Catalog Management Software Is The Only Way To Manage Assemblies In Manufacturing
Catalog Management Software – The only way to manage parts in manufacturing today. - These days, it is now getting especially complicated for industries like Cars and Consumer Electrical Goods fabricators to manage their huge amounts of spare parts and assemblies in relation to the increasingly rapid changing and ever shortening life spans of their products.
Catalogue Management Software, therefore entails substantial amounts of time and effort on the part of any company. Maintaining the inventories of the vast number of parts and assemblies requires very careful stock control planning and can mean employing a whole team of employees just to keep the stock lists regularly updated.
Product Information – Your prospective customers can be kept up to date with your latest technological break throughs with online catalogs – saving your company a great deal of money in printing and postage costs every time a new model or upgraded version is launched. The product catalog management system can also maintain easy access to your previous models for easy reference purposes. This can also help to reduce your Internet Advertising Costs.
Parts Cataloging and Version Management Costs – Your catalog management software will maintain your spare parts database and stock level inventory so that your customers will be able to find the right part for the specific version number of the right product at all times. This will dramatically reduce your customer returns for those clients who have previously ordered the wrong parts through lack of information or ignorance about the choices available.
Your spare parts database will be connected to your sales and distribution system so that your clients can enjoy a one stop shop to research and purchase the spare parts that they require. Simply ADD To CART and pay by card or account invoice.
Improve your company image through making sure that your dealers has the best experience in all aspects of your contacts with them. In these days of instant online access and instant gratification, your company will be judged not only on your products or you as a person to make deals with. Your dealers will also compare your online image and judge it by how easy and quickly they found exactly what they were searching for and how easy it was for them to then purchase the parts. This can be achieved by implementing good Catalog Management Software.
Discover this solution here: www.plmmarketplace.com Video Rating: 0 / 5
Time and money are both very important in business. Yet, like me, many business people tend to give a lot more specific thought as to how to spend their money. Too often, how we spend our time is only thought of in terms of “What am I going to do today?” or “What should I do next?”
There are only 24 hours in your day, just the same as everybody else’s and you need to know how to use those 24 hours to your advantage. There are so many simple ways to save time during our busy day that they are easily overlooked. Sometimes we just overlook the obvious. But being prepared with lists, notes, ongoing files, and systems will help you screen out those unwanted distractions and focus on the important matters at hand. So let’s get down to business!
Here are some tips to manage your time:
First and foremost, Set priorities. Determine what is most important. Everything’s not an earth-shattering emergency! Someone else’s perception of a priority does not mean it is so to you. Discern what needs your attention immediately, what can be delegated, and what can be addressed later. Remember, prioritizing is the key to mastering the use of time. Regardless of how your priorities are defined, we could all use some extra time in the day. The following are some time management ideas that can help increase your productivity and improve the quality of your life. Try incorporating just a few of these ideas and see how it affects your life.
1. Plan your day the night before. List and prioritize the top five objectives you desire to accomplish when you get to the office. Start with the number one item on your list and stay with it until it is complete. Try to do the most difficult tasks first.
2. Get to the office early. You will never be successful in the sales profession if you get into the habit of coming to work at the “crack of noon.”
3. Use a diary or digital organizer. With so much to organise in your busy life you need to record your appointments, things to do and goals somewhere. Preferably in a paper diary or digital organiser that you can take everywhere. This is the most effective way to get things done, plan your work and your life.
4. Get in the habit of using a To Do list every day. At the end of each day, make a list of items to complete the following day. This helps you put closure on the day so you do not leave worried about forgetting the tasks that await you tomorrow.
5. Clean out the Clutter. You will save yourself heaps of time, energy and money if you clear out your work and home environment paperwork, books, old equipment etc. You will be able to find things, save money because you won’t have to buy what you already have hidden somewhere, plus you’ll be less stressed.
6. Use the Right Tools. It’s no good having the latest whiz-bang computer when the desk that you sit at is too small to accommodate it, or the chair has poor back support, or the lighting is dull causing you eyestrain and fatigue. All these factors heavily influence how you work. Invest or ask for a decent desk, purchase a desk lamp or request the light globes be changed. Don’t avoid the warning signs your body gives you. Take action now before you have eye, back or neck problems.
7. Resolve to do today what you wanted to do tomorrow. Make a catch-up list of tasks you have avoided or put on the “back-burner” and rank them from the most important to the least important. Resolve to do at least one task from this list each day.
8. Do your most difficult work when you are in your peak performance state. If you’re an early morning person, do that extra-effort-needed project first thing in the morning. If late evening hours are more your speed, save that high-energy project for that time.
