Supply and Demand Chain Executive is now offering podcasts.
Listen to "Critical Skills for the Supply Chain of Tomorrow" here.
I'd certainly be intersted in learning if you liked it or not. Did you listen to it in your office or download it to an MP3 player? Other thoughts and comments?
I am not a fan of online diagnostic tools that tell me what kind of job to get or how to improve my performance, but I ran into one that I recommend.
Selling Power Magazine had an article called Test Yourself for Sales Success that offered an online diagnostic tool from HR Chally. At the urging of a friend, I took it and was blown away with the results. While it is focused on sales folks, it really did hit the mark on my supply management philosophies.
Take the survey. You will need to register but it is worth it.
Courtesy of the Institute for Supply Management, here is a link to subscribe to the E-Digest Chemicals Electronic Newsletter. This publication is sponsored by the ISM Chemicals Group.
Each issue contains articles, facts, and statistics that will help you in your chemical purchases. There are 10 previous issues on the site so you can catch up on all the chemical news.
In a
recent survey conducted by the National
Retail Federation and BearingPoint, the top priority of retailers is to
increase sales. While cost cutting is still important, the increase in sales is taking priority. Almost 75% of the
respondents (150 surveyed) said accelerating sales in their existing stores was their primary focus. Last year the
number was 52 percent.
The use of the Internet, and 94 percent of the retailers surveyed had websites. Last year the number was barely 50 percent. And, to increase customer satisfaction, 25 percent link managers' pay to customer satisfaction results.
The Home Depot, in the news last week for their acquisition of Hughes Supply, has announced that they will be outsourcing 500 jobs to India during the next few months.
Specifically, the lost jobs will be in finance, merchandising, services, and call center operations. The company said they will help the affected employees find alternate jobs within the company, noting the company's growth and upcoming spring season.
I guess those employees will be happy to trade their office attire for orange aprons.The parking lot at my local True Value continues to be full. I wonder why.
The Reverse Logistics Executive Council defines reverse logistics as the process of planning, implementing, and controlling the efficient, cost effective flow of raw materials, in-process inventory, finished goods and related information from the point of consumption to the point of origin for the purpose of recapturing value or proper disposal. According to this organization, reverse logistics is a $60 billion business.
Their site provides a pretty good overview of reverse logistics and even a glossary of reverse logistics terms. As environmental issues continue to grow, reverse logistics may be something winding up on your desk pretty soon.
FedEx is working with the state of Tennessee trying to streamline the state's driver's license process. They are dedicating a few employees to work with the motor vehicle folks to provide a solution to a process that is normally backlogged. The state is unclear on how they will utilize some of the recommendations.
At one time, I worked for a company that provided quality planning to the mayor's office in the city where there main plant was located. It was marginally successful, for a while. It stopped when the quality manager who was doing the work ran into some support issue in the factory.
We laugh at the term "we're from the government and we're here to help". My feeling is that the public sector is capable of improving operations on their own. While some of the industry tools available are certainly applicable, I think it best not to interfere.
We see all kinds of articles about the high cost of fuel, especially how it hits transportation costs. We seevariouscharts and graphs that tell us that fuel costs are high and going higher. All of our price increases use the cost of fuel as an excuse....I mean reason.
But, this article hit home. A trucker in Kansas skipped out of a truck stop without paying his fuel bill...all $712 of it. Imagine being an owner /operator trying to make a living and having to pay those kinds of fuel bills. Easy to max out your Visa on an cross-country trip. Sad really.
And I get mad when it costs $50 to fill up my wife's F150!
If you've spoken to a CSR from JetBlue you've spoken to someone who was working from home. In the United States.
The concept of homeshoring is gaining speed due to the convergence of technology (broadband), demographics (people live where they like and not have to), and the economy (more need to work). A growing number of complaints from customers on accent and cultural issuesare pushing call centers back to this country. However, the cost may be prohibitive. Enter "homeshoring".
While JetBlue agents are employees, there are some companies that provide employment services for companies and gather and train independent contractors to act as CSRs on either a full time or part time basis. The trend seems to be growing as the shakeout from outsourcing to low cost countries continues to evolve.
I always ask where the CSR is. Sometimes they tell you, especially if they are from the United States or Canada. Could that someday be a product differentiator?
Layover.com reports there is a shortage of 20,000 long haul trucker jobs. That number will grow to over 100,000 by 2014 if the trend continues. Add retirements that are looming and there will be 320,000 more truckers required in the next 10 years.
Why should you care? Easy. In order to lure more drivers, trucking companies will have to continue to increase wages and improve working conditions. They may have to build more terminals to provide shorter routes and add more trucks to service those terminals. Add an increase in fuel, insurance and other costs and the pricing pressures are real.
How are they going to pay for them? Raise the rates. The transportation spend is often passed on the next link in the supply chain. Some of those links may begin to rattle a bit.
