Combining a quantitative approach with a managerial issues approach, this introduction to productions and operations management provides coverage of every P/OM topic - from re-engineering to teams, to ideas on total quality management, to layout, to finite scheduling to technology. Combining a quantitative approach with a managerial issues approach, this introduction to productions and operations management provides coverage of every P/OM topic - from re-engineering to teams, to total quality management ideas, to layout, to finite scheduling to technology. It focuses on eleven critical decisions - both strategic and tactical - that managers must make for meeting customer needs and increasing productivity in a dynamic, global economy.