Courses
Operations management
Course overview
We will introduce you to the principles and practices of operations management in both manufacturing and service organizations. You will explore how operations strategies, processes, and supply chain activities contribute to customer value creation and competitive advantage. Our topics include planning, quality management, capacity, inventory, lean systems, project management, and operational technologies. We place our emphasis on applying quantitative and qualitative tools to support strategic and tactical decision-making in modern business environments.
Course content
- Introduction: Importance and strategies of management of operations in the enterprise system
- Location: Key factors and assessment of alternatives for location decision
- Layout: Different types of deployment and layouts
- Product Development: Product / service design phases and life cycle
- Characteristics and strategies in service management, waiting line
- Capacity typologies, external and internal factors
- Planning and aggregate production planning, short- and long-term planning
- Type of production depending on manufacturing, production flows and customer
- Quality definitions and costs, quality and productivity, to ISO 9000, metrics and evaluation systems
- Product, process and information technologies
- Supply Chain (SCM): Collaboration models, lean and agile Chains, outsourcing
- Provisions: shopping; stocks, warehousing, cross docking and demand forecasting
- Project Management: planning, programming and control
- Just in time / Kanban / lean management
- Constraints and bottlenecks
- Performance evaluation of operations function
- Operations management consulting
- Social responsibility in operations management
- The future in operations management
Assessment
The continuous assessment will consist of two written tests and a written group work with oral presentation and discussion (minimum score of 7 values in each):
- 1st Test, with weighting in the final grade of 30%
- 2nd Test, with weighting in the final grade of 30%
- Group work with a final grade weighting of 30%
- Participation in class, with a final grade weighting of 10%
The classification of group work will include two aspects:
- Written work, weighting of 40%
- Presentation and discussion, weighting of 60%
Participation in the preparation of the paper as well as in the presentation / discussion is a necessary condition for you to obtain a classification in this element of evaluation. Your classification in group work will be the result of your own performance (individual classification). If you do not succeed in the continuous assessment scheme, you may take a written exam, with a minimum passing grade of 10 out of 20.
Learning outcomes
In this course you will develop skills to:
- apply operations management concepts and tools
- use quantitative and qualitative methods and models
- processes and form customer value creation
- define, achieve and reinforce a competitive advantage through operations management interventions in the industrial and service environment
- intervene in strategic and tactical decisions regarding operations management and the company’s SCM
- intervene in strategic and tactical decisions regarding the contribution to a broad boundary enterprise with internal reinforcement of integration of functional activities
Enrollment
Course information
Category
Transversal skills
Format
Online
Target groups
Lifelong learners, U!REKA students
Academic year
Starting month
Language
English
Duration
September 7, 2026 – February 12, 2027
Contact
Organising institution
Polytechnic University of Lisbon
Places reserved for U!REKA participants
10
Assessment
Two written tests and a written group work with oral presentation and discussion
Credit/degree/certificate
6 ECTS credits
Course fee
U!REKA Students: none / lifelong learners and external students: 250,- €
Prerequisites
None
Level
Bachelor