Operations management is a concentration option for Chicago Booth MBAs (FTMBA, PTMBAs and Executive MBAs). Graduate Tutor provides live online tutoring for all the Operations Management courses at the University of Chicago, Booth School of Business. Please email or call us if we can provide you operations management tutoring.
Operations Management Concentration Courses
Chicago Booth MBAs can choose operations management as their concentration by choosing three of courses from the operations research department. There are many options. Here are a few options that GraduateTutor.com provides tutoring in:
Operations Management: Business Process Basics
This course is all about understanding the key factors that help structure, manage, and improve a company’s ongoing business processes. The goal is to gain an edge in customer responsiveness, pricing, quality, and the variety of products and services offered.
Managerial Decision Modeling
To make great decisions, you need to tackle complex problems, weigh your options in uncertain situations, and choose the best path based on the info you have. You’ll learn to use tools like optimization, simulation, and decision trees to break down decision models. Think of it as learning how to handle resource allocation, risk analysis, and making decisions over time.
Revenue Management
Here, you’ll dive into pricing and revenue optimization. You’ll figure out how to use pricing and capacity strategies along with optimization tools to boost revenue, even when resources and information are limited.
Managing Service Operations
This course shows you how to design and improve service offerings to achieve long-term success. You’ll learn to tackle challenges in service delivery by combining insights from operations management, consumer behavior, marketing, and strategy. The course looks at services from the customer’s perspective, economic viability, employee systems, and the customer’s role in service delivery.
Health-Care Analytics Lab
In this lab course, you’ll use data-driven analytics to make health-care delivery more efficient. You’ll work in teams on real-world projects with health-care institutions, applying operations theory to practice under the guidance of a faculty member.
Supply Chain Strategy and Practice
This course focuses on how the business environment affects decisions on supply chain design and management. You’ll learn to improve the flow of materials and information across a network of suppliers, manufacturers, distributors, and retailers.
Bus 40801-88: Operations Management is a core course
Graduate Tutor provides live online tutoring for Bus 40801-88 Operations Management. Bus 40801-88: Operations Management is a core course offered at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business.
This MBA course focuses on understanding the levers for structuring, managing, and improving a firm’s recurring business processes to achieve competitive advantage in customer responsiveness, price, quality, and variety of products and services. Bus 40801-88: Operations Management course covers operations research principles such as Lean and Process Reengineering and other operational improvement programs. We discuss the following on this page:
- Target Audience: Bus 40801-88 Operations Management
- Bus 40801-88 Operations Research Course Objectives
- Bus 40801-88 Operations Management Course Structure
- Teaching Format Bus 40801-88 Operations Management
- Bus 40801-88 Operations Management Course Plan
- Operations Management Faculty at Chicago Booth School of Business
- Textbook for Bus 40801-88 Operations Management
- Bus 40801-88 Operations Management Evaluation
- Tutoring for Bus 40801-88 Operations Management at Chicago Booth School of Business
Target Audience: Bus 40801-88 Operations Management
This course is essential for students aspiring to become consultants, entrepreneurs, or general managers. It is also valuable for those interested in strategy, marketing, and finance, where the interface between these functions and operations is critical. Understanding how firms become market leaders through operations is also important for careers in investment a popular career at the Chicago Booth School of Business.
Bus 40801-88 Operations Research Course Objectives
The Operations Management course aims to:
- Develop a comprehensive understanding of how to manage the operations of a firm.
- Explore the impact of operational issues on various business decisions.
- Equip students with the ability to critically evaluate operational improvement programs.
- Provide knowledge of how to achieve competitive advantages in different business settings.
Bus 40801-88 Operations Management Course Structure
The Bus 40801-88 Operations Management course is structured around several key modules:
- Introduction to Operations Management
- Topics: Strategic operational capabilities, the definition of operations management, the Operations Quadrangle, business process flows, and Little’s Law.
- Required Reading: “The Goal” by Goldratt, “Competing on Capabilities” by Stalk, Evans, and Shulman, “Deep Change: How Operational Innovation Can Transform Your Company” by Hammer, “Varsity Subs” by Eisenstein.
- Capacity Management
- Topics: Capacity analysis, product mix decisions, linear programming.
- Required Reading: “The Goal” by Goldratt, Chapter 2 of “The Operations Quadrangle,” McD’s Service Stalls at Drive-Thru,” National Cranberry Cooperative,” and Merton Truck Company.
- Process and Financial Flow Analysis
- Topics: Profit drivers and the Operations Quadrangle, introduction to variability in process flows, reengineering, critical paths.
- Required Reading: “The Goal” by Goldratt, Chapter 3 of “The Operations Quadrangle,” Reengineering by Hammer and Champy, “Coffee on the Double,” “CRU Rentals.”
- Capacity Management Under Uncertainty
- Topics: Service operations, call center management, queueing phenomena (balking, jockeying, reneging), levers for improving queueing costs, M/M/1, G/G/1, and G/G/m queueing models.
