Page 288 - Operations Strategy

dEPloyIng CAPAbIlITIEs In THE mARKET 263

Figure 7.12 process control may be one of the most operational tasks, but it can
bring strategic benefits

Enhanced supplier Better products and
relationships services

Understanding of Understanding
process inputs Operations process limits
capabilities

Knowledge DEVELOP Control
Retain best Sta€ job Enhanced Customer
sta€ satisfaction quality loyalty

Operations
resources and
processes
Higher process Less costly
eciency flexibility

Lower Wide product/
costs service range

processes become more flexible in terms of widening their range of capabilities, with-
out excessive additional cost. This, in turn, allows the operation to produce a wider
range of products and services. At the same time, fewer process errors mean better
conformance quality and (usually) happier customers. Most staff, too, will prefer to
work in a process that is under control. Certainly, process uncertainty can undermine
staff morale. Retaining good staff within chaotic processes is not easy in the long term.
Well-controlled processes will also have fewer errors and waste, and therefore high
efficiency and low cost. It can even affect the relationship with suppliers. High levels of
process knowledge imply an understanding of how input will affect the process. Armed
with this knowledge, relationships with suppliers can develop on a more professional
basis. The important point here is that whereas grappling with the details of process
control may seem operational, its benefits are not. The increased revenue opportunities
of better products and services, a wide product range and customer loyalty, together
with better supply relationships, good staff and lower costs, are unquestionably stra-
tegic (see Figure 7.12).

Deploying capabilities in the market

Operations capabilities are of little benefit if not used. Indeed, it could be argued that
operations capabilities do not really exist unless they are used; they remain nothing
more than unrealised potential. A vital element in strategic operations improvement,
therefore, is the ability to leverage developed operations capabilities into the market.
Not that operations capability will necessarily exclusively define a company’s market

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