May 15th, 2012
Recently released results from Nissan the Japanese automotive manufacturer illustrate how good product design leads to improved financial returns.
Nissan’s Net Profit was up a whopping 7% at 341.43 billion Yen and Turnover was also up 7.2% at 341.43 billion Yen.
This was largely based on sales of the distinctive Quashqai SUV in Europe.
Quashqai’s design team was headed up by Stephane Schwartz who conceived the distinctive ‘bone line’ styling whilst thinking about Lean & Athletic images at his home in London. Nissan’s European design studio was put to work on the Quashqai at its base in Paddington London and the results are reflected in Nissan’s financial performance despite a strong Yen.
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Tags: business, customer, design process, Innovation, LEAN, management, manufacturing, New Product Development, Saab automotive, teams
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May 2nd, 2012
Are you a Manager ? Do you spend all day glued to your screen ? Are you stuck in your “Ivory Tower” ? Are you far too busy to leave your office to walk around ? Think again….. In the book “In Search of Excellence” by Thomas J. Peters, Robert H. Waterman, Management By Walking Around or MBWA is described as “Getting management out of the office”. At United Airlines, Ed Carlson labeled it Visible Management or management by walking about. The Hewlett-Packard (HP) version of management by walking around” describes this technique as “marked by personal involvement, good listening skills and the recognition that everyone in an organization wants to do a good job.” Simply walking around is one of the most significant Management techniques you can employ, people feel valued that a Senior Manager has taken the time to get out and listen to her staff. “If you wait for people to come to you, you’ll only get small problems. You must go and find them. The big problems are where people don’t realize they have one in the first place.” – W. Edwards Deming Tomorrow get off your butt and have a walk around, you won’t regret it! chris@projectsguru.co.uk www.projectsguru.co.uk
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Tags: #pmot, business, leadership, management, MBWA, teams
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February 1st, 2012
1st Digital Camera
The recent news that Eastman-Kodak had filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy created much derision around the fact that Kodak invented the digital camera back in 1975 but failed to exploit this achievement.
Of course hindsight is a wonderful thing & perhaps we should consider that back in 1975 Kodak had 90% market share of the conventional film market & the vast expansion of digital technology was difficult if not impossible to predict. In 1975 only a handful of hobbyists had a computer at home & most of these were incapable of displaying a decent colour image.
Innovation isn’t easy. Companies have to decide very carefully what to invest in & can spend many millions backing the wrong “horse”
One way to make this process easier is to capture the “Voice of the Customer” by carrying out carefully worded customer surveys, engaging the customer in online conversations via Social Media, having effective call centers & by analysing customer return data. All of these activities can help organisations predict market trends.
The closer the supplier can get to its customers the better the chance of Innovation success.
chris@projectsguru.co.uk
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Tags: #pmot, business, customer, Innovation, leadership, manufacturing, New Product Development, NPD, project management, risk management, time to market reduction
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December 31st, 2011
angry customer
Do you have to deal with some really “difficult customers” ?
The first question you should ask is “why is this customer being difficult ?”
Most customers are “difficult” because they are not getting what they want
in terms of product quality or delivery.
So here are some tips for Managing those customers:-
1) Understand what the customer wants – EXACTLY. Get them to spell it out in detail in a product spec.
2) Ensure that your product matches the customer spec.
3) If you hit problems which affect customer delivery or quality you need to be pro-active by:-
a) Keeping the customer informed – don’t take the ostrich approach & bury your head in the sand – arrange a regular conference call on a regular basis until any issues are resolved.
b) What is the contingency ? – is there any alternative you can offer the
customer until you resolve the issue.
c) Give them a timing plan detailing all activities associated with fixing
the problem – and keep it up to date.
d) Don’t bullshit the customer – maintain integrity by being open & honest,even if it feels painful doing so.