9. Place your phone on voicemail mode at strategic times of the day. Voicemail is wonderful for those times when you’re either feeling sluggish, want some quiet time, or just want to get a project done. You can access your messages later and return calls on a priority basis.
10. Learn to say NO once your priorities are set. Avoid interruptions. Set aside a period of the day as “off-limits” during which time you will not be interrupted. Use this time to work on your “A” or top priorities, or even as a designated time to handle your mail or return calls. One way to avoid interruption is to make it clear that when your door is closed you are not to be disturbed. Other way is to Let others in your home/office know when you don’t want to be disturbed.
Constant interruptions are annoying and distracting; they are also time-zappers. Letting people know when it’s ok to interrupt and when it’s not is crucial to time management.
11. Schedule your phone calls around your peak performance levels. You want to give your customers/clients your very best attention and this requires energy and enthusiasm.
12. Avoid Unnecessary Meetings. Before agreeing to attend a meeting, check if you really need to be there. Maybe a phone call or email will be just as effective.
13. When you need a swift response, send an Email or make a phone call whenever possible to avoid time delays in receiving an answer.
14. Do What You Do Best and Delegate the Rest. At work see if there are ways you can delegate tasks which would suit someone else’s talents. Many office and home based workers are spending heaps of time on mundane secretarial tasks which would take a person who is trained in that area a quarter of the time to undertake. Assign tasks to another or others to give you more time to handle the tasks which only you can do. Effectively multiplying your time is the ultimate time management technique. Remember, everything that needs to be done does not have to be done by you. Delegating to another person can save you a lot of time in mundane tasking. Delegate, delegate, delegate. Avoid the temptation of doing administrative duties and paperwork. Salespeople historically tend to hide behind their paperwork. Focus your efforts on the things that you are licensed or hired to do and consider employing someone else to handle your paperwork. If you have any doubt, ask yourself “What is the best use of my time right now?”
15. Instead of a to-do list, create a goal for the day. Throw out the to-do list that never gets done, causes you stress and frustration, and makes you feel like a failure. Instead, set yourself a single goal for the day.
16. Schedule free time. Find at least one day each week during which you do no work or business at all. You will get a better perspective on your work after you have time away from it.
17. Look After Yourself First. Exercise regularly, eat healthily and be around positive people. Feed your mind by attending personal development courses. Read self-help and motivational books, listen to tapes. Do the right thing by yourself and you’ll have heaps of energy, be motivated which in turn will help you be more productive.
Time management really can be easy. A fact! You are in control of your time. If you take away one time management tip, remember that good time management is about knowing what is most important and doing that the most. Do not forget the most important time management tip make time for yourself. You are no good to anyone if you are sleep deprived and miserable. We all deserve a little downtime, even if that means you have to schedule some time for yourself into your calendar each day. Your business, family and relationships will all benefit when your priorities are in order and you have balance in your life.
By following these simple yet very effective ideas you will have more control over your work and your life, experience less stress and be more proactive. All of these factors affect your general well-being, confidence and results.
Yes, these strategies are simple and you probably already knew what you need to do, you just haven’t done it yet. Isn’t it time you took action?
“Management is more of a benevolent dictatorship as opposed to a democracy.”
- Bryce’s Law
INTRODUCTION
I evidently hit a nerve in a few of my recent bulletins, specifically:
46 – The Death of Management – October 17, 2005
http://www.phmainstreet.com/mba/ss051017.pdf
47 – Parenting Management – October 24, 2005
http://www.phmainstreet.com/mba/ss051024.pdf
48 – The First Thing We Do, Let’s Kill all the Bean Counters – October 31, 2005
http://www.phmainstreet.com/mba/ss051031.pdf
I want to thank those of you who inundated my e-mail queue and
responded to my blog with your comments and observations regarding
these articles. From your remarks, it sounds like there is little management
being applied in the area of Information Technology or in the corporate
world in general. I jokingly refer to the absence of management in
the workplace as Theory Zero (0), but perhaps it is time to revisit the three
accepted theories of management and see what is actually being used.
THE THREE THEORIES OF MANAGEMENT
Before we begin, let us not forget that all of our actions are based
on human perceptions, whether they be real of fallacious. Consequently, the
three theories of management are based on perceptions, e.g., how we
perceive the character of our workers. If we believe people will act or react
to certain situations in a specific way, we will use this in our management
philosophy, be it brute force, carrot-and-stick, or permitting freewill. From
this basis, let’s consider how the three theories apply:
THEORY X (“Dictatorial Management”) – This is derived from “Scientific
Management,” a concept best illustrated by the time-and-motion studies of a
late nineteenth century industrial engineer named Frederick W.
