There is no doubt that one of the ONLY things in common across all clients and industries is that e-commerce has exploded. One client was prepared to take advantage of the opportunity and grew e-commerce sales almost 300% during COVID. In another example, online shopping has experienced a [...]
July 6, 2020 As supply chain has gained in prominence in the media with the increase in tariffs and the many challenges associated with coronavirus, reshoring has become of keen interest. Surveys are showing it is more than just a passing interest with executives. Instead, it is in [...]
June 29, 2020 Diversity has always been core to success. Are you gaining different viewpoints? It has certainly been proven that deliberately bringing diverse viewpoints into projects and teams will lead to greater levels of success. Men will have different perspectives than women. People with different nationalities and backgrounds [...]
Do you want to be Amazon or Sears? Sears used to be the Amazon of its time, but they failed to change with the times. There is little life left in this former powerhouse of retail. On the other hand, Amazon continues to evolve and is clearly doing quite [...]
Are you investing in your employees? If you have employees who want to do a good job but who don't have the tools and skills to accomplish this goal, you'll end up with frustrated employees who are not engaged. What percentage of your employees do you think are in [...]
We recognized Ron Penland as our 2019 LMA Advocate. Ron has added value to our business in many ways over the years ranging from insights on what’s relevant to manufacturers and distributors and their bottom line to valued connections. Since Ron runs CEO groups, I thought it made for [...]
As President of APICS Inland Empire, one of my favorite activities is encouraging students. We encourage students of all of our local universities to participate in plant tours, symposiums and student case competitions to learn about manufacturing and supply chain as well as to expand their professional network. Our [...]
As several CEOs lament continually and as Steve Erickson, president of Corona Clipper, Inc. and UK Business Unit Group, said in our 2019 predictions document, talent is a hot topic in today's tight labor market. Perhaps it is time to put a bit more thought into our talent. As [...]
Economic volatility and uncertainty are the new normal. Instead of lamenting, manufacturers have a unique opportunity. There has never been a better time to stand out from the crowd with a superior customer experience amidst the chaos. Not only has the Amazon Effect driven customers to expect customized product [...]
January 6, 2019 According to Industry Week, manufacturing employment increased almost 300,000 over the last year! This is after increasing around 200,000 the year prior which is more than a 40% increase. This is much more significant than the numbers alone convey because, according to the National Association of [...]
