Service Operations Management
Question Bank
Course Introduction
Service Operations Management explores the strategies, processes, and tools required to design, deliver, and improve services in both public and private sector organizations. This course emphasizes the distinctive challenges of managing operations in service environments compared to manufacturing, including topics such as service process design, capacity and demand management, service quality, customer experience, and the integration of technology. Through case studies, analytical models, and real-world examples, students gain practical skills in optimizing service performance, enhancing efficiency, and fostering innovation in various service industries such as healthcare, hospitality, finance, and retail.
Recommended Textbook
Foundations of Operations Management 3rd Canadian Edition by Larry P. Ritzman
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2651 Verified Questions
2651 Flashcards
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Chapter 1: Creating Customer Value through Operations
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128 Verified Questions
128 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which of the following refers to the interconnected network of processes across different firms that produce a service or product to the satisfaction of customers ?
A) General process
B) Demand factor
C) Chain reaction
D) Supply chain
Answer: D
Q2) Which of the following technologies is least likely to help companies to improve their competitiveness?
A) electronic mail
B) the Internet
C) automated robots
D) keypunch cards
Answer: D
Q3) A(n)________ is any activity or group of activities that takes one or more input,transforms and adds value to them,and provides one or more outputs for its customers.
Answer: process
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Chapter 2: Supply Chain Management
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Sample Questions
Q1) The order-fulfillment process involves the activities to deliver a product or service to the customer.
A)True
B)False
Answer: True
Q2) Describe green purchasing.
Answer: Using environmental criteria in purchasing decisions (for inputs)to favour suppliers with strong environmental management systems,performance,or certification.
Q3) The order fulfillment process produces and delivers the service or product to the firm's customers.
A)True
B)False
Answer: True
Q4) ________ are inventories needed for the production of goods and services; they are considered the inputs to the transformation process. Answer: Raw materials
Q5) What are the different types of e-purchasing?
Answer: Different approaches include EDI,catalog hubs,exchanges,and auctions.
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Chapter 3: Process Configuration
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Sample Questions
Q1) Resource flexibility determines whether resources are organized around products or processes.
A)True
B)False
Answer: False
Q2) ________ is the systematic study of the activities and flows of each process to improve its performance.
Answer: Process improvement
Q3) Which of the following is sometimes called mass production?
A) batch
B) line
C) continuous
D) project
Answer: B
Q4) More vertical integration means more outsourcing.
A)True
B)False
Answer: False
Q5) A(n)________ is a table that lists and categorizes the steps in the process.
Answer: process chart
Page 5
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Chapter 4: Capacity
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Sample Questions
Q1) The first step in the application of the Theory of Constraints (TOC)is to identify the bottlenecks.
A)True
B)False
Q2) Which of the following statements about bottlenecks is best?
A) Floating bottlenecks are created by stability in the workload.
B) When capacities are perfectly balanced, it can be said that every operation is a bottleneck.
C) Increasing bottleneck capacity does not increase plant capacity.
D) Floating bottlenecks are most likely to occur with line flow processes.
Q3) The base case concept is to do nothing and simply lose orders from any demand that exceeds current capacity.
A)True
B)False
Q4) Explain the meaning and significance of the different between random and predictable variation in a process.
Q5) The total time that a typical item spends in any process,termed ________ time,increases as the average level of inventor in that process increases.
Q6) What is a decision tree?
Page 6
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Chapter 5: Inventory Management
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Sample Questions
Q1) Use the information from Table 5.11.Design a periodic review system (P system),with P = 5 weeks.What target inventory T will provide the desired 90 percent cycle-service level?
A) between 53 and 57 units
B) between 172 and 176 units
C) between 188 and 192 units
D) between 202 and 206 units
Q2) Use the information in Table 5.2.Due to new ordering procedures initiated by Crittenden,the ordering cost is dropping to $4/order.At the same time,the weekly demand increases to 64 units per week due to an increase in business.What effect do these changes have on the EOQ quantity for this item?
A) The EOQ quantity remains unchanged.
B) The EOQ quantity increases by 20 percent.
C) The EOQ quantity decreases by 20 percent.
D) Sufficient information is not available for answering this question.
Q3) The ________ is the measurement of an item's ability to satisfy future demand.
Q4) ________ inventory is inventory used to absorb uneven rates of demand or supply.
Q5) A(n)________ system is a visual system in which an item's inventory is stored at two different locations.
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Chapter 6: Quality and Process Improvement
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Sample Questions
Q1) Fitness for use refers to how well the product or service performs its intended purpose.
A)True
B)False
Q2) The upper limit and lower specifications for a service are 5.0 min.and 3.0 min.,respectively.The process standard deviation is 0.4 min.and the process average is 4.0 min.What conclusion can be drawn?
