Servicing SMEs Throughout Atlantic Canada
Frank comes in to run the line this morning, but thinks that the temperature should be higher than what Joe had previously been running at on the previous shift. So Frank makes an adjustment and raises the process temperature. Joe comes back in the next day and lowers it back down again, and both go…
Many of us have been exposed to numerous training workshops organized around the topic of Leadership. Although we often inspire to be better Leaders, the goal simply exists because it seems like “the right thing to do”. The advantages of strong Leadership, however, go far beyond “the right thing to do”. Strong Leaders inspire others,…
Many organizations operate well below their desired or theoretical capacity, often in the 60%-80% range. There can be several reasons for this, and it is critical to understand the root causes so you can release untapped potential. After conducting value stream mapping exercises, I always review the cycle time rate for each step in the…
When you have many things to improve in your products and services, it can be difficult to understand where to begin. Process Improvement is an ongoing effort to address issues, and helps you make sure that you’re working on the issues that will have the biggest impact to your customers. Furthermore, you can use Value…
What if you could anticipate dangerous situations before they happened? You could fix the problem preventatively, totally mitigating the risk to your workers? The solution to this issue is to take some time in developing a protocol for reporting ‘Near Misses’….a proactive vs. a reactive approach. A near miss, often referred to as a close…
In an attempt to become a more effective leader, I have spent a significant amount of time researching strategies that I can use to help me deal with specific challenges. In this vein, I have developed a number of different checklists to help me succeed at overcoming these challenges. Using a checklist is a simple…
The last thing any business wants is for customers to receive bad products or services. That’s why it’s vital that we understand where problems can occur and how best to work through them. This is the primary reason why taking a Root Cause Analysis approach to problem solving is key to ensuring that problems are…
Getting the right people on the bus, and ensuring they are in the right seats, has never been as critical to business as it is today. With the baby boomer generation leaving the workforce in increasing numbers, many businesses are making the shift in HR focus from recruiting to retention, making sure that once we…
Is your Banker a Partner or an inconvenient reminder of a debt obligation? In good times, most relationships with bankers are likely minimal. But when businesses find themselves struggling, some fail to adequately manage their relationship with their banker, leading to trust issues with a critical partner for their business. From the many years I…
Sales Orders are documents that serve a dual role in the organization’s administrative system. They are generated by the organization after receiving a purchase order from a customers. Firstly, the Sales Order benefits the customer, as it serves as confirmation that their order has been received, and provides detailed order information such as quantity, price,…