After working in operations for so many years, have you ever thought about the definition of operations?

After working in operations for so many years, have you ever thought about the definition of operations?
A few days ago, a friend was chatting with me and we talked about the topic of product operation . At that time, she said, if you have the chance, please tell us about product operations . We had a very good chat at that time, and I agreed without thinking. But when I went back and thought carefully about how to share the topic of product operation, I was a little confused. I couldn’t explain product operation clearly for half an hour to an hour. Ultimately, it is because there is a deviation in our understanding and definition of product operations. Here, please think about it. We have been doing operations for so many years. Have you ever thought about the definition of product operations? 1. Product operation is a system Mr. Zhang Liang, a famous operations expert, once said, "Operations are a brick that can be moved wherever needed. Operations are a basket that can hold anything." This means that product operations is actually a very large system that includes a lot of work. 

 Product operation can also be called Internet operation or operation. In fact, I think the meanings of these three are similar. Product operation includes many branches, which are generally divided into content operation , user operation and event operation according to the core work of operation. The following is a quote from Mr. Zhang Liang’s introduction to these three jobs in the book “Operations from Scratch”. 
  • Content operation refers to the operation of content that increases the value of website/product content by creating, editing, organizing, and presenting website content, so as to promote user stickiness and activity.
  • User/member operation refers to the development of operation plans and even operation mechanisms based on the needs of users/members, with the goal of increasing the activity, retention , and payment of users/members of the website/product.
  • Activity operation refers to driving short-term improvement of one or more indicators through conducting independent activities or joint activities.
 It is not difficult to see from this that product operation is actually a system, and each branch is a kind of job. And with the development of the Internet industry, the integrated nature of operational work has emerged. For example, new media operation , which has been quite popular in recent years, is actually a comprehensive job of content operation + user operation + event operation. As an outstanding new media operator, you must be able to be cute and funny by writing articles, and you must be able to play musical instruments, sing and chat with users. At critical moments, you also need to manage an event and complete the KPI set by the boss in the short term. 2. There are many different definitions of operations As Professor Huang Youcan said, the current operations industry is still in its infancy, so many things are not standardized and it is difficult to systematize. I think this is why different people have different views on the definition of operations. In fact, everyone's statement makes sense. It is just like the Hundred Schools of Thought in the Spring and Autumn Period. Different schools have different viewpoints, but in fact, each viewpoint has some merits. I have seen Professor Han Xu’s definition of operations on Zhihu before. His understanding is that Internet operations are to deliver value to products, build an ecosystem, and create gameplay. In addition, Mr. Zhang Liang and Mr. Zhang Yu are afraid of the dark. They have also expressed their understanding of operations in their respective published books. 
  • Zhang Liang: I believe that any means that can promote products, encourage user usage, and increase user awareness are operations.
  • Octopus is afraid of the dark: Product operation is a process based on Internet products, using the lowest budget, the best path, the most efficient execution, and the most effective means to attract a large number of loyal users, establish competitive barriers for products in the market, and ultimately achieve product market success.
The above statements are actually all reasonable, but they start from different perspectives. Some teachers start from the value of operations, some start from the difference between Internet operations and traditional operations, and others start from the role of operations. Each definition can lead us to a new perspective. 3. My understanding of operations Regarding operations, I have actually thought about what operations are. My understanding is that everything closely related to product production and service, user-centric, and involving human intervention is collectively referred to as operations. 

 Through the definition, we can find that product operations often revolve around three elements: products, users and operational methods (human intervention), and the three are closely related. Without product operations, it is just a castle in the air and there is no operation at all; without the intervention of operational means, it is difficult for the product to grow and develop; and without users using the product, the product is meaningless. The three goals form a stable triangular relationship, supporting the virtuous cycle of development among products, means and users. I use the following diagram to represent it: 

 The above is my review and summary of the definition of operations, which may not be correct. But again, the definition of operations is a broad topic, and each answer has a different entry point. We cannot simply judge who is right or wrong. What we should do is to deepen our understanding and thinking of operations through other people's definitions of operations. PS: What do you think about operations? Welcome to discuss with me, feel free to give me advice!

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The author of this article @肥寒 is compiled and published by (Qinggua Media). Please indicate the author information and source when reprinting!

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