307Course · Practitioner

Operations

Turning inputs into repeatable output.

The Course

Operations is the discipline of turning inputs into repeatable output. This course teaches process mapping, constraint identification, and quality control at a working level.

You will finish with one improved process in your own firm, documented and measurable.

Outcomes
  • 01

    Draw a process map.

  • 02

    Find a bottleneck.

  • 03

    Design a control that keeps the process in specification.

Prerequisites
  • None.
Pacing

1–2 weeks · ~4 hours plus the Assignment.

  • IModule · ~1.5 hours.

    Process

    The unit of operational thought.

    A process is the unit of operational thought. Mapping it makes it improvable.

    What You Will Be Able To Do
    • Draw a process map.
    • Distinguish value-add from waste.
    • Time each step honestly.
    Why here

    You cannot improve what you have not mapped.

    1. 01Mapping a processVisuals8m
    2. 02Reading: Goldratt, The Goal (excerpts)Reading25m
  • IIModule · ~1 hour.

    Bottlenecks

    The one place your capacity actually lives.

    Capacity lives at one place. Find it before you optimize anything else.

    What You Will Be Able To Do
    • Identify the constraint.
    • Elevate it in the correct order.
    • Refuse to optimize elsewhere first.
    Why here

    Optimizing non-constraints is the most common operational mistake.

    1. 01Identifying the constraintArticle12m
    2. 02Elevating the constraintArticle12m
  • IIIModule · ~1.5 hours plus the Assignment.

    Quality

    The systems that hold the standard.

    Quality is a set of controls that hold the specification. Statistical thinking is the tool.

    What You Will Be Able To Do
    • Read a control chart.
    • Set control limits defensibly.
    • Improve one process end-to-end.
    Why here

    Quality that survives scale requires charts, not vigilance.

    1. 01Statistical process controlArticle12m
    2. 02Assignment: A one-page process improvementAssignment60m
A Note from the Faculty

Every firm is capacity-limited by one thing. Find it. Elevate it.