Discussion
Operations management can be termed as the overall administration of procedures, which transform inputs into products or services that add additional value for the customer. The main objective of operations management is increasing efficiency and fulfilling customers’ requirements (Anand and Gray 2017). The strategy of operations management is needed to be focused for having a plan of action that is completely intended in accomplishing any particular goal or objective. It refers to the fact the involvement of operations and service management would be needed for achieving every goal or objective of the business and even ensuring that there would be a long termed survival. This report provides a brief outline on the supply chain management of Telstra Corporation Limited.
Telstra Corporation Limited is a popular and significant telecommunications company that eventually builds as well as operates different telecommunications networks and market voice, internet accessibility, mobile, pay television and many more. The organization is considered as the largest telecommunications company as per market share and they have been doing business from 1975 (Telstra.com.au. 2022). The major products of the organization have been considered by the customers for their higher quality and maintenance of standards accordingly. They have even focused on the diversified products as well as emerging technologies in their business to gain maximum efficiency and effectiveness.
There are a few distinctive practices of operations management and one of the most vital practices is SCM or supply chain management (Heizer et al. 2017). SCM is the management of the flow of products and services and even involves every procedure that can modify the raw materials into finalized products. Such management also includes an active streamlining of the supply side activities of a business for increasing the overall customers’ value and obtain competitive benefits in the market place. Hence, the shortages of products or services could be managed in an effective manner (Copacino 2019). Telstra has been able to consider the most effective and significant supply chain strategies and processes in their business for ensuring that they are able to gain maximum efficiency without any kind of complexity.
They have focused on five distinct parts of SCM designing and these include the respective plan or strategy, source of raw materials, manufacturing that is focused on efficiency and productivity, delivery and logistics and finally the return system for unwanted or defective products (Hugos 2018). The supply chain manager tries to reduce shortages and keep the costs down and as a result, they are able to oversee or manage the supply chain as well as logistics operations for maximizing efficiency successfully.
One Operation Management Practice in Telstra
The organizational management of Telstra has ensured that they are considering the SCOR model for analyzing their supply chain and different components are analyzed for getting a clear idea of the procedures and operations. The supply chain operations reference model or SCOR model is a specific management tool that is being utilized for addressing, improving and even communicating the major decisions of supply chain management in a specific company with the suppliers and customers of a business (Blanchard 2021). The model is responsible for identifying different business processes in Telstra that are needed to satisfy every vital demand of the customers. A sustained and quality management attribute of the supply chains has been vital and significant for Telstra to remain highly competitive in the Australian telecommunications market and even for the globalized economy to stay focused. Moreover, the strategies of planning, sourcing, and making, delivering, returning and enabling the attributes have been focused on a top level priority (Ben-Daya, Hassini and Bahroun 2019).
Being a multinational company, it has been vital and significant for Telstra to implement a highly effective model for the business processes and operations and it can be possible with an efficient model of supply chain in their business. The incorporation of an agile model is termed as effective for such circumstance (Rajeev et al. 2017). There are four major components of the agile supply chain model and these include virtual integration, procedural alignment, a networked base and finally market sensitivity. Hence, a flexibility is present in the supply chain and issues are reduced without any kind of complexity.
The suppliers of Telstra are extremely efficient and they have gained insight into the process of their working. The purchasing attribute of the organization has put them in a unique position for working with the suppliers for positively influencing their environmental, ethical and social performances (Suppliers of Telstra. 2022). They have been focusing on the procurement aspect in their supply chain, so that the most effective and significant raw materials are being procured, under every circumstance and Telstra is able to search for partners, who offer great value as well as high standards for helping them to deliver a better service.
The organizational management has been improving the methodology of managing their respective relations with the global suppliers, so that the business performance and development is increased. In procurement, it is needed to help out the business in reducing the costs and focusing on a better and effective result. Procurement management is enhanced in the organization for ensuring that every procurement team of the organization is supporting them in expanding their sales and growing revenues. The teams for supplier relationship management or SRM had been playing a distinctive role to help the businesses in managing the aspects successfully (SCM in Telstra. 2022). Telstra has been focusing on the maximization of their relations with the suppliers for fulfilling every expectation of the customer that requires partnership with the suppliers for developing new products or services.
SCOR Model
A sustainable approach has been possible in the supply chain of Telstra and they have ensured that the business is following the supplier code of conduct in their operations. This particular operations management practice has been required for the organizational management for ensuring that although they are involved in the telecommunications industry; the products and services would not be impacting on the sustainability factor of the business and they are able to check the status of their sustainable practices easily (Lambert and Enz 2017). Telstra has ensured that they are involving the highly efficient suppliers after collecting proper vendor information and getting a clear image of the format to be followed.
The inclusion of JIT or just in time inventory management is enhanced in Telstra for ensuring that they are working closely with the suppliers, so that the raw materials arrive as production is scheduled to initiate. The objective of this particular inventory management methodology is to comprise of the lowest amount of inventory on hand for meeting demands. For this particular purpose, supply chain management is needed to be enhanced and also ensure that a continuous improvement is possible that can eliminate waste and increase flexibility accordingly (Min, Zacharia and Smith 2019). They have considered a detailed effectiveness in the procurement management with a traditional cost effective manner.
With the consideration of a just in time strategy, Telstra has been able to focus on a more cost effective production as well as quality improvement. Hence, the productivity is improved and they have been able to improve their supplier relationships and used storage space. Moreover, the organizational management of Telstra had also been able to reduce the costs that are related to storage in the business processes and operations (Langley et al. 2020). It has allowed in reducing complexities and removing duplication in such a manner that it was dealing with different suppliers. Hence, the procurement function of Telstra has been established for adding value to develop their distinct capability of supplier relationship management.
