Operations management is the conduct of administering the processes or practices of a business organization to enable it to reach the highest possible level of efficiency to maximize productivity and profitability and gain competitive advantage. It focuses on monitoring and supervising the work associated with the assembly of a product or the execution of services from start to finish.

Operations management covers the different stages of a production process which includes planning, organizing, preparation, mobilization or assembly, quality assurance, quality control, and delivery. It utilizes its human, materials, technology, and equipment resources to ensure that a company’s product or service conforms to the demands and quality standards of customers.

MBA in Operations Management degree programs offer comprehensive training in business operations and processes, equipping students with the skills and knowledge needed to effectively manage businesses and to succeed in a variety of professional roles. With courses in analytics and organizational behavior, this degree is well-suited for students interested in developing a strategic mindset and creative problem-solving skills.

At a Glance

An MBA in operations management is a business degree that allows aspiring business managers and owners to learn about different areas of business operations, including logistics, customer service, human resources, and supply chain management.

An MBA in operations management degree provides various competencies that qualify you for work in different businesses. With relevant work experience, you can be eligible to take charge of business process improvement strategies. These include planning, organizing, and supervising a manufacturing or service-providing process. You are also responsible for the timely and satisfactory completion and delivery of a product or service.

The 10 Best Online MBA in Operational Management Schools

Johnson & Wales University

Providence, RI

MBA – Operations and Supply Chain Management

Tuition per credit for online MBA program: $842.00
Units Required: 36 – 42 Credit Hours
Program Length: 12 Months
Financial Assistance Options:
- Scholarships
- Grants
- Employer Reimbursements
- Military Benefits

The online MBA offered at Johnson & Wales University’s college of business is tailored to provide you with an extensive study of productive business processes, which covers operations management, logistics, systems analysis, and supply chain management. It aims to equip you with strategic problem-solving skills to allow you to steer your organization successfully in the modern business environment.

JWU’s MBA in Operations and Supply Chain Management curriculum consists of core MBA courses and concentration courses. Its core courses equip you with competencies for jobs behind the desk. At the same time, its specialization subjects give you additional knowledge and skills to qualify for operations management positions in any business enterprise.

JWU’s MBA core courses include:

Financial Management
Operations Management
Effective Leadership
Strategic Marketing

JWU’s Operations and Supply Chain Management Courses:

Lean Production and Quality Control
Designing & Managing Supply Chains
Global Strategic Sourcing
Global Logistics
Business Policy and Strategy
Career Capstone Course

JWU’s online MBA in operations and supply chain management program provides you with the flexibility you need to complete the degree at your own pace. It allows you to acquire graduate business education through a team of experienced industry expert instructors.

University of Scranton

Scranton, PA

Operations Management-intensive online Master’s of Business Administration

Tuition per credit for online MBA program: $965.00
Units Required: 36 – 48 Credit Hours
Program Length: 24 Months
Financial Assistance Options:
- Scholarships and Grants
- Loans and Financing Options
- Student Employment
- Veterans Benefits

The University of Scranton offers an AACSB-accredited online MBA in Operations Management to equip you with the business management knowledge and skills you need to make ethical business decisions to optimize your organization’s business processes. It immerses you in an in-depth study of optimizing human, material, and technological resources to facilitate operational improvement and maximize your company’s profit potential.

The University of Scranton’s operations management concentration allows you to gain expertise in the administration of supply chains, production planning, and quality control. It also develops and hones your decision-making and critical thinking skills to help you transform into a confident and reliable leader and operations manager.

On top of its MBA core courses that include accounting, economics, and financial management, the University of Scranton’s operations management specialization offers these courses:

Supply Chain Management
Data Mining
Project and Change Management
Business Forecasting Models
Quality Management
Production Planning & Control

The University of Scranton’s online operations management-intensive MBA exposes you to a curriculum mentored by professors with real-world business expertise. It keeps its class sizes small to ensure that students can establish a personal connection with their instructors and fellow online students.

Carnegie Mellon University

Pittsburgh, PA

MBA Operations Management Concentration

Tuition per credit for online MBA program: $860.15
Units Required: 64 Credit Hours
Program Length: 24 – 32 Months
Financial Assistance Options:
- Scholarships and Fellowships
- Student Loans
- Financial Aid for Tepper School Veterans

The online MBA in Operations Management at Carnegie Mellon University’s Tepper School of Business equips you with excellent skills to plan, organize, and supervise the design, execution, and delivery of your company’s products or services. It provides you with the capability to formulate plans and use analytical tools to make reliable decisions to streamline your organization’s operational processes.

