Today, almost every organization is trying to leverage data for improving its business performance using artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) techniques. Fundamentally, data has the potential to improve the company’s revenue, reduce expenses and mitigate risk. While data can be a valuable business asset by offering tangible business results, it has some serious limitations and can become a huge liability if not managed well. How can an intangible asset like data become a liability for business? There are four common scenarios.

Read More…

Many companies begin performance improvement initiatives with 5S, a Lean tool that involves workplace organization. 5S reduces clutter in offices, warehouses and manufacturing floors and creates quick, visible improvements to jump start employee engagement in the process.

Read More…

Top executives should be thinking about the direction and strategy of their company. Many executives spend an inordinate amount of time on the details of their business and often don’t put sufficient focus on results. Jack Welch once said that the two key roles of a CEO are to develop a vision and to find the people to implement it. Are you paying attention to the four dimensions of executive thought?

Read More…

It seems like there’s always a better time to do something, and that time is “later.” Many companies believe that improvement initiatives – like Lean, supplier partner programs, global expansion, or new product launches – will wait. The trouble is that while they’re waiting, their competitors are moving forward.

Read More…

“What we’ve got here is failure to communicate.” In the iconic movie Cool Hand Luke, Paul Newman’s character was sent to prison and eventually killed because of a failure to communicate. In business, the results of weak communication shouldn’t be that drastic, but without communication, it’s easy to miss important opportunities to innovate and improve. Within operations and supply chain, there are five essential types of communication:

Read More…