Companies should seize opportunities to increase packaging efficiencies, improving profitability and sustainability

Since packaging is typically 10-40% of the retail price of products, there is no doubt it adds up to a relevant factor in product cost and waste. Packaging encompasses product design, prototypes and trials, materials, production, labor, shipping, and recycling and/or disposal. The most proactive companies pay close attention to opportunities to increase packaging efficiencies throughout the end-to-end supply chain to improve their profitability and sustainability.

Product Design Collaboration

Product design is at the heart of improving packaging efficiency. Our best clients take a collaborative approach to R&D and packaging design encompassing the end-to-end supply chain. For example, in a healthcare products manufacturer, the packaging engineer worked with R&D, manufacturing technicians, procurement resources, and logistics resources with a specialty in warehousing and transportation. In addition, customers, packaging materials suppliers, equipment specialists, and other resources took part in the collaborative design.

By involving these cross-functional resources, the full life cycle could be incorporated into the product design. In this case, they wanted to ensure the design encompassed the optimal packaging design to meet the customer’s visual, strength, and storage specifications while minimizing the materials, labor, and logistics costs. For example, the objective was to minimize the packaging materials while meeting product specifications. However, the team had to review potentially conflicting factors. For example, doubling the number of units of product per package would make the way the package fit in the box less efficient, the box might not be best designed to optimize the pallet, the pallets might not be optimized to fit on the truck, or the customer might not like the visual design or be able to fit the product in the storage area.

In addition, the product’s performance had to remain intact. Reducing the quantity of materials must not negatively impact the way the product worked for the customer. Compressing the product into the package must not negatively impact the absorbency of the product. Using redesigned materials in the manufacturing process must not impact product quality. This healthcare manufacturer successfully redesigned the product and reduced the total cost by more than 20% inclusive of materials, packaging, warehousing, and transportation costs.

Packaging Efficiencies in Bottling

There are vast opportunities to improve packaging efficiencies in the bottling industry. For example, Niagara has accomplished several key objectives in eliminating waste through packaging and innovation. They designed new packaging that eliminates the need for a cardboard tray in their cases and reduced the amount of plastic in their bottles by 60%. Thus, this packaging requires less materials and uses up less pallet space, allowing the company to reduce carbon emissions and ship more water per order.

Since 2009, Niagara improved its carbon footprint by 59% through innovations in design, lightweighting, and packaging. It has also increased its recycled content usage, which reduced greenhouse gas impact by bottle by 12%. Gaining these results requires a full lifecycle view of supply chain from product design through recycling.

Packaging Efficiencies at Amazon

According to Amazon, it continually works to reinvent and simplify packaging options. The company combines lab testing, machine learning, materials science, and manufacturing partnerships to accomplish this goal. Amazon notes that it avoided more than 2 million tons of packaging materials and reduced per-shipment packaging weight by 41% since 2015. The bottom line is that a significant reduction in packaging will reduce costs and improve sustainability.

Improving packaging efficiency can produce dramatic results. The healthcare products manufacturer, Niagara, and Amazon prove that by focusing on packaging design and innovation, tremendous savings in materials, labor, and freight will flow to the bottom line. In addition, carbon emissions are reduced and sustainability objectives are achieved.

Originally posted in Adhesives & Sealants, March 2024

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Manufacturers are experiencing continued inflationary pressures threatening customer service and profit margins with record-breaking price increases and lack of material availability.  To add fuel to the fire, they are also starting to worry about preparing for a potential recession. It is becoming increasingly difficult to navigate these volatile times, and the most successful are not doing it alone. Instead, they are pursuing collaborative programs with supply chain partners. What is clear is that there will be more winners and losers created than at any other time in history. Thus, it is worth figuring out how to work with your supply chain partners to ensure mutual success rather than mutual demise.

First, it makes sense to evaluate your supply chain partners – both customers and suppliers. Most executives are reshoring, nearshoring, and reallocating capacity in their supply chain, and so the supply chain will continue to evolve. However, as the pandemic has proven, we are only as strong as our weakest link, and so we must be vigilant in selecting our supply chain partners and change them if needed. Don’t simply assume that your current partners are prepared for what’s ahead. Navigating both inflation and deflation is not for the faint of heart. Only the most action-oriented, innovative, and collaborative will thrive. Thus, assess your situation and be deliberate in your choices.

