventory?

Question Set 3: (Reflection on Operations Management) Take a moment to share and reflect, with the professional you interview, on what you have learned during our term, focused on operations management. After reflection, continue to discussion with the following questions. How does operations management ensure the “mission happens” for a successful organization? How does the “puzzle pieces” of various traditional areas of business connect within your organization? Does your organization have a vertical (mechanistic) or horizontal (organic) organizational structure? Do you have a top “lesson learned” related to effective operations for a business?

To successfully complete this interview, review the rubric prior to the interview and ensure you complete all required elements. However, in general, you will be composing 2-pages of meeting minute format summary of the interview, highlighting who you selected to interview, their contact information, the three responses, any other follow-on questions or key points, and then close with a summary and your reflection on what you learned in relation to the course topics.

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Unit 10 [MT435] Unit 10 Journal: Interview Interviews This course utilizes two interviews to provide you an opportunity to interact with real-world professionals within the areas of business related to your course topics. It is an exciting time, living in the 21st Century! While the intent of the interviews is that you attempt to interview a professional face-to-face in your local community, if this is difficult due to factors such as living in a rural area, you can find a professional online, coordinate via email, and meet using Google Hangouts to accomplish the interview assignments. Keep in mind, in either method, your professionalism reflects upon yourself and our institution; make us proud. A few other important notes: Due to technical limitations with our learning platform, you may see these items listed as Journal: Interview. These are not to be confused with your normal journals, as they are very different. Consider them as interviews, and ensure you review and read their specific instructions. Also, as you review your Gradebook during Unit 1, look at the timing of the interview and the related topics of the units towards the end of the term. Know the late policy, and your own work schedule. Schedule the interview to maximize your opportunity while mitigating risk of non-completion. Do not procrastinate. Your emergency is not your selected professional’s emergency. Plan accordingly to ensure you are not limited by schedule and ensure a buffer and contingency so that your selected professional is not pressured by your time constraints. It is advisable to have a backup time and date planned, in case you need it, to accomplish the interview. If you need to switch to a different professional, due to availability, that is also appropriate within the same area of business. This is a realistic business opportunity. One of the positive elements of Interviews as learning opportunities is that they also open you up to networking opportunities. The role of professional networking in a business career cannot be understated, it is key towards success. Additionally, if you research career sites, you will see much advice towards the concept of an informational interview. You may want to research informational interviews from this perspective prior to your two actual interviews. You are being notified during Unit 1 to allow you maximize time to research, plan, coordinate, and accomplish the interview successfully. Overcome obstacles, if they occur, and earn positive results! In this Interview, you will be assessed based on the following outcome: MT435-5: Evaluate the purpose of forecasting and inventory management within operations management. This journal is different than many journals you may have encountered during your time at university. In fact, it is better to think of it as an Interview than a journal. Page 1 of 3 Unit 10 [MT435] Part of learning about business is networking. This interview is to get you motivated and networking with business professionals in your local area. If you want, you can also set-up an online interview using Google Hangouts; however, you should make an effort in your local area if at all possible for this experiential learning opportunity to conduct a face-to-face interview. You will conduct a 30-minute interview with a business professional who has experience with Forecasting and Inventory Management. During the interview, ask permission to submit their first name, last name, and email address as elements of your interview summary, in case your professor wants to check-in with them on their thoughts of the interview. As the person conducting the interview, you should dress professionally for the interview, and be prepared with some initial research of the person you are interviewing (review their LinkedIn profile) as well as, their organization (online research, corporate website, etc.). The point is to show up as a business professional, and to be properly prepared and engaged for the interview. You will be asking the questions, and you should be prepared to be an active listener and to ask pertinent follow-on questions. The three main question sets you are to ask, allowing about 10 minutes of discussion each, are: Question Set 1: (Forecasting) Does your organization use both qualitative and quantitative forecasting methods? What methods do you use to support your business with forecasting (examples: regression analysis, Delphi Method)? Is there a special team focused on forecasting, or is it a responsibility of each professional within your organization? Question Set 2: (Inventory Management) How does your organization implement inventory management? What types of information systems does your organization utilize to support effective inventory management? Does your organization implement JIT, Just-In-Time, or some other form of lean applied to inventory? Question Set 3: (Reflection on Operations Management) Take a moment to share and reflect, with the professional you interview, on what you have learned during our term, focused on operations management. After reflection, continue to discussion with the following questions. How does operations management ensure the “mission happens” for a successful organization? How does the “puzzle pieces” of various traditional areas of business connect within your organization? Does your organization have a vertical (mechanistic) or horizontal (organic) organizational structure? Do you have a top “lesson learned” related to effective operations for a business? To successfully complete this interview, review the rubric prior to the interview and ensure you complete all required elements. However, in general, you will be composing 2-pages of meeting minute format summary of the interview, highlighting who you selected to interview, their contact information, the three responses, any other follow-on questions or key points, and then close with a summary and your reflection on what you learned in relation to the course topics. Advice to Avoid Plagiarism in Interview Assignments  Do not list the questions in the interview document you submit  Use headers such as Question Set 1: to separate out your interview narrative Page 2 of 3 Unit 10 [MT435]    Ensure all writing is the direct words of the person you interviewed, using quotes on their responses, or your own original narrative as part of the interview process, or your own reflections Ensure your reflection is in your own words Check your TII Report! Directions for Submitting Your Journal: Interview Compose your meeting minute format summary of the interview in a Word document and save it in a location that includes your name and the title. Submit your interview summary to the Unit 10 Journal: Interview Dropbox. MT435 Unit 10 Journal: Interview Rubric for Interview Transcript Points Possible Points Earned Content (48%) 24 pts. (2-full pages Meeting Minutes) Question Set 1 (Forecasting) is covered to appropriate breadth and depth demonstrating knowledge of the outcome. 8 Question Set 2 (Inventory Management) is covered to appropriate breadth and depth demonstrating knowledge of the outcome. 8 Question Set 3 (Reflection on Operations Management) is covered to appropriate breadth and depth demonstrating knowledge of the outcome. 8 Analysis (30%) 15 pts. The interview minutes effectively convey research was conducted on the person being interviewed. 5 The interview minutes effectively convey research was conducted on the organization of the person being interviewed. 5 The interview minutes effectively convey active listening with pertinent professional follow-on questions being asked during the interview. 5 Writing (22%) 11 pts. Contact information (first name, last name, email address) included at the start of the interview for the professional being interviewed. 3 Meeting minute format, using bullet statements to summarize key points is utilized as effective professional communication within the business environment. 4 Appropriate summary and reflection are included at the close of the interview transcript, utilizing either bullet statement or paragraph format. 4 Total 50 Page 3 of 3
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Explanation & Answer

