operations objectives
By
Nigel Slack
Operations objectives are the explicit dimen-
sions of performance against which an operation
will attempt to satisfy market requirements: as a
result they do not usually include measures such
as return on investment or market share – even
if they directly influence these metrics. Nor are
they the same as the general role or aspirations
that the operations function may have; rather,
their purpose is to translate market positioning
and competitive factors into an operations-
relevant format. Of course, if these objectives
are to have any meaning for an operation, they
must relate to the attributes of organizational
performance that OPERATIONS ACTIVITIES can
influence in some way. In other words, “reliable
consumer electronics” needs to be translated
into, for instance, x parts per million defective as
a quality objective. Many authors have defined
generic sets of performance objectives. They are
referred to variously as “performance criteria,”
operations “strategic dimensions,” “perfor-
mance dimensions,” “competitive priorities,” or
“strategic priorities.” Fundamentally, although
there are specific differences between authors,
there is a set of commonly used categories:
QUALITY, speed, dependability, FLEXIBILITY,
and COST. In addition, some authors include
more diffuse objectives such as “innovativeness”
Wiley Encyclopedia of Management, edited by Professor Sir Cary L Cooper.
Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
as part of the set of operations objectives.
this, they mean the ability of the operation to
introduce novel products or services, or intro-
duce new process technologies or methodologies
into their operations. A more pragmatic way
of incorporating innovativeness might be to
include it as either a subset or consequence of
flexibility. Other terms that have been used to
describe operations objectives include “compet-
itive factors,” “critical success factors,” “order
winners,” and “competitive priorities.”
See also design chain; life cycle effects; operations
role; operations strategy; performance measurement;
sandcone model of improvement; service strategy
Bibliography
Hill, T.J. (1993) Manufacturing Strategy: The Strategic
Management of the Manufacturing Function, 2nd edn,
Macmillan, Basingstoke.
Leong, G.K., Snyder, D.L. and Ward, P.T. (1990)
Research in the process and content of manufac-
turing strategy. OMEGA, The International Journal
of Management Science, 18 (2), 109–122.
Slack, N., Chambers, S. and Johnston, R. (2004)
Operations Management, 4th edn, Financial
Times/Prentice-Hall, London.
Slack, N. and Lewis, M.A. (2002) Operations Strategy,
Prentice-Hall, Upper Saddle River, NJ.