You need to update your equipment, but your financial circumstances say, "There are no funds available." So how do you buy what you need, so you can continue to improve your operating performance, when there's no cash, and no budget approved for needed equipment?
Sid Chadwick
IN-PLANT MANAGERS sometimes develop a status quo perspective that needs to be refreshed. With some frequency, I’m reminded of the manager who cautioned me on a press justification study the press manufacturer was paying for: “I don’t want you getting my people too excited about a major new press, to then have them disappointed again.” My response: “Let’s see what the numbers tell us.” We owe it to our subordinates—as well as to our superiors—to ask our suppliers, our customers and our fellow associates, “What needs to change, and what opportunities have we not addressed?” I humbly (and occasionally) admit that I have
The cost of acquiring new customers is reaching untenable proportions. Appointments with prospects are nearly impossible to obtain, print buyers seem less knowledgeable about what's required or what's important, and price too often appears to be the driving factor. Mirroring suppliers' experiences are buyers' situations. Support staff have often been radically reduced, buyer responsibilities have almost always been expanded, and written specifications of what's needed are practically non-existent. As a reflective rule of thumb, whenever
