Operational Decision Making

Operational Decision Making Company Description Rotana Jet Aviation, also known as Rotana Airways, is one of the leading domestic airlines in the United Arab Emirates. This airline company has its main operating base in Al†Bateen Airport, which is about 10 kilometers from Abu Dhabi City. The company offers travel services to both the domestic and international passengers.Advertising We will write a custom assessment sample on Operational Decision Making specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The company has been keen to offer quality services to its customers. This is reflected in its mission statement that says, â€Å"To offer quality travel services to domestic and international travelers at reasonable costs.† The company has been experiencing growth in the market, especially after adding new international routes to the previously existing routes. Description of Operations It is important to understand the operational activities of Rotana Jet, and the m eans through which it turns its inputs into output. As stated above, this firm offers travel services to its clients in the market. One of the main inputs of this firm is the planes used to deliver the service. The firm purchases the planes (input) which it uses to offer the travel services (output) to the clients from one location to another. Another important input that the firm has been using is the entertainment facilities, especially the music system fitted in the seats. This input is used to offer entertainment services to its clients. The firm uses coffee, water, and sugar as inputs, to make coffee as the product for its clients while on board their planes. As Bruce (40) observes, the current competitive market in the airline industry is forcing the airline companies to offer better quality products in order to attract a pool of loyal customer. This explains why Rotana Jet is keen on offering their clients drinks and entertainment services. Another important input that this f irm uses in its operations is the human labor, which includes pilots and cabin crew. The pilots work to ensure that clients are flown from one location to another, while other cabin crews work as a team to ensure that the journey is more enjoyable for the customers. Supply Chain Decisions In the current competitive market, firms are keen to ensure that they employ the best strategy in their supply chain management. This is because they are under pressure to ensure that they are efficient in their operations. Sauter (73) observes that there is need to ensure that acquisition of raw materials, their movement to the firm, and distribution strategies used by a firm are very efficient in order to increase profitability.Advertising Looking for assessment on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Rotana Jets has been keen to ensure that its supply chain is managed appropriately to deliver the desired results i n the market. The diagram below shows some of the most important activities that the operations manager will be concerned with in supply chain management. The products, especially the jets will be coming directly from the manufacturer to the firm. Once this is received, the firm will use the input to offer travel services to the customer. Operations manager will always need to make a decision of whether to make such orders through well-established agents in the market, or to contact the manufacturer directly. This decision will always be guided by the associated costs. One of the main strategies that this firm has been using in the market to increase its productivity is cost leadership. This means that Rotana Jet’s operations manager would determine the options available in the supply chain, and determine the associated costs at each stage in the activities identified above. The firm would then make a decision on the option that is most efficient and cost effective. Accordin g to Sauter (51), in supply chain management, firms are always concerned of the best approach to use in order to ensure that they get inputs in time and at the most desirable plans so that a chain of other activities can begin. Given the cost leadership strategy that this firm has been using, it is important for the operational manager to ensure that the decision on the approach to take in acquiring the inputs is conscious of these factors. The management should ensure that the product is always ready whenever the customers need them. Operational Decisions Understanding critical operational decisions within a firm is one of the ways through which a firm can gain competitive advantage in the market (Mahadevan 81). One of the most important critical operational decisions is the choice of product design. Rotana Jet must devise a way to design its products in a manner that will give it an advantage in the market.Advertising We will write a custom assessment sample on Operational Decision Making specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More It is a fact that all airlines offer travel services to their customers. However, Rotana must design its products in a unique manner that will help differentiate its services in the market. The management should make a decision to design unique seats, customized entertainment services, high quality customer care, and other unique qualities to its products. These decisions would have a direct contribution to the overall strategy of the firm. The identified decision areas focus on improving quality of services of this firm in the market. They are directly concerned of how Rotana Jet will offer positively unique service to its customers. This means that the operations manager must consider making these decisions out of the desire to offer quality service to its customers at reasonable prices. For this to be achieved, the management must ensure that costs of production are maintained as low as po ssible. Productivity According to Anderson (56), a firm should have a clear way of measuring productivity. This will help it when determining the sustainability of its operations. At Rotana Jets, the need to measure productivity is very strong. This is because of the increasing competition in this market, and the rising costs of production. The main approach of measuring productivity in this firm is through determining the output that is made of the operational activities. The output will be measured through sales made after a given trading period. The firm would then determine the associated costs during that period. The productivity would then be determined by deducting the costs from sales to find the profits. The profits will help in understanding the productivity of the firm. The profits generated should be reasonable enough to sustain operational activities of this company, and be able to foster development. To improve productivity of this company, the operational manager shou ld expand the scope of the firm’s internet marketing to include social media marketing. This is because social media such as Facebook and Tweeter are used by a large number of people who can form part of the customer base of this firm. This strategy will also help this firm create viral marketing in the internet.Advertising Looking for assessment on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Anderson, David. An Introduction to Management Science: Quantitative Approaches to Decision Making. Mason: South-Western, 2008. Print. Bruce, Peter. Understanding Decision-Making Processes in Airline. New York: Cengage, 2012. Print. Mahadevan, Bernard. Operations Management: Theory and Practice. Upper Saddle River: Pearson, 2010. Print. Sauter, Vicki. Decision Support Systems for Business Intelligence. Hoboken: John Wiley Sons, 2011. Print. Appendix Cabin Crew Offering Value-Added Service to the Customers