Tepper’s MBA in operations management curriculum includes excellent business courses that can get you above the rest in the job hierarchy or market. They include probability and statistics, management, financial and managerial accounting, and operations management.

On top of the MBA core requirements are concentration courses that provide you with added skills and competitiveness. These are:

Service Management
Supply Chain Management
Operations Strategy

Carnegie Mellon University is known for its mission to develop its students into future business leaders. It is committed to producing graduates who are innovative thinkers capable of using business data to make intelligent business decisions.

Florida Atlantic University

Boca Raton, FL

Online MBA in Operations Management

Tuition per credit for online MBA program: $800.00
Units Required: 40 – 46 Credit Hours
Program Length: 16 – 23 Months
Financial Assistance Options:
- Federal Financial Aid
- Private Lending
- Military/Veterans Benefits
- Fellowships, Awards, and Scholarships

Florida Atlantic University tailors its MBA in Operations Management to equip you with the knowledge and skills to identify areas of concern in your business process.

These areas include:

Operational issues
Areas for improvement
Implementation of new strategies to improve a business process
Measuring the effectiveness of initiatives to improve a process

FAU’s MBA curriculum consists of MBA core courses that include financial management, financial accounting, advanced marketing, and operations management. It also offers specialization courses in operations management to make you eligible for critical roles in the operational aspect of a business process. These courses include:

Project Management
Business Process Improvement
Supply Chain Management, and (Choose one)
Web-Based Business Development
Blockchain and Digital Business Transformation
Supply Chain Analytics
Developing and Marketing Innovations
Data Analysis for Managers

FAU’s online MBA in Operations Management equips you with the skills to effectively manage a business and allows you to realize your career goals without compromising your current professional or family responsibilities.

Cedarville University

Cedarville, OH

Online Master’s of Business Administration with a specialization in Operations Management

Tuition per credit for online MBA program: $680.00
Units Required: 36 Credit Hours
Program Length: 12 – 24 Months
Financial Assistance Options:
- Federal Direct Graduate Unsubsidized Loan
- Federal Direct Graduate PLUS Loan
- Private Educational Loan
- Donor Scholarships
- Military Aid

Cedarville University’s fully online MBA in Operations Management program intends to equip you with the knowledge and ability to plan, design, control, and improve a company’s business processes and resources, especially those that play an essential role in creating products or executing services. It allows you to build a solid business foundation through core MBA coursework that you can apply in any business setting. It consists of subjects that include:

Accounting for Business Executives
Executive Financial Management
Legal/Ethics Course Managerial Economics
Strategic Marketing Planning
Management and Leadership of Organizations
Capstone Course

Your specialization in operations management will require you to complete these required concentration courses to earn the degree.

Lean Process Management
Operations Research
Project Management
Supply Chain Management

As a Baptist school, all of Cedarville University’s MBA programs differ from similar programs offered by other universities because Cedarville University’s programs require you to master business management with biblical and theological foundations.

University of Findlay

Findlay, OH

Online Master’s of Business Administration with a concentration in Operations Management

Tuition per credit for online MBA programs: $665.00
Units Required: 33 Credit Hours
Program Length: 24 Months
Financial Assistance Options:
- Federal Student Aid
- Scholarships
- Grants
- Loans
- Work-Study
- Veterans Benefits
- State Aid

The University of Findlay offers an online MBA program to prepare you for future business leadership roles. Its comprehensive MBA curriculum focuses on developing your personal and professional potential through theoretical and practical learning.

The operations management concentration of UF’s MBA is a comprehensive study of Lean Six Sigma and ISO 9000. Lean Six Sigma, a business management strategy, focuses on maximizing performance and output by eliminating waste and defects in production. ISO 9000, on the other hand, is a set of international quality standards that member companies use as a basis for their operational procedures.

UF’s MBA curriculum is focused on leadership and business management. Its core courses include organizational leadership and finance, accounting, and human resources management. Its operations management specialization is comprised of courses that allow you to produce quality products and deliver them at the least possible cost. These subjects are:

Lean Six Sigma Green Belt, and
ISO 9000 and Lean Manufacturing

UF’s MBA with a concentration on operations management is committed to equipping you with business and management knowledge and skills to transform you into an effective leader of an enterprise.

You will complete the program equipped with advanced business knowledge and managerial skills, adeptness with the use of analytical tools, and readiness to apply that knowledge and skills in a natural business setting.

Ohio University

Athens, OH

MBA with Operations and Supply Chain Management Concentration

Tuition per credit for online MBA program: Resident: $1,032.00; Non-Resident: $1,051.00
Units Required: 35 Credit Hours
Program Length: 24 Months
Financial Assistance Options:
- Scholarships
- Grants
- Student Employment
- Loans

The college of business of Ohio University is offering an online MBA in Operations and Supply Chain Management to provide you with an extensive understanding of the importance of effectively managing a company’s operations and supply chain.

