Monthly Archives: January 2011

Business purpose revisited

I’ve written a bit over time about the value of a unifying business purpose, the way it can unify and motivate the stakeholders of an enterprise, often beyond the boundaries of just employees. It is all easy to say, but … Continue reading

Posted in Branding, Lean, Operations | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Easy decision matrix.

A couple of years ago working with the CEO of a family company as it struggled for commercial sustainability in an increasingly hostile environment, we came up with a 3 part package by which to judge all the competing priorities … Continue reading

Posted in Management, Strategy | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Lean & Six sigma sustain each other.

Lean is at its core a management system, a holistic way of looking at the way an enterprise manages itself through a culture tuned to improvement, group and personal responsability, while six sigma is a quantitative process of managing in … Continue reading

Posted in Change, Collaboration, Customers, Lean, OE, Operations | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Management and power

 Being in a position of senior management offers the opportunity for the exercise of power, and as we know, power corrupts. But why should it be so, and how can we protect ourselves, and our colleagues from the adverse impacts … Continue reading

Posted in Management | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Australia Day reconsidered.

Amidst all the public utterances on Australia Day by elected representatives keen to be seen  for a moment on the tele, in print, or lauded in the blogosphere, calling for a wiser, more compassionate, considerate, and outward thinking Australia, ….. … Continue reading

Posted in Leadership, Personal Rant, Strategy | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Successful on-line communities require a promise

Linux started with a promise, one that formed the basis of what has become a major player in the server operating system market, with a current share somewhere around 45%. Linus Torvalds     back in 1991 posted the following message on … Continue reading

Posted in Collaboration, Communication, Social Media | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Lean operations undermine “offshoring?”.

Some time ago I mused that perhaps the worm was slowing if not turning, in relation to local manufacturing, rather than buying in from China as the default option. The crisis in the US, far worse than anything in this … Continue reading

Posted in Demand chains, Management, OE, Operations, Strategy | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Creativity and Innovation.

Often these two terms are used interchangeably, as synonyms, but that are not. Creativity is a part of the process of innovation, an integral and key part, but nevertheless, just a part. It is, as Sir Ken Robinson so memorably … Continue reading

Posted in Innovation, Marketing, Strategy | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Marketing & Demand Chain Transparency

The retailer Patagonia has as a part of its corporate values a reverence for the environment, it is a core part of their corporate values, and highly relevant to their target market. They wear their hearts on their electronic sleeves … Continue reading

Posted in Customers, Demand chains, Marketing, Social Media | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Search Engine Optimisation paradox

There are lots of people flogging various digitally sophisticated SEO techniques, and they appear to be making a living. However, it seems to me that after all this time most key words worth having, have been taken, registered, and everyone … Continue reading

Posted in Branding, Marketing, Social Media, Strategy | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Social media coming of age

Social media to many “50 something’s” who run most of our large businesses, is just code for wasting time that should be spent productively, but the reality is that  social media is rapidly evolving into a potent business tool in several … Continue reading

Posted in Change, Marketing, Social Media | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Drivers of Innovation

Pixar is amongst the great “innovation factories” of recent decades, along with PARC, 3M, Apple, and a very few others. Part of what makes Pixar so effective is a question answered in this McKinsey interview with Brad Bird, the director … Continue reading

Posted in Collaboration, Innovation, Leadership, Marketing, Strategy | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Banks miss the boat?

If I were managing a business in financial services, I would be asking myself if I had missed the second wave of the  “net-boat” that is rapidly becoming a force in financial services. Banks and other financial institutions have reduced … Continue reading

Posted in Customers, Innovation, Marketing, Social Media, Strategy | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Know what you do not know

A great irony amongst the many I see, is that the skills required to produce a right answer are exactly the skills you need to recognise what a right answer looks like. Put another way, our incompetence in a field … Continue reading

Posted in Management, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Collaboration tools

Ideo is an ideas factory, its stock in trade is ideas and the resulting products, that others commercialise. As such, it has been a lab or case study in how to innovate as they have grown. As a small business, … Continue reading

Posted in Innovation, Leadership, Social Media | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Customers as your sales force

Word of mouth advertising has always been the best sort, people put great store in recommendations from those they trust. The extension of this recently has been what I call “word of mouse” advertising, enabled by the networking capabilities of … Continue reading

Posted in Customers, Marketing, Sales | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Green business initiatives of 2010.

The “green revolution” may be denied by many, failing in the Parliament, and not engaging consumers as their utilities bills increase, but it is happening around us anyway. The world is greening, despite the best efforts of many to avoid … Continue reading

Posted in Change, Innovation | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

What goes ’round comes ’round

Australian manufacturing has been decimated over the last few decades, and whilst there is no single reason for this impact, the determination of the major retailers to use the opening of global sourcing options to reduce their costs and compete … Continue reading

Posted in Change, Customers, Personal Rant, Sales, Small business | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Intellectual Capital and the crowd.

The Microsoft business model has resisted all efforts to introduce open innovation practices into its markets, and many would argue, has stunted its growth and innovative potential as a result. How rapidly things can change, even when you resist from … Continue reading

Posted in Collaboration, Innovation, Marketing, Social Media | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Performance appraisal time…. Already?.

New year usually signals it is time for one of the most misused management tools to be pulled out of the box again, the dreaded performance appraisal. Done well, a system to manage  the performance of employees, and their managers … Continue reading

Posted in Management | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment