Mission Statement
Destination Smiles have been in business since 2010 and have 12 years of expertise delivering innovative skin care treatments at aesthetic clinics. An innovative approach to business is being used, as well as a dedication to high standards. The company offers a simpler and affordable payment plan that helps meet their customers demands thus realizing effective outcomes. This type of dedication has helped the company become the preferred service provider in the country. It may be concluded that the company’s objective is to provide rapid, convenient, and affordable clear aligner therapy at a reasonable price. The goal of the Destination Smile firm is to provide clear aligner therapy that is both quick and affordable. Customers have the option of visiting a clinic or finishing their treatment entirely at home, with the goal of having their aligners removed in 4-6 months at the most. They have an effective mission and vision that helps the company achieve a strong position in a highly competitive marketplace. The folks at Destination Smile are on a mission to simplify the process of teeth straightening. Their popularity is growing rapidly despite the fact that they are just a few months old. Trustpilot users have given them an average rating of 4.8 out of 5 stars (Slack and Lewis, 2011). However, they would not be able to get to this point if the company’s operational management process was ineffective. The ITO diagram and critical incident approach will be used to provide a full overview of the operational management process in the next part of the paper.
Input-Transformation- Output
The diagram above shows the input-transformation-output diagram showing all the requirement and services that are vital to enhance the operations management of the company. From the diagram, example of inputs that will be needed include capital, materials, equipment, facilities, labor and time. Transformation system on the other hand will entail alteration, transportation, inspection and storage of the drugs to be used in the operation management processes in the company (Young, 2010). The final outputs include excellent services for their customers and a facilitated production of goods and services.
Critical Incident Technique
Organization’s location
In this part, a critical issue that the firm has encountered recently will be discussed. Because the topic is based on a personal experience, I have chosen a reflective writing style for the piece (Alexandrova et al., 2019). In August 2021 I went online and searched companies near me that offer teeth whitening services. I Found Destination Smile which was located in town near my home, work and university. I called to book their services over the phone, paid a deposit and scheduled my appointment with the Dentist. I went in for my appointment but there was no dentist on site that day because they were all working in other cities. I called and told them this and another appointment was scheduled for the following week, and I was ensured by the person on the phone (Tania) that a dentist would be in for my appointment.
Cause
The General Manager indicated that the cause for these delays was staff shortages, clinic closure, COVID-19 and GDC regulations were the reasons for the delay, and this will be solved immediately. A day later I received an email from him confirming that the trays have been placed back in production and will be out to me immediately. He explained the originals might have been misplaced and he will contact the lab to clarify exactly what happened. Additionally, I was told that the clinic in my city was shut down and adjustments have to be made to solve incidents of staff shortages caused by COVID-19 outbreak. I contacted the company 3 months later in November 2021 after failing to here from them for a while.
Course
The General Manager (David) apologized for the delay, and I was told that the delay was partly due to new General Dental Council (GDC) regulations related to COVID-19. The manager also indicated that, adjustments had to be made regarding how they administer their treatment especially in my city. He also mentioned that arrangements would be made for the resumption of treatments in the city center. I was later attended by a nurse who offered excellent services on the first day. My teeth were given a 3D scanned and I was told that I would be emailed with further instructions. I received an email a week later requesting pictures of my smile and another showing the progress of my situation. I sent this over the same day and received confirmation message that my case was being handled. This is still ongoing but was told it will be sorted by the following month. However, I have received a discount on the procedure and therefore will not be paying full price for it. The outcome is a broken relationship. I will not use them again or recommend them to anyone.
Polar Diagram
Polar diagram is usually created from performance objectives that have been set by the company. Additionally, performance objectives should be based on what customers want or anticipate (Brown et al., 2005). Statistical values will be used to examine how well the Destination Smiles can satisfy its customers’ expectations in terms of performance goals and customer expectations. With the polar diagram, the paper will be able to discuss the performance objective that Destination Smiles aims to archive.
Analysis
To fasten delivery of services to their customers thus eliminating delays
In light of the data in the table and the polar diagram, it is safe to say that the business has met customers’ expectations in this area. A customer’s desire to receive a high-quality product at a reasonable time has been estimated to have a value of 10 (Ferdows and Meyer, 1990). With the company’s dedication to delivering consumers with high-quality products despite minor delays, it has accumulated an impressive 8 out of 10.
Ability of an organization to realize customer needs effectively
In reality majority of clients demand a faster delivery of goods and services to their disposals. As a result, this requirement by the customers has been assigned the value “10” for these particular criteria. The firm received an 8 in this category since they were unable to meet the customer needs in the quickest time possible. There is always a need to ensure customer centricity to boost service delivery and outcomes.