The program focuses on educating you about ways to minimize operational costs, reduce risks, and improve quality levels, as these are the elements that play an important role in making a business run smoothly and profitably.

Ohio University strives to equip you with strategic thinking, problem-solving, and critical thinking skills. It commits to developing into an effective business manager in the days to come.

Ohio University’s online MBA in the management of operations and supply chain consists of MBA core courses that allow you to earn knowledge and competency for core MBA subjects, including accounting, finance, operations management, and marketing.

As a student in Ohio University’s operations and supply chain management MBA program, you will be required to take these concentration courses to earn the degree:

Management of Lean Six Sigma Programs
Supply Chain Risk Management
Project Management

Ohio University is the largest school in Ohio that offers MBA programs. Its affordable online MBA program is known nationwide for its affordability and academic quality.

University of South Dakota

Vermillion, SD

Master’s of Business Administration with a concentration in Operations and Supply Chain Management

Tuition per credit for online MBA programs: $444.00
Units Required: 36 – 42 Credit Hours
Program Length: 21 Months
Financial Assistance Options:
- Scholarships
- Grants
- Work-Study
- Student and Private Loans
- Graduate Assistantships
- Coyote Career Kickstart

The Beacom School of Business of the University of South Dakota offers an online MBA with Operations and Supply Chain Management specialization. Designed to develop you into an effective leader in business or government organizations, the MBA in operations and supply chain management offers core MBA coursework that enhances your understanding of vital business topics.

Students learn about advanced accounting, finance, strategic management, and quantitative analysis. Its specialization in the management of operations and supply chain also immerses you in a comprehensive study of production planning, inventory control, quality control, and lean management.

USD’s affordable MBA in the management of operations and supply chain will teach you advanced business management skills to qualify for leadership roles in business organizations. It also provides you with a deep understanding of logistics to enhance your competencies in the business environment.

Endicott College Van Loan School

Beverly, MA

Online MBA in Operations Management

Tuition per credit for online MBA program: $784.00
Units Required: 42 Credit Hours
Program Length: 22 Months
Financial Assistance Options:
- Federal Unsubsidized Stafford Loans
- Federal Graduate PLUS Loan
- Private Loans
- Military and Veteran Financial Support and Scholarships

The online MBA in Operations Management at Endicott College Van Loan School was created for individuals with a desire to manage their own business, manage someone’s business as a professional, or manage a non-profit organization. Whatever your career or business goal may be, Endicott’s MBA program is ready to help you make it happen. Its core MBA curriculum consists of courses that teach you a mastery of traditional business subjects like accounting and management.

Endicott’s operations management concentration, on the other hand, consists of courses that allow you to gain a deep understanding of key business operations strategies, including six sigma, business intelligence, data mining, and operations management.

Endicott’s online MBA in Operations Management program is flexible. It allows you to interact with your classmates and engage with your professors to facilitate learning.

Colorado Technical University School of Business & Management

Colorado Springs, CO

Online MBA – Operations Supply Chain Management emphasis

Tuition per credit for online MBA program: $340.00
Units Required: 48 Credit Hours
Program Length: 12 Months
Financial Assistance Options:
- Grants and Scholarships
- State Aid
- CTU Fast Track
- Federal Aid Programs
- Private Loans

Through its School of Business and Management, Colorado Technical University offers an MBA degree with a specialization in the management of operations and supply chains. The program is designed to provide you with knowledge in warehousing, procurement, logistics, and supply chain. It also aims to provide you with the right business management skills to thrive in a complex and global business environment.

The program consists of traditional MBA courses to provide you with knowledge in accounting, finance, economics, strategic management, and more. On top of these, you will be exposed to these operations management courses to enhance your competencies in business operations.

Operations Management
Operations Strategy
MBA Capstone
Logistics/SCM Inventory and Distribution

CTU commits to providing you with the flexibility you need to allow you to juggle your classes into your busy schedule. It aims to keep you motivated to complete your academic aspirations and gain the knowledge you need to face and overcome the challenges of modern businesses and industries.

What An Operational Management Job Is All About

Your job as an operations manager is not limited to ensuring the timely delivery of quality products or services. You also need to understand the use of raw materials to optimize production, minimize waste and avoid storage costs. Production planning and inventory control are essential components of a functional operations management system.