Once you have strong partners, turn your attention to how to work together to achieve dramatic results. One successful approach is to roll out a collaborative ordering process, also known as vendor managed inventory (VMI). For example, when working with an aerospace and defense company that supplied controls for the cockpit, we partnered with our client to implement and upgrade VMI. We partnered with our client’s customers (such as Boeing) to determine what to send to their locations for them. We were able to improve service to Boeing and maintain high OTIF (on-time-in-full) levels while eliminating their cost of ordering and achieving their inventory level targets. From the manufacturer’s perspective, they were able to expand business by achieving the top supplier status. Additionally, they were able to improve margins and working capital by better managing inventory and costs with visibility into their supply chain.

In another example, a specialized distributor of bearings used VMI to manage their customer’s inventory for them. Their customer was a steel manufacturer, and so although bearings were not significant in price as compared with the rest of their raw materials, they were critical in keeping the steel mill running. Thus, this value-added service became the key reason the steel manufacturer considered the bearing supplier as strategic and vital through both inflationary and deflationary times.

From the supplier point-of-view, an outdoor lighting manufacturer used a vendor managed inventory program with its suppliers. Instead of hiring planners to determine how many components to keep on hand with limited space, they asked their supplier to manage it for them. The manufacturer always had the appropriate stock to supply the line, and they never ran out. Their suppliers became integral links in the supply chain and part of a collaborative S&OP process (Sales & Operations Planning, also known as SIOP for Sales, Inventory, Operations planning), resulting in mutual business growth and success.

As manufacturers focus on collaborative supply chain partnerships and programs such as VMI, they are creating unique value in their supply chain. To thrive during inflation and deflationary times, it is important to be ready to pivot quickly with changing conditions. Additionally, by partnering with their end-to-end supply chain, these manufacturers create sustainable, profitable growth for mutual success.

As originally published in Brushware Magazine on July-August, 2022

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What do key business leaders think is next? That was the subject of one of the sessions at the premier conference for consultants. If you are a consultant and want to thrive (instead of having fits and starts as is the norm), this organization is a must! We gathered virtually with colleagues from at least seven countries around the world and had an array of outstanding speakers. We talked about how to help our clients take advantage of the rebound.

We heard from executives in building and construction products, healthcare, and non-profit as well as experts in collaborating across borders, subscriptions, scaling up and much more. The themes of talent, digitization, resiliency, sustainability, and innovation rose to the top. Are you thinking about how to thrive during the rebound?

One Tip to Implement This Week:

Simply thinking about these themes and how you should apply them can go a long way towards success. Thus, I will provide a few key insights to ponder.

• The Great Resignation: There is a LOT of conversation about this topic. 11.5 million people quit their jobs during April, May and June, and this has been outdone by August’s numbers of 4.3 million in one month alone! Also, 48% of people are actively considering leaving, and it is estimated that 1 in 4 will do so within 6 months. If you are to succeed, you must retain, develop and attract people.
• Turn data into insights: I loved this phrase that the Global CIO of Abbott and completely concur. There is no doubt about it that clients are FAR more successful if they can use the mountains of data available in today’s environment, decipher meaningful insights and turn into strategies and actions.
• Innovation: Are you involving your people in thinking outside the box for creative ideas and strategies to make meaningful change to your organization, your customers and people’s lives? Engaging your people in the future is essential to thriving during this rebound.
• Supply Chain: Of course, I love that manufacturing and supply chain is gaining appreciation throughout the world. There are widespread shortages of people at each step in the supply chain from ports to transportation to warehousing as well as shortages of equipment, space and much more. Are you proactively managing demand and supply with SIOP? If not, you will certainly be left behind.

The bottom line is we have to be more proactive, innovative and collaborative to thrive during and post the rebound. Please keep us in the loop of your situation and how we can help your organization successfully navigate the current volatility and emerge above and beyond. Several of these types of topics are included in our new eBook Emerging Above and Beyond: 21 Insights for 2021 from Manufacturing, Supply Chain & Technology Executives. Download your complimentary copy.

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During the pandemic, we were all stuck in our houses. As the majority of people have been vaccinated, people are on vacation. Every client has at least one if not multiple people on vacation. In addition, in-person events are starting to ramp back up. There is a value in reconnecting. Recently, I attended the 80th birthday party for a friend and colleague, Liz deClifford. It was very odd yet great seeing people in person instead of via Zoom! Other groups are starting to add in-person events as well. So the question becomes – should we jump back into the “old normal” or rethink our strategy?