Evaluation Operational Management Literature
Operational management issues with respect to the satisfaction or dissatisfaction of customers
There is a detailed explanation of personal experience with reference to the business’s operating method in the above-mentioned chapters. Here, the discourse is being shaped through examining various works of literature. Aiyer et al. (2018) argue that in the current global economic context, it is critical for businesses to pay close attention to how satisfied customers are with the products and services they get (Reid and Sanders, 2013). According to the author, a company’s centricity on their customers satisfaction is significant in their quest to acquire their loyalty. There can be no doubt that the business’s operating method is very effective (Greasley, 2009). There is also no doubt that they are doing all in their power to achieve both their vision and their goal, as seen by the high level of customer service they provide.
A growth in revenue can be seen on the graph, which indicates that the company is making progress that is worth noting. Because of this, it is hard for a firm to attract clients and produce income if it is unable to maintain its operations in the best possible manner. According to Quzwen et al. (2021), the application of customer relationship management is a significant factor in business performance. The quality of the services being offered by Destination Smiles is on its undeniable level, an aspect that is evident from the way they perform their business operations. Otherwise, they would not be able to successfully keep clients. In today’s competitive economic climate, nearly every company is battling for market share (Porter, 1980). Competition in the UK dentistry market is fierce, with the Charlotte Center for Cosmetic Dentistry and numerous other firms posing a major threat.
Now, there is a third component that has to be taken into account. The issue here is one of response time to customers needs. Speed and quality must be maintained at all times in order to sustain leadership in the competitive market. It is been feasible to deduce from personal experience that the business has some challenges with providing service as quickly as possible. It is an important point to take into account. The polar chart makes it evident that a significant proportion of customers are concerned in getting their dentistry services as quickly as possible. In reality, today’s society is a very hectic one with people engaging in activities worth investing their time. With the company continuously delaying replying their customers mails, majority of the customers seem dissatisfied (Hill, 2010). From this perspective, it can be said that the company’s operation management team must address this issue. Clients’ requirements are always evolving, and they must adapt to meet those needs. They must also take the appropriate steps to ensure that they can provide the fastest possible dentistry service to those customers.
Theoretical discussion
In this sense, the customer delight theory is one of the most effective theories to examine in the context of performance management of the company. According to the theory, there are several characteristics that may help consumers be satisfied, and these parameters are about the emotions of customers, the way customers are dealt with, problem-solving, being involved with the feeling of customers, timing of the events, and the sensation of control (Collins, and Shinkins, 2010). The problem is that all of these aspects are intertwined with one another in terms of time. The more quickly a firm can provide a client with high-quality service, the more likely it is that the consumer will be satisfied and even recommend their friends to the company (Jones and Robinson, 2012). The company should think about both speed and quality when it comes to the concept of customer centricity.
Another key operational management philosophy to examine is that of service delivery. According to the notion, delivery methods are linked to resources, processes, and interfaces that are presented with the service delivery to the customers. Employee skills are the most significant resource for a company (Gasior et al., 2021). Delivering services on time is made easier by all of these reasons. In this situation, the firm may have encountered difficulties in providing timely services to clients because of these concerns (Porter, 1980). Therefore, there is always a need for a company to device ways to solve the needs of their customers within the shortest time possible to enhance service delivery.
Recommendation and Overcoming Resistance to Change
Increasing the number of employees
For the company to thrive and eliminate cases of delays while handling customer’s needs, there is a need to increase the number of employees. According to Statista’s statistics, the company employed 200 employees in 2017/2018 fiscal year (Reid and Sanders, 2013). In addition, there is a fact that the company has a wide network of retail locations around the country. Customers are also a part of the daily routine for the organization (Greasley, 2009). The first step that the company has to do is to increase the number of employees in order to manage all of the consumers while still keeping speed and high quality of service delivery (Ferdows and Meyer, 1990). With such an approach the company will be able to track to progress of service delivery and the speed of provide the services to their clients (Reid and Sanders, 2013). There is little doubt that personnel is critical to the long-term viability of a firm, according to Rodriguez and Walters (2016). A company’s ability to offer a service on time depends on the availability of sufficient human resources, as discussed in the paragraphs quoted above (Jones and Robinson, 2012). A larger workforce would likely expedite the company’s efforts to fix the current crisis.
Providing employees with effective time management-related training
Increasing the number of employees is an important issue to consider, but it is not the only one that should be taken into consideration. If staff are unable to manage their time well, it is certain that they will be unable to handle their clients effectively (Ritzman, 2007). Because of this, the management team of the firm may consider giving time management training to its personnel in order for them to effectively handle a large number of consumers.