As an Operations Management MBA student, you will be made to understand the meaning and importance of customer demand, acquisition of production materials, and utilization of skilled yet cost-effective labor in producing satisfactory products or services. You will learn about the importance of keeping sufficient inventory levels to ensure continuous operations. In short, an MBA program in operations management is designed to promote operational excellence.

If you have innate talents that include leadership, planning, organizing, analyzing, and problem-solving, and you firmly believe in continuous improvement, you have a good potential for professional success if you can add an MBA in operations management degree to your belt. If you cannot enroll in a face-to-face program due to work, family, and other commitments, look for good MBA online programs that can provide you with the knowledge and training you need to hone your skills.

Like its traditional on-campus counterpart, an online MBA in operations management can give you the career break you want. But it won’t take you to the back end of an established business, unlike MBAs in finance or business analytics. An MBA in operations management brings you to the forefront of a company’s operations to ensure that it is functioning and running smoothly.

The curricula for online MBA programs in operations management vary by school. Still, they all share the same drive and goal – to attract self-motivated individuals who want to level up their careers by pursuing distance graduate education.

Typical online MBA in operations management programs consist of MBA core courses and operations management courses. The MBA core requirements provide you with a broad understanding of business and management fundamentals and a strong business foundation. It offers lessons in accounting, finance, economics, management, marketing, leadership, and quality and project management.

The operations management concentration, on the other hand, consists of courses that develop and hone skills that you can apply in the planning and execution of your company’s business process improvement program. These include data analysis, logistics, and management of the supply chain. Depending on the school, these are some of the courses you will encounter when you specialize in operations management:

Operations Management
Supply Chain Management
Supply Chain Design
Quantitative Analysis for Decision-Making
Data Analytics
Operations Strategy
Logistics
Data Modelling

Since specialization courses also vary by school, you should evaluate carefully which advance collegiate schools offer the courses that make you more competitive in the job market.

Best Online MBA in Operational Management - fact

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Operations Management related to Supply Chain Management?

Operations and supply chain are two closely related fields that are essential in the smooth operation of a business enterprise. A majority of professionals in these fields are well-versed in the ins and outs of both areas.

While operations management and supply chain management are closely related, they differ in one particular aspect. They oversee different facets of a business. Operations management ensures smooth and speedy production, while supply chain management ensures the continuous availability of supplies to sustain operations.

Will an online MBA in Operations Management be a good fit for me?

If you have the passion, interest, and natural sense to solve problems, lead teams, and produce results, then an online MBA in operations management would be an appropriate degree for you.

An MBA in Operations Management can provide various opportunities for individuals to advance their careers and earn attractive salary packages. It equips individuals to handle various aspects of a business, such as planning, production, manufacturing, or providing services.

Is Operations Management a highly sought-after type of job?

In case you missed it, operations management is one of the most highly in-demand skills, especially in the business sector. While the growth rate of 6.7% for operations managers’ jobs for 2021 – 2031 is considered average, as seen by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the fact remains that all established business enterprises anywhere in the world apply operations management strategies in their business activities.

What is the primary goal of Operations Management?

Operations management is primarily designed to ensure the timely production of quality products or the execution of quality services at the least possible cost. It has a secondary objective, and it is to create a positive impact on customers and suppliers to help it achieve its goals for growth and stability.

Why do several graduate schools combine Operations and Supply Chain Management as an MBA specialization?

Operations Management is concerned not only with the smooth and efficient production of products but with ensuring that sufficient inventory is available at all times to sustain continuous operation. Supply Chain Management serves a critical function in any business. It works hand-in-hand with operations management.

Any effective operations management professional is aware of the importance of functional supply chain management in the continuous operation of a business. A specialization in the management of operations and supply chains will increase your competence and broaden your career opportunities in the business world.

Besides an MBA degree, what qualities will make me a good Operations Manager?

Effective leadership and management skills: Operations managers need to have the ability to lead and manage teams of people in order to ensure successful operations.
Attention to detail: Operations managers need to have an eye for detail and be able to plan out processes in order to ensure everything runs smoothly.
Analytical skills: Operations managers need to think critically and analyze data in order to make decisions and optimize processes.
Strategic thinking: Operations managers need to have a long-term view and be able to identify potential opportunities and risks.
Problem-solving abilities: Operations managers need to have the ability to identify problems and develop solutions to ensure successful operations.
Communication skills: Operations managers need to be able to communicate clearly with team members and stakeholders in order to ensure everyone is on the same page.
Interpersonal skills: Operations managers need to be able to effectively interact with team members and stakeholders in order to foster a positive working environment.
Resilience: Operations managers need to stay calm and focused in the face of unexpected problems and adapt plans to ensure operations keep running.

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