What Our Superiors Expect

Customers expect perfection in service.  But what do our superiors expect? For those among us who are supply chain professionals or managers, we answer to our employers, our superiors or bosses, the owners and executives who rule the enterprises we work for.  And as much as customers expect us to be perfect in serving them,Continue reading “What Our Superiors Expect”

Three (3) Real-Life Cases of Demand Fulfilment

We fulfil demand in different ways.  For instance, we make products available such as at store shelves.  Another example is we customise and deliver based on what our customers order.  We encounter challenges in fulfilling demand, however.  And we sometimes don’t know we do.      I went to a newly opened convenience store one SundayContinue reading “Three (3) Real-Life Cases of Demand Fulfilment”

Compliance is Not Service

Every year, banks notify us that we need to update our background information for the accounts we opened and deposit our money in.  They say it’s a rule of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas or BSP, the governing monetary authority of the Philippines, where I live & work.  All depositors must comply to enjoy theContinue reading “Compliance is Not Service”

People Aren’t Changing, We Are

The late reverend Fr. Rafael Cortina(†), S.J., the counsellor for my senior high school class in 1980, said it a few times: people aren’t changing; you are.  Fr. Cortina’s context was as we young people grow up, we encounter changes in our environment.  We think it’s the people around us who are changing but inContinue reading “People Aren’t Changing, We Are”

How Sales & Supply Chain People Can Work Together

Customer inquiries and quotations have long been seen as traditional jobs of sales professionals.  Field sales representatives visit customers and strive to get orders from them.  When customers inquire, sales professionals are expected to answer with accurate information.  Trouble starts when sales professionals have no adequate answers to give.  Sales professionals may know prices, terms,Continue reading “How Sales & Supply Chain People Can Work Together”

The Value a Small Table Can Bring

I was in a bad mood that morning.  The bank I always go was closed.  The manager said the staff was sick with the coronavirus so I had to go to another branch further away.  I didn’t like my time being wasted but I had no choice if I wanted to finish my transactions thatContinue reading “The Value a Small Table Can Bring”

A Letter to a Life Insurance Company

The following is a letter I want to send to a life insurance company regarding their service.  Identities are anonymous to avoid complications.  Dear Chief Executive Officer of Life Insurance Company, I received your letter dated August 25, 2020 which arrived February 16, 2021.  Your letter stated that you did not receive payment for pastContinue reading “A Letter to a Life Insurance Company”

Why Shifting from the Month-End Surge to Delivery by Demand is Common Sense

“We just have to live with it,” the General Manager replied.  The GM was responding to my comment that month-end surges in sales orders were causing inefficiencies in the company’s logistics operations.  I was presenting an operations assessment report to a company that distributed name-brand computer printers and accessories.  One of the key observations fromContinue reading “Why Shifting from the Month-End Surge to Delivery by Demand is Common Sense”

Improving the Customer Experience and Gaining Higher Productivity

An automotive service centre in Manila, Philippines advertises that it opens at 8:00am. The doors actually open, however, around 8:15am.  Employees time in before and after 8am but pass through the washroom before heading to their desks.  A waiting client who would have arrived at 8:00am would probably be served earliest at 8:30am.  The automotiveContinue reading “Improving the Customer Experience and Gaining Higher Productivity”