Chapter Twelve: Establishing Operations
Next, develop a Critical Path Chart that illustrates how the activities fit together and
build upon each task. Develop your chart and identify the list of tasks that are expected
to take the longest amount of time. How will you manage your time to ensure that your
new small business initiates operations on time?
Critical Thinking Exercise 12.3: Critical Path Table and Charting – Notes
This lesson works great in a time-frame that allows the student the time to establish a
business. The expected completion time could be during the course of the class or a
semester project, time permitting.
In this lesson, each student is expected to complete a Critical Path Chart that illustrates
the steps required to initiate operations at the new small business. Each student will
identify the tasks required, the estimated time to complete the task, the actual time
involved, the previous tasks required to complete that specific task, and the individual
who is responsible for completing each task.
Next, each student develops a Critical Path Chart to reveal the set of activities that were
dependent upon each other. The student will document the tasks that were expected to
take the longest amount of time. This data is imperative in the small business planning
process. The students learn how to plan for a new small business, the steps that are
involved in initiating its operations, and how to gain a comprehensive analysis to
manage their time.
Bonus Cases
Bonus Case 12.1: Conferences and Operations Planning for the New Entrepreneur
(LO 12-6)
The authors in the text discussed that a production management system is an effective
method that is necessary to ensure the new small business owner has effective
planning initiatives in place for the new small business. How can these owners ensure
that they plan the production process for their new small businesses? One method
discussed in the text is to develop a production chart to illustrate the small business’s
production plans.
There are companies that provide the new small business owner conferences to assure
that the new small business owner establishes effective production plans for the
owner’s respective industry. Consider how a new small business owner can utilize
conferences as a help in developing new small business plans.
IM 12-6
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