The word management (3rd paragraph) is closest
in meaning to:
Opportunity Cost
This phenomenon goes by the name of ‘opportunity
cost,’ since by not investing in more equipment and
a more rigid production flow, the company is forgoing the opportunity to earn increased profits. These
costs are every bite as real as the payment of dollars
out-of-pocket.
This notion _______ opportunity cost can be reinforced _________ a famous saying ______ Benjamin
Franklin, no slouch himself _________ operations
management. To make the point, however, we must
make a brief excursion into logic. One truth of logic is
the validity of the so-called contrapositive, which says
simply that if the statement “If A, then B” is true, then
it is also true that “If not B, then not A.” That is, of every
time A occurs B follows, then we can be sure that if B
does not occur, then A did not occur as well. Enough
logic then, and back to Ben Franklin.
One of his Poor Richard sayings is that “A penny saved
is a penny earned.” We have all recognized the truth of
that since childhood, but I assert that by this saying
Ben showed us he knows everything about opportunity cost. After all, what is the contrapositive of “A
penny not earned is a penny not saved (i.e., a penny
sent). All we are saying by this notion of opportunity
cost is that “a penny not earned (an opportunity forgone) is a penny spent.” We shall often have occasion
to consider opportunity costs, in analyzing and deciding various operations issues.
SCHMENNER, Roger W. Production/Operations Management. 5th
Edition. Prentice-Hall, 1993.
Opportunity Cost
This phenomenon goes by the name of ‘opportunity cost,’ since by not investing in more equipment and a more rigid production flow, the company is forgoing the opportunity to earn increased profits. These costs are every bite as real as the payment of dollars out-of-pocket.
This notion _______ opportunity cost can be reinforced _________ a famous saying ______ Benjamin Franklin, no slouch himself _________ operations management. To make the point, however, we must make a brief excursion into logic. One truth of logic is the validity of the so-called contrapositive, which says simply that if the statement “If A, then B” is true, then it is also true that “If not B, then not A.” That is, of every time A occurs B follows, then we can be sure that if B does not occur, then A did not occur as well. Enough logic then, and back to Ben Franklin.
One of his Poor Richard sayings is that “A penny saved is a penny earned.” We have all recognized the truth of that since childhood, but I assert that by this saying Ben showed us he knows everything about opportunity cost. After all, what is the contrapositive of “A penny not earned is a penny not saved (i.e., a penny sent). All we are saying by this notion of opportunity cost is that “a penny not earned (an opportunity forgone) is a penny spent.” We shall often have occasion to consider opportunity costs, in analyzing and deciding various operations issues.
SCHMENNER, Roger W. Production/Operations Management. 5th
Edition. Prentice-Hall, 1993.
Gabarito comentado
Resposta: Alternativa A
Tema central: trata-se de vocabulário (sinônimos) e identificação do sentido preciso da palavra "management" no contexto de operações. É essencial reconhecer a classe gramatical (substantivo) e o campo semântico (administração/organização).
Resumo teórico: "Management" é um substantivo que se refere ao ato ou processo de gerir, controlar e organizar recursos, pessoas ou atividades. Em inglês, o verbo "to manage" tem sentidos adicionais (ex.: conseguir fazer algo), mas o substantivo mantém o foco em administração e organização. (Ver Cambridge Dictionary; Oxford Learner's Dictionary.)
Justificativa da alternativa correta: A — "the control and organization of something." corresponde diretamente ao sentido de "management" como processo de controle e organização de recursos e atividades. No contexto do texto (operations management), a ideia é exatamente essa: gerir operações para otimizar custos e lucros.
Análise das alternativas incorretas: B — "to deal with a difficult situation." é sentido do verbo "to cope" ou de "to manage" (verbo), não do substantivo "management". C — "to succeed in doing something." remete a "to manage (to do something)" (verbo com sentido de conseguir), não ao substantivo. D — "to be in charge of a business." descreve uma função (ser responsável), próxima, mas limitada (aplica-se a empresa apenas); a alternativa A é mais geral e precisa. E — "to run a career." é impreciso e não corresponde ao significado padrão de "management".
Estratégias úteis: - Identifique a classe gramatical no enunciado (substantivo vs. verbo). - Relacione a palavra ao contexto imediato ("operations management" → administração de operações). - Prefira a alternativa que cubra o sentido geral e técnico (administração, controle, organização).
Fontes consultadas: Cambridge Dictionary; Oxford Learner's Dictionary (definições de "management" e "manage").
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