Operations management and people

The management of operations is really the management of all the resources involved in operations, such as materials, equipment, information and people. Although we tend to focus our attention on topics such as supply chain management or inventory management, when we determine a new way for a business to operate we implement changes and improvements to the way people work. While methods and software are designed to optimise the performance of the productive system as a whole, it does appear that the people who have to operate the system are often left to cope as well as they can. At a simple level, a company might improve the performance of its stores by tidying and reallocating shelves, together with changing the way goods-inward notes are handled, or the way the re-order point or replenishment is conducted. The effect on people could be insignificant, such as getting used to the new locations, or it could require new duties to be undertaken such as counting or inspecting items and recording stock movements in new ways, whether with cards or computers. Yet these changes can have an effect on the people and the work. I once investigated data entry problems in a component store, and found that one of the storemen did not log the store’s transactions on the computer terminal provided, but made notes on scraps of paper or cardboard for his colleague to deal with later. The stock inaccuracies were probably due to these records being entered late or not at all. The reason, it transpired, was that after forty years of handling rough castings and the like, the storeman’s fingers were so hardened and clumsy that he had no confidence in using the keyboard. This was a minor problem, but one that affected both production in the factory and the selfesteem of the individual. Many of the changes made in operations result in more significant changes being made to daily work. Old activities may no longer be required, being replaced by new ones. Besides creating resistance to change, when faced with this challenge staff may feel that their experience no longer helps them deal with the new tasks they face. Work groups and communications patterns are easily disrupted, so that people may no longer share their work with the same people; or they may feel as though they are cut off from existing social relationships. The effect on the work can come through reduced motivation or through the disruption problemsolving channels. Operations managers have often made deliberate attempts to improve teamwork and to generate constructive relationships, but this side of management, an important aspect of any implementation of change, has had insufficient attention from researchers in operations management. Implementation itself can cause enormous difficulties and stresses for those involved in making the changes, besides those involved in working with the new systems. The implementation of ERP systems is an area where ambitious timescales and very complex problems, combined with the knowledge that the company’s operations could simply stop if a project fails, provide a stressful situation that can put people under pressure for many months. I am aware of two such implementations that have been blamed – by staff – for the deaths of stressed project team colleagues. Although this extreme is far from the normal way of things, it should help focus our attention on how the work patterns created may affect the people concerned. Production Planning & Control would welcome research looking at the human aspects of operations management, whether in the design of new working arrangements or in the approaches taken to the management of change. All managers have a responsibility to look after the people in their care, and operations managers in particular have a responsibility for designing the way people spend their time at work. It is a vital role for researchers to develop an understanding of both the pitfalls and the best practice involved in the management of the human element.