One Tip to Implement This Week:

Are you reconnecting, rejuvenating and rebounding? There is no doubt that some level of in-person collaboration can add exponential value to relationships and business. On the other hand, going overboard with in-person can be tiring, labor intensive and non-value added. Striking that optimal balance is something we should reassess.

• Is it a new relationship? There is value in meeting the team early on in a project or business relationship. On the other hand, in working with companies that have teams spread across the globe, I’ve found that seeing each other via Teams or Zoom can be quite effective as well. Look at each situation separately.
• Are you at a key juncture in a project? We find that getting the team together at key junctures to brainstorm and develop a roadmap/ plan forward can accelerate progress. On the other hand, we have experienced success with interactive, virtual workshops as well. Software has come a long way. If combined with an excellent facilitator, you might just have a better experience! Again, evaluate each situation separately.
• Would observation add value? There are times you have to observe the process, ask questions and interact in real time. Go in-person in these situations.
• Would a plant/ warehouse tour add value? There is value in seeing a plant operate in person. It can provide a baseline of knowledge you can build upon virtually. During the pandemic, we did several virtual tours. We gained value from a narrated virtual tour or a live virtual tour, and in some situations, it met the need. In others, it gave us a leg up that met the immediate need. Later, an in-person tour built on the virtual experience.
• Are you visiting a customer? There is definitely something to be said about meeting customers in person from time to time. On the other hand, customers also really appreciate virtual Teams meetings because technology enables people to see each other, and the meeting is typically more efficient, focused and doesn’t require a conference room. Busy executives prefer virtual meetings more often than not, and they end up limiting in-person to when they will add exponential value.
• Trade show? Of course, trade shows are generally better in person; however, software providers have developed valuable virtual experiences. As one colleague said, breaking bread with a customer, supplier or colleague cannot be replaced, and I’d agree with that. On the other hand, that has nothing to do with a trade show other than the reason both parties might be in the same location. Again, evaluate each situation on its merits.
• Networking? I’ve found both in-person and virtual to be successful. Both have advantages and disadvantages. Get good at both so that you can use the best strategy for the situation.

The bottom line is to use common sense, and don’t get carried away thinking “all in-person” or “all virtual”. Few things in life are black or white. Think shades of grey. Please keep us in the loop of your situation and how we can help your organization successfully navigate the current volatility and emerge above and beyond. Several of these types of topics are included in our new eBook Emerging Above and Beyond: 21 Insights for 2021 from Manufacturing, Supply Chain & Technology Executives. Download your complimentary copy.

The post The Value of Reconnecting: Should We Jump All In With In-Person? appeared first on LMA-Consulting Group, a supply chain consulting firm.

CLAREMONT, CA—The COVID-19 pandemic has proven the critical nature of the strategic supply chain, according to expert supply chain thought leaders within the Society for the Advancement of Consulting® (SAC). Companies realize they can no longer ignore this crucial business function, which belongs firmly in the C-Suite. This includes the thinking, actions, and initiatives that put the supply chain in a strategic context.

Inventory Accommodation or Optimization?

“As a manufacturer, do you have an inventory accommodation strategy or an inventory optimization strategy?” asks Patrick Daly, Managing Director of Alba Consulting, based in Dublin, Ireland. “In my work with manufacturing clients, I often find that they do not have any explicitly articulated strategy at all.”

“Frequently, there is no feedback loop between infrastructure provision to accommodate inventory, and setting the policies that determine how much inventory the company holds to support manufacturing operations,” explains Daly. “Consequently, companies end up engaging in contradictory and counterproductive initiatives in different silos within the business.

“Under pressure from excess inventories, operational managers will lobby for increased capital expenditure approvals or the expansion of spending on warehousing with third party logistics service providers,” he says. “Meanwhile, policies related to materials on hand, dual supply, supplier location and lead time, and minimum order quantities, are set or agreed upon without reference to the inventory accommodation consequences. The best results are achieved by explicitly tying these two strands together systemically with a coherent strategy.”

Boardroom Involvement Gaining Ground

“Executives are quickly realizing that the end-to-end supply chain must be elevated to a strategic topic in the boardroom,” points out Lisa Anderson, president of Claremont, CA-based LMA Consulting Group, Inc. and a manufacturing expert known for creating supply chain resiliency. “Many companies were caught off guard during the pandemic with limited resiliency, highlighting this issue.”