- Required Reading: Finish “The Goal” by Goldratt, “Merchants Mull the Long and the Short of Lines,” “The Psychology of Waiting Lines” by Maister, “Breaking the Trade-Off Between Efficiency and Service” by Frei, “Sof-Optics, Inc. (A).”
- Lean Operations
- Topics: Toyota Production System (Just-in-Time, Jidoka), self-improving workflow systems, quality management.
- Required Reading: Chapter 4 of “The Operations Quadrangle,” “The Lean Service Machine” by Swank, “Jeans Therapy” by King, “Bucket-Brigades: Self-Organizing Work Teams,” “Six Sigma: What It Is and How to Use It,” “Toyota Motor Manufacturing,” and “Decoding the DNA of the Toyota Production System.”
- Supply Chain Dynamics and Systems Thinking
- Topics: The Bullwhip Effect, Just-in-Time Distribution (JITD), Vendor Managed Inventory (VMI), organizational learning disabilities, and system archetypes.
- Required Reading: “Barilla SpA (A) and (D),” “Does Your Organization Have a Learning Disability?” by Senge, “The Bullwhip Effect In Supply Chains” by Lee, Padmanabhan, and Whang, “Barilla SpA (C).”
- Foundations of Inventory Management
- Topics: Introduction to forecasting, Newsvendor problem, Economic order quantity, Safety stock, cycle stock (Q, R)-policies.
- Required Reading: Chapter 5 of “The Operations Quadrangle,” “Cisco’s $2.25 Billion Mea Culpa,” “L. L. Bean.”
- Supply Chain Coordination and Pooling Strategies
- Topics: Supply chain contracts, pooling, and postponement.
- Required Reading: Chapter 14 of “Matching Supply with Demand,” Supply Chain Close-Up: The Video Vault,” Mass Customization at Hewlett-Packard,” and JungleBooks.com.
- Littlefield Simulation
Bus 40801-88 Operations Management Teaching Format
The teaching format like most courses at Chicago Booth includes lectures, case studies, and simulations. The Littlefield Technologies simulation is a significant component of the course, where students compete to manage a factory simulation. The simulation provides practical experience in applying theoretical knowledge. You can read more about the Littlefield Technologies simulation here.
Bus 40801-88 Operations Management Course Plan
A typical Bus 40801-88 Operations Management course plan includes:
- Session 1: Introduction to Operations Management
- Session 2: Capacity Management
- Session 3: Process and Financial Flow Analysis
- Session 4: Capacity Management Under Uncertainty
- Session 5: Lean Operations
- Session 6: Supply Chain Dynamics and Systems Thinking
- Session 7: Foundations of Inventory Management
- Session 8: Supply Chain Coordination and Pooling Strategies
- Session 9: Littlefield Debriefing and Course Wrap-up
- Session 10: Final Exam
Textbook for Bus 40801-88 Operations Management
Course materials include “The Goal” by Eliyahu M. Goldratt, course packets, and class handouts. The optional textbook recommended for background reference is “Matching Supply with Demand” by Gerard Cachon and Christian Terwiesch.
Reading Material For Bus 40801-88: Operations Management at Chicago Booth
Here are the additional reading materials presented in sentences with their associated sessions and topics:
- “The Goal” by Eliyahu M. Goldratt is used in Sessions 1, 2, 3, and 4 to cover various topics, including Introduction to Operations Management, Capacity Management, Process and Financial Flow Analysis, and Capacity Management Under Uncertainty.
- “Competing on Capabilities” by Stalk, Evans, and Shulman is required reading for Session 1 of Introduction to Operations Management.
- “Deep Change: How Operational Innovation Can Transform Your Company” by Hammer is included in Session 1 for Introduction to Operations Management.
- “Basic Concepts in Probability” (optional review) is provided as an optional review for Session 1 on Introduction to Operations Management.
- Chapter 2, Capacity Management of “The Operations Quadrangle,” is required for Session 2 on Capacity Management.
- In Session 2, “McD’s Service Stalls at Drive-Thru” by Crain’s Chicago Business is read to discuss Capacity Management.
- Chapter 3, Sections 3.1 and 3.2, Cycle-Time Management of “The Operations Quadrangle,” is read in Session 3 for Process and Financial Flow Analysis.
- “Reengineering,” Chapter 2 by Hammer and Champy, is part of the reading for Session 3 on Process and Financial Flow Analysis.
- “Coffee on the Double” by the Wall Street Journal is included in Session 3, which covers Process and Financial Flow Analysis.
- Linear Programming Note: Merton is also part of the reading for Session 3 on Process and Financial Flow Analysis.
- Chapter 3, Cycle-Time Management of “The Operations Quadrangle,” is further explored in Session 4, Capacity Management Under Uncertainty.
- “Merchants Mull the Long and the Short of Lines” by Wall Street Journal is required reading for Session 4 on Capacity Management Under Uncertainty.
- Maister’s “The Psychology of Waiting Lines” is included in Session 4 on Capacity Management Under Uncertainty.
- “Breaking the Trade-Off Between Efficiency and Service” by Frei is also read in Session 4 for Capacity Management Under Uncertainty.