Attached.

Running head: INTERVIEW ON FORECASTING AND INVENTORY

Interview on forecasting and inventory
Name
Institution

1

Interviewee
Dennis Williamson
INVENTORY MANAGEMENT SPECIALIST
Tekas Products Incorporated
265 Boston Road
North Billerica, MA 01862
(978) 856-398

Question Set 1
As the Inventory Specialist in your organization do you use both qualitative and
quantitative forecasting methods?
“Yes, we use both qualitative and quantitative forecast approach in our organization because we
feel that a little bit of both provides a thorough and better picture of where we need to be as a
business at a defined time.”
What quantitative method do you use?
“We use the graphical method of plotting data on a spread sheet and developing graphs. The
graphs provide us with the visuals of the patterns and trends and thus we can determine the
future demands”
What methods do you use to support your business with forecasting (examples: regression
analysis, Delphi Method)?

“We use the Delphi Method. We find it effective when we combine a series of expert opinions.
Various experts provide their views, and we take the results of the arguments and develop a
decision on where the opinions of the experts merge.”
Why this method?
“We appreciate the method because we have seen the positive results that the company has been
able to gain by applying it. Since we are a young organization, we do not have enough
information about the markets, so we depend on the knowledge and judgment of the experts with
some of them having worked in more prominent organizations for many years.”
Can you explain how you carry out the process?
“As I said earlier on while answering your first question, we combine quantitative and qualitative
approaches to achieve a convincing forecast. The expert's Feedback from experts is usually
provided w...


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