International production and operations planning involves the acquisition of materials and physical resources. Vertical integration and outsourcing issues must be addressed.There are four key issues to analyze:
1. Production Capacity involves the amount of output required to satisfy market demand without overcapacity stalking the firm.
2. The location of the facilities involves the cost and availability of labor and benefits including worker productivity, raw materials, components, energy costs, etc. Political stability and regulation costs can impact location planning. Supply chain issues and the weight of shipping and transportation costs must be carefully analyzed.
3. Process Planning will be determined by an analysis of labor versus capital intensity; as well as standardization versus adaptation costs.
4. Facilities Layout and spatial arrangement of the production process is an important aspect of operations.
5. Quality issues like six sigma must be monitored and continuously improved.
6. Financing business operations and capital structure decisions are crucial. Funding business operations through debt, equity and internal funding must be carefully assessed. Think about venture capital and crowd-sourcing.
