OPIM 658 - Service Operations Management

Institution:

University of Pennsylvania

Subject:

Description:

Staff. Prerequisite(s): Courses in operations management, linear programming, probability and statistics. The service sector represents the largest segment of most industrial economies. In the U.S., for example, it accounts for approximately 70% of GDP and 70% of employment. In addition to this "pure" service sector, the operations and competitive positions of many manufacturing firms are becoming increasingly service-oriented. While operational excellence is critical for success in most industries today, in a wide range of service industries this is particularly true. For example, recent, significant deregulation in banking, health care, and communications has led to intensified competition and pressure on operations. At the same time, the rapid evolution of information technology has enabled firms to operate in a fashion - and offer a level of service -that has not been previously possible. Elements common to most services make the management of their operations complex, however. In particular, services are intangible, not storable or transportable, and often highly variable. Frequently their delivery involves distributed operations with a significant amount of customer contact. All of these factors make service opertions end up looking quite a bit different than manufacturing operations, and the task of achieving excellence in them requires specialized analysis frameworks and tools. This course covers a mix of qalitative and quantitative models that provide the necessary tools. The class will focus on simple models that should help you to better understand both the difficulty of managing and the underlying economics of the service operations being considered. You will have the opportunity to apply these course tools in a group service assessment field project.

Credits:

3.00

Credit Hours:

Prerequisites:

Corequisites:

Exclusions:

Level:

Instructional Type:

Lecture

Notes:

Additional Information:

Historical Version(s):

Institution Website:

www.upenn.edu

Phone Number:

(215) 898-5000

Regional Accreditation:

Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools

Calendar System:

Semester

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