MBA-FPX5016 builds practical operations management skills by having you improve, forecast, and plan the supply chain for the same business scenario across three assessments — commonly the "Wild Dog Coffee Company," a locally-owned coffee shop looking to expand to a second location. You start by identifying and proposing fixes for an operational inefficiency, then build a demand management plan to support growth, and finish with a supply chain management plan presented to leadership. This guide breaks down what each assessment requires and how academic support for MBA-FPX5016 fits into a course that moves at your own pace but still has real competency standards to meet.
Course Overview
This course treats operations management as a leadership responsibility, not a back-office function — you apply process improvement, demand forecasting, and supply chain design tools to a small business that's trying to grow, with each assessment representing a different operational lever leadership would actually pull. The consistent business scenario across all three assessments means decisions about capacity, demand, and supply chain design need to stay coherent with each other.
Key Assessments
-
1Process Improvement Plan
A data-supported plan (typically around 7 pages) identifying an operational inefficiency in the business scenario and recommending specific process improvements, often using a recognized process improvement methodology.
-
2Demand Management Plan
Combines demand forecasting, inventory control, and resource scheduling into a plan that ensures the business can meet customer demand while optimizing operational efficiency and managing carrying costs.
-
3Supply Chain Management Plan Presentation
A slide presentation (typically 10-12 slides) covering supply chain design and logistics recommendations, built to communicate the operational strategy clearly to a leadership or stakeholder audience.
How We Help With MBA-FPX5016
- Identifying a genuinely data-supportable operational inefficiency for Assessment 1, not just a generic process complaint
- Building an Assessment 2 demand management plan that connects forecasting, inventory, and scheduling into one coherent plan
- Structuring Assessment 3 slides for clarity and leadership-level communication rather than dense operational detail
- Keeping the business scenario and its operational assumptions consistent across all three assessments
- APA 7 formatting and scholarly source integration across all three assessments
Common Challenges in This Course
In Assessment 1, a common mistake is proposing a process improvement without the data to support that it's actually the right fix — rubrics typically expect evidence, not just a reasonable-sounding recommendation. In Assessment 2, students sometimes treat forecasting, inventory, and scheduling as separate sections rather than an integrated plan, which weakens the overall demand management strategy. On Assessment 3, the slide format tempts students to cram in too much operational detail; the rubric usually rewards a presentation that's clear and decision-focused for a leadership audience over one that's comprehensive but dense.
Need Help With MBA-FPX5016?
Send us your specific assessment instructions and rubric, and we'll match you with a specialist familiar with this exact course.
Related Courses
MBA-FPX5016 FAQ
Yes — most sections use a consistent small-business scenario across Assessments 1-3, so operational assumptions need to stay coherent between them.
Most rubrics accept a recognized framework (Lean, Six Sigma, PDCA) as long as it's applied specifically and consistently to the identified inefficiency.
Check your course shell for the exact requirement — some sections expect narrated audio, others accept detailed speaker notes.
Most student work uses straightforward forecasting methods (moving average, trend analysis) appropriate for a small business rather than advanced statistical forecasting.
It builds operational strategy skills that complement the finance and marketing core courses, feeding into the cross-functional thinking expected in MBA-FPX5910, the capstone.