“Servants to the Cause” by XONITEK’s Joseph Paris & continued media coverage of the Operational Excellence Society. Published in Lean Management Journal in the September 2012 issue.
Although the idea of quantum computing to carry out tasks far faster than any conventional machine goes back decades, such super machines were yet to reach the masses – until now. It was originally proposed in the early 1980s and subsequently adopted by Google, Microsoft, Hewlett-Packard and IBM – who have each dedicated quantum-computing research groups….
Several years ago I had an awakening. I came to the realization that technology, by and large, did not live-up to its promises and that this gap between promises and reality was ever widening. This was (and is) especially true of business information systems – most usually referred to as Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems.
Companies frequently fail to conduct thorough background checks and due diligence on their employees and management. The headlines are filled with stories of corporate officers who exaggerate their business experience and lie about their education. This negligence on the part of management can lead to embarrassment and potential liability for the corporation. It is a sound business practice…
The Economist means that the onset of the internet revolution was supposed to do away with all sorts of middlemen. Yet, house sales are still mostly conducted by estate agents, and car sales are still finalised in cavernous showrooms that smell of tyres. The truth is that no one much likes car dealers – especially…
In 1965, President Lyndon Johnson pledged a predetermined amount in order to back student loans. “This act”, he promised, “will help young people enter business, trade, and technical schools”. Unfortunately, this student loans programme was altered almost instantaneously. Originally intended to provide students with an education through “business, trade and technical schools, the programme was…
McKinsey & Co argue that assessing a company’s vulnerability to risk makes otherwise theoretical discussions of strategy more real. They contend that nonfinancial companies, too, would benefit from a more aggressive look at the risks they face. This article contains the findings of their recently tested ‘qualitative thinking’ in interviews with the CFOs, company secretaries,…
