Reverse auctions are controversial. Suppliers bid their lowest rates on-line and prices keep going down and the buyer’s organization is happy. Inefficiencies in the supply chain reduce, transparency increases and suppliers are on their toes. Sounds not very collaborative and that’s what I had though so far till I went yesterday to the CAPM SeminarContinue reading “You don’t repeat reverse auctions!”
Category Archives: Engineering
KPO is back in the news
Knowledge Process Outsourcing (KPO) is back in the news with estimates ranging from $10-17 Billion/year volume by 2010. I ran the first ever MBA elective on "Global Outsourcing of Knowledge Based Services" in Fall 2005 – and a CAPM seminar in April 2006, with the same title. While well attended, I think KPO classes andContinue reading “KPO is back in the news”
How Relationship Marketing is Changing Procurement Management
Sometimes its just a quick remark that clarifies difficult issues and that happened with me yesterday when a very competent procurement professional mentioned that their company did not do much procurement activities i.e. bidding,negotiation because they preferred to stay with the same supplier. So, there was not much growth in procurement as a career… ThisContinue reading “How Relationship Marketing is Changing Procurement Management”
Mature Global design Strategies improve profits
I was rather happy to read the Aberdeen report’s summary which highlights that global product design and development leads to reduction in product development time and time to market while allowing the protection of intellectual property through Digital Rights Management. This blog and my research has been investigating these issues for some time and IContinue reading “Mature Global design Strategies improve profits”
Crib Recall – New Product Development meets Supplier Involvement
Walk into any furniture store in the US and almost all products are made in China. You order anything and the boxes arrive with instructions and you do as best as you can. I , for example, have a desk with a hutch that I could not install very well and just did not wantContinue reading “Crib Recall – New Product Development meets Supplier Involvement”
Toy recall , tire recall and the supply chain
Tell me frankly- if you have children are you worried about brain damage caused by lead paint from toys ? If you changed a tire recently, did you look for the "Made in" label – discreetly but anxiously.Globalization is really catching up with everyone and I feel bad for the supply chain managers at MattelContinue reading “Toy recall , tire recall and the supply chain”
Minnesota Bridge Collapse and Infrastructure capabilities
The Minnesota Bridge Collapse is a most tragic event. CBS news made the comment that there are over 80,000 bridges in the US that need repair. The aging steam pipe burst in New York caused a panic just two weeks ago. Infrastructure is a strange thing. Countries that have less of it are typically "developing"Continue reading “Minnesota Bridge Collapse and Infrastructure capabilities”
So what is the big deal with “Sterling Service Contracts” ?
Well for one, the new Sterling Service Contracts , gets linked to many of the categories that I blog about! And that is a lot of categories… Some of the things that Sterling Service Contracts will do includes, and I quote from Sterling’s press release: START QUOTE: Storefront capabilities that provide customers and partners withContinue reading “So what is the big deal with “Sterling Service Contracts” ?”
Collaborative Product Definition Management (cPDm)
After a very nice Easter weekend, I found myself stuck like an old record on my April 1,post about how SFA happens outside the company and does not depend on existing customer data or processes, particularly when you are looking for new customers. Applications that can be quickly deployed,used and benefits seen make obvious senseContinue reading “Collaborative Product Definition Management (cPDm)”
What’s next for the US Small and Medium Manufacturer ?
The GNHCC Business Expo 2007 turned out to be a huge rallying of small and medium companies in the New Haven region. Tireless efforts of the organizers and various supporting organizations,associations and well wishers of New Haven businesses made the event a great success. As I wrote earlier – I was on the CAPM panelContinue reading “What’s next for the US Small and Medium Manufacturer ?”