Manufacturing Competitiveness

A manufacturing organization creates value for its stakeholders by increasing revenues and reducing costs. That’s the shortest, simplest description. On the revenue side, companies build relationships with customers and develop imaginative products, leading to delighted customers, repeat business and revenue growth. On the cost side, companies refine processes, improve quality, shorten cycle times, reduce waste and take non-value added steps out of their processes. This is a more detailed explanation, but still simplified.

Before you look further into this idea, however, remember that companies don’t make these things happen. Employees do—passionate, committed employees who are motivated and allowed to be creative, take initiative, make decisions and, yes, mistakes. They create innovative products, build relationships and refine processes. They need three things to succeed: a culture of innovation, created by an enlightened management; the tools (education) to know what new things to try; and the authority to make mistakes on the way to successful transformations.

When you’re exploring new territory, there is no map, so wrong turns are almost inevitable. This is risky, but no more so than if you stick with the same old practices that will only lead to the same old results. Chances are, those same old results will not be enough to keep manufacturing competitive into the coming century, or even the coming decade.

This means the greatest burden is on the leaders of our manufacturing organizations. It will require some changes, sometimes major ones, in the way the leaders act and even think. But others have made the journey, and lots of support is available. The only real requirement is passion—the will to make each manufacturing organization as innovative and competitive as possible. The alternative is ultimately unsustainable.