- Chapter 4, Lean Business Processes of “The Operations Quadrangle,” is required for Session 5 on Lean Operations.
- “The Lean Service Machine” by Swank is read in Session 5 to discuss Lean Operations.
- “Jeans Therapy” by King is included in the reading for Session 5 on Lean Operations.
- “Bucket-Brigades: Self-Organizing Work Teams” by Eisenstein and Bartholdi is part of the reading for Session 5 on Lean Operations.
- “Six Sigma: What It Is and How to Use It” by Plotkin is required reading for Session 5 on Lean Operations.
- “Decoding the DNA of the Toyota Production System” by Spear and Bowen is included in Session 5 for the topic of Lean Operations.
- “Barilla SpA (A) and (D)” by Harvard Cases are required for Session 6 on Supply Chain Dynamics and Systems Thinking.
- “Does Your Organization Have a Learning Disability?” Chapter 2 of Peter M. Senge’s The Fifth Discipline is read in Session 6 for Supply Chain Dynamics and Systems Thinking.
- “The Bullwhip Effect In Supply Chains” by Lee, Padmanabhan, and Whang, Sloan Management Review is a post-session reading for Session 6 on Supply Chain Dynamics and Systems Thinking.
- Chapter 5, Inventory Management of “The Operations Quadrangle,” is required for Session 7 on Foundations of Inventory Management.
- “Cisco’s $2.25 Billion Mea Culpa” by CNET is read in Session 7 to discuss the Foundations of Inventory Management.
- Chapter 14, “Matching Supply with Demand” by Gerard Cachon and Christian Terwiesch, is required reading for Session 8 on Supply Chain Coordination and Pooling Strategies.
- “Supply Chain Close-Up: The Video Vault” by Harvard Case is part of the reading for Session 8 on Supply Chain Coordination and Pooling Strategies.
- “Mass Customization at Hewlett-Packard” by Feitzinger and Lee is included in Session 8, which covers Supply Chain Coordination and Pooling Strategies.
Bus 40801-88 Operations Management Faculty at Chicago Booth School of Business
The Bus 40801-88 Operations Management course was taught by Professor Dan Adelman, a renowned expert in operations management. However, several faculty from the University of Chicago‘s operations team at Chicago Booth can teach this course. The structure and reading material may vary. Faculty are supported by one or more teaching assistants who provide additional guidance and support to students, given the large class sizes.
Bus 40801-88 Operations Management Evaluation
The Bus 40801-88 Operations Management course evaluation has several components: Group Homework: 20%, Littlefield Simulation: 10%, Class Contribution: 10%, Midterm Exam: 20%, and Final Exam: 40%. The final exam for Bus 40801-88 Operations Management at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business is an in-class, closed book, comprehensive where MBAs and EMBAs students are allowed to bring two pages of notes, double-sided.
These readings provide essential background knowledge and practical insights to support the case studies and enhance the learning experience in each session of the Operations Management course.
Case Studies Bus 40801-88: Operations Management at Chicago Booth
Here are the case studies presented as sentences with their associated session and topic:
- The Varsity Subs case study is associated with Session 1 on Introduction to Operations Management.
- The National Cranberry Cooperative case study is associated with Session 2 on Capacity Management.
- The Merton Truck Company case study is associated with Session 2 on Capacity Management.
- The CRU Rentals case study is associated with Session 3 on Process and Financial Flow Analysis.
- The Sof-Optics, Inc. (A) case study is associated with Session 4, which is on Capacity Management Under Uncertainty.
- The Toyota Motor Manufacturing case study is associated with Session 5 on Lean Operations.
- The Barilla SpA (A) and (D) case studies are associated with Session 6, which is on Supply Chain Dynamics and Systems Thinking.
- The Barilla SpA (C) case study is used as post-session reading for Session 6, which is on Supply Chain Dynamics and Systems Thinking.
- The L. L. Bean case study is associated with Session 7 on Foundations of Inventory Management.
- The Supply Chain Close-Up: The Video Vault case study is associated with Session 8, which is on Supply Chain Coordination and Pooling Strategies.
- The Mass Customization at Hewlett-Packard case study is also associated with Session 8, which is on Supply Chain Coordination and Pooling Strategies.
- The JungleBooks.com case study is likewise associated with Session 8 on the topic of Supply Chain Coordination and Pooling Strategies.
These case studies provide practical applications and insights into the respective topics covered in each session.
Tutoring for Bus 40801-88 Operations Management at Chicago Booth School of Business
Expert tutoring can significantly enhance students’ understanding and performance in the Operations Management course. Our graduate-level tutors offer personalized, one-on-one sessions to help students master key concepts, develop effective strategies for the Littlefield simulation, and prepare for exams. Whether you need help understanding course material, completing assignments, or preparing for exams, our tutors provide the support you need to excel.
Graduate Tutor provides live online tutoring for BUS 40801-88 Operations Management as well as other operations research courses at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business. Please email or call us if we can provide you operations research tutoring for any operations research courses at Chicago Booth. Or for that matter any other quantitative course you will encounter in a b-school program.