The aim of this assignment is to give students a chance to test their ability to apply the tools
presented in the “Operations Management” course to the analysis of real-world business cases.
Description of the assignment
The minor assessment is centred around Arla Foods’ company profile (www.arla.com/company/)
and 2019 annual report (www.arla.com/company/investor/annual-reports/). Each student is expected
to submit a research paper, based also on the analysis of relevant background readings on top of the
case study itself, addressing the following issues:
1) Please, analyse Arla Food’s sales and profits per line of business and prevailing business
model (manufacturing business, distribution business, etc.) (20 points)
2) Discuss the product life cycle of dairy products and evaluate how this influences Arla’s
operations emphasis placed on new product development and marketing.(20 points)
3) Critically discuss Arla Foods’ sustainable production policy and assess how it impacts the
company’s operations and competitiveness in international markets when it comes to “volume,
variety, variation in demand and visibility”. (20 points)
4) Describe Arla’s unique governance configuration (farmers are also owners) and explain how
it impacts the company’s operations in terms of agility and sustainability. (20 points)
5) Critically explain how Arla is managing the COVID-19 emergency from an operational
standpoint. (20 points)