As the cost advantages for outsourcing dry up more companies are bringing manufacturing back to North America. Re-shoring may increasingly be your best bet for improving customer service levels without going broke. GE has started to rev up Appliance Park again - and is starting to bring manufacturing back [...]
I’ve been thinking a lot about this subject recently as I realized that the 80/20 of what I do for clients can fit into this category. Also, as my consulting strategy/ accountability partner says, it is an interesting paradox of strategy and execution which sums up what is essential [...]
You wouldn’t think so from the way companies are hoarding cash; however, in general, they have a stockpile of cash and remain leery to spend it. Last year, there was a 2% decrease in days working capital (DWC), according to CFO Magazine.
As originally published in Inside Supply Management August 2011 Achieve an entrepreneurial spirit or be left to slowly wither away in today’s new normal business environment. With the retiring of the baby boomers, high commodity prices and nagging unemployment, the new normal is characterized by weak sales growth (at [...]
As innovation is key to succeeding in the “new normal”, I thought a few tips might prove helpful: Create a culture of innovation – it’s not enough to encourage innovation in R&D. Those companies who create a culture of innovation will be those who succeed. Start with the customer [...]
What is vital to building a culture of innovation? There’s one word – leadership! A recent Industry Week article showed several examples of innovation success – the key is that executives must be committed, patient and ready to lead by example. Doesn’t this sound like something we should do [...]
According to a study released in 2009 by Deloitte, the Manufacturing Institute and Oracle revealed that nearly a third of companies were experiencing a modest to severe shortage. Gaps in such skills as problem-solving and communication also were noted in the study. This doesn’t seem to add up vs. [...]
I was recently quoted in a World Trade Magazine article, “Made in the USA Gains Momentum”, and so I thought this would be an interesting topic to discuss on my blog. Read the full article here. Actually, I am quite interested in this topic, as I believe we MUST [...]
Published in Industry Week on May 11, 2007 It seems very common that people get on the bandwagon of some of these philosophies like JIT, and they give up as opposed to understanding that it's not something trendy to do," says Lisa Anderson, president and founder of business processes [...]
