Overview
This unit focuses on the production of goods and services in a multitude of operations that provide for the needs of people in our increasingly globalised economy. In this unit, you will gain insights on how output is achieved smoothly, efficiently, and profitably to meet the needs of organisational customers and clients. This unit will enable you to gain knowledge and skills to recognise the need for improvements within an organisation's business model and value chain. For example, you will examine productivity management, quality control, facilities management, and project management. The unit will enable you to design and develop production and operating systems while also applying a number of generic problem-solving techniques. This unit allows you to focus on an organisation, industry, or sector of your choice from a selected list of options for all assessments.
Details
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites
Completion of 48 credit points in the first year of equivalent full-time study.
Important note: Students enrolled in a subsequent unit who failed their pre-requisite unit, should drop the subsequent unit before the census date or within 10 working days of Fail grade notification. Students who do not drop the unit in this timeframe cannot later drop the unit without academic and financial liability. See details in the Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework).
Offerings For Term 1 - 2026
Attendance Requirements
All on-campus students are expected to attend scheduled classes - in some units, these classes are identified as a mandatory (pass/fail) component and attendance is compulsory. International students, on a student visa, must maintain a full time study load and meet both attendance and academic progress requirements in each study period (satisfactory attendance for International students is defined as maintaining at least an 80% attendance record).
Recommended Student Time Commitment
Each 6-credit Undergraduate unit at CQUniversity requires an overall time commitment of an average of 12.5 hours of study per week, making a total of 150 hours for the unit.
Class Timetable
Assessment Overview
Assessment Grading
This is a graded unit: your overall grade will be calculated from the marks or grades for each assessment task, based on the relative weightings shown in the table above. You must obtain an overall mark for the unit of at least 50%, or an overall grade of 'pass' in order to pass the unit. If any 'pass/fail' tasks are shown in the table above they must also be completed successfully ('pass' grade). You must also meet any minimum mark requirements specified for a particular assessment task, as detailed in the 'assessment task' section (note that in some instances, the minimum mark for a task may be greater than 50%). Consult the University's Grades and Results Policy for more details of interim results and final grades.
All University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
You may wish to view these policies:
- Grades and Results Policy
- Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework)
- Review of Grade Procedure
- Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure - Domestic Students
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure - International Students
- Student Refund and Credit Balance Policy and Procedure
- Student Feedback - Compliments and Complaints Policy and Procedure
- Information and Communications Technology Acceptable Use Policy and Procedure
This list is not an exhaustive list of all University policies. The full list of University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
Feedback, Recommendations and Responses
Every unit is reviewed for enhancement each year. At the most recent review, the following staff and student feedback items were identified and recommendations were made.
Feedback from Student and Unit Coordinator feedback
Continue to ensure students understand how to submit and obtain their results and marking feedback for the Assessment 1 Learning Logs.
The recommendation is to continue to ensure students understand how to submit and obtain their results and marking feedback for the Assessment 1 Learning Logs.
Feedback from Student and Unit Coordinator feedback
Continue to add more practical examples of operations management applications in different sectors.
The recommendation is to continue to add more practical examples of operations management applications in different sectors.
- Analyse the role operations managers perform in an organisation
- Examine the interaction of operations management with other functional areas such as finance, marketing, and human resources
- Evaluate operational processes in the context of efficiency, effectiveness, flexibility, quality, cost management, responsiveness, and productivity
- Develop the ability to use qualitative and quantitative techniques to address and solve operations management problems
- Analyse recent and emerging trends in operations management and their potential impact on organisational performance.
Not applicable.
