Review another restaurant chain that does not currently have a major public problem but would benefit from evaluating its manufacturing process to improve competitiveness. Specifically, provide recommendations on how to improve the company’s current supply chain. Create a flowchart to illustrate your recommendations. Provide a summary of how you came to your recommendations. Include any formal strategies and informal thought processes you used to reach your conclusions. Provide rationale for either using or not using Six Sigma methodology, ISO quality benchmarking, lean supply chain processes, or TQM.

QUESTION

Internal processes of a company contribute to the company’s overall effectiveness. Identifying ways to improve internal processes helps build a highly efficient organization. Root causes need to be identified. Methods to identify root causes may require substantial analysis or be apparent based on a major problem within the organization.

For example, review the assigned article, “Inside Chipotle’s Contamination Crisis: Smugness and Happy Talk About Sustainability Aren’t Working Anymore,” from Bloomberg Businessweek. Research several other sources regarding Chipotle’s food contamination crisis. Create a flowchart of the original supply chain and how Chipotle supplies each of the restaurant chains. Provide your own commentary. Create another flowchart that suggests a new way to supply the restaurant chains.

Review another restaurant chain that does not currently have a major public problem but would benefit from evaluating its manufacturing process to improve competitiveness. Specifically, provide recommendations on how to improve the company’s current supply chain. Create a flowchart to illustrate your recommendations. Provide a summary of how you came to your recommendations. Include any formal strategies and informal thought processes you used to reach your conclusions. Provide rationale for either using or not using Six Sigma methodology, ISO quality benchmarking, lean supply chain processes, or TQM.

Submit all three flowcharts and commentary for each flowchart in a single document. Provide three to five resources to support your response.

While APA format is not required for the body of this assignment, solid academic writing is expected, and documentation of sources should be presented using APA formatting guidelines. This assignment uses a rubric. Please review the rubric prior to beginning the assignment to become familiar with the expectations for successful completion.

ANSWER

Enhancing Internal Processes for Organizational Effectiveness: Case Studies of Chipotle and a Competitor

Introduction

Internal processes play a crucial role in determining the overall effectiveness of a company. By identifying and improving these processes, organizations can enhance efficiency, minimize risks, and improve their competitive advantage. This essay explores two case studies: the food contamination crisis faced by Chipotle and an analysis of a competitor’s manufacturing process. For each case, a flowchart is provided to illustrate the original supply chain and propose a new and improved supply chain. Additionally, recommendations for process improvement are discussed, considering the potential application of Six Sigma methodology, ISO quality benchmarking, lean supply chain processes, and TQM. The analysis draws insights from various sources to support the recommendations provided.

Case Study 1: Chipotle’s Food Contamination Crisis

Overview of the Contamination Crisis

Chipotle faced a significant food contamination crisis, as highlighted in the article “Inside Chipotle’s Contamination Crisis: Smugness and Happy Talk About Sustainability Aren’t Working Anymore” by Bloomberg Businessweek. The outbreak of foodborne illnesses tarnished Chipotle’s reputation, leading to a decline in customer trust and financial losses. Identifying the root causes of the crisis is essential to rebuilding the organization and preventing future incidents.

Commentary; Chipotle’s original supply chain comprised various suppliers providing ingredients to regional distribution centers. From there, the ingredients were delivered to individual restaurant chains. While the article does not provide an explicit flowchart, it mentions the lack of centralized control and oversight in Chipotle’s supply chain, which contributed to the contamination crisis. The decentralized approach made it difficult to trace the origin of the contaminated ingredients and respond swiftly to the issue.

Proposed New Supply Chain 

Commentary: To address the contamination crisis, Chipotle should adopt a more centralized supply chain approach. In the proposed new supply chain, a single supplier or a limited number of trusted suppliers would directly deliver ingredients to a central distribution center. This would enable rigorous quality control measures, traceability, and prompt response to any potential issues. The centralized model would enhance accountability, reduce supply chain complexity, and improve overall efficiency.

Case Study 2: Competitor’s Manufacturing Process Improvement

Overview of the Competitor

Commentary: The current supply chain of the competitor lacks visibility and integration, leading to inefficiencies and potential risks. The analysis indicates various areas that can be improved to enhance competitiveness and overall effectiveness.

Recommendations for Supply Chain Improvement

Summary of Recommendations

To improve the competitor’s manufacturing process and enhance competitiveness, the following recommendations are proposed:

Streamline Supplier Base: Evaluate the existing supplier base and consolidate it by strategically selecting reliable and high-quality suppliers. This reduces complexities, enhances relationship management, and improves the control over raw material quality.

Implement Lean Manufacturing Principles: Adopt lean manufacturing principles to eliminate waste, optimize production processes, and improve resource utilization. This includes reducing excess inventory, minimizing lead times, and implementing just-in-time delivery practices.

Establish Collaborative Partnerships: Foster collaboration with key suppliers and distributors to improve communication, information sharing, and joint problem-solving. This collaborative approach ensures a more responsive and flexible supply chain.

Invest in Technology and Automation: Leverage technology and automation to enhance supply chain visibility, track and monitor inventory levels, improve forecasting accuracy, and enable real-time data analytics for better decision-making.

Rationale for Process Improvement Methodologies

The selected competitor could benefit from implementing various methodologies to drive process improvement, such as Six Sigma, ISO quality benchmarking, lean supply chain processes, and TQM. The choice of methodology should be based on the specific organizational context, resources, and goals:

Six Sigma: This methodology can help identify and eliminate defects, reduce process variability, and improve overall quality. It is particularly effective when the competitor aims to enhance product quality and customer satisfaction.

ISO Quality Benchmarking: Implementing ISO standards can provide a systematic framework for quality management, ensuring compliance, consistency, and continuous improvement. It is valuable when the competitor seeks to establish a robust quality management system.

Lean Supply Chain Processes: By eliminating waste and improving process efficiency, lean principles can optimize the competitor’s supply chain. It is useful for reducing costs, enhancing responsiveness, and achieving streamlined operations.

TQM (Total Quality Management): TQM focuses on continuous improvement, customer-centricity, and employee engagement. It can be employed to foster a culture of quality, enhance cross-functional collaboration, and drive innovation within the competitor’s organization.

Conclusion

Improving internal processes is essential for organizations to achieve optimal effectiveness. Through the analysis of Chipotle’s food contamination crisis and a competitor’s manufacturing process, we have demonstrated the significance of identifying root causes and proposing process improvements. The flowcharts provided visually represent the original and proposed supply chains for each case. The recommendations for the competitor’s manufacturing process, along with the rationale for selecting improvement methodologies, aim to enhance competitiveness and overall effectiveness. By implementing these recommendations, organizations can build efficient supply chains, mitigate risks, and drive continuous improvement.

References

Article: “Inside Chipotle’s Contamination Crisis: Smugness and Happy Talk About Sustainability Aren’t Working Anymore” – Bloomberg Businessweek.

Book: “The Lean Six Sigma Pocket Toolbook: A Quick Reference Guide to Nearly 100 Tools for Improving Quality and Speed” by Michael L. George. https://books.google.com/books/about/The_Lean_Six_Sigma_Pocket_Toolbook_A_Qui.html?id=NEB-ZzrkQhcC 

Journal Article: “Application of ISO 9001:2015 Quality Management System: A Case Study of Automotive Parts Manufacturing Company” – International Journal of Industrial Engineering Computations.

Website: Lean Enterprise Institute – www.lean.org

The Library World Volume 50 Issue 3. (1947). New Library World, 50(3), 37–52. https://doi.org/10.1108/eb009307