“Reshoring is on the rise. Collaboration with United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) partners is increasing,” notes Anderson. “Executives are no longer just considering their options, they’re taking actions to take control. As options are evaluated, it’s becoming clear that the supply chain is larger than any single topic such as sourcing, logistics, or planning.

“Taking a strategic view of how to grow the business in a profitable and scalable way, while navigating changing customer conditions, dictates a new level of respect for the strategic supply chain in the boardroom.”

New Supply Chain Strategies – Blink and You’ll Miss It

“In what seemed like the blink of an eye, our marketplace changed.” according to Diane L. Garcia of Lorraine Consulting, LLC, an expert in helping clients improve their unique supply chain processes.

“Our supply chains and technological capabilities shifted in new directions,” says Garcia. “We now live in a world where goods and services arrive the same day after only a few clicks on a phone. Amazon is not the only name in the game. More and more companies are offering direct delivery through easy-to-use ecommerce interfaces.”

“No longer can supply chain execution take a backseat,” she adds. “The organizations who understand what their strategic supply chain is up against will advance in an ever-changing marketplace.”

Investors Thrusting Climate Risks onto Supply Chain Agenda

“Investors are now asking for companies to provide assessments of environmental risk to the business. A firm’s supply chain is a critical piece of the TCFD (Task-Force on Climate Related Financial Decisions) puzzle,” points out Mark D. Wolf, president of US-based LavaFish Advisors, and a sustainability expert known for creating scenario analyses using internal expertise.

“Executives who understand, assess, and plan for climate related risks in their supply chain can play a strategic part in driving revenue, growing profitability, and maintaining the social license to operate,” says Wolf.

“At a minimum, companies must know the carbon emissions from their supply chain. Accountability for carbon is required by investors. The regenerative economy is becoming key for many,” he adds.

Four in Five Executives Now Rethinking Supply Chain Strategy

The COVID pandemic has illustrated just how extensive and overly complicated many supply chains became says Art Koch, President of Arthur Koch Management Consulting, LLC. “Depending on the survey, 76% to 84% of executives and board members are rethinking their manufacturing footprint and supply chain strategies to emphasize the importance of flexibility and responsiveness. They identified the necessity to compress lead-times by reshoring and insourcing operation-critical parts to regain control of their supply chains.”

“As we exited 2020, the Institute of Supply Management’s Purchasing Managers Index increased for the sixth straight month,” Koch notes. “Those figures indicate confidence. Our economic cycle has shifted toward growth and it’s at the highest level since August 2018.”

“The buoyant Purchasing Managers Index brings hope for ongoing expansion in the North American Industrial sector,” he adds. “Astute executives are preparing for the next wave of expansion. They’re transforming ‘problem chains’ into profit chains by investing in supply chain professionals, compressing lead-time, and reducing the total cost of ownership.”

Future-Proof Companies Use an Old Strategic Weapon

“An efficient and effective Supply Chain has always been a strategic weapon. It can provide a significant competitive advantage over the competition,” explains David Ogilvie of David Ogilvie Consulting, a business transformation consulting firm based in Brisbane, Australia. “Recent events have simply highlighted its importance to those who had lost sight of its strategic value.”

Sound strategy sets the tone of the organization of the future says Ogilvie. “It sets up what the company will look, smell, and taste like in the future. There’s nothing more strategic than profitable growth and nothing more important than creating and keeping customers happy. And there’s nothing more crucial to keeping customers happy than an effective and resilient supply chain. Boards and senior executives need to rediscover the strategic importance of their supply chain if they want to successfully manage in turbulent times.”

Intelligent Design Avoids Fatal Trap of Evolution

“Two theories prevail about the origin of man: the theory of evolution and the concept of intelligent design. The same parallel exists for supply chains,” explains Antonio Zrilić, managing director of LOGIKO CONSULTING, based in Zagreb, Croatia. “A characteristic feature of the theory of evolution is that it takes billions of years for everything to work out well. That’s without events that wipe out life. Those events include cataclysms (crises and recessions) and predators (competition). Companies don’t have billions of years to evolve. They have months or, at best, years.”

“My preferred theory is intelligent design,” advises Zrilić. “This includes experience, knowledge, and predictions. It also includes the smart design of the facilities, organization, and processes.”