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
| Assessment Tasks | Learning Outcomes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | |
| 1 - Learning logs / diaries / Journal / log books - 50% | |||||
| 2 - Report - 50% | |||||
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
| Graduate Attributes | Learning Outcomes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | |
| 1 - Communication | |||||
| 2 - Problem Solving | |||||
| 3 - Critical Thinking | |||||
| 4 - Information Literacy | |||||
| 5 - Team Work | |||||
| 6 - Information Technology Competence | |||||
| 7 - Cross Cultural Competence | |||||
| 8 - Ethical practice | |||||
| 9 - Social Innovation | |||||
| 10 - First Nations Knowledges | |||||
| 11 - Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Cultures | |||||
Textbooks
Operations and Supply Chain Management
- 3rd edition (2024)
- Authors: Collier, DA & Evans, JR
- Cengage Learning
- Boston Boston , Massachusetts , USA
- ISBN: 9780357901649
- Binding: Paperback
IT Resources
- CQUniversity Student Email
- Internet
- Unit Website (Moodle)
- Zoom.us (invited as a guest)
- Microsoft Excel and Word
All submissions for this unit must use the referencing style: American Psychological Association 7th Edition (APA 7th edition)
For further information, see the Assessment Tasks.
t.andersson@cqu.edu.au
Week 1: Operations and Value Chains, Analytics and Performance Measurement
Begin Date: 09 Mar 2026Module/Topic
Operations and Value Chains, Analytics and Performance Measurement
Chapter
Moodle learning resources.
Chapter 1 - Operations Management and Value Chains.
Chapter 2 - Analytics and Performance Measurement in Operations and Value Chains.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Workshop
Week 2: Operations Strategy and Digital AI Technology
Begin Date: 16 Mar 2026Module/Topic
Operations Strategy and Technology
Chapter
Moodle learning resources.
Chapter 3 - Operations Strategy.
Chapter 4 - Technology and Operations Management.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Workshop
Week 3: Goods and Service Design
Begin Date: 23 Mar 2026Module/Topic
Goods and Service Design
Chapter
Moodle learning materials.
Chapter 5 - Goods and Service Design.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Workshop
Learning Log 1 – Submit your first assessed Learning Log entry before 11.45 PM AEST on Sunday this week.
Week 4: Supply Chain Design
Begin Date: 30 Mar 2026Module/Topic
Supply Chain Design
Chapter
Moodle learning resources.
Chapter 6 - Supply Chain Design.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Workshop
Week 5: Process Selection, Design, and Improvement
Begin Date: 06 Apr 2026Module/Topic
Facility and Work Design
Chapter
Moodle learning resources.
Chapter 7 - Process Selection, Design, and Improvement.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Workshop
Learning Log entry 2 – Submit your second assessed Learning Log entry before 11.45 PM AEST on Sunday this week.
Week 6: Facility and Work Design
Begin Date: 13 Apr 2026Module/Topic
Facility and Work Design
Chapter
Moodle learning resources.
Chapter 8 - Facility and Work Design.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Workshop
Vacation Week
Begin Date: 20 Apr 2026Module/Topic
Vacation week with no scheduled unit activities. Take a break or use the week to catch up with your studies.
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Week 7: Forecasting and Demand, Capacity and Resources
Begin Date: 27 Apr 2026Module/Topic
Forecasting and Demand, Capacity and Resources
Chapter
Moodle learning resources.
Chapter 9 - Forecasting and Demand Planning.
Chapter 10 - Capacity Management.
Chapter 11 - Resource Utilisation.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Workshop
Learning Log 3 – Submit your third assessed Learning Log entry before 11.45 PM AEST on Sunday this week.
Week 8: Inventory Management and Supply Chain Logistics
Begin Date: 04 May 2026Module/Topic
Inventory Management and Supply Chain Logistics
Chapter
Moodle learning resources.
Chapter 12 - Managing Inventories in Supply Chains.
Chapter 13 - Supply Chain Management and Logistics.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Workshop
Week 9: Resource Management and Operations Scheduling
Begin Date: 11 May 2026Module/Topic
Resource Management and Operations Scheduling
Chapter
Moodle learning resources.
Chapter 14 - Resource Management.
Chapter 15 - Operations Scheduling and Sequencing.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Workshop
Learning log 4 – Submit your fourth assessed Learning Log entry before 11.45 PM AEST on Sunday this week.
Week 10: Quality Management and Quality Control
Begin Date: 18 May 2026Module/Topic
Quality Management and Quality Control
Chapter
Moodle learning resources.
