I'd break down the production process into 3 parts:

 Labor

• Can w hire more people to increase our workforce?
• Can we create a training or schooling system?
• Can we acquire another firm that we can then use their workforce to make our brand?
• Can we outsource any labor?

Automation

• Can we automate any processes that are currently done by hand to increase output?
• Can we purchase certain components of the suit ready-made?
• Can we standardize suit designs? 

Quality Assurance

• Can we establish a quality assurance team to check work and ensure high quality?  
   

Hi all,

Feel free to post here what you think a strong framework would be!

Enjoy, and good luck!

I would go with 3 major axis and ask for the interviewer's feedback, before going into too much details within each

1. Quick win in the short run

• Customer side: reach the current customer to explain our situation, and give them an estimated time of delay
• Supply side (our side)
  • Worker: hire more proficient workers to quickly learn and finish the job/improve the working efficiency of the existing ones
  • Resource: ensure the supply of the extra raw material to satisfy the surging demand
  • Delivery: ensure the reliability and speed
  • Quality control

2. Sustainability for the long run

• Security check on future market: to see whether the surging demand is sustainable to bring the company's production to the next level
  • Market size/growth
  • Market competition landscape and customer's KPC
  • Our positioning
• Supply chain update
  • Worker: hire & train
  • Resource: secure with the suppliers the order of higher volume in the future
  • Delivery & warehousing: secure delivery vendor and even build local warehouses
  • Demand forecasting AI for a smarter stock management

3. Risks & next steps

• Cost in the long run: to prioritize the tasks and spend the money wisely
• Control on quality and brand image: stricter one-by-one quality control

I got an increase demand for chocolate case when I interviewed with McKinsey. Usually, this type of cases starts by quantifying the increase in the demand in order to determine the increase in the output (assuming increase in demand = increase in output). in the clarifying questions, if the demand increase is not quantified then I would start by how much the demand has increased? which suit line (color, size etc) has experienced the increase (where should we focus our effort: a specific product variation, or all together) ? etc.

Objective: How can we increase output without compromising quality? 

1- Can we increase the Labor efficiency? 

         a- Can we add more shifts ? → Cost implications &             employees retention rate might decrease
         b- Can we Hire New Employees ? → Cost implications + How soon?
         c- Employees Training 

2- Can we improve Machining efficiency ? 

       a- Add Machines → cost implications and lead time to            implementations
       b- Invest in new machines → Increased efficiency 
       c-  Can we resolve Bottlenecks -if any- ?
       d- Production optimization: improve Production scheduling of different design, Standardize designs

3- Can we increase output by partnering and/or outsourcing ? (quality is the lead factor in choosing a partner or a manufacturer if we opt to go that route as quality compromise is not an option to our client)

       a- Can we find a competitor to release a joint product?(we have seen 2 high quality designers in a joint effort:                    Gucci partnering with Balenciaga lately)
            
       b- Can we find a manufacturer who can make our product              with the same quality? 

There are implications and risks (for example do our fabric suppliers have the capacity to cover the increase in production etc.) to be discussed with each of these idea . 

The solution of the case I got in my interview (exact same prompt but for chocolate instead of suits) revolved around: 

1- determining the demand increase 

2- compare outsourcing versus adding shifts versus adding employees 

- compare costs 

- compare which one can meet the demand increase determined in 1 

(edited)

Hi,

I would give the company the following suggestions:

1) Increase supply by automation:

• We can try and automate certain parts of the tailoring process to reduce the production time.

2) Increase supply by partnerships:

• Collaborate with other tailor shops to produce suits using our design and material (outsourcing)
• If the company has enough cash, we can acquire a smaller company to increase output
• Provide incentives to the existing tailors to get their friends or family (other tailors) to the company

3) Short term increase in supply:

• Pay overtime to the workers to increase the output

4) Logistics: 

• Since the new customer base is overseas, we can look at ways to reduce the transportation time. It will give the labourers more time to produce the suits (at least in the short term)

4) Increase profits: 

• Ultimately, if the suits are of good quality and the company is unable to meet the demand, they can increase the prices and earn more money (if that is their end goal anyway)

I would first identify the underlying production system as a chemistry equation 

[Salaries, money for materials and other costs] + [# available workers] + [Materials, working space, machines & equipment] → suit

What is currently the limiting factor? This is where we need to focus.  (I would go into detail for one or two of them after hearing back from the client).

1) If we don't have extra money to allocate for expansion, we need to cut down costs, increase revenue or borrow.

-cut down costs: we want to pay employees in a fair way and we value their specialized skills so probably shouldn't cut down on salaries. Same goes for quality materials, although worth investigating different suppliers. Maybe renegotiate terms with suppliers, since we are going to demand more materials in the future.

-increase revenue: increase price (volume is precisely what we are trying to figure out). Increasing #clients is not relevant right now.

-borrowing money for an investment should only be done if we are sure to have a good ROI in the short to medium term. If the demand is really high and we currently hold most of the key components for making this kind of good then we might consider that. 

2) If #workers is insufficient to handle the increase in demand, see if

-we can hire and train more workers. Training takes time, but perhaps it is worth doing things slowly but well. In this case make sure the increased demand is likely to stay that way, we wouldn't want to end making a disproportionate move by hiring too many people too fast.

-talk to current workers, see if they are willing to work more and get paid more. Keep their wellbeing in mind since they are one of the key components in the manufacturing process.

2') Productivity:

-Can we increase the output per hour by optimizing some parts of the manufacturing process? 

-Invest in R&D for more efficient suits that require less materials, or are faster to make due to a simplified design. They would still be handmade 

3) To increase physical materials/equipment/space 

-Look if we can acquire existing facilities

-Expand current facilities