It is not easy to expand your thinking, open yourself up to new ideas, and think creatively while completely focused on day-to-day execution. Yet it will be the most important ingredient to success in the next several years. There are so many challenges and obstacles to overcome (geopolitics, lack of talent, subpar processes, lack of funding, meager technology, non-achievable regulations and more) that using advanced technologies and innovating your way to success will become the only viable option to ensure you can serve your key customers reliably.

Additionally, even though cost savings of 1-3% can equal large dollars, these will not cut it when input prices have been going up by 5%, 10%, 20% and ever higher, and price increases aren’t keeping up. Several clients have seen margins decline due to this equation and are jumping on this situation. Customers and consumers are not accepting the same price increases they accepted initially, and so manufacturers are getting squeezed. The use of advanced technologies (robotics, automation, digital twins, AI) will be required to keep up with key customers’ demand, to reduce costs, and to bridge the skills gap.

Freeing your thinking is vital to innovating your way to success.

Ideas for Freeing the Mind

So how do you free your mind to innovate? You might be able to go to your backyard and watch the dog, go to a restaurant and enjoy time away, or take a hike, but there are also times it makes sense to get away from home to clear the mind. Since I had to go to San Diego to speak with a group of CPA partners about challenges, opportunities and the path forward in manufacturing and supply chain, I had the chance to look out the window and work on the patio (thanks to a complimentary upgrade). See included photo. I also went to the pool restaurant to enjoy guacamole. And, I had the opportunity to catch up with a friend while in town which got me thinking about new topics and ideas. Stay tuned as I’ll be rolling these out. Freeing the mind can help to expand your thinking and stimulate creative juices.

Expanding Your Thinking

Once your mind is freed up, it is far easier to focus on innovating and trialing new technologies. AI and ChatGPT will transform the way we do business over time. Digital twins are revolutionizing our ability to simulate real world situations. Robotics are changing the manufacturing floor. Are you trying new technologies like these out? Additionally, are you reading about new topics? Deliberating putting yourself in new situations? Asking questions? Expanding your thinking will be critical to innovation. Learn more about innovating for success in our recent article in Adhesives & Sealants Industry.

Please contact us with stories, issues, and opportunities on what you’re doing to succeed and how these issues will impact your business. And please keep us in the loop of your situation and how we can help your organization get in a position to thrive for years to come. Learn more about these topics in our blog and download your complimentary copy of our recently released special report: The Road Ahead: Business, Supply Chain & The World Order.

The post Strategies to Expand Thinking to Innovate & Advance Technology appeared first on LMA-Consulting Group, a supply chain consulting firm.

Originally posted in ASI – Adhesives & Sealants Industry – June, 2023

Innovation allows companies to achieve higher levels of growth, profitability, employee engagement, and success.

According to the Global Innovation Index (GII), Switzerland ranks first in the world with the US edging out Sweden for the second position. China continues to ascend and is in the eleventh position, and the only middle-income economy within the top 30. India also rated number one in the lower-middle income category. It is apparent that innovation, growth, and success seem to go hand in hand. This insight rings true in the business world as well. The most innovative clients have the highest levels of growth, profitability, employee engagement and success.

New Product Development

One of the most visible forms of innovation is developing new products and submitting patents. No manufacturer can thrive long term without a keen eye to research and development, designing new products, and upgrading existing products. The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) reported that the demand for patents hit record levels in 2022. It is no accident that India’s patent applications shot up by 25% as they emerge in the manufacturing realm. China filed the most international patent applications, followed by the US and Japan.

New products can drive success. For example, at a lighting manufacturer, the CEO put a heavy emphasis on designing new products to enter new markets and maintain their top position in their industry. He was one of the only executives investing in people at the height of the Great Recession. Excellent talent was available, and so he hired when the competition cut and invested resources into research and development. Fast-forward a few years and they had developed new products, got architects to spec their products into plans, and they were growing steadily in the new market.

Supply Chain Innovation

Innovation does not come just in the form of new products. You can reconfigure, repackage, develop new services, and find ways to meet unmet needs. These forms of innovation can be far more important as few people develop the new sticky pad. Even the iPhone was an iteration of the iPod which was simply a better “Sony Walkman”. Supply chain innovation can be a critical ingredient to success in the next decade. During the pandemic, executives learned that supply chain should be integral to their strategy to drive profitable growth. Start with your ideal customer and find the best way to grow and innovate with them.