“Giving in to evolution or limiting themselves to the way things have been down for years, many companies end up with the equivalent of an evolutionary appendix,” he says. “It exists because it was there, but has no known use now. At best, they don’t use their full potential. At worst, they don’t live a long and successful life.”

Supply Chain Flexibility Facing Unparalleled Challenges

“The number one thing that business and industry has learned over the past year, from the C-suite to front line workers, is the importance of flexibility in the supply chain,” says Elizabeth Warren, Global Logistics Specialist and president & CEO of Dialed-In Partners, a consulting firm based in Los Angeles that focuses on public policy issues in the goods movement industry.

“Flexibility has long been a topic of discussion,” notes Warren, “And most businesses believed they had an adequate contingency plan for unforeseen emergencies.

“The impacts of the pandemic have created a need for flexibility that is unparalleled in duration and scope,” she says. “This is affecting every segment of the supply chain on an absolute global basis. Companies have realized that to be truly resilient with the ability to pivot their business during any disruption, their supply chain strategy must be a core principle in their overall strategic plan.”

The Big Switch in Spending has Big Consequences

“If you need any reminder as to why your supply chain is key to your strategy, just completely disrupt it and see what happens,” according to Evan Bulmer, Director of EBAA, a consulting firm based in Adelaide, Australia. “Nothing like a good pandemic to demonstrate this.”

“As the world economy is restricted from buying services—think travel, restaurants, entertainment—we are spending our money on goods, including luxury goods,” Bulmer explains. “With such a stark change in market conditions, understanding both the supply chain and your customer demand is critical. This will allow you to be in the best position to take advantage of these market conditions. There is, of course, a lot of money to be made by those who get their supply and demand priced correctly.”

Originally posted on SAC website: March 1, 2021

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Why does the strategic supply chain matter? This is the topic of a recent collaboration with a global group of top supply chain consultants. We wrote an eBook available for free download (and is available for purchase on Amazon), “Thriving in the New Business Environment: Why The Strategic Supply Chain Matters“.

Clients are asking whether they should reshore, reevaluate sourcing networks, carry additional inventory, set up dual sources of supply, partner with local and/or regional companies and much more. These issues relate to strategic questions and cannot be answered with a simple yes or no. What is clear across the board is that it is time to rapidly assess your situation and determine priorities for the next normal that will meet your strategic and business objectives. Thus, we put together this eBook which is the first in a series about thriving in the new business environment.

Our first eBook focuses on where we began (thinking back to the times of Henry Ford), how supply chains flattened out and then went global. JIT and Lean hit the scene, and then Amazon transformed the customer requirements with the need for flexible, responsive and resilient supply chains. This led to global crises creating disarray in supply chains. We wrap up this first eBook by talking about where supply chain will go next and what executives should be thinking about. Get your free download here. 

I’m interested in if you are reevaluating your supply chain network or plan to do so. Please take a quick 1 question poll, and you’ll find out what your colleagues are doing.

Read more about product supply strategy and related concepts in our eBook, Future-Proofing Manufacturing & Supply Chain Post COVID-19. If you’d like a rapid assessment and recommendations for your situation, please contact us.

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

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Lots of people are complaining of Zoom fatigue. Do you have Zoom fatigue? It can be a challenge to be in front of a screen and camera for 8-10 hours a day. After all, there are some days I don’t have time to eat, get a drink or use the restroom. I have to plan getting ice because it is too noisy. That is quite crazy! I absolutely loved the Brady Bunch when I was young, and so it seems I have gotten my wish. Be careful what you wish for….no, actually there are more advantages of Zoom and other platforms, and we are more effective and are gaining quicker and better client results than pre-Zoom; however, it always helps to figure out a happy medium that “works”. What are you doing to ensure you remain energetic and focused?

One Tip to Implement This Week:

I wouldn’t ask a question if I didn’t have a few ideas :-). With that said, I welcome your input and feedback and will share with our subscribers.