No, this is not a rant on the traditional liberal media establishment. It is, as most things are in my life, supply chain related. I subscribe to the Boston Globe daily and the New York Times on Saturday and Sunday (so I can read the scoop on the Giants and Yankees!). My Sunday Times usually gets delivered but I am batting .500 on the Saturday delivery of the Times.
I always call the 800 number, arrange a credit, and then i usually receive a call on Sunday to make sure I've gotten the Sunday paper. At that time, they reinforce that the Saturday delivery issues have been resolved. They are...until the next Saturday or the one after. Two Saturdays in a row is a big deal.
This past Saturday, I had enough and called to cancel. I tried to get to a supervisor to let them know that I am cancelling (someone may care) and one was not available. The CSR took the cancellation and told me that I would still get the paper on Sunday. Wait, I can't get it when I want it but can when I don't want it. Neat.
I received a call on Sunday morning asking if I received the paper. I said yes, but I didn't want it and that I had cancelled due to delivery issues. She said that the stop order would be going through "soon".
Perhaps "sorry" may have made me feel a bit better.
From time to time I like to reintroduce some of my favorite posts that some of the new readers may have missed. Here is one on leadership.
Recently, I had the opportunity to work with a rapidly expanding local company on a development program for their high potential managers and supervisors. I worked with them on subjects such as teambuilding, communication, conflict resolution, organizational stress and leadership.
The company’s senior management assembled a group of managers and supervisors from around the country for a two day retreat. They all had been with the company for varying lengths of time, had varied job responsibilities, and were quite interested in working to identify and solve the organizational issues found in most companies, especially growing companies with multiple locations. They were a dedicated and hardworking group.
I began the discussion on leadership with my customary question for the students: "Identify a leader". The usual suspects came quickly to mind. I heard the names of Tom Brady and Bill Belichick from the New England Patriots, Curt Schilling and Terry Francona from the Boston Red Sox, Oprah, Bill Gates, Dr. Phil, George Bush, Mother Theresa, Donald Trump and even TV tough guy Tony Soprano. These selections seemed to be in the news every day, and many were media darlings. But were they all leaders?
We began to discuss leadership qualities and styles, and why these famous people made their list. Identifying why the students considered them as leaders was a harder assignment. What I heard were platitudes of these famous people, but not the specific leadership qualities and behaviors I was looking for. I called them People Magazine leaders.
Now don’t get me wrong. The class ultimately developed an impressive list of leaders, some of whom have had a significant impact on the world, but to me, they may have confused leader and celebrity. I was looking for a deeper meaning of leadership, one not found on television or in the popular press, but in every day life. They needed to look closer to their own lives to see the impact and importance of leadership. Another list was needed.
Where were our parents? Our spouses? Our teachers and mentors? Our co-workers and bosses? What about the crossing guard who keeps our children safe? The community leaders and local clergy active in food pantries and shelters? The doctors and medical staff who keep our family healthy? The business owner who fights to keep the local factory open in spite of intense of international pressures? To me, these are the true leaders who have a daily impact on our lives, but often do not get the credit they deserve. These are the quiet leaders who make a difference, and whose performance should be celebrated.
Leaders exist in all organizations and they don’t have to be senior managers, or even be famous, to be effective. Look around. They are the ones with passion, vision, and enthusiasm. They are dedicated to their causes, jobs, organizations, and followers. They are consistent in task and clearly see what needs to be done. Most leaders will not make it to the pages of People Magazine. These quiet leaders don’t crave the limelight, but do deserve our attention and gratitude. Look around and identify your own list of leaders. They are the ones that make a difference in our lives.
The 2005 Industry Week Census of Manufacturers gathers spending and planning information from more than 500 manufacturing companies, and breaks the data into many interesting segments.
One of the questions in this year's survey asked respondents which type of IT application will their plant most likely purchase next. The results also included an outright purchase or a significant upgrade. Multiple responses were allowed. Here are the top choices of those that responded.
Supplier Quality Assurance--The confidence that a supplier's goods or services will fulfill its customers' needs. This confidence is achieved by creating a relationship between the customer and supplier that ensures the product will be fit for use with minimal corrective action and inspection.
According to J.M. Juran, nine primary activities are needed:
NASA's Stardust capsule returned to Earth today, landing in the Utah desert on schedule. The spacecraft was launched seven years ago to fly through a comet tail, collect dust, and return to Earth.
While this is a victory for science, it is also an example of technology in action. And the supply chain. While Lockheed-Martin was the prime contractor, imagine the importance of their suppliers delivering excellent products that could last for seven years in space, and make it back. This was a job well done, across the supply chain. Imagine the pride of having parts on that spacecraft.
Think of what has changed on Earth in the last seven years. What will things be like in another seven years?
We don't celebrate these triumphs enough.
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