For example, in a piping insulation manufacturing company, providing high quality products and rapid service was cornerstone to growing the business. They had built a distribution network to position product closer to their customers to provide short lead times and quick turnaround service; however, since they didn’t store all items at these distribution centers, they also experienced increased freight costs to supplement customer orders and ship direct from the manufacturing facility when needed. Service suffered because the right product was not in the right place at the right time, and storage costs increased with this model and due to the bulky nature of the product. Thus, a focus was put on innovating the supply chain model to find a new solution to provide short lead times and high service levels while minimizing costs and inventory.

The executives invested in supply chain consultants, supported innovation with trials/ pilots of new replenishment strategies, rolled out advanced ERP and planning system functionality, reviewed and upgraded processes, and designed inventory analytics to support improved service at lower costs and inventory levels. Not only did service levels dramatically improve from the high 30%s to the 90%s for On-time-in-full (OTIF), but costs and inventory levels were reduced. As improved and predictive information became available with business analysis and reporting, they also were able to make key pricing, product rationalization, and service policy decisions sooner and created a resilient supply chain.

Operational excellence is no longer enough. Innovation has become cornerstone to success. There will be more opportunity than ever before during the next decade, but only for those companies continually innovating and improving with changing circumstances. Those that innovate will be ready to take advantage of market opportunities and will pivot with evolving conditions. Will you innovate and grow or decline and die?

Lisa is founder and president of LMA Consulting Group, Inc., a consulting firm that specializes in manufacturing strategy and end-to-end supply chain transformation that maximizes the customer experience and enables profitable, scalable, dramatic business growth. She recently released SIOP (Sales Inventory Operations Planning): Creating Predictable Revenue and EBITDA Growth as an e-book that can be found at https://www.lma-consultinggroup.com/siop-book/.

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Manufacturing and Supply Chain Expert Lisa Anderson, MBA, CSCP, CLTD, president of LMA Consulting Group Inc. joins a panel of experts to discuss the flip side of COVID turbulence and disruption and the new opportunities and innovations that have resulted in these uncertain times.

Find out more about Interlinks here.

Click here to download.

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The Best Companies Innovate for Growth, Not Just Survival

CLAREMONT, CA— Results-based innovation has come to the fore during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to The Society for the Advancement of Consulting® (SAC). Executives and organizations unsurprisingly moved to products and services that maintained top-line growth. But the crème de la crème went a step further—creating whole new processes that exploit future trends today.

Best Companies Innovate to Meet These Needs

“Our most successful clients reacted to the pandemic by innovating,” points out Lisa Anderson, president of Claremont, CA-based LMA Consulting Group, Inc and manufacturing expert known for creating supply chain resiliency. “Not only did these clients adapt quickly to the changing conditions, but they also got creative in looking for opportunities to innovate and thrive.

“The most proactive executives helped their teams look for opportunities instead of focusing solely on challenges,” adds Anderson. “Where there were unserved needs in their industry, these clients identified them. They looked for products that could be produced with the same equipment that could provide value during the pandemic or, more importantly, they went beyond the status quo to focus on future and changing needs in the marketplace.

“Instead of letting their best talent go, they found ways to use these people, develop them, and encourage them to innovate and grow,” she adds.

The Pandemic Drives Workplace Flexibility

“There is a pervasive restlessness among employees engaging management to respond with workplace innovation.” says Dr. Maynard Brusman, a San Francisco Bay Area consulting psychologist and executive coach.

According to Dr. Brusman, “There is a spectrum of different philosophies regarding on-site and remote work. Some companies want to go back to an in-person culture, because it’s easier to collaborate and create emotional and cultural connection. Other companies support remote work. Companies are experimenting with hybrid home-office work schedules and greater employee autonomy.”

Dr. Brusman advises his executive coaching clients “Changes arising from the pandemic will accelerate the importance of business leaders who are flexible. Leaders need to be a coach, mentor, and obstacle-remover to their employees.”

Experience Shows Clients Want Integral Support

“Every one of our clients had to be creative to withstand the turbulence of the pandemic,” said Kathleen McEntee, president of Kathleen McEntee and Associates, Ltd (KMA), a full-service marketing firm that helps companies reach their target markets with the right message, through the right media, for the greatest impact. “Some changed their process. Others changed products and services. And while others were briefly forced to close, they weathered through by repurposing their core skills to deliver different services.

“To support our clients, we also had to make changes,” adds McEntee. “We became a more integral part of each client company. We were involved in brainstorming for new products, processes, and service delivery methods. We supported clients in changing their messaging to provide a way to share their expertise to keep customers engaged. Creativity and innovation became a survival tactic that helped most companies thrive!”

