Business

Home/Business
16 05, 2022

Mediocrity, Malaise, and Mismanagement

By |2022-05-18T16:22:13+00:00May 16th, 2022|Business, Information Technology, Manufacturing, MPI Manufacturing Study, People|Comments Off on Mediocrity, Malaise, and Mismanagement

Why aren’t you paying attention to your manufacturing business? After nearly two decades of research on manufacturers, you might think that MPI could report  that documented best practices — benchmarking, training, etc. — are now common everywhere, driving massive performance improvements around the world. Alas, nothing could be further from the truth. In fact, our MPI 2021 Manufacturing Study found many manufacturers struggling with — or outright failing at — the basics of improvement. It goes without saying that the effects of the pandemic can be seen in our Study data. Nonetheless, the overall Study results are shocking: [...]

Read More
7 08, 2019

The Customer as Victim

By |2019-08-07T14:01:33+00:00August 7th, 2019|Alec Pendleton, Big Ideas for Small Companies, Business, Customer Service|Comments Off on The Customer as Victim

I’m going to give you a scene, then ask you to tell me whether it was from a hidden-camera comedy program or modern corporate America: A shopper in the parking lot of a big-box retailer looks at the price of a product on her phone, a reasonable $69.99. As she walks into the store, however, the price shown on the app jumps to $99.99. When she walks back out, it reverts to $69.99. Bewildered, she shakes her head and gets back into her car. Cue laugh track. This has to be a cheap gag, right? Wrong. Target recently came [...]

Read More
30 07, 2019

Lordstown Family Feud

By |2019-08-01T17:55:22+00:00July 30th, 2019|Business, Manufacturing, Ned Hill, One-Handed Economist|Comments Off on Lordstown Family Feud

After releasing The Trade Skirmish of 2018, a policy report on the early evidence on the economic effects of the tariff actions by the U.S. and global retaliation (http://glenn.osu.edu/research/) in April, I was asked to referee a family feud.  What follows is an edited version of the question and an expanded version of my answer. Good morning Mr. Hill, I am trying to understand what factors led GM to close the plant in Lordstown, Ohio. My cousin and I argue about Donald Trump and his policies non-stop. My cousin says that Lordstown has nothing to do with steel tariffs [...]

Read More
18 12, 2018

Life Cycles of the (Not-So) Rich and (Formerly) Famous

By |2018-12-19T16:59:23+00:00December 18th, 2018|Alec Pendleton, Big Ideas for Small Companies, Business, Customer Service, Growth, Process, Small Business Advice, Strategy, Value Proposition|Comments Off on Life Cycles of the (Not-So) Rich and (Formerly) Famous

Jeff Bezos, the richest man in the world and the founder of Amazon, recently predicted to a group of employees that “Amazon will go bankrupt.” He was reflecting on the recent bankruptcy of Sears, which not that long ago was as formidable as Amazon is today. “If you look at large companies,” he said, “their lifespans tend to be 30-plus years, not a hundred-plus years.” I know what you’re thinking: That doesn’t seem right. Large companies have enduring strength. Massive corporations such as those in the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) are cornerstones of our economy. We don’t think [...]

Read More