PLANNING AND

CONTROL
 THE REPORTERS

BENJOHN SIERRA JANE SOLIVERES BJORN PETE SARMIENTO

 PLANNING & CONTROL
Planning and control is concerned with the activities that
attempt to reconcile the demands of the market and the
ability of the operation’s resources to deliver. It provides the
systems, procedures and decisions which bring different
aspects of supply and demand together.
 DIFFERENCE BETWEEN
PLANNING CONTROL
is a formalization of what is intended to is the process of coping with these types of
happen at some time in the future. But a change. It may mean that plans need to be
plan does not guarantee that an event redrawn in the short term. It may also mean that
an ‘intervention’ will need to be made in the
will actually happen. Rather it is a operation to bring it back ‘on track’. Control
statement of intention. Although plans activities make the adjustments which allow the
are based on expectations, during their operation to achieve the objectives that the plan
implementation things do not always has set, even when the assumptions on which
happen as expected. Lorna
the plan Alvarado
was based do not hold true.
 LONG-, MEDIUM- AND SHORT-TERM
PLANNING AND CONTROL
LONG -TERM MEDIUM -TERM SHORT-TERM

Operations MORE DETAILED.

Many of the resources will
have been set and it will
managers make It looks ahead to be difficult to make large
plans concerning changes.In making
assess the overall shortterm interventions
what they intend
demand which the and changes to the plan,
to do, what operations managers will
resources they
operation must be attempting to balance
need, and what meet in a partially the quality, speed,
dependability, flexibility
objectives they disaggregated and costs of their
hope to achieve. manner operation dynamically on
an ad hoc basis.
 THE VOLUME–VARIETY EFFECT ON
PLANNING AND CONTROL
The volume and variety characteristics of an operation will have an effect
on its planning and control activities. Operations which produce a high
variety of services or products in relatively low volume will have customers
with different requirements and use different processes from operations
which create standardized services or products in high volume.
 HOW DO SUPPLY AND DEMAND AFFECT
PLANNING AND CONTROL?
If planning and control is the process of reconciling demand with
supply, then the nature of the decisions taken to plan and control
an operation will depend on both the nature of demand and the
nature of supply in that operation. In this section, we examine
some differences in demand and supply which can affect the way
in which operations managers plan and control their activities
 UNCERTAINTY IN
SUPPLY AND DEMAND
Uncertainty is important in planning and
control because it makes it more difficult.
Sometimes the supply of inputs to an
operation may be uncertain.

DEPENDENT AND
INDEPENDENT DEMAND
Some operations can predict demand
with relative certainty because demand for
their services or products is dependent
upon some other factor which is known.
This is known as dependent demand.
RESPONDING TO DEMAND
It is clear then that the nature of planning and control in
any operation will depend on how it responds to
demand, which is in turn related to the type of services
or products it produces. For example, an advertising
agency will only start the process of planning and
controlling the creation of an advertising campaign when
the customer (or client as the agency will refer to them)
confirms the contract with the agency.
LOADING AND
SEQUENCING
 LOADING
is the amount of work that is allocated to a work
centre. Refers to the process of assigning tasks or
workloads to resources, such as machines,
workers, or workstations.
 FINITE LOADING
is an approach which only allocates work to a work centre (a
person, a machine, or perhaps a group of people or machines) up
to a set limit. This limit is the estimate of capacity for the work
centre (based on the times available for loading).

Finite loading is particularly relevant for operations where:

● it is possible to limit the load ● it is necessary to limit the load

● the cost of limiting the load is not prohibitive

 INFINITE LOADING
is an approach to loading work which does not limit
accepting work, but instead tries to cope with it.

Infinite loading is particularly relevant for operations where:

● it is not possible to limit the load ● it is not necessary to limit the load

● the cost of limiting the load is prohibitive

Figure 10.8 Finite and infinite loading of jobs on three work centres A, B and
C. Finite loading limits the loading on each centre to their capacities, even if
it means that jobs will be late. Infinite loading allows the loading on each
centre to exceed their capacities to ensure that jobs will not be late.
 SEQUENCING
refers to the process of determining the order
in which tasks or jobs should be performed
within a production or service operation
 CUSTOMER PRIORITY
Operations will sometimes use customer
priority sequencing, which allows an important
or aggrieved customer, or item, to be
‘processed’ prior to others, irrespective of the
order of arrival of the customer or item.
 DUE DATE (DD)
prioritizing by due date means that work is sequenced according to when
it is ‘due’ for delivery irrespective of the size of each job or the importance
of each customer.

LAST IN, FIRST OUT (LIFO)

is a method of sequencing usually selected for practical reasons.