Finding Creativity Where No One Had Gone Before

After recovering from the initial shock of a worldwide pandemic shutdown, many firms turned their attention to creating new and different offerings that fit the times, according to Linda Popky, president of Redwood Shores, CA-based strategic firm marketing firm Leverage2Market Associates, and author of the book Marketing Above the Noise: Achieve Strategic Advantage with Marketing That Matters.

“Some of these changes were extensions of previous offerings—like food and wine to go, or curbside pickup from retail stores,” she said. “But others were brand new inventions—like livestream services for weddings and funerals, turning distilleries into hand sanitizer plants, or creating a million fun, innovative varieties of masks.”

“The organizations that are thriving through this experience are the ones who said we’ve never been here before—what do we need to do to provide products and services that our customers need now? Those that are sitting and waiting for the ‘good old days’ of normal are likely to find they’re getting soaked by the situation without benefiting from the silver lining in the cloud.”

Most Resilient Companies Win With Packages For People

“I define ‘innovation’ as ‘applied creativity.’ In fact, my very first book was on that topic,” said SAC Founder Alan Weiss, PhD. “During the pandemic, the most resilient firms abandoned even seemingly good ideas, unless they could apply them short term and make a profit from them. Those firms without chronic staffing problems today are those applying innovative practices to hiring and retention—like creating packages around people rather than forcing people into packages.”

Originally published in ExpertClick October 1, 2021

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What could be more top of mind than the vaccine distribution to combat COVID? This was the topic of a recent Interlinks podcast on Supply Chain Innovations with a group of global supply chain experts. The panel of experts discussed vaccine distribution around the world and associated implications. Listen to our discussion and send feedback.

Operation Warp Speed has accomplished what most thought impossible. A vaccine went from 0 to approved, manufactured and in distribution within 9 months instead of multiple years. There were several key factors in making this a success: 1) Clear goal. 2) Public-private partnership. 3) Utilizing the best-in-class companies for each segment in the end-to-end life cycle / supply chain. 4) Reducing lead time for each step in the process. For example, manufacturing capacity and distribution capacity ramped up long before approval so we could be “off and running” rapidly. It is reminiscent of manufacturing professionals’ skepticism of the feasibility of accelerating new product development timelines or customer lead times of configure or engineer-to-order products to be 5 days instead of 5 months (as an example). Make the impossible possible.

Now that the vaccine is in the hands of the states, there is a WIDE difference in effectiveness thus far. It is a typical problem across clients and organizations of many sizes. Not all plants run the same way. Not all distribution networks are as efficient and effective as others. Not all people see the topic the same way. And certainly not all states agree on the priorities for distributing the vaccine. Hot off the press, my mom received her first dose of the vaccine in Arizona whereas my home state California has definitely struggled early on. As time goes by, the states will gain experience and ramp up.

Manufacturing is in high gear. The supply chain is ready and equipped, and the states are gaining experience. It is expected that additional vaccines such as JNJ will be approved soon. Undoubtedly, given the speed and momentum, we will be “back to a more regular routine” before we know it, driving a strong economy with pent up demand.

What lessons can you take away from this success to apply to your business? Read more about these types of strategies in our eBook, Future-Proofing Manufacturing & Supply Chain Post COVID-19. If you are interested in a rapid assessment to determine how to apply these types of principles to your organization to accelerate progress, contact us.

Did you like this article? Continue reading on this topic:
Should Supply Chain Be a Strategic Function

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Supply Chain Innovation in 2021

Manufacturing and Supply Chain Expert Lisa Anderson, MBA, CSCP, CLTD, president of LMA Consulting Group Inc. was featured on a podcast to discuss how to become profitable and efficient at the same time.

Full Story…

Find out more about Interlinks here.

Click here to download.

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September 29, 2020

Since our 10 year anniversary in 2015, we have been recognizing people who have contributed to our success with our LMA Advocate award. In the last few years, we have been thinking about starting a corporate award of excellence.  We wanted to make sure it was special and positioned with our most successful and proactive clients in mind. When COVID hit, it inspired the synthesis of these thoughts into our inaugural LMA Futurist award.