Taylor. Taylor observed the workers under his supervision at the Midvale
Steel Company in Philadelphia brought their own shovels to work regardless
of what size coal lumps they would have to shovel. He suggested to
management that the company furnish shovels corresponding to the size
and weight of the individual load, thus increasing the total amount
of coal each worker could shovel in a day. Efficiency and production,
the Theory X cornerstone, led to the assembly line and industrial production.
The philosophy of Theory X management style is based on the view of
human nature as:
People have a natural aversion to work.
People need to be coerced, controlled, and threatened with
punishment to get them to put forth adequate effort toward
the achievement of company goals.
The average person prefers to be directed, wishes to avoid
responsibility, has little ambition, and wants security most.
Theorists now ask how much of this behavior described is
inherent human nature and how much is behavior learned from
bosses who manage with those assumptions. Perhaps the
assumptions become self-validating: workers who are always
treated by an authoritarian management as though they were lazy,
tend to behave that way.
THEORY Y (“Participatory Management”) – Most observers agree that
the Theory Y management philosophy was derived from a series of
experiments in the 1930′s at the Western Electronic Hawthorne Works
in Chicago. Employees had been divided into two groups: a “test” group
that worked under changing lighting conditions and a “control” group
that worked under constant lighting. When the test group’s
light conditions improved, their productivity increased, as
expected. But what mystified researchers was a similar jump in
productivity when illumination worsened. To compound the
mystery, the control group’s output rose when the test group’s
did. It was concluded that both groups felt management was giving
them special attention and so responded with improved
performance. This discovery of human relations management was
called Theory Y.
Theory Y’s assumptions represent a much more positive
assessment of human behavior and gave rise to the thousands
of mentoring and management training programs in the 1960′s and
70′s, the purposes of which were to help managers change their
assumptions of human nature from a Theory X to a Theory Y
outlook. The basic premises of Theory Y include:
The expenditure of physical and mental effort in work is as
natural as play or rest.
External control and threat of punishment are not the only
means for bringing about effort toward corporate goals.
People will exercise self-direction and self-control to
achieve goals they find important.
Commitment to objectives is in proportion to the rewards
associated with their achievement.
The average human being learns under proper conditions not
only to accept but to seek responsibility.
The capacity to exercise a relatively high degree of
imagination, ingenuity, and creativity in solving work
problems is widely, not narrowly, present in the population.
Under the conditions of modern industrial life, the
brain power of the average human is only partially utilized.
THEORY Z (“Group Involvement”) – Theory Z was introduced in
1981 by UCLA Professor Dr. William Ouchi in his book of the same
name. It is based on Ouchi’s observations of Japanese management
practices of the time. Basically, Theory Z promotes employee
participation in decision-making, thereby increasing their motivation
and productivity. This management style emphasizes long range
planning, consensus decision making, and neutral worker-employee loyalty.
Ouchi concludes that Japanese managers got more out of
their employees than U.S. managers because the whole structure
of Japanese society encourages mutual trust and cooperation. This
management philosophy is based on the following assumptions:
Long term, even life time, employment is expected by both
managers and employees.
Employees need freedom and opportunity to “grow.”
Decisions should be group decisions involving workers and
managers.
Subordinates are whole people at work (in contrast to being
thought of as titles or units of production).
Management has a broad concern for subordinate welfare.
Open communication, both vertically and horizontally, is the norm.
There is complete trust among groups and individuals because
they all have the same goals – the good of the organization.
Cooperation, not competition, is the basis for relationships
within the company.
We have been conducting business in Japan since 1976 and have
personally seen Theory Z in action. For example, when we sold our
“PRIDE” Methodologies in Japan, we would have to make several
sales presentations to a single company in order for all of the affected parties
to reach a consensus as to whether this was the correct course of action
for the company to pursue. After several months of deliberations, we
would finally get a contract. Contrast this to American companies where we
would make a single sales presentation to top management and close
on the sale within a few days or weeks. However, to the credit of the Japanese,
because everyone approved of the purchase, they all made an effort
to successfully install and use it; if they failed, they would “lose face.” Western
managers, on the other hand, would shove the product down people’s
throats (a la Theory X), thereby the methodologies were viewed as the will
of a single person and not the company overall. Consequently, when the
manager left the company, “PRIDE” followed shortly behind.
WHICH IS BETTER?
