2015

EXAM CONTENT MANUAL

PREVIEW

APICS Certified in Production and Inventory Management

Execution and Control of Operations
Preview of Exam Content Manual
January 1, 2015 through December 31, 2015

Please be aware, this is not the full APICS CPIM Exam Content Manual (ECM). The full version is
available for purchase at apics.org/shop. This abbreviated version is provided to give candidates an
overview of what is contained on the exams on a very high level. For exam preparation, use of the
current APICS CPIM ECM is strongly recommended.
Each participant guide includes the section of the APICS CPIM ECM related to the particular module.
Also available is APICS CPIM Study Tools. This comprehensive, online component to the APICS CPIM
program is an online learning environment designed to help you master the core concepts in each
APICS CPIM module. APICS CPIM Study Tools contains presentation slides and assessments to
complement your APICS CPIM learning experience. Each APICS CPIM participant guide gives you
access to APICS CPIM Study Tools.
Purchase the APICS Execution and Control of Operations participant guide at apics.org/shop.
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Execution and Control of Operations Exam: ECM Preview

Abbreviated Exam Content
The following table identifies the four main topics of the exam. The relative importance of these
topics varies among industries, but the figures show the percentage designated for each section of
the exam.
Diagnostic part

Main topic

Execution of
Operations
Control of
Operations
Quality,
Communication
and
Improvement
Design
Concepts and
Trade-Offs

II
III

IV

Percentage of
exam
30%
30%
20%

20%

Content Outline
I. Execution of Operations
The execution of operations includes understanding the scheduling processes that translate plans
into operational activities. This includes applying methods of authorizing and releasing work, and the
management of resources required to accomplish the work. All execution activities rely on an
understanding of the decisions made about the organizational environment, strategies, and
objectives.
A. Principles: An understanding of the key principles of executing activities is necessary for
effective operations management. These principles are influenced by the policies that
determine how work will be accomplished, such as push versus pull environments.
B. Techniques: A variety of techniques are available to guide the execution of operations plans.
It is important to understand the distinctions and applicability of using different techniques
based on the manufacturing or service environment. For example, capacity techniques
balance supply and demand.
II. Control of Operations
Control of operations encompasses the ongoing review and management of operational results in
comparison to the established near-term plan, followed by analysis and application of any corrective
action required to align performance with the plan. Control includes the principles and techniques to
accomplish the plan using both internal and external resources.

A. Principles: The principles of operational control focus on the organizations goals, feedback
from the process, and management of the control process. An understanding of the
operations environment and the distinction between internal and external elements.
B. Techniques: The objective of control is to compare actual to planned results. Tools and
sources of data vary depending on the environment.
III. Quality, Communication, and Continuous Improvement
Management defines the goals and uses meaningful communication to bring about those goals.
A. Principles: Management principles address the organization, training, and motivation of work
teams and other groups of persons assigned purposeful activities.
B. Techniques: Techniques apply the principles of effective communication. All include
thoughtful problem definition and its impacts, criteria for evaluating solutions, and choice of
the most effective solution given the criteria.
IV. Design Concepts and Trade-Offs
Successful execution system design balances competing organizational objectives. Effective
execution system design will incorporate the appropriate flow approach, customer definition of
quality, market demand for speed, use of available technologies, and the appropriate workforce
training, to simultaneously achieve desired system outcomes, profitability, and sustainability.
A. Principles: Design principles are classified as Product Design, Organizational or Plant Layout,
and Process Design.
B. Techniques: Design techniques consist of the processes a manager might invoke to arrive at
an appropriate trade-off given stated objectives.

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