A) The process is capable.
B) No out-of-spec. services will be performed.
C) The process is not capable.
D) The specifications should be changed to 4.2 and 3.8 respectively.
Q3) Functional benchmarking is based on comparisons with a direct industry competitor.
A)True
B)False
Q4) ________ refers to how well the product or service performs its intended purpose.
Q5) Describe the three standards of ISO that are being adopted by may leading firms.
Q6) Two types of control charts useful for variable quality measures are ________ and ________.
Page 8
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Chapter 7: Lean Systems
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Sample Questions
Q1) The rewards system normally needs to be revamped when a just-in-time (JIT)system is implemented.
A)True
B)False
Q2) Value-added activities are those tasks that transform the product or service in some measurable way.
A)True
B)False
Q3) How do small lots tribute to high quality,flexibility,and cost efficiencies?
Q4) Which one of the following is an advantage of just-in-time (JIT)systems?
A) JIT systems reduce equipment needs by using larger lot sizes.
B) JIT systems can be implemented in any production environment.
C) JIT systems result in a decrease in safety stock and work-in-process inventory.
D) JIT systems result in an increase in manufacturing lead times.
Q5) ________ refers to the goal of having a setup time of less than 10 minutes.
Q6) One benefit of a just-in-time system is that it reduces equipment utilization.
A)True
B)False
Q7) Discuss mixed model assembly.
Page 9
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Chapter 8: Managing Projects
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Sample Questions
Q1) A project has three paths.A-B-C has a length of 25 days.A-D-C has a length of 15 days.Finally,A-E-C has a length of 20 days.Which one of the following statements is TRUE?
A) A-D-C is the critical path.
B) A-B-C has the most slack.
C) The expected duration of this project is 25 days.
D) The expected duration of this project is 25 + 15 + 20 = 60 days.
Q2) There are major differences between the program evaluation and review technique (PERT)and the critical path method (CPM)for network planning.
A)True
B)False
Q3) Using Table 3.10,what is the probability that the project will take 16 or more weeks to complete? You will need to refer to a standard normal table to answer the question.
A) less than or equal to 40%
B) greater than 40% but less than or equal to 55%
C) greater than 55% but less than or equal to 70%
D) greater than 70%
Q4) What are the benefits of using CPM/PERT?
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Page 10
Chapter 9: Location and Layout
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which of the following is an advantage or characteristic of a process layout over a product layout when volumes are low?
A) general-purpose and less capital-intensive resources
B) faster processing rates
C) lower inventory
D) less flexibility
Q2) When volumes are high,an advantage of product layouts over process layouts is that less unproductive time is lost to changeovers and materials handling.
A)True
B)False
Q3) Using the information in Table 9.4.If a facility were to be located at (15,15),what would be the load-distance score? (Assume rectilinear distance)
A) less than or equal to 5500
B) more than 5500 but less than or equal to 6000
C) more than 6000 but less than or equal to 6500
D) more than 6500
Q4) A(n)________ layout arranges the product in a fixed place.
Q5) ________ is the distance between two points with a series of 90-degree turns.
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Chapter 10: Managing Demand and Forecasting
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Sample Questions
Q1) Describe the judgment method technique of forecasting.
Q2) Use the information in Table 10.8.Use the weighted moving average method to calculate the forecast for month 7.The weights are 0.50,0.30,and 0.20,where 0.50 refers to the most recent demand.
A) less than or equal to 56
B) greater than 56 but less than or equal to 58
C) greater than 58 but less than or equal to 61
D) greater than 61
Q3) What is a tracking signal?
Q4) The moving average gives a forecast of the mean value of demand in future periods,if there is no noticeable trend or seasonality in the data.
A)True
B)False
Q5) ________ is a method of incorporating a trend in an exponentially smoothed forecast.
Q6) There will be a lag behind the trend in actual demand when using single smooth forecasts.
A)True
B)False
Page 12
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Chapter 11: Operations Planning and Scheduling
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which one of the following statements about aggregate planning is best?
A) When a firm wants to minimize its inventory investment, it should use a level production planning strategy.
B) When a firm wants to emphasize stability in its workforce, it should adopt a level production planning strategy.
C) A make-to-stock production plan that wants to emphasize plant utilization should adopt a chase production strategy.
D) A make-to-stock production plan that wants to minimize changes in production rates should adopt a chase production planning strategy.
Q2) Labour regular time costs are the wages paid to employees.
A)True
B)False
Q3) A level strategy matches demand during the planning horizon by varying either the workforce level or the output rate.
A)True
B)False
Q4) ________ are products or services having similar resource requirements,but different demand cycles.
