Global competition has caused fundamental changes in the competitive environment of manufacturing industries. Manufacturers must provide high-quality products with leading-edge performance capabilities to survive, much less prosper. The automotive industry is no exception. There is intense pressure to produce high-performance at minimum-costs. Firms must develop strategic objectives which, upon achievement, result in a competitive advantage in the market place. However, for almost all manufacturing industries, an increased productivity and better overall efficiency of the production line are the most important goals. Most industries would like to find the formula for the ultimate productivity improvement strategy. Industries often suffer from the lack of a systematic and consistent methodology. In particular, the manufacturing world has faced many changes throughout the years and as a result, the manufacturing industry is constantly evolving in order to stay ahead of competition. Innovation is a necessary process for the continuous changes in order to contribute to the economic growth in the manufacturing industry, especially to compete in the global market. In addition to innovation as a mode for continued growth and change, there are many other vehicles for growth in the manufacturing industry. One in particular that has been gaining momentum is the idea of World Class Manufacturing (WCM) developed by Richard J. Schonberger (in the 80s) who collected several cases, experiences and testimonies of companies that had embarked on the path of continuous "Kaizen" improvement for excellence in production, trying to give a systematic conception to the various practices and methodologies examined. Some of the benefits of integrating WCM include increased competitiveness, development of new and improved technology and innovation, increased flexibility, increased communication between management and production employees, and an increase in work quality and workforce empowerment. Companies attempting to adopt WCM have developed a statement of corporate philosophy or mission to which operating objectives are closely tied. The aim of this is to establish the basic model of WCM quality management for the production system in the automotive industry in order to make products of the highest quality eliminating losses in all the factory fields an improvement of work standards. Question 1 (15 Marks) Discuss the Operations Managers' main responsibilities with regard to Human Capital, Asset Management and Cost Management Question 2 (15 Marks) Strategy is the direction and scope of an organisation over the long-term: which achieves advantage for the organisation through its configuration of resources within a challenging environment, to meet the needs of markets and to fulfil stakeholder expectations Strategies exist at several levels in any organisation - ranging from the overall business (or group of businesses) through to individuals working in it. Apply your understanding of the following levels of strategies in the case of an Automotive company of your choice Corporate Strategy Business Unit Strategy Operational Strategy