Personal Digital Assistants, an early name for handheld mobile computing devices.
PDAs
Coordinating and enabling the flow of goods, people, information, and other resources among locations.
logistics
Outsourcing production to third-party firms. Firms that use contract manufacturers don't own the plants or directly employ the workers who produce the requested goods.
contract manufacturing
The set of activities through which a product or service is created and delivered to customers.
value chain
Transaction processing systems that capture customer purchases. Cash registers and store checkout systems are examples of point-of-sale systems. These systems are critical for capturing sales data and are usually linked to inventory systems to subtract ou
point-of-sale (POS) system
The amount earned from an expenditure.
return on investment (ROI)
Goods to be further customized based on designer/manager collaboration.
greige
Small chip-based tags that wirelessly emit a unique identifying code for the item that they are attached to. Think of RFID systems as a next-generation bar code.
RFID
When a single firm owns several layers in its value chain.
vertical integration
The concept where customers browse at physical retailers, but purchase products from lower-cost online rivals.
showrooming
The organizational activities that are required to produce goods or services. Operations activities can involve the development, execution, control, maintenance, and improvement of an organization's service and manufacturing procedures.
operations
An integrated solution that combines five components: hardware, software, data, procedures, and the people who interact with and are impacted by the system.
information system (IS)
An approach to retail that offers consumers an integrated and complementary set of shop, sales, and return experiences (e.g., retail store, online, and sometimes even phone and catalog).
omnichannel
For Zara, _________has made all the difference in its rise to dominate the fashion industry.
technology
While competitors falter, Zara is undergoing one of the fastest global expansions the fashion world has ever seen, opening one store per day and entering new markets worldwide with, ninety-three markets so far.
TRUE
Why did it seem that Gap was plagued by a lack of accurate data?
By using contract manufacturers and seasonal orders, the firm was forced to place bets on guesses of what customers would be interested in, months in advance.
In retail, and the fashion industry, in particular, there is a saying: inventory = _____________.
death.
Which of the following has been a consistent source of concern related to the use of contract manufacturers in the apparel industry?
Poor practices put workers at risk and threaten the brand of partners leveraging their services.
Contract manufacturing is the process by which:
production is outsourced to third-party firms.
The apparel industry in particular has been plagued by accusations of sweatshop labor and unsafe working conditions.
TRUE
Reebok found that launching the effort wasn't as easy as sharing the technology. Why?
The U.S. Department of Justice needed to provide a special exemption for the effort to work
The Fair Factories Clearinghouse provides resources for:
sharing audit information on contract manufacturers.
_____ are handheld computing devices meant largely for mobile use outside an office setting.
PDAs
Zara encourages employee use of technology by tying employee salaries to sales performance.
TRUE
What are the two information systems Zara uses to gather data in-store, and what is the purpose of the data gathered by each.
PDAs gather information on customer preferences, POS gathers information on sales
Transaction processing systems that capture customer purchases are known as:
point-of-sale systems.
Zara designs follow evidence of:
customer demand.
Zara's efficiency is due, in part, because technology allows the firm to manufacturers fewer unique fashion items than rivals like Gap and H&M.
FALSE
When a single firm owns several layers in its value chain, it is said to be:
vertically integrated.
A value chain refers to:
the set of activities through which a product or service is created and delivered to customers.
Which of the following help Zara respond quickly to fashion trends?
All of the above: vertical integration, PDA data, Robots to dye fabric, Robots to cut fabric
Zara makes sure that, before items depart a warehouse for stores, all clothes are ironed in advance and packed on hangers, with security and price tags affixed. This is done to ensure that:
employees spend more time focusing on customers.
Name the technology that makes Zara's inventory smart is called _________.
RFID
Firms such as Walmart and JCPenny have had greater success deploying RFID because they work so closely with a diverse group of product suppliers.
FALSE
Which of the following is true about Zara RFID use?
All of the above
Coordinating and enabling the flow of goods, people, information, and other resources among locations is known as _____.
logistics
Zara's efficiency allows it to increase markdowns.
FALSE
Zara saves money on advertising in part because limited runs of unique items encourage repeat visits, lessening the need to run sales and ad campaigns.
TRUE
Zara's limited production runs cause customers to:
buy the products right away at full price.
Zara sees the link between online and off-line sales as being so fluid. Thus, they have a system that blends online and off-line sales.
TRUE
Zara is able to save costs in many parts of its business, but the firm's highly automated, tech-centric model does mean tech spending is heavier than rivals. Despite this, the tradeoff is worth it, given other savings.
FALSE
The amount earned from an expenditure is known as:
return on investment.
Which of the following refers to an integrated solution that combines the five components of hardware, software, data, procedures, and people?
Information system
What are the five components of an information system?
Hardware, software, data, people, and procedures
Zara also saves money by simplifying pricing, easily allowing items to be shifted from store to store with inventory reallocated as needed.
FALSE
Zara's business model is hedged in such a way that the company will be able to sustain its sales volumes even in an economic downturn.
FALSE
Zara has been able to eliminate costs related to advertising, inventory missteps, and markdowns because of _____.
technology applied in ways that deliver a return on investment
Firms often hedge the risks that could shut down operations at a given facility by:
spreading facilities throughout the globe.