FIRST IN, FIRST OUT (FIFO)

some operations serve customers in exactly the sequence they

arrive in. This is called first in, first out (FIFO) sequencing, or
sometimes ‘first come, first served’ (FCFS).
SCHEDULING
 WHAT IS SCHEDULING?
SCHEDULING is the process of making a detailed
plan that tells us when tasks should start and
when they should end. It's like making a timetable
or schedule for our work.
 SCHEDULING
Schedules of work are used in operations where
some PLANNING is required to ensure that customer
demand is met.

Other operations, such as RAPID-RESPONSE

SERVICE OPERATIONS where customers arrive in an
unplanned way, cannot schedule the operation in a
short-term sense. They can only respond at the time
demand is placed upon them.
 THE COMPLEXITY OF
SCHEDULING
The scheduling activity is one of the most complex
tasks in operations management. First, schedulers
must deal with several different types of resource
simultaneously. Machines will have different
capabilities and capacities; staff will have different
skills. More importantly, the number of possible
schedules increases rapidly as the number of
activities and processes increases.
 For example, suppose one machine has five different jobs to
process. Any of the five jobs could be processed first and, following
that, any one of the remaining four jobs, and so on. This means that
there are:

5 * 4 * 3 * 2 *1 =120 different schedules possible

In other words, for n jobs there are n! (factorial n) different ways of

scheduling the jobs through a single process.
Given:

n=5 (number of jobs)

Since n=5,

5!=5×4×3×2×1=120

5! = 120 or
But when there are (say) two machines, there is no reason why the
sequence on machine 1 would be the same as the sequence on
machine 2. If we consider the two sequencing tasks to be
independent of each other, for two machines there would be:

120 * 120 = 14,400 possible schedules of the two machines and five jobs

So a general formula can be devised to calculate the number of

possible schedules in any given situation, as follows:

Number of possible schedules =(n!)m

where n is the number of jobs and
m is the number of machines.
FORWARD SCHEDULING
Forward scheduling is a production planning method
that involves scheduling tasks to be completed as
soon as possible. It's a way to ensure that tasks are
completed on time and within budget, and to
maximize the use of resources.

BACKWARD SCHEDULING
Plans production in reverse order, starting as late
as possible based onLorna
a completion
Alvarado
date. This
method can improve on-time delivery
performance and reduce customer complaints
01 - BRANDING
GANTT CHART
is a simple device which represents time as a bar, or
channel, on a chart. The start and finish times for
activities can be indicated on the chart and sometimes
the actual progress of the job is also indicated. The
advantages of Gantt charts are that they provide a
simple visual representation both of what should be
happening and of what actually is happening in the
operation.
PROJECT
STATUS
 Figure 10.12

Simplified
schedule for
the
manufacture
and delivery of
a chicken salad
sandwich.
 SCHEDULING WORK PATTERNS
Where the dominant resource in an operation is its staff, then
the schedule of work times effectively determines the capacity
of the operation itself.

The main task of scheduling, therefore, is to make sure that

sufficient numbers of people are working at any point in time
to provide a capacity appropriate for the level of demand at
that point in time. Such operations cannot store their outputs
in inventories and so must respond directly to customer
demand.
For example, Figure 10.14 shows the scheduling of shifts
for a small technical ‘hot line’ support service for a
small software company. It gives advice to customers
on their technical problems. Its service times are 4:00
to 20:00 hours on Monday, 4:00 to 22:00 hours
Tuesday to Friday, 6:00 to 22:00 hours on Saturday,
and 10:00 to 20:00 hours on Sunday.

Demand is heaviest Tuesday to Thursday, starts to

decrease on Friday, is low over the weekend and starts
to increase again on Monday
MONITORING AND
CONTROLLING THE
OPERATION
 Figure 10.15 illustrates a simple view of control.
The output from a work centre is monitored and
compared with the plan which indicates what the work
centre is supposed to be doing.
Deviations from this plan are taken into account through
a re-planning activity and the necessary interventions
made to the work centre which will (hopefully) ensure
that the new plan is carried out.
Eventually, however, some further deviation from
planned activity will be detected and the cycle is
01 - BRANDING