1. Pick up the phone:Although Zoom meetings are ideal in many situations (and it isn’t nearly as valuable without the camera), there is something to be said for also picking up the phone. Executives prefer it frequently.
2. Schedule breaks: By all means, you have to add breaks into the schedule more frequently for Zoom meetings. For an upcoming conference, we are keeping 10 minutes at the end of each hour for a break.
3. Use breakout rooms: Breaking into smaller groups for more intimate conversations can go a long way. Find ways to break up the meeting with this type of interactive discussion.
4. Mix it up:We need to go the extra mile in mixing it up. Use mixed media. Change the agenda. Ask for feedback. We get bored for long stretches.
5. Schedule an action meeting upfront :Perhaps suggest a conversation while going for a walk or cooking lunch. Obviously you cannot schedule a session that requires notes (unless you record) but it could be a welcome change to your meeting participant. I personally would love to have a meeting where it is OK for me to eat!
6. It isn’t all or nothing: I have a client where we share screens and discuss progress without cameras. For meetings that require screen sharing, does it add value to have your camera on every time? Probably not. I have to say, I always look forward to this client because I can actively participate and yet not starve!

Consider these strategies to stay engaged 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 into an article, video or interview.

Stay safe & healthy.

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I talked with the Courthouse News Service about the supply chain impacts retailers are experiencing with the coronavirus pandemic, and was quoted in their article “Texas Grocery Store Chain Does a Bang-Up Job Against Coronavirus”. It is an uplifting story about a supermarket that is navigating this crisis successfully, and it speaks to preparation and collaboration. I love that they struck deals with their beer distributors to help deliver eggs. The food industry is somewhat used to these types of issues with recalls etc.; however, it is great to see H-E-B do well! Read the article here.

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The secret society of toilet paper hoarders has retreated to their dank lavatories leaving rolls a plenty at Texas grocery stores. And business is booming for the Texas chain H-E-B thanks to a pandemic plan 15 years in the making.

Run on eggs? H-E-B struck deals with beer distributors to help deliver eggs to its stores.

Meat flying off the shelves? H-E-B ramped up its packing plants to 24/7 and pared its selection down from hundreds of different cuts to the top 50 sellers.

Nelly Medina works in the deli at an H-E-B in the Houston suburb League City. She said that due to the coronavirus, the company set up a hotline so employees, whom it calls “partners,” can call and speak to someone on its medical board if they feel sick or paranoid about the virus.

“Right now H-E-B is feeding all the partners. They get fed every single day. Chick Fil-A, Popeye’s, Domino’s Pizza, Pizza Hut, a lot of stuff,” Medina said.

“You don’t feel like everybody is panicked. I mean, I feel like we’re not in an emergency, we’re in a party time over here. Because all the time we’re eating. It’s a place we’re going to work, but at the same time we enjoy the time we’re there.”

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I facilitated an executive panel discussion on “Collaboration for Advanced Manufacturing & Supply Chain Success” with diverse viewpoints from transportation (Ontario airport), manufacturing (AMETEK Ameron), technology for manufacturing and logistics from the global leader in GIS (ESRI), and innovation, incubator and accelerator gurus.  It was a fascinating discussion on the value of collaboration, to innovate or not, robots or people and other controversial hot topics.

The key takeaways included the following:

• The Value of Partners – Several panelists talked about the value of choosing your partners wisely. No one person and no one company can do it alone. In fact, we often collaborate not only with “usual suspects” but also with ones we might not suspect, such as our competition. When you can find a way to collaborate with competition where you both “win”, a powerful outcome will result.
• Fail Forward – This was a powerful insight from one of the panelists. As I always say in speeches on innovation, you have to fail to be successful in innovation. Do we see our failures as ‘failing forward’? Or do we hide under a rock?
• Robots or People? – We had a bit of debate. Will robots replace jobs? Absolutely! But can they also create jobs? Fill gaps left by the retiring baby boomer? Increase the quality of manual tasks? And enable far greater capacity? Absolutely!
• Is all Innovation Good?  –  Of course not! Again, if a topic is a good one, it will stir up debate.  Wasting lots of time innovating for non-existent returns on investment isn’t a smart move. On the other hand, the pure nature of innovation will require failure. How do we navigate when to innovate and when not to innovate?
• Is all Collaboration Good? Again, absolutely NOT! Wasting time collaborating when a quick decision must be made is worse than a waste of time. On the other hand, if we can turn 1 + 1 + 1 = 33, it certainly seems worth it. Just don’t think about your standard partners only. Why not industry groups, educational institutions, and more?

Take a few minutes to think about collaboration. What have you seen work best? Actually, back up. No one should just think about collaboration. Instead, we should be thinking about our end result. Where do you want to go and what do you want to achieve? Now, think about the best use of collaboration, innovation, technology and other topics that will accelerate success.

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