When it comes to productivity improvement, the first thing many executives think of is head count, how many people are needed for the job. The last thing many managers think of is the human factor, how to better improve the working conditions for the individual person. Ergonomics (or human factors) is the scientific discipline concernedContinue reading “Ergonomics Can Be Helpful, Really Helpful”
Tag Archives: enterprise
About The Supply Chain Engineer
Supply chain management has figured prominently in organisational priorities since Keith Oliver in a reported conversation with a Philips manager, Mr. Van t’Hof, coined the term in the 1970’s, and it has become even more so at the onset of the 2020 coronavirus pandemic. Supply chains are operational relationships made up of activities that transformContinue reading “About The Supply Chain Engineer”
A Reminder to Walk Around
I finalised a contract to lease an office unit to a new tenant in February 2022. I obliged to give the tenant two (2) free months of rent or up to the end of March 2022 to allow him to make improvements and buy & move in his furniture & equipment. I didn’t see theContinue reading “A Reminder to Walk Around”
Visioning: The Last Thing an Enterprise Needs When Starting Up
A husband-and-wife couple approaches and asks a consultant for help in their business. The husband-and-wife couple just started a business selling electrical devices such as relays and circuit breakers. Demand was strong at the onset and the couple found themselves working around the clock serving customer orders. Maybe the consultant can contribute some ideas? TheContinue reading “Visioning: The Last Thing an Enterprise Needs When Starting Up”
Three (3) Questions Supply Chain Managers Always Need to Answer
When it comes right down to it, supply chain managers have three (3) questions to answer: How do we get what we need when we need it? How do we make available what whoever needs them at when they need them? How do we deliver to whomever wants them when they need them? When supplyContinue reading “Three (3) Questions Supply Chain Managers Always Need to Answer”
The Many Questions Supply Chain Managers Are Asked to Answer
The following are questions customers typically ask supply chain managers: “Why is it taking you so long to deliver my order?” “When will you deliver?” “How many of the items we ordered will you deliver today?” “How much of an item do you have available?” “Your items didn’t meet our specs; when will you replaceContinue reading “The Many Questions Supply Chain Managers Are Asked to Answer”
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”
Pursuing Perfection Beyond the Acceptable Quality Level (AQL)
An ad promotes an Internet Service Provider’s (ISP) subscription plans. On the bottom in small fine print is written “30% minimum speed at 80& reliability.” The Philippines’ National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) in a memorandum in 2011 mandated that ISPs should provide at least 80% service reliability to customers: An ISP therefore should be able toContinue reading “Pursuing Perfection Beyond the Acceptable Quality Level (AQL)”
Delegating is a Subset of Teamwork
The following are some lines I’ve heard bosses tell their subordinates when the latter are feeding back about difficulties in their jobs: “Be creative.” “Just do it.” “Don’t give me problems.” “If there’s a will, there’s a way.” “I can count on you.” “That’s what I pay you for.” “That’s what I hired you toContinue reading “Delegating is a Subset of Teamwork”
Can’t Fight City Hall
Can’t fight city hall is an idiom for any futile effort against a large institution like government. If you’re just one among millions of citizens who has a complaint about a government law or regulation, chances are you’d be unsuccessful, if not dismissed at the start. Paying taxes and fees to the Philippine government isContinue reading “Can’t Fight City Hall”
