All Features
Dr T Burns
I had humble, that is, poor, beginnings. I didn’t even know the taste of real ice cream until later in life. One of the first impacts I felt of the luxury that technology brings was the diode my father bought for me to replace the cat’s whisker on my crystal radio. My high school was lovingly…
Doug Bulla
Being a numbers-driven manufacturing CFO is a good thing—in fact, it’s essential. But as a CFO, you probably know finance and operations more than you know the ins and outs of manufacturing, which can lead you to measuring the wrong key performance metrics.
Here are five costly manufacturing…
MIT News
The first of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s (MIT) half online, half in-person supply chain management master’s degree programs is making a profit and bringing dozens of new degree-seeking students to campus.
The results from the blended program in supply chain management are…
Annamarie Mann
Once the status symbol of anti-establishment Silicon Valley tech companies such as Google and Facebook, the open-office floor plan now pervades U.S. workplaces. According to The Washington Post, about 70 percent of U.S. offices have an open-office floor plan.
Supporters say open floor plans…
Richard Pazdur
When I was in high school, I spent summers working as a restaurant dishwasher, grocery store stock boy, and gardener in northwest Indiana. The idea of spending those weeks learning about science and medicine would not have been an option for me at that time.
Yet, it is precisely those students…
Tony Uphoff
The U.S. manufacturing industry—once one of the most robust and powerful economic engines in the world—is now in a state of atrophy. Baby boomers are retiring in record numbers, taking their unique knowledge and skills with them as they head out the door for the final time. The people taking…
Ryan E. Day
Sponsored Content
For growth-minded organizations like TS Tech, global supplier of automobile seats and interiors, “the way we’ve always done it” is rarely good enough. As a tier-one supplier to major automotive OEMs, TS Tech always has an eye out for ways to improve quality and throughput. They…
Victor Prince
A few summers ago, I hiked the ancient Camino de Santiago trail across Spain. It was the best month of my life for many reasons. Along with a lot of other great things I got by walking almost 500 miles, it also taught me some valuable project management lessons that I can use at work.
Less is…
Tim Lozier
Sponsored Content
The difference between cloud providers is often found in their chosen deployment method. Typically, software can be implemented either through multi-tenant or dedicated cloud environments. With the advent of virtual servers, cloud environments have moved past the “trend” phase…
Michelle LaBrosse
It’s summertime. You’ve saved up your time off and planned a great vacation for yourself and your family. How, as a project manager, do you make sure your vacation just has those fun “risks,” that everything runs smoothly while you’re away, and you’re able to enjoy your vacation uninterrupted?…
Therese Graff
A recent article in The Wall Street Journal (“The Reason Southwest Stopped Overbooking”), which contained excerpts from an interview with Southwest Airlines’ CEO Gary Kelly, brought out the need to address airline capacity issues on the ground and in the air. Responding to a question on the impact…
Ryan E. Day
What do cocoa, socks, and smartphones have in common? If you guessed risk of slavery in the manufacturing supply chain, you are correct. Does your organization have an international supply chain? Then it’s at risk. What are you doing to address the risks associated with modern slavery in your…
Dirk Dusharme
Our August 11, 2017, episode of QDL looked at the role of technology in after-market service, stairs that help you up, Fidget Cubes, and more.
“Climbing Stairs Just Got Easier With Energy-Recycling Steps”
These stairs actually help you go up.
“The Curious Case of the Fidget Cube”
How a product…
Ryan E. Day
Innovation within industry is a must to improve processes, products, and customer experience. Although some innovations, like Amazon’s floating distribution center, seem implausible, other sci-fi technology is already revolutionizing and redefining the way employees accomplish tasks.
Tales of…
Quy Huy
At the end of the 20th century, perhaps no U.S. business leader was more admired—and emulated—than former General Electric CEO Jack Welch. He became legendary for almost single-handedly remaking the massive Boston-based conglomerate into a global leader. During his 20-year tenure, which ended in…
Greg Anderson
The Affordable Care Act created the CMS Innovation Center to allow Medicare and Medicaid programs to test innovative payment and delivery models that improve patient care and lower healthcare costs.
The Innovation Center organizes models into seven categories. Some models are based on payment…
Deirdre Mendez
For stressed managers dealing with international employees and partners, a profile describing the country they’re dealing with may seem like a natural thing to reach for. Brazil has a score of 34 for punctuality; Finns value quiet, serious conversation; good things to know. But think about the…
Mike Richman
The dog days of summer are here, but the Aug. 4, 2017, episode of QDL offered lots of cool content. Let’s take a closer look:
“What Went Wrong With the F-35?” One expert calls the Lockheed Martin’s F-35 fighter jet an “inherently terrible airplane.” So why does the Air Force consider it warfighter…
Bruce Weinberg
Science funding is intended to support the production of new knowledge and ideas that develop new technologies, improve medical treatments, and strengthen the economy. The idea goes back to influential engineer Vannevar Bush, who headed the U.S. Office of Scientific Research and Development during…
Bruce Hamilton
At GBMP’s launch of the Shingo Institute’s Build Excellence workshop, it occurred to me that perhaps systems thinking might be more aptly named systems rethinking. Workshop participants offered up current systems in their organizations that actually impeded continuous improvement, each time…
Jun Nakamuro
Japanese improvement techniques have been emulated across the globe for decades, and none carries more cultural weight than the theory of kaizen. When I expose Western leaders to lean practices in Japan, they often express that they have come away with a better understanding of “true kaizen.” They…
John Stepper
Whenever I talk to organizations about open, connected ways of working, this question inevitably comes up: “How do you get leaders to do it?”
It’s a problem. Most often, managers simply don’t have the time to learn a different way of leading. Or their habits are so deeply ingrained that doing…
DNV GL
Bribery and corruption are a $1 trillion drain on the global economy and a door-shutting event for companies unable to prevent rogue acts from destroying a company’s entire reputation. If you think about it, managing bribery is a bit of an oxymoron. How do you manage something that hasn’t happened…
Dirk Dusharme
Our July 28, 2017, episode of QDL we looked at science, technology, engineering, art, and math (STEAM) education for the deaf and hard of hearing; Quality 4.0; and cloud computing.
“Teaching STEAM Skills to Deaf Kids Using Drones and 3-D Printing”
The deaf and hard of hearing are underreprented in…
Mark Whitworth
For decades, audit management has centered on paper checklists, with tracking moving to Excel spreadsheets in more recent years. Despite growing adoption of cloud-based manufacturing software, many auto suppliers still rely on paper checklists and spreadsheets to manage audit programs.
There’s a…