Most managers favor Theory X, others Theory Y. A few are likely to become
Theory Z managers. Most, however, use some combination of the three. There
is no “right” style of management because the appropriate style depends on
the kind of people you employ and the kind of business you run.
But what is the current trend? During the second half of the 20th century
there was a definite movement from Theory X to Theory Y. But now it appears
the pendulum is swinging back to Theory X. As mentioned in my “Bean counter”
article, mentoring and employee training programs (a cornerstone of Theory Y) is
being phased out as a means of cutting costs. Further, under the “Parenting
Management” scenario, younger employees need considerably more supervision
and direction, which lends itself to a Theory X philosophy.
Even Theory Z in Japan is showing signs of erosion. Although the Japanese
economy ran well in the 1980′s, it has slowed considerably over the last
fifteen years, causing the Japanese to rethink how they compete and
conduct business in a fast-paced world economy. Japanese managers realize
they no longer have the luxury of waiting months to make a group decision
and although they still wish to be loyal to the workforce, they realize certain
sacrifices are inevitable. Further, thanks to Hollywood and the Internet, younger
Japanese workers no longer share the same values as their predecessors. Frankly,
they have picked up a lot of bad work habits from their Western counterparts. Concepts
such as lifetime employment, corporate loyalty, and hard work is slowly evaporating
from the Japanese business culture.
BACK TO PERCEPTIONS
How we elect to manage others or how we elect to be managed is based on our
perceptions. For example, if we believe a person to be lazy, we will apply
a Theory X style of management. But if we believe people are responsible,
take initiative, and are successful, then Theories Y and Z are used.
As I mentioned in “Parenting Management,” a generation gap has emerged
between management and the latest generation of workers. Management
perceives today’s young workers as immature, disorganized, undisciplined,
and shirk responsibility. Whether this is true or not is immaterial. It is perceptions
that count. Because of this, it should come as no small wonder that Theory X
management practices are on the rise again.
For those younger workers who are as frustrated with management as
management is with you, the only advice I can offer is that you make a
concerted effort to improve your interpersonal relations/communications
skills. If you have garnered anything from this article, it is that appearances
are extremely important. Your physical appearance, forms of speech and
conduct all play a significant role in how you are perceived by management. Are
you someone who is bright but doesn’t know how to apply your skills, or do
you have a proven track record for performance? In other words, it is
time to grow up. As President Calvin Coolidge observed years ago:
“Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence.
Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men
with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a
proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated
derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent.
The slogan ‘Press On’ has solved and always will solve the
problems of the human race.”
CONCLUSION
Management is more of a benevolent dictatorship as opposed to a democracy. It
operates according to its own whims. If management wants to be tyrannical, it
will. If it wants to allow group participation, it will. And if it elects to do nothing,
it will. But understand this, management’s style is based on what the manager
believes is good for the company and how they perceive their workers. Sometimes
the actions of management will seem strange and without justification. But there
may be some very rational reasons for acting as such, perhaps for strategic or
tactical purposes. There is little the worker can do in this regards aside from
mutiny, which is rarely the proper decision. To overcome this problem,
it behooves management to promote loyalty and faith in judgment.
Management is about human relations, not numbers. If a manager stands by a
worker in the face of adversity, in all likelihood he will be building a good
employee for the company’s future. In return, the employee should pledge
allegiance to the manager. Years ago, I remember Les Matthies, the legendary
“Dean of Systems,” taught me that a man should always be loyal to his manager
while he is in his employment. If the worker doesn’t like the manager, he should
either curb his tongue or get out. Only after the worker has left, should he talk
trash about his manager and even then he should think twice about doing so.
Bottom-line, the manager’s style of management is based on his perceptions
of his workers, right or wrong. If the worker believes he is not being treated
fairly perhaps it is time to reexamine his relationship with the manager. And
that reexamination begins at the mirror. Do you perform enough work to just
get by or do you strive to achieve? Do you prefer to be told what to do or are you
self-motivated? Do you dress appropriately? What about your form of speech
and mannerisms? Habits? Remember, we as human-beings act on our
perceptions. Want to know where you are going in the company? Ask
yourself, “How am I perceived?”
For additional information on Theories X, Y, and Z, see:
http://www.businessballs.com/mcgregor.htm
A practical example of product life cycle. From innovators to early adopters, when is the right time to push your product further? From www.oxlearn.com Video Rating: 5 / 5
Filed Under : PLM by Admin
May.16,2011
Tags : Assemblies, Catalog, manage, management, Manufacturing, Only, Software