Reference List
Brown, S., Lamming, R., Bessant, J., and Jones, P., (2005) Strategic Operations Management. Second Edition. Routledge
Ferdows and Meyer, (1990) Lasting Improvements in Manufacturing Performance: In Search of a New Theory. Journal of Operations Management
Greasley, A., (2009) Operations Management. Second Edition. Wiley.
Hill, A., and Hill, T., (2012) Operations Management. Palgrave
Hollins, B., and Shinkins, S., (2010) Managing Service Operations. Design and Implementation. Sage
Jones, P., and Robinson, P., (2012) Operations Management. Oxford
Porter, M., (1980) Competitive Strategy: Techniques for Analyzing Industries and Competitors. New Work, Free Press
Reid, R., and Sanders, N., (2013) Operations Management.
Ritzman, B., Krajewski, J., Malhotra, M., and Klassen, L., (2007) foundations of operations management. Pearson.
Slack, N., and Lewis, M., (2011) Operations Strategy. Third Edition. Prentice Hall, Essex
Young, S. T., (2010) Essentials of Operations Management. Sage
Alexandrova, E., Sitalenaya, K., Poddubnaya, M., and Savvidi, S., (2019) Opportunities of the Digital Economy for achieving Competitive Advantage of Firms. Advances in Economics, Business and Management Research, Volume 110
Bilas, V., and Sopta, M., (2021) Creating A Competitive Advantage: Ne Challenges Ahead. Economy and Market Communications Review, Vol 11, (pp 217 – 226)
Brown, S., Lamming, R., Bessant, J., and Jones, P., (2005) Strategic Operations Management. Second Edition. Routledge
Dixit, S., Singh, S., and Dhir, S., ad Dhir, S., (2021) Antecedents of strategic thinking and its impact on competitive advantage. Journal of Indian Business Research.
Ferdows and Meyer, (1990) Lasting Improvements in Manufacturing Performance: In Search of a New Theory. Journal of Operations Management
Greasley, A., (2009) Operations Management. Second Edition. Wiley.
Hill, A., and Hill, T., (2012) Operations Management. PalgraveHollins, B., and Shinkins, S., (2010) Managing Service Operations. Design and Implementation. Sage
Jones, P., and Robinson, P., (2012) Operations Management. Oxford
Porter, M., (1980) Competitive Strategy: Techniques for Analyzing Industries and Competitors. Ney Work, Free Press.
Reid, R., and Sanders, N., (2013) Operations Management.
Slack, N., and Lewis, M., (2011) Operations Strategy. Third Edition. Prentice Hall, Essex
Young, S. T., (2010) Essentials of Operations Management. Sage
Browm, S., Bessant, J., and Lamming, R., (2013) Strategic Operations Management. Routledge.
Greasley, A., (2009) Operations Management. Second Edition. Wiley.
Hill, A., and Hill, T., (2012) Operations Management. Palgrave
Hollins, B and Shinkins, S., (2010) Managing Service Operations. Design and Implementation. Sage
Jones, P., and Robinson, P., (2012) Operations Management. Oxford Press.
Reid, R., and Sanders, N., (2013) Operations Management.
Russell, B., and Taylor, R., (2011) Operations Management. Wileyplus
Slack, N., Chambers, S., and Johnston, R., (2007) Operations Management. Fifth edition. Prentice Hall.
Slack, N and Lewis, M., (2011) Operations Strategy. Third Edition. Prentice Hall
Tum, J., Norton, P., and Wright, J., (2006) Management of Event Operations. Elsevier.
Statista, 2021. DestinationSmile Coffee: revenue 2010-2018 | Statista. [online] Statista.
Rodriguez, J. and Walters, K., 2017. The importance of training and development in employee performance and evaluation. World Wide Journal of Multidisciplinary Research and Development, 3(10), pp.206-212.
Gasior, M., Skowron, L. and Sak-Skowron, M., 2021. The Importance of Employees’ Competencies: A Comparison between Educational and Business Perspective. European Research Studies Journal, 24(Special 2), pp.681-694.
Anshari, M., Almunawar, M.N., Lim, S.A. and Al-Mudimigh, A., 2019. Customer relationship management and big data enabled: Personalization & customization of services. Applied Computing and Informatics, 15(2), pp.94-101.
Aiyer, M., Panigrahi, J.K. and Das, B., 2018. Successful customer relationship management in business process integration and development of applications for project management. International Journal of Mechanical Engineering and Technology, 9(2), pp.637-643.
Quzwen, M.H., Hurriyati, R. and Sultan, M.A., 2021, September. Customer Relationship Management in Business-to-Business Marketing: The Impact on Corporate Performance. In 5th Global Conference on Business, Management and Entrepreneurship (GCBME 2020) (pp. 517-523). Atlantis Press.