Using Que as a Conjunction in Spanish

Using Que as a Conjunction in Spanish Using the Spanish  Although que is most often used as a relative pronoun in Spanish it is also frequently used as a subordinating conjunction. The distinction may not seem obvious to English speakers, because que in both cases is usually translated as that. However, the distinction is important in some situations, such as those listed below when translating that after a noun. Forming Sentences With Que as a Conjunction Que is used as a conjunction in the following sentence construction: Main or independent clause que dependent clause. The main clause includes a subject and verb, although the subject may be understood rather than explicitly stated. The dependent clause also has a subject and verb (although the subject again may be implied) and could stand alone as a sentence, but it depends on the main clause to indicate its significance. The usage is similar in English: Main clause that as a conjunction dependent clause. The main difference is that in English it is common to omit that, while que is nearly always mandatory. A simple example should make this clearer. In the sentence Olivia sabe que Francisco est enfermo (Olivia knows that Francisco is sick), Olivia sabe (Olivia knows) is the main clause, que is a conjunction, and Francisco est enfermo (Francisco is sick) is the dependent clause. Note that Olivia sabe and Francisco est enfermo each has a subject and verb. Note that when que functions as a conjunction, it never is accented to form quà ©, which is a pronoun. Examples of Que as a Conjunction Here are some other examples of que as a conjunction: Todos creemos que fue un asesinato. (We all believe (that) it was a murder.)Esperamos que este fin de semana sea ms productivo. (We are hoping (that) this weekend will be more productive.)Quiero que me quieras. (I want you to love me. Literally, I want that you love me.)No creà ­ que fuera fisicamente posible. (I didnt believe (that) it was physically possible.Predigo que la banca mà ³vil expandir en el futuro. (I predict (that) mobile banking will expand in the future.) When De Que Should be Used If the main clause ends in a noun, de que is used as a conjunction instead of que: Tengo el miedo de que sea un virus. (I am afraid (that) it is a virus.) ¿Tienes celos de que Andrew pase tiempo con Lauren? (Are you jealous (that) Andrew is spending time with Lauren?)Hizo el anuncio de que el primer sencillo de su segundo lbum se llamarà ­a  «Move ». (He made the announcement (that) the first single from his second album would be called Move.) Note, however, that when que is used as a relative pronoun after a noun, de que cannot be used. An example: Hizo an anuncio que nos sorprendià ³. He made an announcement that surprised us. One way whether you can tell that que in the above example is a relative pronoun is that you could translate it as which and still make sense (i.e., he made an announcement which surprised us). But in the examples above where de que is used, that and not which must be used in translation. When a verb or a phrase is commonly followed by de and an infinitive or noun, often de que followed by a clause can be used instead: Estoy cansado de que me mientan. (I am tired of them lying to me. Literally, I am tired that they lie to me.)Estamos felices de que haya boda. (We are happy (that) there was a wedding.)No me olvidà ³ de que la literatura puede servir de entretenimiento. (I didnt forget (that) literature can serve as entertainment.) Using the Subjunctive Mood with Que It is very common for the verb in the clause following que or de que to be in the subjunctive mood. This typically occurs with the clause before que is used to express doubt, hope, negation, or an emotional reaction. Dudamos que su coche pueda funcionar. (We doubt (that) her car can run.)Tus amigos y yo esperamos que vengas pronto. (Your friends and I hope (that) youre coming soon.)No existe la posibilidad de que las plataformas de Xbox y PlayStation se unan. (The possibility doesnt exist (that) the Xbox and PlayStation platforms will merge together.)Me sorprendià ³ que la pizza se sirve con pià ±a. (It surprised me (that) the pizza is served with pineapple.) Key Takeaways Que functions as a conjunction when it comes between two clauses.When the first clause ends in a noun, the conjunction becomes de que.Que or de que as a conjunction is usually translated as that, which is often optional in English.