Posts filed under 'Management'
August 13th, 2008
This interesting article talks about the Key Competencies in Manufacturing; “Old World” compared to “New World” In addition to the “hard skills” it also points out the “soft skills” required in today’s and tomorrow’s manufacturing.
From “Ability to follow fixed, unchanging procedures” to “Initiative, persistence & independence”.
From “Following Orders” to “Making independent decisions”.
From “General attention to production & safety procedures” to “Attention to detail, self-control & dependability”.
“Soft Skills” such as these will make the difference in any organization. For the full 12 page report, click on the link.
hiring-manufacturing-staff-in-21st-c.pdf
August 12th, 2008
The World is caught between old skills and high-tech needs; An unfortunate convergence of economic factors points to a shortfall in trained employees. A unique combination of events–the accelerated rise of advanced technologies, globalization after the fall of communism, the 1990s stock-market bubble and its collapse, and a massive number of people retiring–have combined to produce a potential 2010 workforce meltdown.
The 79 million Baby Boomers who are running the world’s industrial economies will retire between 2010 and 2025. A smaller Generation X, with 40 million people and fewer entry-level “smart” workers, will take over.
A great mismatch of too many low-skilled workers and too many high-skill jobs is set to reach stellar heights. As these high-skill jobs go unfilled, American businesses will search the world in vain for more highly skilled, job-ready workers.
According to several studies, between 2010 and 2020 the U.S., Europe, Japan, China and India will face a shortfall of between 32 million to 39 million well-educated, technically specialized “smart people.” The current business strategies of outsourcing these high-skill jobs or using H-1B temporary visas to import the workers won’t work anymore. Millions of lower-skilled Americans, or people educated for careers that aren’t growing or are obsolete, will sit on the economic sidelines, either unemployed or condemned to a future of low wages.
A technology paradox for the U.S.industrial and manufacturing sectors that have laid off millions of low-skilled workers is that they cannot find enough people to fill growing numbers of advanced technology jobs.
A 2002 Hudson Institute study found that 60 percent of all the jobs being created require skills that only 20 percent of U.S. workers possess. For example, in November 2004, Pennsylvania reported that nearly 350,000 workers were unemployed. At the same time, 24 percent of businesses told the state they couldn’t find enough qualified workers.
Between 2000 and 2005, 200,000 manufacturing jobs disappeared from Illinois. Some of these were high-pay, high-skill jobs that went elsewhere to find the workers companies can’t find here. These 2010 meltdown issues do not bode well for the long-term economic development of Illinois. We need to face the facts that in contemporary America there are just too many people trained for the wrong jobs and not enough people preparing for the jobs we are creating.
The career aspirations of much of the population in the U.S. are at serious odds with the increasingly high-tech needs of the economy. Unless this culture lag is resolved in a timely way, a growing labor market imbalance will have serious economic consequences. The high standards of American life are built on a complex technological and physical infrastructure that everyone takes for granted. Its maintenance is central to the prosperity of our economy. Many areas of industry and service within our economy are involved, with health care, manufacturing, information technology and the skilled trades constituting particularly critical sectors.
Yet as the Commission on the Future of the U.S. Aerospace Industry has stated, “The nation’s apathy toward developing a scientifically and technologically trained workforce is the equivalent of intellectual and industrial disarmament … and is a direct threat to our nation’s capability to continue as a world leader.”
According to Rick Stephens, senior vice president of human resources at Boeing Corp., “The shrinkage of a U.S. technically able workforce is the greatest threat to our national security.”
Many Americans already are responding to the 2010 challenge. Intel, Microsoft, IBM and others are investing more than $50 billion each year in worker retraining and student career-education programs.
Many communities have organized a variety of non-governmental organizations (NGOs), such as Bridge to Careers of Santa Ana, Calif., the Philadelphia Academies Inc. or the Tulsa Technology Center. These intermediary agencies help bridge the chasm that separates the business and labor markets from education and career preparation.
The NGOs seek to retrain adult workers through a variety of education and skills programs attuned to the needs of local labor markets. They also strive to reinvent an outmoded educational system that traditionally has sorted students into two groups: “the best and the brightest” going to college and the others who won’t.
These NGO alternatives place all students in local liberal arts/career academies that prepare everyone for post-secondary education. The major objective is that most students will complete a post-secondary, two- or four-year degree or an occupational program certificate.
NGOs can facilitate a 21st Century career culture that better prepares students and adults for the careers of a technologically driven, globally competitive society. Chicago’s Renaissance 2010 Program is focused on developing 100 special academies. But Chicago has 600 public schools. Will it take an entire generation to reinvent education in Chicago? Do we have the time?
America needs to embark on a new era of reconstruction to avoid a 2010 meltdown. The future depends on our individual and collective will to make the necessary culture changes now for a new America and a new Illinois.
by: Edward E. Gordon; author of “The 2010 Meltdown: Solving the Impending Jobs Crisis.” He also serves on the Chicago Workforce Board and the Education Workforce Committee of the Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce.