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Chapter 12: Resource Planning
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Sample Questions
Q1) The lot-for-lot lot sizing technique is particularly appropriate when demand is not very smooth and setup cost is small compared to holding costs.
A)True
B)False
Q2) A higher than normal level of equipment failures on the shop floor is likely to be detected from which of the following reports?
A) vendor shortage report
B) input/output control report
C) customer forecast report
D) overhead allocation report
Q3) Using a periodic order quantity generates a high level of average inventory because it creates inventory remnants.
A)True
B)False
Q4) Discuss the master production schedule.
Q5) Explain why MRP does a better job of estimating the need to replenish inventory items than does the fixed order quantity system in a dependent demand environment.
Q6) ________ are orders that have been placed,but not yet completed.
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Chapter 13: Decision Making
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which one of the following statements about break-even analysis,as we applied it to evaluating products or services,is best?
A) Break-even analysis assumes that the cost function is linear and consists of fixed costs plus variable costs times volume.
B) The break-even quantity will increase when the change in variable cost per unit is identical to the change in unit price.
C) Increasing the price, while keeping the variable cost per unit constant, increases the break-even quantity.
D) Increasing the fixed costs tends to decrease the break-even quantity.
Q2) Using the information in Table A.2,which alternative is best in accordance with a decision criterion of maximax?
A) A
B) B
C) C
D) D
Q3) If probabilities for events can be estimated,then the situation faced by the decision maker is called ________.
Q4) The decision rule ________ is also referred to as the pessimist's criterion.
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Page 15
Chapter 14: Financial Analysis
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Sample Questions
Q1) The ________ is used to evaluate projects by calculating the amount of time that will elapse before the total of after-tax cash flows will equal the initial investment.
Q2) Discounting is the process by which interest on an investment accumulates,and then earns interest itself for the remainder of the investment period. \[\frac { \rho \lambda } { \mu - \lambda }\]
A)True
B)False
Q3) The ________ method of calculating annual depreciation is the simplest,and usually is adequate for internal planning purposes.
Q4) The value of an investment at the end of the period over which interest is compounded is called the ________.
Q5) Projects with the greatest strategic impact are likely to be riskier and have qualitative benefits that cannot easily be quantified.
A)True
B)False
Q6) The ________ is the concept that a dollar in hand today is worth more than a dollar to be received in the future.
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Page 16
Chapter 15: Work Measurement
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Sample Questions
Q1) Use the information in Table H.2.If the allowance for this task is 20 percent,what is the standard time for the entire task?
A) Fewer than 20 seconds
B) Greater than or equal to 20 seconds but fewer than 22 seconds
C) Greater than or equal to 22 seconds but fewer than 24 seconds
D) Greater than 24 seconds
Q2) Use the information in Table H.1.Assume that work element 1 receives a performance rating factor of 1.2 and all other elements receive a rating of 1.1.If work element 2 is performed every other cycle but every other element is performed every cycle,and the company has an allowance time of 0.10,what is the standard time for the complete cycle?
A) Fewer than 45 seconds
B) Greater than or equal to 45 seconds but fewer than 50 seconds
C) Greater than or equal to 50 seconds but fewer than 55 seconds
D) Greater than or equal to 55 seconds
Q3) Explain why a sampling schedule is important in a work sampling study.
Q4) The select time is the average observed time based only on representative times.
A)True
B)False
Q5) What are the four steps in a time study?
Page 17
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Chapter 16: Learning Curve Analysis
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Sample Questions
Q1) Given that the fifth unit took 10 hours to build and the learning rate is 90 percent,how much time will it take to build units 11 through 15? Refer to the copy of Table G.1 above.
A) Fewer than or equal to 38 hours
B) Greater than 38 hours but fewer than or equal to 40 hours
C) Greater than 40 hours but fewer than or equal to 42 hours
D) Greater than 42 hours
Q2) A manager of a company producing computer chips knows that in the early stages of production for a new product,the expenditures exceed receipts,whereas in the latter stages,the reverse is true.Give an explanation for this phenomenon.
Q3) A contractor is preparing a bid to install swimming pools at a new housing addition.The estimated time to build the first pool is 35 hours.The contractor estimates a 90 percent learning rate; what is the estimated time to install all 30 pools? Refer to the copy of Table G.1 above.
Q4) How are learning curves useful in financial planning?
Q5) The estimated time to produce the first unit is 100 hours.If a 90 percent learning rate is applicable,what is the estimated time of producing the tenth unit? Refer to the copy of Table G.1 above.
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Chapter 17: Computer-Integrated Manufacturing
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which one of the following is a computerized design process for creating new parts or products or altering existing ones?
A) Computer-aided design
B) NC machines
C) Industrial robots
D) Programmable automation
Q2) Which one of the following is a typical benefit of computer-aided design?
