2015_Spring_BA2020EOL51 Due Date: 01/17/2015
Cathy Lymas
1. Identify the operations management problems that Dr. Barr is having at the clinic. Dr. Barr operations management problems consist: planning, organizing, control, scheduling, customer flow, inventory, lack of efficient tactical strategy, ultimately Dr. Barr has no clear operation strategy.
2. The schedule Dr. Barr set up worked well in the clinic where she was a resident. What are some of the reasons why it might not be working here? She modeled her operation strategy from her residency experience. All business may seem the same on the outside but the infrastructure and operations planning must be geared towards the staff and specific business needs or the system will develop problems in the long run. The demand for her services is greater on Fridays than Wednesday. She should change her extended hours to Fridays. Instead of both doctors rotating on Wednesday and Saturday; they should rotate on Fridays and Saturdays in order to best accommodate. However, the demand is so great on Friday and Saturday one doctor is not enough. Dr. Barr could either hire another full time or part time doctor or both existing doctors should work on Friday and Saturday. Hiring another doctor or both doctors working those days possibly enables the company to close earlier and cut back on Dr. Barr’s paperwork. Dr. Barr stated, on Friday and Saturday she was overwhelmed with paperwork but the nurse and office assistant had minimal paperwork to do. I would have the office assistant work regular hours on Friday but not work at all Saturdays because that function is not needed as much and can be adjusted until the following scheduled work day.
3. Identify some of the reasons why the clinic is having inventory problems. Dr. Barr inventory method is a formula for disaster. Too many people ordering at will. I would enlarge or enrich the office manager or office assistant job description to include inventory management/control; because it would centralize the inventory system and make it easier for tracking, evaluating cost, control and balancing. There should be a set schedule for ordering inventory such as weekly on some items and monthly on others (of course some items may need to order as needed or more often).
4. What should Dr. Barr have done differently to avoid some of the problems she is currently experiencing? As I mention earlier in my opinion Dr Barr had more of an idea and not much of a plan. Business advice or counsel is recommended before starting a