Copyright © 2005, Chicago Tribune
August 3rd, 2008
I recently received a complimentary copy of the book Innovate Like Edison” from the Italian Trade Commission (ITC), Chicago office. In t looks like an interesting addition for any inventor, entrepreneur or anyone who wants to understand the innovation and business methods of Thomas Alva Edison. Much like the recent book written by the late Jon Lundin “Master Inventor, How Howard Coleman Created a Multi-National Corporation, the Edison book talks about his life, inventions and invention & business processes.
Within separate chapters, the book identifies the 5 Major “Competencies of Innovation” or bundles of skills that must be mastered to achieve success in a particular area of endeavor:
1. Solution-centered Mindset (seeing what we expect or want to see)
2. Kaleidoscopic Thinking (ability to juggle vast range of ideas and projects)
3. Full-spectrum Engagement
4. Master-mind Collaboration
5. Super-value Creation.
Each chapter then gives 5 “elements” or building blocks that comprise each competency. The book is well illustrated and easy to read. Unlike other “how-to” books, this one is well researched by Michael Gelb, the author of “How to Think like Leonardo da Vinci” and Sarah Miller Caldicott, the great-grandniece of Thomas Edison. They had access to Edison’s files and in addition interviewed many innovators from a wide range of disciplines. It contains many real life principals as well serving as a historical review of technology developmant.
The one Competency that I like is “Super Value Creation”. These are the “elements”:
1. Link Market Trends with Core Strength;
2. Tune into your Target Audience;
3. Apply the Right Business Model;
4 Understand Scale-up Effects; and
5. Create an Unforgettable Market-moving Brand.
Clearly, this Competency and their 5 Elements deal with marketing and selling your invention/product and contain many useful tips.
In addition to thoughtful quotations, you can assess your current level of innovation literacy with the “Edison Innovation Blueprint” at the back of the book.
While I don’t derive any benefits from sales of this book, I’d encourage readers to check it out.
This book was a gift and it came with a personal autograph by Sarah. It will proudly stand next to my copy of Jon’s signed “Master Inventor”.
July 31st, 2008
One way to keep up with new trends is seeing what other people are doing. Manufacturing News, a periodical from Gross Publications highlights manufacturing activity in our region. It is inexpensive too! You can obtain a free subscription on-line at www.ipnews.con/subscribe.html. Also, most content is available on-line at the same web-site. John Gross, managing editor visited Rockford and the EIGERlab, specifically to see the rapid prototping technology at the SUPER FABlab. He will post an article in October in all four regional magazines of Manufacturing News in October about rapid protoyping in Rockford. A magazine of this type is helpful for spreading the word about the great capabilities we have in manufacturing in our region.
July 19th, 2008
Owning your own business is really a crazy place to live. The ups and downs in an eight hour day are unreal. Just this week in one hour we quoted a million dollar a year for 10 years job and found out we had 2,000 questionable parts out in the field! No time to celebrate, just keep moving fast! Often this roller coaster takes over your life 24/7 but we can discuss that some other time!
Different groups in the region do things to support Business Owners/Entrepreneurs by having seminars or bringing in speakers. On two separate occasions Rock Valley College and the Rock River Valley Entrepreneurship Center have brought Barry J. Moltz to speak to Rockford. His first book was “Crazy About Business, Insane for Success”, Hearing him speak about the craziness of owning your own business was great! He is funny but right on. I really recommend his information to anyone that does that for a living or wants to do that for a living!
A more recent book “Bounce ” has helped him to get on to the Donny Deutsch show The Big Idea.
I just found out he has started a show about business on blogtalk radio. You can hear it at http://www.blogtalkradio.com/bjmoltz. It is short but encouraging to anyone that has taken that step to business ownership or wants to do it. ENJOY!
July 18th, 2008
Sam Schmitz, President, Goodwill/Abilities Center, announced today that they have been selected by Goodwill Industries International (GII) as one on five national “Kaizen” training sites for this fall. Goodwill/Abilities Center was selected from a group of 26 Goodwill agencies from around the country that bid to be a “Kaizen” training site.
Kaizen is a proven process improvement concept designed to improve quality, cost and delivery. GII has taken this concept and applied it to the donation centers of Goodwill retail stores, particularly in improving the back room (donation center) processes. It has been proven to be effective in multiple retail stores around the country.
The training is scheduled for November 11 - 14 at their new location on North Second Street.
This is a special recognition for our local Goodwill/Abilities Center; any questions, call Sam at 815-965-3795.
July 17th, 2008
Here are some tips for making sure you get your money from your customers. In times of rising costs, every dime must be recovered from our accounts receivables. Remember, the order isn’t completed until the money is collected!
http://www.businessweek.com/smallbiz/content/jul2008/sb20080711_982308.htm