Chapter 16 - Quality Management.
Chapter 17 - Quality Control and Statistical Process Control.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Workshop
Week 11: Lean and Resilient Operating Systems
Begin Date: 25 May 2026Module/Topic
Lean and Resilient Operating Systems
Chapter
Moodle learning resources.
Chapter 18 - Lean Operating Systems.
Chapter 20 - Building Resilience and Continuity in Operations and Supply Chains.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Workshop
Learning Log 5 – Submit your fifth and final assessed Learning Log entry before 11.45 PM AEST on Sunday this week.
Week 12: Student Self-Reflection and Managing Projects
Begin Date: 01 Jun 2026Module/Topic
Student Self-Reflection and Managing Projects
Chapter
Moodle resources on Student Self-reflection.
Chapter 19 - Project Management.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Workshop
Exam Week
Begin Date: 08 Jun 2026Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
1 Learning logs / diaries / Journal / log books
This assessment must be completed individually by students.
Assessment 1 requires students to follow the guidelines for using artificial intelligence tools outlined in the Artificial Intelligence Assessment Scale (AIAS). Any misuse or failure to disclose the use of AI tools will be considered a breach of academic integrity.
Assessment 1 must be completed at AIAS Level 2. AIAS Level 2 (AI Planning) states: AI may be used for pre-task activities such as brainstorming, outlining, and initial research. This level focuses on the effective use of AI for planning, synthesis, and ideation, but assessments must emphasise the ability to independently develop and refine these ideas. You may use AI for planning, idea development, and research. However, your final submission must demonstrate how you have developed and refined these ideas.
Important: The mandatory statement on the use of GenAI must be included in your assessment submission.
Important: Academic misconduct and late-submission penalties will apply.
Operations Management Definition
Operations Management (OM) is the science and art of ensuring that goods and services are created and delivered successfully to customers. OM includes the design of goods, services, and the processes that create them; the day-to-day management of these processes; and the continual improvement of these goods, services, and processes (Collier & Evans, 2024, p. 2).
Collier, D. A., & Evans, J. R. (2024). Operations and Supply Chain Management. Cengage.
Select an organisation for all assessment tasks
You must select the same Australian organisation for all your assessment tasks this term. The restrictions to selecting your organisation will be provided on the unit website in Moodle. For example, it cannot be an organisation in a case study provided in your unit textbook by Collier and Evans (2024). Your selection will be approved/rejected as part of Learning Log 1. Thus, ensure you understand the selection criteria provided on the unit website in Moodle.
Learning Log 1 you must submit in week 3
Learning Log 1 addresses unit learning outcome 1: Analyse the role operations managers perform in an organisation. This week, you must select an organisation that will provide you with the context for the Assessment 1 Learning Logs and Assessment 2 Business Report. You will be provided feedback regarding your organisation selection in response to your log. Once you have selected your organisation, Learning Log 1 is about analysing the role of Operations Management (OM) and the tasks operations managers perform within your selected organisation. You are also required to provide self-reflection about your learning experience. Follow the assessment task instructions and guidance provided on the unit website in Moodle.
Learning Log 2 you must submit in week 5
Learning Log 2 addresses unit learning outcome 2: Examine the interaction of operations management with other functional areas such as finance, marketing, and human resources. Continuing from Learning Log 1, where you identified your selected organisation's OM activities and the context of OM goods/service design and OM supply/value chain design, where do you observe or find evidence of the interaction of OM activities with functions such as marketing, sales, procurement, manufacturing, engineering, innovation/product and service development, information/Digital AI Technology, distribution, service delivery, aftermarket service, finance/economy, human resources. You are to illustrate an OM supply/value chain for your selected organisation and indicate the functional interaction with the processes operating in different parts of the OM supply/value chain. Use pen and paper to get going with your prototype illustration. Describe what you learned. You are also required to include self-reflection about your learning experience. Follow the assessment task instructions and guidance provided on the unit website in Moodle.
