articles 1 to 10 of 20
Finding a Common Language for Disaster-resistant Supply Chains
When Iceland's Eyjafjallajökull volcano erupted in 2010, airline flights across the Atlantic were disrupted for days, and global supply chains for products like fruits and fresh flowers were severely interrupted. When a tsunami and nuclear meltdown hit northern Japan in 2011, automakers and electronics manufacturers in Asia and North America lamented that some key suppliers could not comply with their delivery dates, forcing slowdowns in their production scales and frustrating buyers. In these cases and others, many companies have been stymied by the fact that there was no way to forecast where and when the next natural disaster would occur.
From: February 27, 2013
Driving Down Costs: Toyota Takes Lean Efficiencies Beyond Japan
Until recently, Toyota had long been the world's top car-maker and it rose to that position by using lean production methods. Its Toyota Production System, which pivots on continuous improvement and respect for people, became a best-practice management phenomenon, copied by many in a wide range of sectors. But questions have arisen over such silver-bullet theories of business excellence. And what happens when a proven and spectacularly successful method is moved to a different business environment outside Japan? Researchers from the Australian School of Business have been exploring the upshot of Toyota's manufacturing shift to Thailand, a lower-wage economy with less consideration for its labour force.
From: September 18, 2012
The Freelance Imperative: IBM Blazes the Trail for a Liquid Workforce
In the brave new world of work, only executives with strategic roles and those who interface with clients may have regular jobs as the remaining workforce jostles for position in the "talent cloud". In a radical restructuring of its German workforce, international tech giant IBM is a trailblazer with a more flexible approach. Big Blue plans to pick and choose between freelance workers who will market themselves, project-by-project, via a professional eBay-style platform. This new model will not only cut costs and have clear implications for managers. Experts say it will also make workers' future employment more dependent than ever on digital profiles.
From: September 04, 2012
Is China's Senior Care Housing Industry Ready to Mature?
China's looming need for services and facilities to cater to its fast growing population of seniors seems to present an ideal business opportunity: Demand clearly outstrips supply, and the government is welcoming foreign and private help in this area. The government's current "Five Year Plan" names senior care as a high priority issue. The key missing factor, so far, has been a successful business model.
From: July 09, 2012
Franchising: Commercial Marriages from Heaven or Hell?
Franchising has boomed in Australia, now the world's most franchised nation per head of population. But the collapse of franchise chains – most recently booksellers Angus & Robertson and Borders – highlights that there are considerable additional challenges to the popular business model. What happens when a franchisor fails to move with the times or when franchisees and franchisors fall out? There are numerous upsides to these popular "commercial marriages", but – far from cookie-cutting – franchising is one of the most intricate and complicated ways of doing business, argue experts at the Australian School of Business.
From: March 29, 2012
Employee Safety: New Rules on the Risks of Working from Home
In an increasingly fragmented world of work, new nationally harmonised occupational health and safety laws demand consistent protection for employees no matter where they work. The focus is on ensuring the safety of those who work remotely or from home, and their numbers have more than doubled in the past 15 years. Whether the workplace is an office, an oil rig or the back sunroom, employers will be obliged to mitigate the risks, including the suitability of equipment, the environment and related health impacts. Experts warn a slip up or stumble may be alarmingly expensive.
From: December 12, 2011
Supply Chain: Linfox Gears Up to Improve the Customer Experience
As the Asia-Pacific region's dominant supply chain solutions provider, Linfox could not risk resting on its laurels when customers called for change. Instead, management looked to its people through the implementation of a Lean Six Sigma continuous improvement program. The company is about to implement an extensive program to improve efficiency, remove wasted effort and "get it right the first time". It's about more than cost reduction, and aims to achieve operational excellence while enhancing the customer experience. Australian Graduate School of Management program director Paul Walsh outlines how the logistics giant is driving a fresh approach to keeping customers satisfied.
From: December 05, 2011
Into Africa: How Australian Miners Are Moving on the Next Frontier
The lure of high returns has taken Australian resources companies across new frontiers in Africa. Almost 600 Australian projects are now running in 42 African nations and adventurous smaller miners are leading the way into challenging jurisdictions. Driven by the booming outlook for commodity prices, their confidence knows almost no bounds. While political risk still poses a threat, it has been tempered by a contest for capital between the continent's developing nations. Australian companies have much to offer in terms of expertise and technological know-how, so why are big miners holding back?
From: May 10, 2011
'The Democratisation of Fashion': William Fung and Vera Wang on the Implications of Going Global
As retailers face greater pressure to sell more products, expand into new markets and streamline production, the fashion industry is feeling the heat. Designer Vera Wang, for example, is trying to turn her business into one that is widely known and widely worn. William Fung, managing director of Hong Kong-based trading company Li & Fung, is trying to stay ahead of new complexity in the production process. Both Wang and Fung discussed ongoing challenges in the fashion industry during a recent presentation at Wharton.
From: April 27, 2011
Water Footprints: Why Business Is Shunning the Wet Look
Intense global focus on greenhouse gases and global warming has made most organisations conscious of the need to calculate carbon footprints. But as environmental pressures grow, further counting is required. To conserve "the world's most precious resource", organisations and individuals now must understand the water footprint of products or processes. Predictions of a worldwide water crisis have left scientists arguing over the right way to measure water use, while large progressive organisations have developed their own ad hoc approaches. With one international authority claiming it takes 140 litres of water to make a cup of coffee, it's certainly not time to relax.
From: February 14, 2011
