There have been many articles written about continuous improvement in manufacturing processes, but there isn’t a lot of information and understanding about the use of continuous improvement tools at the business level: including the ones that purportedly have continuous improvement or Six Sigma programs in place.  In many of the organizations that we work in, when you speak to business process leaders about continuous improvement they …Read More

Every organization views Customer Service as a critical function for their business.  It has a significant impact on your Voice of the Customer (VOC).  Customer service is on the front line of interfacing with the customer, but it isn’t the only function that interfaces with your customers.  Finance, Shipping, Sales and Marketing also play an important role in customer service.  The Customer Service group acts  …Read More

You would think that in today’s world, effective supplier management programs are well defined and utilized throughout every company. The sad fact is that we have worked with middle market companies up to $500M in annual revenues who don’t have an effective supplier management program. The smaller the company, the worse it gets despite the fact that supplier management is one of the 7 critical business processes that every company must master in order to achieve long term success. Many organizations have …Read More

 

Are Customers happy with the way you handle their complaints? Are you?

We all know that complaints handled well can open a portal to new opportunities. Back in 2008, customers were telling the company I worked for that we were not so good at handling customer complaints. None of us were surprised… we were frustrated ourselves with our mish-mash of process and tools and the impact of the poor quality …Read More

The concept of the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) is not new and for many not a bit exciting. But, it is a critical part of the acquisition process and has been successfully used for the analysis of Information Technology and government procured products for many years. It is a mainstay of the Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR). Yet, the concept of the Total Cost of Ownership hasn’t been universally adopted by middle market manufacturing and distribution companies as part of their standard Supply Chain Management Solutions. Middle market companies …Read More

Time based Key Performance Indicators provide significant insight to how quickly your organization responds to the needs of internal and external customers.  They tell a story that every leader needs to pay attention to.  Which of the following time based Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) are being tracked in your company?

 

 

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Many have long considered Continuous Improvement activities mostly relevant to manufacturing and related operational functions.

However, continuing competitiveness and growth in market share is built upon a steady, progressive march forward in all areas of a business. And since a company’s Market Effectiveness activities and functions (shown below) are the most market-oriented and customer-intimate parts of a business, effective Continuous Improvement efforts are …Read More

Laws are created to deal with a problem that exists today and may not exist years from now. Business processes are the same. They are created to deal with current needs. Over the years the legal system has accumulated a series of laws that may have been appropriate for their time but have never been abolished. Here are a few examples: …Read More

Is your company and organization ready for the next big change? Study after study show that 70% to 80% of all Corporate changes fail AND 80% of the failure can be blamed on not having an adequate Change Management Plan. Yet most leaders when asked how to prepare for the next change, they will focus on product initiatives, customer penetration or technology enhancements.

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Recently, I was working with a senior leadership team who was convinced that the key issue in their business was industry knowledge. They were thinking that a lack of industry knowledge was the root cause of their issues in the marketplace. It was difficult to get them to focus on the other issues in their business. While I agree industry knowledge is important, it is only one of the seven business processes every business needs to do well in order to be successful. In this case, the people running the business knew their industry very well, but were lacking knowledge in many other areas. If too much emphasis is placed on one area such as industry knowledge, then the business is likely to realize mediocre results. Businesses need to: …Read More