Learning Log 3 you must submit in week 7
Learning Log 3 addresses Unit Learning Outcome 3: Evaluate operational processes in the context of efficiency, effectiveness, flexibility, quality, cost management, responsiveness, and productivity. Therefore, Learning Log 3 is about mapping and evaluating an operational process of your choice within your selected organisation, as discussed in the lectures and workshops. You will explore and summarise the meaning of process efficiency, effectiveness, flexibility, quality, cost management, responsiveness, and productivity and evaluate the operational process according to your definitions. You are also required to include self-reflection about your learning experience. Follow the assessment task instructions and guidance provided on the unit website in Moodle.
Learning Log 4 you must submit in week 9
Learning Log 4 addresses Unit Learning Outcome 4: Develop the ability to use qualitative and quantitative techniques to address and solve OM problems within your chosen organisation. Thus, Learning Log 4 is about developing and demonstrating your ability to use qualitative and quantitative OM techniques we have addressed in the lectures and workshops and to use self-reflection about the learning experience. You must select one qualitative and one quantitative technique as directed on the unit website in Moodle to address an OM challenge in the context of your selected organisation. You are also required to include self-reflection about your learning experience. Follow the assessment task instructions and guidance provided on the unit website in Moodle.
Learning Log 5 you must submit in week 11
Learning Log 5 addresses Unit Learning Outcome 5: Analyse recent and emerging digital AI trends in OM and their potential impact on organisational performance. Hence, Learning Log 5 is about developing and demonstrating your ability to analyse current and emerging trends in OM and their potential impact on your selected organisation, as discussed throughout the term in lectures and workshops, and to use self-reflection about your learning experience. Follow the assessment task instructions and guidance provided on the unit website in Moodle.
Learning Log 1 must be submitted in Week 3 (before Sunday, March 29th at 11.45PM AEST). Learning Log 2 must be submitted in Week 5 (before Sunday, April 12th at 11.45PM AEST). Learning Log 3 must be submitted in Week 7 (before Sunday, May 3rd at 11.45PM AEST). Learning Log 4 must be submitted in Week 9 (before Sunday, May 17th at 11.45PM AEST). Learning Log 5 must be submitted in Week 11 (before Sunday, May 31st at 11.45PM AEST).
Feedback on the Learning Logs from Weeks 3, 5, 7, 9, and 11 will be provided in the following week.
Each of your Learning Logs will be assessed according to your ability to:
- Respond to the specific Learning Log task instructions and guidance (60%)
- Write a candid and critical self-reflection about the assessment task. Include a reflection on the development of your personal Operations Management capabilities and practices, and your weaknesses. Support this with improvement suggestions for the following assessments (30%)
- Include at least four academic and professional literature references supporting your assessment learning log with correct APA 7 in-text referencing and reference list (10%)
Each of the Learning Logs is worth 10% of the overall marks. That means the five Learning Logs part of Assessment 1 are worth 50% of the unit marks.
- Analyse the role operations managers perform in an organisation
- Examine the interaction of operations management with other functional areas such as finance, marketing, and human resources
- Evaluate operational processes in the context of efficiency, effectiveness, flexibility, quality, cost management, responsiveness, and productivity
- Develop the ability to use qualitative and quantitative techniques to address and solve operations management problems
- Analyse recent and emerging trends in operations management and their potential impact on organisational performance.
2 Report
This assessment must be completed individually by students.
Assessment 2 requires students to adhere to the guidelines for using artificial intelligence tools specified in the Artificial Intelligence Assessment Scale (AIAS). Any misuse or failure to disclose the use of AI tools will be considered a breach of academic integrity.
Assessment 2 must be completed at AIAS Level 2. AIAS Level 2 (AI Planning) states: AI may be used for pre-task activities such as brainstorming, outlining, and initial research. This level focuses on the effective use of AI for planning, synthesis, and ideation, but assessments must emphasise the ability to independently develop and refine these ideas. You may use AI for planning, idea development, and research. However, your final submission must demonstrate how you have developed and refined these ideas.
Important: The mandatory statement on the use of GenAI must be included in your assessment submission.
Important: Academic misconduct and late-submission penalties will apply.
