Please provide a rebuttal for the below , position isagainst.
We stand to support the proposition that “where the inputs areraw materials, it is relatively easy to identify the transformationinvolved, but where the inputs are information or people, thenature of the transformation may be less obvious”.
At the very heart of business operations is the production ofproducts or services. This is conducted through the operationsfunction which is considered to be the most important functionalarea of the business. The operations function is where actual workis done and is responsible for the production of goods and servicesthat are ready for sale to customers, in order for the business tomake a profit. For a business to be successful, its operationsfunction must involve taking inputs (raw material, human resources,information), a transformation process, and outputs - the actualproduct or service (Introduction to Operations Management, n.d.).The creation of goods or services, therefore, involves transformingor converting inputs which are not readily useful, into outputsthat are useful to customers (MGMT2026 Unit 1: Introduction toProduction and Operations Management, 2018).
According to The Open University (2011), the transformationprocess is any activity or group of activities that takes one ormore inputs, transforms and adds value to them, and providesoutputs for customers or clients. Inputs would include rawmaterials (such as water, metals or wood), human resources (such asemployees), or information (such as pricing). To better understandthe transformation process, The Open University (2011) states thattransformation may be categorized into different types:
manufacture – the physical creation of products (for examplecars)
transport – the movement of materials or customers (for examplea taxi service)
supply – change in ownership of goods (for example inretailing)
service – the treatment of customers or the storage of materials(for example hospital wards, warehouses).
It is believed that various types of transformations are vitalin the production of a good product or service. Raw materials asinputs play an integral role in the manufacturing transformationprocess. “The importance of the raw material to the efficientoperation of a manufacturing organization cannot be overemphasized;in that, the availability of the raw material in the right qualityand quantity will determine to a reasonable extent; theavailability, quality and quantity of the resultant output”(Akindipe, 2014).
The Oxford dictionary defines transformation as a marked changein form, nature, or appearance. A process by which one figure,expression, or function is converted into another (OxfordDictionaries, 2018). Based on this definition it is compelling toagree that where inputs are raw materials, they are easilyidentified. According to The Open University (2011), it isrelatively easier to identify the transformation involved when theinputs are raw materials than when it is information or people.Tangible resources or raw materials that are transformed intooutputs are more easily detected by feel, touch and sight thanthose outputs that are intangible such as information or people.For example, when milk is transformed into cheese and butter, theresultant product is obvious to the customer who can determine theessential value that has been added by looking at and using thecheese or butter. The transformation of metals and other parts intoa car gives obvious value to the customer who can now use the carfor the purpose of transportation. On the other hand, where theinput is human, for example, a teacher at a school, the output isnot that obvious. It may take months or years to determine whetherthe process was successful, such as after external exams. A studentmay not automatically see the value of the information receivedfrom the teacher until he or she has gained passes in theexams.
To ensure that the desired outputs are obtained, an organizationutilize measurements in the transformation process. The output fromraw materials are tangible products and can be easily measured, asagainst the outputs from human resources or information input whichmay be assumed (for example when a mechanic services a car), or thecustomer will have to wait for a period of time to reallyexperience the value (for example treatment of a patient with aparticular drug by a doctor). A car assembly plant and a hospitalmight look very similar, but a closer look will show cleardifferences. One is a manufacturing operation which produces‘products’, and the other is a service operation that produces‘services’ which changes the physiological or psychologicalcondition of patients. The inputs for the car plant are rawmaterials and the transformation results in a car being formed. Inthe case of the hospital, the inputs are people (sick patients) andinformation about these patients, which are transformed intopersons who are no longer ill. It is clear therefore that it isalways easier to identify the car having been transformed from rawmaterials such as steel, plastic, tyres, spare parts and othermaterials than to determine whether the sick patient has beentransformed into a well person. Other processes will have to beperformed to determine whether the transformation has reallyhappened in the case of the hospital, which means that knowing ifthe person became well may not readily be known.
It is important to explore the practicality of inputs beingplaced in a product that is merely information or the skill of anemployee. It would be incorrect if we were to state that inputs areonly parts or material. Inputs are categorized differently, theycan be seen sometimes as anything involved in the process ofpreparing a product or as only the components of the productitself. This is not what we are validating; it is the point thatinputs such as information and individuals’ skills are lessobvious. When a product has gone through its transformation we canlook and say, yes, this product was changed through the efficiencyof a person or them having some knowledge to adequately addressissues with a product that would help it to function better.MGMT2026 Unit 1, expresses that human inputs in the transformationprocess are the muscle power or brain power that aids in gettingthe product to the final showing. We are posing the question toyou, can you see a product and say specifically, “this addition ofbrain or muscle has really improved the look, feel of the productor its general use?” We think not, as it is not practical to seehuman input or easily ascertain which information specifically madethe final product better.
In conclusion, we reiterate that where the inputs are rawmaterials, it is relatively easy to identify the transformationinvolved, but where the inputs are information or people, thenature of the transformation may be less obvious. Transformationfrom inputs of raw materials are easily seen, tangible, and areexperienced almost immediately. Transformation from inputs ofpeople and information sometimes have to be assumed, not alwaystangible, and may only be experienced after a period of time,sometimes months or years.
