BA 360.6 Introduction to Operations & Supply Chain Management
Fall 2021 Syllabus
Web-Based Research (WBR) Paper: Each student will write a brief paper using web-based research on a company
of their choice (i.e., any company with a website [i.e., public, private, for/non-profit]). Requirements and grading
of the WBR are noted below. The WBR Paper is worth 10% of the total course grade.
? The primary source of your paper should be the companys own website for the company of your choice.
A Google search about the company is not the same the objective here is for you to review
information that the company shares online to better understand the companys operations. This
approach might be something you would likely do if you had the opportunity to interview for a job with
that company, in order to better prepare for an interview. Research beyond the company website and
our text is not required, and actually not recommended this is your opportunity to learn critical skills to
align your school work and learnings with application in the real world.
? Formatting, grammar, and overall quality (20%): The paper should be one-page, single spaced with 12-
point Times New Roman font with a one-inch margin (papers longer or shorter than one page will be
penalized). Place your name and Course Sequence number in the header of the paper. Please DO NOT
use a coversheet. The paper must be well written in paragraph format and should be both spell-checked
and clarity-checked. Spelling errors, poorly structured thoughts, and grammar mistakes will be penalized.
Papers submitted in bullet point format will also be penalized.
? Company information (20%): The paper must include the name of the company, description of the
business, primary goods/services, location of headquarters, the internet address and why you selected
this particular company. You should not select a company where you previously or currently work.
? Two (2) Operations Management topics as listed in the course schedule (40%): If only one OM topic is
addressed, the student will be penalized by 20% on the WBR paper score. Some examples of past topics
used are:
? What is the companys approach to outsourcing and/or offshoring?
? What type of forecasting & scheduling practices does the company use?
? What are the competitive dimensions / strategies that form the competitive position of the
company?
? What type of production and/or service processes does the company utilize?
? How has the company incorporated lean, TPS, and six sigma principles into the culture?
? What are the companys order qualifier(s) and order winner(s)?
? What is the companys approach to sustainability?
? Any other operation management topic covered in this course
? Three (3) Questions (20%): Lastly, you must include three (3) questions that you would ask the CEO if you
had the opportunity to meet with him/her. These (3) questions should be operations management
related; like if you were interviewing the CEO for a newspaper or magazine article. Questions you might
ask them would be about international strategies, past scandals, supply chain / sourcing practices, social
responsibility, company culture, etc. Questions need to be more thought provoking than where do you
see the company in 5 years, or what are you most proud of in your career; they need to be related to
operations management issues covered in this course and in your paper.
? In general, the WBR Paper should be about 4 paragraphs. The first paragraph explains the company info,
the second paragraph will address the first OM topic, the third paragraph will address the second OM
topic, and the fourth paragraph will be the three questions youd ask if interviewing the CEO of your
chosen company.
? Each student must submit both a hardcopy of the paper no later than the due date and a softcopy
through the TurnItIn feature of Canvas to check for plagiarism. Failure to submit the project in both
forms will result in a zero on the assignment.
? Prior to turning in your WBR, you must also upload it to Canvas/TurnItIn; when you are happy with your
TurnItIn score, you can submit your WBR for grading. Please note that if you update your TurnItIn
submittal AFTER you have submitted your WBR, your extra-credit score will be based on the TurnItIn
timestamp!
Comments from Customer
Discipline: supply chain management