Assessment 2 involves writing a business report about your selected organisation in response to an assessment task designed for you to apply Operations Management (OM) concepts, methods and techniques. You must analyse and assess the impact of advances in Digital AI Technologies in the context of your selected organisation and write a 1800-word business report about your findings. The complete Assessment 2 Tasks and Guidance is available on the unit website in Moodle. Assessment 2 is worth 50% of the unit marks. Follow the assessment task instructions and guidance provided on the unit website in Moodle.
Exam Week Friday (12 June 2026) 11:45 pm AEST
Results and feedback will be available in Moodle on Certification Date 8 July 2026
Your Business Report will be assessed according to your ability to:
- Identify Digital AI Technology advances relevant to your selected organisation's operations management. (10%)
- Analyse and assess the impact of Digital AI Technology advances on the role operations managers perform within your selected organisation. (12%)
- Analyse and examine the impact of Digital AI Technology advances on the interaction of operations management with other functional areas within your selected organisation. (12%)
- Analyse and evaluate the impact of Digital AI Technology advances on the operational processes within your selected organisation. (12%)
- Analyse and assess the impact of Digital AI Technological advances on the application of qualitative and quantitative operations management techniques used to address operational problems within your selected organisation. (12%)
- Synthesise the findings of your analysis and assessment into a conclusion about the impact of Digital AI Technology advances on OM in your chosen organisation. (12%)
- Write a candid and critical self-reflection about the Assessment 2 task, including a reflection on the development of personal operations management capabilities and practices and identification of one's own weaknesses, supported with suggestions for self-improvement. (10%)
- Write with a good flow of thought and correct grammar and spelling. Follow the provided report format. Provide a convincing executive summary, a clear and concise purpose in the introduction, and a clear and concise conclusion. Are within ±10% of the word limit for the report, excluding the executive summary, the table of contents, references, and appendices: 1800 words. (10%)
- Critically review and integrate relevant academic and professional literature to support arguments. A minimum of ten (10) academic and professional references are included. Appropriate in-text referencing and reference list, and adherence to the CQUniversity APA reference style. (10%)
- Analyse the role operations managers perform in an organisation
- Examine the interaction of operations management with other functional areas such as finance, marketing, and human resources
- Evaluate operational processes in the context of efficiency, effectiveness, flexibility, quality, cost management, responsiveness, and productivity
- Develop the ability to use qualitative and quantitative techniques to address and solve operations management problems
- Analyse recent and emerging trends in operations management and their potential impact on organisational performance.
As a CQUniversity student you are expected to act honestly in all aspects of your academic work.
Any assessable work undertaken or submitted for review or assessment must be your own work. Assessable work is any type of work you do to meet the assessment requirements in the unit, including draft work submitted for review and feedback and final work to be assessed.
When you use the ideas, words or data of others in your assessment, you must thoroughly and clearly acknowledge the source of this information by using the correct referencing style for your unit. Using others’ work without proper acknowledgement may be considered a form of intellectual dishonesty.
Participating honestly, respectfully, responsibly, and fairly in your university study ensures the CQUniversity qualification you earn will be valued as a true indication of your individual academic achievement and will continue to receive the respect and recognition it deserves.
As a student, you are responsible for reading and following CQUniversity’s policies, including the Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure. This policy sets out CQUniversity’s expectations of you to act with integrity, examples of academic integrity breaches to avoid, the processes used to address alleged breaches of academic integrity, and potential penalties.
What is a breach of academic integrity?
A breach of academic integrity includes but is not limited to plagiarism, self-plagiarism, collusion, cheating, contract cheating, and academic misconduct. The Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure defines what these terms mean and gives examples.
Why is academic integrity important?
A breach of academic integrity may result in one or more penalties, including suspension or even expulsion from the University. It can also have negative implications for student visas and future enrolment at CQUniversity or elsewhere. Students who engage in contract cheating also risk being blackmailed by contract cheating services.
Where can I get assistance?
For academic advice and guidance, the Academic Learning Centre (ALC) can support you in becoming confident in completing assessments with integrity and of high standard.
What can you do to act with integrity?
