Learning Curve Theory

Applying the Learning Curve Theory
Student name
OPS/571
January 10, 2011
Instructor name



Applying the Learning Curve
Learning curves occur daily in one’s business and personal life, understanding the role learning curves is essential in maximizing opportunities involving business expansion and skill-set acquisition while minimizing and containing costs during the learning curve period.   The three main assumptions behind learning curves are as follows.
  1. The time required to complete a given task will be less performance of the task.
  2. The unit time will decrease at an accelerated initial rate, flattening as the task is mastered.
  3. The reduction time will follow a predictable pattern (Chase, Jacobs & Aquilano, 2006).
This purpose of this paper is to apply the learning curve theory concepts through the tests for alternatives to a process. This performance metric is then measured by data set for increase or decrease in the initial data set provided through University of Phoenix® demonstrating the learning curve theory (UOPX, 2010).
Data Points for Process Performance
Mario’s Pizzeria is a family-owned business in Palm Springs, California. Mario is evaluating handing over the company business to his son, Junior.   The son must prove he can make sound business decisions while maintaining the original appeal of the restaurant. Junior’s areas for evaluation will include, profitability, restaurant configuration, restaurant capacity, utilization, customer wait time, queue length, lost sales, and staffing.
The graph below tracks the above data points providing an accurate and quantifiable assessment of Junior’s performance to Mario’s decision.   The optimal outcome is minimal wait time and queue length, high utilization percentage,...