II. Operational objective
•Research each firm's stated mission statement
•Narrow that down yourself to an operational objective.
For example, an operational objective for a large mass merchandiser may be "to establish and execute a global supply chain to minimize product cost and meet customers' quality expectations." (Note: This part is NOT a research question. It is asking you to simply state what the operational objective is.) Another example would be the operational objective of an auto racing track pit crew, which may be something like "accomplish any necessary adjustments/repairs in 16 seconds or less, while also filling the gas tank and changing four tires."
III. The specific operational challenges of this industry
List and discuss at least 3 challenges. As an example, an operational challenge for any U.S. electronic equipment retailer could be political turmoil in a foreign country where products are sourced, leading to unreliable supply. This then might require dual sourcing and/or excess inventories. Another example might be the apparent need for high levels of inventory to keep customer service levels high, which hurts the company's financial metric of ROE.
IV. Metrics of the industry
Research at least 5 operational metrics this industry uses. If you cannot find examples to use, describe 5 metrics they should be using. The text gives numerous examples of these. Also, use the text examples plus your own critical thinking here (i.e., exactly how you would gather the data to calculate these metrics).
V. How has each firm addressed these industry challenges?
Identify how each firm has addressed each of the specific industry challenges described in section III.
This section should be written in the