Taking a pro-active approach to managing customer expectations will pay off
in the long run as they realise that everyone has problems & the above approach demonstrates you are going the extra mile to solve their issues.
chris@projectsguru.co.uk
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November 25th, 2011
Some organizations think they can run projects without a Project Manager
They believe that they can save money by having an engineer or administrator do the project managers tasks.
Here are some reasons why they are wrong:-
- All projects need managing.
- Project Management is a skilled profession which requires years of learning and development.
- A professional Project Manager understands how a project should be structured to ensure success.
- She will plan the project to minimize overall timescale.
- He understands how to get “stuff” done.
- A Project Manager makes team members life “easy” by scheduling activities & dealing with the politics & administration of the project.
- He understand conflict resolution and mediation.
So what is the likely outcome of trying to manage projects on the “cheap” :-
- The project will be structured poorly if at all.
- The timeline will be extended extensively.
- The inexperienced individual trying to manage the project will become completely overloaded & unable to cope with their own tasks.
- Rather than being cheaper costs will escalate out of control.
- Key deliverables will not be met.
- Customers expectations will be compromised.
- The business will be irreparably damaged.
If you really want to save yourself money hire the best project manager you can get.
chris@projectsguru.co.uk
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Tags: #pmot, business, costs reduction, leadership, project management, project manager, time to market reduction
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November 12th, 2011
This week Jaguar Land Rover announced a multi – billion pound investment program which will generate over one thousand new jobs in the West Midlands – a fantastic example of how a company can thrive in a recession when it focuses on producing a quality product range which exceeds customer expectations.
Here is just a short list of some major companies which not only started in a recession (or even a depression) but went on to grow into some of the biggest and most successful companies in he world today.
General Electric – 1873
Disney – 1924
Hewlett Packard – 1939
Burger King – 1957
Microsoft – 1975
So here are some thoughts on growth in the current recession:-
- Business Case – if the business case is sound and has been rigorously reviewed – forget the recession. Have the courage to invest in your convictions.
- Ignore the herd – just because the majority of companies are acting like rabbits caught in the headlights doesn’t mean that yours has to.
- Crush Competitors – that’s right, take the opportunity to mop up your timid competitors markets.
- Eliminate waste – apply LEAN principles to maintain the competitive edge.
- Ensure Quality – apply 6 Sigma t0 minimize defects & maximise yields.
- Employ Interims – If you are cautious about taking on full time employees make use of highly qualified contractors available at short notice to meet your immediate business needs.
Fortune favours the brave !
chris@projectsguru.co.uk
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Tags: #pmot, business, customer, Innovation, leadership, LEAN, manufacturing, New Product Development, project management, recession, supply chain
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October 5th, 2011
Managers often complain they never get told bad news.
If you are one of those Managers maybe you should consider how you reacted the last time one of your Team actually gave you bad news.
If you reacted by shouting, by being aggressive or acting as if the world had come to an end you could hardly be surprised if no one wanted to tell you something you didn’t want to hear.
Communication is a two way process so if you want people to tell you stuff you may not like it may pay to keep your reactions in check
How did you react the last time someone gave YOU bad news ?
chris@projectsguru.co.uk
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We have seen trillions wiped off stock markets worldwide, the FTSE 100 has lost over 10% of it’s value in the last week alone & our TV screens have been filled with hysterical traders and concerned politicians.
On 4th July 1776 the 13 American Colonies declared their independence from the British Crown & established the United States of America by publishing the Declaration of Independence.
Unemployment – #Innovation is the answer #pmot
October 12th, 2011So what’s the answer – there is no magic solution to the world economic crises but how about some of the following:-
These are just some ideas how we can stimulate the economy by investing in Innovation & Technology instead of continuing to bail out banks pouring more valuable resources down the drain.
chris@projectsguru.co.uk
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Tags: #pmot, business, democratic debate, green issues, Innovation, leadership, manufacturing, New Product Development, politics, project management, risk management, social commentary
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