In March of 1911, Frederick Winslow Taylor’s The Principles of Scientific Management debuted to the public. It was the height of the Industrial Revolution in the United States of America. Corporations were mass producing items and many Americans were employed in factories. Mr. Taylor’s Principles couldn’t have come at a better time as when itContinue reading “The Science Behind Management & Why We Need Engineering”
Author Archives: Ellery
Why We Should Ask More Questions
Eight (8) utility posts fell on a busy street at Manila’s Binondo Chinatown district. The posts damaged cars and caused a power failure to commercial establishments. The power utility company, MERALCO, however, immediately removed and replaced the fallen posts. Power was restored within hours. Business on the street returned to normal. That wasn’t enough forContinue reading “Why We Should Ask More Questions”
Why We Need to Ask More (Right) Questions
We ask a lot of questions. But which questions do we choose to answer? Which questions do we delve into? Which questions become the bases of our lifetime quests? Both words, ‘Questions’ and ‘quests,’ have a similar origin: quaerere, to ask, seek. What we seek depends on what we ask. And the first things weContinue reading “Why We Need to Ask More (Right) Questions”
Enforcement is Not Necessarily a Solution
City traffic in Manila, the Philippines, is downright horrible. Driving a car in Manila is an adventure in patience and civility. It’s hard to be a nice person when we compete for road space in this city’s congested streets. Metropolitan Manila, formally known as the National Capital Region, is the urban centre and capital ofContinue reading “Enforcement is Not Necessarily a Solution”
The Basic Tasks of Management vs. The Basic Tasks of Engineering
Management is the predominant means in how we run our organisations. It’s been like that since the late 19th century, when we adopted capitalism into our society to cultivate the prosperity & wealth resulting from the Industrial Revolution. Business was getting more complex when it came to all the money we were earning. We neededContinue reading “The Basic Tasks of Management vs. The Basic Tasks of Engineering”
We Need Engineers to Solve Supply Chain Problems, Not Managers
We encounter lots of problems with supply chains. But how serious are these problems? How do we as managers prioritise which problems we will put most of our time and resources into? When the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared the coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic in mid-March 2020, governments immediately restricted the movements of people and merchandise. Continue reading “We Need Engineers to Solve Supply Chain Problems, Not Managers”
Value Chains, Supply Chains, & Our Wrong Mindsets
Michael Porter introduced the Value Chain model in his seminal book, Competitive Advantage,1 in 1985. The value chain broke down activities of the firm (the enterprise) and how they collectively contribute to the value of products & services. How well activities perform and interrelate would manifest in the margins, which are the difference between valueContinue reading “Value Chains, Supply Chains, & Our Wrong Mindsets”
Negotiations Won’t Solve Our Supply Chain Crisis
During a Philippine Senate hearing conducted on June 21, 2023, the chief commercial officer of Cebu Pacific Airlines apologised for recent passenger service disruptions in which he added: “We recognize that global supply chain issues are further worsening the situation and causing additional delays in aircraft deliveries. As a result, we have experienced delays rangingContinue reading “Negotiations Won’t Solve Our Supply Chain Crisis”
Challenges & Crises: The Two Types of Problems We Tackle in Business
We encounter all kinds of problems every day. And they go by different names, such as: These problems, especially while managing our enterprises, end up as either of two types: We categorise the issues clamouring for our attention as crises or challenges depending on how urgent and important either one is. A crisis demandsContinue reading “Challenges & Crises: The Two Types of Problems We Tackle in Business”
Comparing Supply Chain Management versus Supply Chain Engineering
What’s the difference between supply chain management (SCM) and supply chain engineering (SCE)? Supply chain management is the management of people, structures, & systems that underlie the relationships of functions which enable the flow of merchandise & services from their sources to their destinations and users. SCMs work with existing systems & structures as theyContinue reading “Comparing Supply Chain Management versus Supply Chain Engineering”
Ellery's Essays 