The LMA Futurist is to recognize the organization and leaders who go above and beyond “excellence”. Although excellence is certainly desirable, it is no longer enough. We must achieve excellence, resilience and see into the future in order to be proactive and strategic instead of reactive and playing catch up in the marketplace.  The LMA Futurist embodies these qualities, recognizing organizational leaders who think beyond current circumstances, prepare their organization for changing conditions and, of course, strive for efficiency and effectiveness in running the business. For our inaugural LMA Futurist award, I’m excited to recognize Corona Clipper and president, Steve Erickson.

Steve Erickson and the Corona Clipper team epitomize the LMA Futurist. It goes without saying that there is a constant persistence to strive for excellence – grow sales, increase profitability, accelerate cash flow, create customer engagement, lower costs and much more. And, they do not stop there. For example, early in the e-commerce world, Steve and the team were exploring options to expand their business and grow in this area. They took tangible, parallel tangible steps forward with research and explored options to grow Corona.com, as well as their business with Amazon, Home Depot and others. When COVID-19 hit, they were prepared to pivot with e-commerce.

In addition, they constantly reevaluate supply options in Asia, Mexico and other countries. So when the tariffs hit, they were already in transition in moving some volume to Vietnam. Thinking strategically never stops. How to successfully achieve customer responsiveness in product innovation and customer service while managing costs remains top of mind. I’m thrilled to recognize Corona Clipper and Steve Erickson with the LMA Futurist.

One Tip to Implement This Week:
Follow the lead of Corona Clipper. Here are a few insights into their success:

1. Think multiple chess moves ahead of the competition: Easier said than done.  Yet, with education, examples, trials, practice and persistence, it is achievable.
2. Innovate, innovate, innovate: The most successful organizations and leaders post-COVID will be those that innovate.
3. Collaborate with the best: Surround yourself with experts and expertise.
4. Remember that people are your #1 asset: We follow and prefer to do business with people, not companies. Your employees, customers, suppliers, trusted advisors….
5. Stay current: Don’t follow fads.  Understand trends, capabilities, options and opportunities.

Consider these strategies if you are interested in achieving profitable growth and making an impact. Read more about these types of ideas to navigate and successfully emerge post COVID-19 in my free eBook Future-Proofing Manufacturing & Supply Chain Post COVID-19. Please send your feedback and stories. I will incorporate them into an upcoming article, video or interview.

Stay safe & healthy.

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CLAREMONT, CALIFORNIA – September 23, 2020 – Manufacturing and Supply Chain Expert, Lisa Anderson, MBA, CSCP, CLTD, president of LMA Consulting Group Inc., has announced the 2020 LMA Advocate and Futurist Awards. LMA Consulting Group works with manufacturers and distributors on strategy and end-to-end supply chain transformation to maximize the customer experience and enable profitable, scalable, dramatic business growth.

Advocates, partners and centers of influence are key to LMA Consulting’s continued growth and success.

“This year marks 15 years since founding the firm. I have learned that adding value to a client project is more than simply providing advice and guidance. It means collaboration and sharing insights, experience and resources. The supply chain touches every part of an organization. The value that I bring includes providing resources and specialists in areas that are adjacent to my work. I work hard at building relationships with experts in other fields, so that I can provide the ultimate in a customer experience for my clients. It’s important to recognize the colleagues who have contributed to my success,” commented Ms. Anderson.

The 2020 LMA Advocate award recipient is Shannon Reininger. Shannon has been both a client and a colleague. “I have worked with and alongside Shannon for several years. We have worked together on SIOP (Sales, Inventory, Operations, Planning) and supply chain management initiatives. I have experienced first-hand, the power of her ability to work collaboratively through the dynamics of both turnaround and growth situations. Her reputation for credibility, value creation and team building are second to none. She has been a huge supporter of the Supply Chain industry and ASCM/APICS, our industry association, taking on the role of educator and advocate,” Ms. Anderson explained.

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CLAREMONT, CALIFORNIA – June 30, 2020 –  Manufacturing and Supply Chain Expert,  Lisa Anderson, MBA, CSCP, CLTD, president of LMA Consulting Group Inc., forecasts a resurgence of manufacturing in the U.S.  LMA Consulting Group works with manufacturers and distributors on strategy and end-to-end supply chain transformation to maximize the customer experience and enable profitable, scalable, dramatic business growth.

“The COVID-19 pandemic turned the supply chain on end.  It forced manufacturers to rethink their strategy, their products and their future.  Those who took the time to identify opportunities and used this unique circumstance to leverage technology and innovate are already seeing results. Innovation has always been the key driver to manufacturing success.  We are now seeing it pay off, and, it’s just the beginning,” stated Ms. Anderson.

