Meant to protect investors and increase transparency in corporate accounting, implementing the Sarbanes Oxley Act takes some organizational introspection. The 2002 Sarbanes Oxley legislation (new, enhanced standards for all U.S. public companies) was established in response to high-profile financial scandals (Enron etc) in order to protect shareholders and the [...]
In my experience, processes are discussed and debated expertly; however, many times, they fail in execution. It isn't that the process is faulty; instead, it is process discipline and consistency that fails. So, I've included a few tips to successfully implement processes: Communicate and clarify - many times, it [...]
Navigating growth gets tricky if you lose perspective on spending. Keep costs under control by identifying the spot where people, process and technology work best. Understanding and controlling costs has always been a critical success factor for the majority of businesses; however, during times of economic turmoil, it elevates [...]
It has recently occurred to me that businesses are missing a huge opportunity to leverage the transferability of best practices. Although as a business consultant, leveraging best practices has been an "assumed" part of the value I provide clients, even I missed the boat and forgot to leverage this [...]
As I'm on my way to New York to give a speech on leveraging supply chain strategy to achieve a competitive advantage, I've been thinking about common themes with my speeches, articles, surveys and client observations - customer service emerged as a vital priority in all cases. Customer service [...]
Bedrock - always appropriate. I want to thank my mentor in this topic, Debra Daniels for her expertise – Debra, have I incorporated your wisdom appropriately? Build safety into the culture – most safety programs are pointless as they are considered an outside program (and many times, meetings are [...]
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 [...]
In the race for increased profits is speed leaving vital priorities behind? Assess all factors before jumping the gun. In today’s new normal business environment, customers want products and services delivered quicker. Investors want month-end numbers faster. Customers expect new products yesterday. Executives are expected to sift through an [...]
Apply lean methodologies to project management to gain a competitive advantage. Published in "Project Times" website, October, 2011 Click here for original article. There’s no doubt that there is a vast amount of interest in lean principles. I’ve had multiple client requests – both ones who are interested in [...]
Published in "Project Times" website, December, 2010 Click here for original article. During the recession, many ERP (enterprise resource planning) system implementations have been put on hold. Now that we are emerging from the recession, companies are beginning to think about implementing – even if not a full implementation, [...]
