Most of us hire people to fill a slot -- a given role. That happens all too often because we hire in a reactionary mode, to someone leaving or to sales growth.We talk about cross training, but often don't provide it for a number of reasons: no

Maximizing Profits is a Strategic Mistake

Jun 14th, 2023 5m 17s

When I worked for TRW in the 1980's, the company required everyone with purchasing responsibilities to take the Chester Karrass negotiating course. At that time it was 100% focused on the assumption of a zero sum game, where whatever the other

What's Love Got to Do With It?

Jun 7th, 2023 3m 50s

Phil Spector was a very successful music producer and songwriter, who was also convicted of murder and serving a long sentence when he died in prison. Talented people can be bad people.Talented bad people can also do good things.Phil Spector pr

Private Vs Public Knowledge

May 31st, 2023 4m 17s

Why would a senior employee keep tricks of the trade secret from others? For one reason only: a lack of confidence.Someone who acknowledges his own talent and thinking skills would not be intimidated by others having the same abilities. Someone

SUCCEEDING WITH SHORT-TERM TEAMS

May 24th, 2023 5m 34s

A few years ago I volunteered to support the Continental Cup activities in Cleveland. This is an international sporting event that included 2500 youngsters from ages 8 to 18 from 12 countries competing in a variety of sports.My first day, I was

And the Winner Is.....

May 17th, 2023 6m 34s

A majority of adult Americans do not vote in our elections. Why is that? Simply because they don't believe their vote matters. They believe nothing will change anyway.Voting within your company happens. Any idea what the participation rates ar

Swamp Monster Got Your Tongue?

May 10th, 2023 4m 50s

An effective operation may have bad days, but they are a rarity. When you walk through operations, is the angst palpable? Clearly that swamp monster environment should be prevented, but it may happen anyway. How many times and for how long do y

No More Excuses

May 3rd, 2023 5m 5s

Even the best of us can benefit from cold water to the face occasionally. In mid-2022 I finally quit making excuses and enjoyed a 3-week trip to Greece, Türkiye, Montenegro, Croatia, Italy and Slovenia. What shook me out of my "I don't want to

What Is Your Speed of Effective Change?

Apr 26th, 2023 6m 55s

Excerpted From: © 2021 Manufacturing Mastery: The Path to Building Successful and Enduring Manufacturing Businesses; Taylor & Francis, Author: Rebecca Morgan"I have long advised clients that together we will identify and implement new strategic

Staying Busy is NOT the Objective

Apr 19th, 2023 5m 33s

Your people are no doubt working hard to do a good job. The question is: Have you given enough structure for them to know what a good job really means?Usually the weakness in that is a lack of sequenced priorities from leadership. How do they e

Coordinating With Suppliers

Apr 12th, 2023 4m 20s

While the worst of the supply chain fiasco of 2020-2022 is behind us, elements certainly continue to challenge us daily. What we should have done then and what we can do now is communicate the truth among our supply matrix.We call it a supply c

Can Silos Be Aligned on Strategy?

Apr 5th, 2023 4m 42s

Wouldn't you love to see an organization that was fully aligned across all functional arenas? We talk about specific excellence, like Nordstrom and service or Amazon and speed, but do you know of any organizations in which every single person i

Are Drones the Answer?

Mar 29th, 2023 6m 1s

In the late 1970s, Ken Olson, co-founder of Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC), and Bill Gates, founder of Microsoft, had very different predictions for the future of computers. Mr. Gates gave his new company the mission of "every desk, every

The Hits Just Keep On Coming

Mar 22nd, 2023 5m 33s

In my lifetime the US economy has experienced bank and savings and loan failures, inflation and full employment, a 20% prime rate and a Fed Funds rate of 0.0%, multiple recessions, and wild political swings in tariffs, tax rates, and regulation

TWI and Kata Can Propel You Forward

Mar 15th, 2023 5m 3s

As fast as the world turns these days, it is not easy to stay abreast of the latest concepts and management trends. While it is important that you not let the world pass you by, it is also valuable to leverage some tried-and-true tools.TWI (Tra

Two Levels of Operational Effectiveness

Mar 8th, 2023 5m 27s

You've all heard that great strategy with poor execution is no better than poor strategy with great execution. Operational effectiveness requires excellence in both levels.My writings and podcasts have long focused on the strategic aspects of o

Partnerships and Unilateral Terms Changes

Mar 1st, 2023 6m 4s

Partner. Relationship business. It all sounds so good. But then reality slaps you up the side of the head.In a true partnership, can one company unilaterally change the terms of the contract?Well, no. But then few espoused partnerships are true

Your Career in Operations

Feb 22nd, 2023 9m 7s

I've invested the vast majority of my long career in operations. I find it fascinating.Regardless of industry, operations includes the technologies, processes, materials, and procedures that delivering value on each order involves. Many would l

Manufacturing Outputs For Your Future

Feb 15th, 2023 5m 39s

We manufacturers know that we are responsible for the outputs of cost, quality, product performance and delivery; we also know that many others in our organization impact those as much as we do.Being outstanding in those four outputs is necessa

Seven Decisive Manufacturing Levers

Feb 8th, 2023 5m 36s

Why are some manufacturing businesses a hot mess, while others are a great place to work as you provide exciting value to the market?A business is a living organism, and as such, understanding what makes them healthy and what makes them sick is

ChatGPT and Manufacturing

Feb 1st, 2023 5m 8s

Manufacturing has played a major role over time in advancing automation, computerization, digitization, and more. Our industries are amazingly different now than they were 15 years ago, much less 30.In December of 2022 the company OpenAI releas

Resilience is a Choice

Jan 25th, 2023 6m 41s

There are business buzzwords, and then there are important business concepts you cannot afford to ignore. Resilience is one of the latter.Resilience emanates from effective risk management. If you don't have a viable and ongoing risk management

Please Stop Building Inventory!

Jan 18th, 2023 5m 12s

It was not that long ago that most manufacturers and distributors carried entirely too much inventory. The drag on cash flow was never offset by lower costs or higher performance. When we figured that out, we began to lower inventories.By addin

Building Your Strategic Mindset

Jan 11th, 2023 6m 16s

Strategy is one of those important business concepts that many cannot recognize, develop or implement, yet businesses that endure have mastered."Growth" is not a strategy, nor is "increase profits." Those are goals or objectives. Strategy desc

Could You Make a Forever Promise?

Jan 4th, 2023 7m 45s

The business model in manufacturing and distribution has long been own it, sell it, get paid for it. For most of those companies, it still is.But our world is changing. The concept of ownership has a very different place in our thinking, as doe