Innovation has opened not only new product possibilities for manufacturers, but also new relationships for cost reductions and improving the customer experience.  From suppliers and 3-D printing to transportation options due to reshoring, manufacturers have an abundance of opportunity for differentiation and growth.   

“China has fallen from favor not only due to COVID-19 and the supply chain disruption, but also because of the arduous policies they implemented early in the year which essentially removed all protections of intellectual property and patents. There has been talk about doing more business with Mexico, but Mexico is best at assembly,” she said.  Manufacturing shifted to China and other countries due to high labor costs in the U.S.  Technology and robotics have leveled U.S. manufacturing costs.  “It clearly comes down to innovation and leveraging technology. U.S. manufacturers are strong and smart.  Sometimes it just takes an extra push or, in this case, an event to force out-of-the-box thinking,” she concluded.

Ms. Anderson recently recorded another video in her What’s Happening in Manufacturing & the Supply Chain series highlighting Reshoring.

About LMA Consulting Group – Lisa Anderson, MBA, CSCP, CLTD

Lisa Anderson is the founder and president of LMA Consulting Group, Inc., a consulting firm that specializes in manufacturing strategy and end-to-end supply chain transformation.  She focuses on maximizing the customer experience and enabling profitable, scalable, dramatic business growth. Ms. Anderson is a recognized Supply Chain thought leader by SelectHub, named a Top 40 B2B Tech Influencer by arketi group, 50 ERP Influencer by Washington-Frank, a top 46 most influential in Supply Chain by SAP and named a top woman influencer by Solutions Review. She recently published, I’ve Been Thinking, 101 strategies for creating bold customer promises and profits. A regular content contributor on topics including a superior customer experience with SIOP, advancing innovation and making the supply chain resilient, Ms. Anderson is regularly interviewed and quoted by publications such as Industry Week, tED magazine and the Wall Street Journal.  For information, to sign up for her Profit Through People^TM Newsletter or for a copy of her book, visit lma-consultinggroup.com.                                        

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Media Contact Kathleen McEntee | Kathleen McEntee & Associates, Ltd. | p. (760) 262 – 4080 | KMcEntee@KMcEnteeAssoc.com

Originally published on ExpertClick on June 30, 2020

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What is the first thing that happens when a client is shutdown due to the coronavirus? Cut all unnecessary spending. Certainly, I agree with this approach in most situations. If you cannot pay for your employees, you shouldn’t pay for unnecessary expenses! However, if the situation isn’t dire, it might just be an opportunity to refocus on innovation and technology.

There are well-regarded statistics about the Depression and the Great Recession that those companies that invested while everyone else cut back were significantly more successful following the recession. Of course, it depends on whether you are investing in what will be needed as the lockdown ends or if you just continue with your prior plans because they were well-thought out previously. All bets are off! You must re-review your strategies, business plans and associated investments with the ‘new world’ in mind. Ask your executive team and key partners questions:

1. What will have changed as we emerge from lockdown?
2. What opportunities will it present for your customers?
3. What new roadblocks will exist for your customers?
4. Is there an opportunity for new customers?
5. Do you have an opportunity to expand to new markets?
6. What products and services will be needed?
7. Can you get ahead of the competition so you’ll be out of the gate at 200 mph instead of crawling at a turtle’s pace?
8. Will you need to re-tool?
9. What skills will you need?
10. What technology will you need?

Challenging times can create opportunity with innovation and creativity. Innovation will fast-track growth and profits. When has there been a better time to innovate? Although we started our innovation series a while back and have always been involved with encouraging innovation (such as the Manufacturers Innovation Awards), we are going to start adding content to encourage clients to focus on innovation since we think this is a critical time to ramp up your focus on innovation.

Innovation doesn’t have to involve technology as it could simply involve repurposing, repackaging, or repositioning. In fact, there is very little that is truly ‘new’. How often does a client invent something new like the sticky note? Certainly we hope a new vaccine will be developed rapidly, but many industries will simply come up with new ways of doing things and that type of innovation will fast-track growth and profits. The only precursor is whether you have an innovative culture. Now that is something we can control, and it doesn’t have to require capital or cash.

Why not put your top talent on an innovation project while under lockdown/ social distancing? There is plenty that can be accomplished via Zoom, and you might just be thrilled with the results. From all accounts, it appears as though the recession will be short-lived and in a V shape with a rapid recovery. Will you be ready to take advantage of the opportunities?

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