Service Industries Just Don’t Get It!There is always a need to understand the customer’s desires
Tue, 04/03/2012 - 13:12
You check into a high-end hotel for an exorbitant fee. You are tired, thirsty, and you want a drink of water. Either you find no water or the bottled water costs an additional $5.50. You see a coffee pot and complimentary coffee or tea, but you don’… Using Hoshin Kanri and Balanced ScorecardsAre you focusing your organization’s energies in the wrong direction?
Mon, 02/27/2012 - 12:36
The city of Austin, Texas, wanted to be listed as one of the top five places to live in the United States. Explaining that vision to the various municipal departments wasn’t difficult. Managers set about benchmarking from previous years, looking at… January 2012: The Cameras Are RollingLet’s start the year with a simple framework
Fri, 01/06/2012 - 15:26
Lights, camera, action! Sound familiar? Given the continuous release of movies, we are all familiar with this phrase. But what does this have to do with the quality profession or strategy?
“Lights” make more visible the area to be captured on film… Playing with Someone Better Than YouNever underestimate the value of benchmarking
Mon, 11/14/2011 - 13:11
When you try to improve your athletic abilities (e.g., playing tennis, swimming), how do you go about it? There are quite a few options, including observing how those who are best-in-class perform. When we learn from others, we gain from their… Locked in Solution Thinking, Part 2Values and vision form the boundaries within which a solution can be found
Tue, 10/25/2011 - 11:44
In part one of this article, I described a rapid strategic planning session for fire-service response time, and included a comment from one of the planners that he’d like to “see a fire station on every corner.” This was a terrific starting point… Locked in Solution Thinking, Part 1Revisit the what and how of your achievements
Tue, 10/04/2011 - 14:28
During a recent strategic planning session with a county’s leadership council, the participants were asked about their vision for their departments as they worked on a template for the strategic plan. Although there were many responses, one that… Of Soup and InnovationOrganizations that allow time off from routine see their creativity and innovation quotients go up
Tue, 08/09/2011 - 12:29
Cooking is not my forte, but I try. I intended my latest concoction to be interesting, new, and easy. It was a soup, made with nontraditional ingredients, and it won rave reviews at a neighborhood potluck. No one could guess all the ingredients,… Got Customer Requirements?To clinch a deal, some businesses will promise anything, even if it’s beyond their capabilities
Thu, 07/07/2011 - 15:36
Wanting to be known for his hospitality in the neighborhood, a restaurant owner advertised take-out Thanksgiving turkey dinners, ready to go. With the holiday coming up, Joe planned to have friends over for dinner and decided to take advantage of… Pull Systems Need Push SystemsIt’s a collaborative synergy
Thu, 01/20/2011 - 05:00
The concept of “pull” gained ever more ground with the publication of Womack and Jones’ Lean Thinking: Banish Waste and Create Wealthin Your Corporation. (Simon & Schuster, 1996). All this sounds terrific in theory and can be taught relatively… Lean, Six Sigma, or Strategy?Why not bundle all together?
Sun, 12/05/2010 - 19:23
A friend recently returned from a visit to China; his company had been acquired by a Chinese organization and he had gone there as part of the mutual due diligence. Not only did he come back impressed by their lower manufacturing costs but also…