repeated.
 DIFFERENCE BETWEEN
PUSH SYTEM OF PULL SYSTEM OF
CONTROL CONTROL
In a push system, the operation is
controlled by a central schedule. This A pull system works in the opposite
schedule dictates what each work area way—it responds to actual demand
should do and when. For example, a central rather than following a strict
system (like an MRP, or Material
Requirements Planning system) plans all schedule. Here, each workstation
production in advance. Each work center only works when the next workstation
then “pushes” the work to the next stage signals that it needs something.
Lorna Alvarado
based on this schedule.
DRUM, BUFFER, ROPE
DRUM
The drum represents the bottleneck in the process, the
part with the lowest capacity, which limits how fast the
whole operation can run. Like a drum setting the
rhythm in a band, the bottleneck sets the pace or
"beat" for the entire process. Everything in the process
needs to flow in harmony with the bottleneck because
it controls the maximum possible output. This keeps
the rest of the operation from going faster than the
bottleneck can handle, avoiding unnecessary buildup of
work.
BUFFER
The buffer is a small amount of extra inventory
placed right before the bottleneck. Its purpose is
to make sure that the bottleneck never has to wait
for materials. Since any downtime at the
bottleneck affects the entire process, this buffer
ensures it always has work to do, preventing it
from stopping. By keeping the bottleneck busy, the
buffer helps maintain a smooth flow through the
process.
 ROPE
The rope is the communication line from the
bottleneck back to the start of the process. This
"rope" pulls work forward only when it’s needed,
keeping the flow steady and preventing
overproduction. By synchronizing the process
with the bottleneck's pace, it ensures that work
doesn’t pile up before the bottleneck and that
each stage produces only what the bottleneck
can handle.
CONTROLLING OPERATIONS
IS NOT ALWAYS ROUTINE
GUIDE FOR EVALUATING THE CHALLENGES INVOLVED
IN MANAGING AND CONTROLLING AN OPERATION

IS THERE CONSENSUS OVER WHAT THE

OPERATION’S OBJECTIVES SHOULD BE?
ARE THE EFFECTS OF INTERVENTIONS INTO THE
OPERATION PREDICTABLE?
ARE THE OPERATION’S ACTIVITIES LARGELY
REPETITIVE?
 Is there consensus over what the
operation’s objectives should be?
This question is asking whether everyone involved agrees on
what the goals of the operation should be. It’s about whether
there is a shared understanding or agreement among the team
or organization about what they want to achieve.

Are strategic objectives clear and straightforward?

NOT ALWAYS
It can be hard to define every goal for an operation because
they are often complex.
 Are the effects of interventions into the
operation predictable?
This question is asking if the results of changes or actions taken in
the operation can be anticipated. In simpler terms, it’s about
whether people can expect what will happen after making
adjustments to how things are done.
In the simplified control model, there is a reasonable
understanding of how to achieve the desired outcome. This means
that when a decision is made, it’s expected that its effects can be
predicted with some confidence. In other words, operational
control assumes that actions taken to fix or cghange a process will
have the intended results.
 Are the operation’s activities largely
repetitive?
The final assumption about control is that control actions are done
repeatedly and often, like checking a process every hour or day.
This regular checking allows the operation to learn how these
actions affect the process, making it easier to maintain control.

However, some situations are different and don’t happen

repeatedly. For instance, when dealing with unique services or
products, the actions taken may not be repeated. In these cases,
there is less chance to learn from the interventions because the
specific situation or the problem that triggered them may not occur
again.
DIFFERENT TYPES OF CONTROL
EXPERT CONTROL
TRIAL-AND-ERROR CONTROL
INTUITIVE CONTROL
NEGOTIATED CONTROL
 EXPERT CONTROL
If objectives are unambiguous, yet the effects of
interventions relatively well understood, but the activity is
not repetitive (for example, installing or upgrading software
or IT systems), control can be delegated to an ‘EXPERT’ –
someone for whom such activities are repetitive because
they have built their knowledge on previous experience
elsewhere.
 TRIAL-AND-ERROR
CONTROL
If strategic objectives are relatively unambiguous, but
effects of interventions not known, yet the activity is
repetitive, the operation can gain knowledge of how to
control successfully through its own failures. In other words,
although simple prescriptions may not be available in the
early stages of making control interventions, the organization
can learn how to do it through experience.
 INTUITIVE CONTROL
If objectives are relatively unambiguous (so it is clear what
the operation is trying to do), but effects of control
interventions not known, and neither are they repetitive,

Many strategic operations fall into this category, like forming

a long-term partnership with a supplier. The goals are clear
(such as surviving together and making a reasonable profit),
but the actions taken aren’t done often, and their effects
aren’t fully understood. Sometimes, the supplier’s goals may
even conflict with yours.
 NEGOTIATION CONTROL
The most challenging situation for strategic control occurs
when objectives are unclear or ambiguous.

Sometimes, senior managers may simply decide what the

objectives should be, even if others disagree. For example,
in a childcare service, social workers might have different
opinions about how to handle certain situations. To resolve
this, they might seek a negotiated agreement that
establishes clear objectives.
 NEGOTIATION CONTROL
Alternatively, outside experts can be brought in to help
with negotiations or to make decisions independently,
avoiding conflicts among those involved.

However, even in negotiation, there is often a political

aspect when objectives are ambiguous. The negotiation
process can be influenced by power dynamics within
the organization.
 THAT’S ALL.
THANK YOU!