They have ensured that they are focusing on supplier relationship management or the most systematic approach in their business processes for assessing all vendors that are supplying products, materials or services to the company for determining the distinct contribution of every supplier to gain success and even developing various strategies for improving the performances (Waters 2021). It has allowed them in improving their overall effectiveness and efficiency and get advantages from the suppliers and sustain their benefits in an appropriate manner. Furthermore, the inclusion of an agile model in the supply chain management has allowed Telstra to get better innovativeness as well as a mutual beneficial growth in the business.
Agile Model
A technological aspect is termed as extremely beneficial and effective for the organizational management of Telstra to gain success and additional competitive advantages. Since they are a part of the Australian telecommunications industry, it has been extremely vital and significant for them to ensure that the supply chain design is made with the help of advanced technology and an accurate framework (Reimann and Ketchen Jr 2017). The involvement of emerging technologies in supply chain management has allowed Telstra to gain additional business innovation and increased product complexity as well as proper customers’ demands. With the help of Internet connectivity and sensors, they have been collecting data at each checkpoint from the subsequent status of raw materials’ flow to the condition and location of the finished products.
Telstra has considered artificial intelligence as well as advanced analytics for helping to drive additional automation and delivering insights for promoting additional efficiency and even accelerating product delivery successfully. Hence, they have been able to get the benefit of availability of raw materials without any kind of complexity or issue (Sanders 2020). Moreover, the inclusion of the technology of Internet of Things or IoT has been distinctive for focusing on annual growth and development, so that the maximum opportunities are obtained easily. This particular technology has been responsible for communicating information and delivering insights, which would upend the practices of traditional supply chain. It has been significant for them to reduce the overall risks and threats in an effective manner and IoT devices combination with AI and cloud had made it more comprehensive and efficient (Ben-Daya, Hassini and Bahroun 2019).
Since the organization is a part of the telecommunications sector, there is a high risk that the organization would be facing cyber security risks and threats, when the systems and processes would be facing exposure accordingly. As a result, the involvement of new technologies would be required for reducing the impact of these risks and threats in a distinctive manner. Telstra has also considered the technology of blockchain in their supply chain for bringing improved visibility as well as transparency in the procedures and operations (Frazzon et al. 2019). The main reason is that blockchain has created a significant record of transactions, so that the organizational management of Telstra is able to get clear supplier information.
The combination of artificial intelligence, advanced analytics and machine learning has allowed Telstra in automating warehousing operations and even improve delivery times as well as proactively managing inventory and optimizing strategic relations of sourcing by creating new customers’ experiences, which has increased satisfaction and boost sales. Telstra has been able to focus on larger data sets and get effective insights without any kind of human intervention. Predictive analytics had been included in the supply chain process for driving cost reduction and improving customers’ experiences as well as real time product intelligence (Waters 2019). Hence, it was easier for them to maintain better coordination and collaboration in the business processes and operations. The main benefits that are gained from the involvement of technology in the supply chain management are management of the mobile worker effectively and better customers’ services. There had been improved access to information as well as improved insights and agility in Telstra.
Operation Management Practice impacting Telstra for Efficiency
Telstra has been able to get organizational success and effectiveness with the involvement of different supporting functions linked to the operations management practice of supply chain management.
One of the major and the most significant supporting function that is needed in every business to consumer organization is marketing. For the creation of better customers’ value, relationship marketing eventually aims at the development, maintenance and even enhancement of several relationships in a supply chain (Benton Jr 2020). As a result, the role of marketing through the concept of marketing, relationship marketing and market orientation has been significant for the overall success of supply chain management.
They have ensured that marketing is fostering collaboration amongst different links in the supply chain. With the help of communicating regularly with the partners, Telstra has been able to get a clear idea of the demands of their customers and a specific culture of collaboration and coordination is focused. They have also utilized specific messaging and dispersion of information for connecting with and integrating suppliers into the team, so that the negative impacts are reduced and the organizational management is able to get maximum efficiency in their business processes. With an appropriate approach of marketing, Telstra has been able to focus on the selection of a few distinct suppliers for their business to gain success and efficiency accordingly (Russell and Taylor 2019). Hence, the products and services are designed in such a manner that they are properly aligned with the elements of supply chain and the negative impacts are reduced.
The next significant supporting function of supply chain management that has been responsible for providing organizational success is operations. Telstra has been able to focus on a broader area, which eventually covers both service and operational industries with the inclusion of sourcing, materials management, dispersion, logistics, demand forecasting, order fulfillment, operational planning and many more (Hugos 2018). The operations manager has been managing the entire supply chain procedure by a successful maintenance of the control of inventory management, the procedure of production, distribution, sourcing of their suppliers and even sales for supplying every required product at reasonable cost.
Moreover, the operations manager would be tasked with ensuring that the business is successfully converting every input like materials, technology and labor into outputs efficiently for gaining success. The incorporation of a properly managed supply chain procedure in Telstra has resulted in error free procurement process and even an effective production procedure as well as lower overhead expenses or timely delivery of products to the customers (Copacino 2019). Hence, it becomes easier to focus on delivery management in an appropriate manner and the customers are majorly benefitted, without any kind of complexity or issue. A proper management of inventory is needed in an organization for ensuring that Telstra is able to improve their business processes and operations and even providing major opportunities for the business to accomplish competitive benefits for attracting and keeping their clients.
Conclusion
Hence, a conclusion can be drawn that strategic operations decisions involve location decisions, types of technologies to be used by the company and even determining the process of labor and equipment to be organized as well as long term capacity of the company for fulfilling customers’ demands. As a result, they have been able to plan, organize and even supervise in the contexts of manufacturing and production of the goods and services. Telstra has been able to ensure that the supply chain is extremely effective and every negative impact is reduced from the business. This above report has discussed on the operations management practice of supply chain management in Telstra.
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