Friday, December 28, 2007

Lean Enterprise! What’s it all about?

Is your company meeting the demands of customers while increasing market share and profits?
It’s amazing how many companies actually gloss over the obvious. Many businesses are moving through each day, dealing with one crisis after the next. They’ve become addicted to using fire fighting techniques to maintain the status quo, Anyone who can consistently step up to put out the fire to save the day is declared a hero. However, the same problems still occur day after day.


How many companies are willing to admit they're failing to meet customer expectations? I’ve not found many who will say it outright during my years of experience. Most are happy to live in absolute denial and oblivious to the facts until they hit that "pain point of realization". Many companies are facing the most crucial challenge to their very survival. Business and manufacturing technologies of the 20th century are no longer capable of meeting the challenges of the 21st century. Customers are now demanding more from their suppliers. There are many more choices available when deciding if a company is capable of meeting their supply needs.

Many organizations still hold fast to the belief that if they just work harder, they can improve things. This belief is not true. Hard work alone will not cut it in today’s global economy. Only when an organization starts to energize its employees, by unleashing their creativity to work smarter will they start to see massive change. Companies, who continue to focus their most valuable resource on survival tactics, by forcing them to work harder, will lose them faster.

Finding solutions to challenges requires a business to find answers to these key questions:

  • What is the core skills capability within your company that sets it apart from others in your field?
  • How can you best utilize these core skills to focus your business processes?
  • How does a company grow in a highly volatile world market and still meet customer demand?
  • How do you deliver a product or service faster and still maintain an acceptable level of quality?
  • How do you reduce excessive inventory levels and continue to maintain customer satisfaction?
  • How do you reduce operating costs, allowing you to become more competitive?

There is a simple solution to address all of the above questions and it can put your business way ahead of the competition: Become a Lean Enterprise by implementing and integrating lean techniques into your business model. It does not matter if you’re a manufacturing or non-manufacturing company. Anyone can use lean techniques to improve their business processes.Lean is a journey. Enjoy the trip.

Chris Turner

1 comment:

doshimaitri said...

Lean managementis the service which offers the best,fastest,and the lowest cost producers of the services or the products which provides a constant improvement in its working so as to keep its service or the products updated according to the changing demands.