One mistake enterprise owners make is to use the wrong supply chain strategy for their products. The effects can be costly. The following are some true-to-life cases: Many enterprise owners hire executives or engage consultants that have no knowledge or experience about the products they will work with. In many cases, the executives or consultantsContinue reading “Avoiding the Wrong Supply Chain Strategy”
Tag Archives: strategy
Why We Need Policies and Why They Can Make or Break A Business
A young businessman had set up a wholesale business selling consumer goods in downtown Manila. His competitors, however, told him he won’t succeed. Competition was indeed fierce. There were several wholesalers already established and they sold at cut-throat prices at razor-thin profit margins. To get market share, the new wholesaler would have to offer betterContinue reading “Why We Need Policies and Why They Can Make or Break A Business”
Embracing Supply Chain Productivity in Strategic Planning
“No, we will not change our sales policy,” the general manager of the consumer goods wholesale trading company tersely said. As I was formerly a logistics manager and land transportation service provider (trucker for short), the wholesaler GM was asking me for advice on how to bring down transportation costs, which had been rising sharply. Continue reading “Embracing Supply Chain Productivity in Strategic Planning”
Building the Entrepreneur’s Business via Supply Chains
All businesses begin from entrepreneurship, in which creative individuals turn ideas into profitable realities. There had been many who tried their luck as entrepreneurs. Many failed; some succeeded. It didn’t matter if the products or services entrepreneurs introduced seemed mundane or looked grandiose. What mattered was that entrepreneurs worked hard to develop their ideas intoContinue reading “Building the Entrepreneur’s Business via Supply Chains”
Beware the Balanced Scorecard and Other Buzzwords
Executives of a multinational corporation mandated the roll-out of the Balanced Scorecard (BSc) throughout the organisation. Departments such as Sales, Marketing, Research & Development (R&D), Human Resources, Manufacturing, Logistics, & Purchasing were required to present key performance indices (KPIs) to upper management and show corresponding targets & action plans. Department managers immediately attended BSc seminarsContinue reading “Beware the Balanced Scorecard and Other Buzzwords”
Strategic Planning as Problem Solving: Why Not?
We sometimes create problems more than we encounter them. A large conglomerate builds a huge packaging facility in the outskirts of Manila. When I visited the plant, I asked the operations manager why such a big facility was built? “We built the facility to attract customers,” the operations managers said. “So, it was built,Continue reading “Strategic Planning as Problem Solving: Why Not?”
Setting Up a System in the Face of Uncertainty
A large property management company set up a uniform accounting system for all the buildings it manages. The accounting system utilized a customized software program in which each building’s bookkeeper is required to use. The software allowed the bookkeepers to enter invoices and vouchers and update the building’s books of accounts in real-time. The customizedContinue reading “Setting Up a System in the Face of Uncertainty”
We’re Expected to be Perfect & Productive in Demand Fulfilment
Supply chains encompass most, if not all, of what we use in our daily lives. And for those of us who work in them, the supply chain professionals, we only have one basic task: Fulfil Demand And when we do that task: They expect nothing less. We can’t afford to be less than perfect andContinue reading “We’re Expected to be Perfect & Productive in Demand Fulfilment”
The Order-Winning Operations Strategy
We, whether we are executives, entrepreneurs, or employees, face challenges and disruptions every day. Most of us have goals or at least have things we want to realise or get done. We hate it when we run into obstacles. We therefore develop strategies to anticipate and overcome them, if not get around them. Goals areContinue reading “The Order-Winning Operations Strategy”
Formulating the Operations Strategy
Every enterprise has a strategy. Not all have an operations strategy. A strategy is not a vision nor is it a mission. A strategy is also not a goal and nor is it an action plan. A vision is a desired future state. Where do we want to be 1 to 5 years from now?Continue reading “Formulating the Operations Strategy”
Ellery's Essays 