A) Setup time is reduced.
B) Machines can be grouped according to function.
C) Work-in-process inventory is lower.
D) Products can be designed without hand drafting.
Q3) A(n)________ provides a way for a manufacturer to synchronize activities and maximize utilization by automatically handling and machine loading materials at computer-controlled workstations.
Q4) Flexible Manufacturing Cells do NOT contain
A) a materials handling system.
B) a single NC machine.
C) a computer-controlled material handling system.
D) a small group of NC machines.
Q5) How can CAD,CAM,or FMS be used in a service enterprise?
Page 19
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Chapter 18: Acceptance Sampling Plans
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Sample Questions
Q1) A(n)________ is when the consumer randomly selects items from the lot and inspects them one by one.
Q2) Discuss the two incorrect conclusions that can be made when using acceptance sampling.
Q3) As more firms initiate total quality management systems,the need for acceptance sampling will increase.
A)True
B)False
Q4) An item is purchased with one surface polished to a specified finish quality.From each incoming shipment,a sample of items is randomly selected and the polished surface of each sample item is compared with a standard and judged to be either acceptable or unacceptable.The following parameters have been established: AQL = 0.02,= 0.05,LTPD = 0.09,and = 0.10.Table I.1 is appended to this exam.What are the sample size and the acceptance number?
A) n = 89, c = 4
B) n = 39, c = 1
C) n = 43, c = 1
D) n = 237, c = 15
Q5) ________ is the risk that a lot with LTPD will be accepted-a type II error.
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Chapter 19: Simulation
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Sample Questions
Q1) The manager of a branch bank wants to build a simulation model of the lobby operation to reduce the waiting time of her customers.The number of customers waiting in line at any point of time is an example of A) a decision variable.
B) an uncontrollable variable.
C) a time-compressed variable.
D) a dependent variable.
Q2) The arrival of customers at a lemonade stand is modeled in SimQuick using a(n) A) entrance block.
B) buffer block.
C) workstation block.
D) decision point.
Q3) The manager of a branch bank wants to build a simulation model of the lobby operation to reduce the waiting time of her customers.The number of tellers is an example of A) a decision variable.
B) an uncontrollable variable.
C) a time-compressed variable.
D) a dependent variable.
Q4) What are the motivations for using simulation for analyzing processes?
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Chapter 20: Special Inventory Models
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Sample Questions
Q1) Use the information in Scenario D.1.What is the economic production lot size (ELS)?
A) Fewer than or equal to 400 units
B) Greater than 400 units but fewer than or equal to 480 units
C) Greater than 480 units but fewer than or equal to 500 units
D) Greater than 500 units
Q2) For analysis using the economic production lot size (ELS)model to be useful,the producer must be able to produce the item faster than it is consumed.
A)True
B)False
Q3) Use the information in Scenario D.1.How many production runs per year are needed if Jerry chooses to produce at his economic production lot size (ELS)?
A) Fewer than or equal to 10 runs
B) Greater than 10 runs but fewer than or equal to 20 runs
C) Greater than 20 runs but fewer than or equal to 30 runs
D) Greater than 30 runs
Q4) The ________ is the optimal lot size in situations in which replenishment is not instantaneous.
Q5) A(n)________ is the minimum quantity needed to receive a discount.
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Chapter 21: Linear Programming
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Sample Questions
Q1) The interval over which the right-hand-side parameter can vary while its shadow price remains valid is the ________.
Q2) A parameter is a region that represents all permissible combinations of the decision variables in a linear programming model.
A)True
B)False
Q3) The graphical method is a practical method for solving product mix problems of any size,provided the decision maker has sufficient quantities of graph paper.
A)True
B)False
Q4) A constraint is a limitation that restricts the permissible choices.
A)True
B)False
Q5) What is the meaning of a slack or surplus variable?
Q6) Linear programming is useful for allocating scarce resources among competing demands.
A)True
B)False
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Chapter 22: Waiting Lines
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Sample Questions
Q1) If the nature of the customer population,constraints on the line,the priority rule,and the service time distribution renders waiting line theory no longer useful,then an operations manager should rely on
A) decision tree analysis.
B) linear programming.
C) simulation.
D) Little's Law.
Q2) Operations time refers to a time to complete a subset of activities at a workstation.
A)True
B)False
Q3) Use the information in Scenario C.5.What is the average number of trucks in line waiting and being serviced?
A) Fewer than or equal to 0.30 trucks
B) Greater than 0.30 trucks but fewer than or equal to 0.40 trucks
C) Greater than 0.40 trucks but fewer than or equal to 0.50 trucks
D) Greater than 0.50 trucks
Q4) What are priority rules? Provide examples and indicate why a manager would choose to adopt one over another.
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