Tag: Business Tips

Part 6: Why Businesses Fail, the Conclusion

Today we conclude our six-part series on Why Businesses Fail (see our posts starting July 14). One of the primary reasons businesses fail is:

  • Faulty attitudes and objectives. Businesses fail when personal or company desires are placed ahead of customers’ wants and desires. You don’t run your business; your customers run your business. Customer satisfaction is the single-most important factor in driving business and repeat business to your door. Businessmen who forget that don’t remain in business long.

    Employee satisfaction goes hand-in-hand with customer satisfaction. When businesses fail to value their employees, employee satisfaction plummets, taking with it production quality and efficiency and customer satisfaction. It’s a downward spiral from which businesses don’t recover without an attitude adjustment. The bottom line is that it’s the human element that guarantees business success.

DJ Products understands the value and importance of customer and employee satisfaction — both ours and yours. That’s why we manufacture and use ergonomically designed electric carts and motorized cart pushers and equipment movers. Our equipment is smaller, more maneuverable and less costly to purchase and operate than traditional powered equipment like fork trucks, walkies and riding tugs. And our equipment is designed to eliminate the pain and strain of manually moving heavy carts and wheeled equipment. We value the health and safety of our workers — and yours.

DJ Products’ expert sales staff can assist you in assessing your material handling needs. On our website you’ll find a handy Ergonomic Load Calculator designed by experts to estimate the amount of horizontal force needed to move wheeled loads. Our sales staff can help you calculate load factors and recommend material handling products designed to protect the health and safety of your workers. Visit the DJ Products’ website for detailed specs on our complete line of products. If you have a material handling problem, DJ Products can provide the solution.

Failing Auto Industry a Warning to U.S. Manufacturers

The auto industry bailout is in peril and may be beyond saving. The demand by Senate Republicans that the UAW agree to slash auto workers’ salaries to compete with their Japanese counterparts may have put “paid” to the deal approved by the House. If any of the Big Three automakers fail, the fallout is expected to send our already troubled economy plummeting even further downward. The strain on unemployment and social resources, the trickle-down effect on the industry’s supply chain, irreparable erosion of America’s already diminished manufacturing base, a drastic decrease in consumer choices — we’re going to be paying for Detroit’s poor management and poor choices for years to come. There is no silver lining here, but there are important lessons to be learned.

While the issues are complex, experts have boiled the U.S. auto industry’s woes down to four basic problems: failure to embrace the future, lack of flexibility, failure to effectively manage labor, and failure to rein in expenses. These are the basic cornerstones for success in any business.

  • Embrace the future. Globalization of the economy, resource depletion, and the speed at which technology changes will continue to bring vast changes to industry and manufacturing. Companies with the vision to position themselves to meet future needs by taking advantage of these changes will prosper. Those like the U.S. auto industry who don’t will eventually fail.
  • Maintain flexibility. Rapid response will separate the men from the boys. Companies with the mental, financial and physical flexibility to react quickly to changing market needs and strictures will prosper most.
  • Manage labor. U.S. labor costs are the arena in which America is least competitive globally. An inability to manage labor demands is one of the core causes of Detroit’s failure. To remain competitive into the future, American businesses and the workers that depend on them for their livelihood will need to address this issue and both sides may need to moderate their expectations.
  • Rein in expenses. Maintaining tight control over expenses and instituting proactive accounting practices are essential for survival in a poor economy. But maintaining these practices as the economy improves will give you the financial flexibility to reach future goals.

DJ Products ergonomically-designed, powered carts and tugs can position you to meet the future successfully. On Monday, we’ll tell you how.

Frugality Is New Business Reality

The nation’s economic gurus may have declared the recession over, but they’re warning businesses and consumers alike that recovery could continue for years. And we shouldn’t expect things to get back to the way they were — ever! The country is going through a major reset. After decades of inflated prices, inflated egos and inflated dreams, we’ve had to face the cold, harsh realities of life and — we hope — the experience has left us wiser and a little more wary of falling into the same pit again. The smaller employee pools, tighter resource management and lean production practices developed out of necessity during the recession are here to stay. Frugality is the new reality.

The frugal measures taken to keep American businesses from sinking will help us swim leaner, faster and farther in the post-recession marketplace. Having found that we can function and compete in a frugal environment, businesses are expected to use that new-found frugality to give themselves a competitive edge, using less to produce more. Sure it means that everyone will continue to work harder and do more; but that’s what it’s going to take to compete successfully in the new, tougher post-recession marketplace.

Smart business owners will seek out equipment that allows them to make more productive use of their more limited post-recession workforce. Material handling products like DJ Products ergonomically-designed CartCaddys allow a single worker to perform lifting and transporting tasks that it takes two or more workers to do manually. Because ergonomic design enables multiple workers of any size, shape or physical ability to perform the same task without risk of injury, DJ Products carts, tugs and movers allow employers to maximize use of their workforce. Eco-friendly, battery-operated motorized carts decrease fuel costs while cutting downtime and maintenance costs. And adoption of ergonomic equipment significantly reduces medical and workers compensation costs while letting your workers know you value their health and safety.

Applying Six Sigma to Ergonomics Drives Production Gains

Businesses that practice Six Sigma recognize the roll ergonomics can play in creating and sustaining productivity gains. Adoption of a comprehensive ergonomics program that combines implementation of ergonomic practices with use of ergonomically-designed equipment can lead to significant production gains, both immediate and sustainable in the long term. This is in addition to the obvious benefits ergonomics offers in improved workplace safety and reduced injury levels and their attendant costs.

In our last post, we began discussing how Six Sigma’s disciplined, process-oriented, five-step approach to problem solving can be applied to development of a comprehensive ergonomics program. We covered defining problem areas and goals, measuring existing stressors, and analyzing collected data to identify root problems and potential risks. Today, we continue our discussion of Six Sigma’s five-step process and its application to creation of a comprehensive ergonomics program.

Improve. Develop solutions to address the identified root causes of production area problems, set performance standards, and define responsibilities of both workers and managers. Remember to talk to the workers who actually perform the tasks and use the equipment. They can provide valuable input and often offer useful, practical solutions to production problems. Implement your improvement action plan, including necessary staff and management training.

Control. To ensure that productivity gains are sustained over the long term and that they continue to improve, it is important to monitor the established ergonomics program to ensure that performance standards and personnel responsibilities are being maintained. Measurement data should be regularly collected and analyzed to ensure that productivity improvement goals are sustained.

Too often ergonomics programs fail because they are not fully supported by top level management. Particularly now, when manufacturers and other businesses, beset by myriad economic concerns, are forced to run lean, many have shunted plans to implement an ergonomics program to the future. There is general lack of understanding of the significant productivity gains that accrue with implementation of an ergonomics program. By increasing productivity, ergonomic processes and ergonomically-designed equipment can improve your bottom line noticeably. And that is in addition to the proven savings realized from the immediate decrease in workplace injuries and accompanying decrease in medical, insurance, workers’ compensation and lost man-hour costs when ergonomics are employed. Making a comprehensive ergonomics program part of your company’s Six Sigma strategy guarantees it the credibility and top level management support necessary for success and sustainability.  

For information on ergonomic equipment designed to solve your material handling problems, contact the ergonomic engineers at DJ Products.

Taking the Pain out of Cart Retrieval

Nearly all large retail establishments have a multitude of shopping carts to serve their customers and invariably at several points throughout the day; many of those shopping carts are strewn about the parking lot.  This leaves the burden of cart collection on the employees of the establishment, and while its good to have job security, especially in this day and age, this particular duty is probably among the least favorite of many retail employees.

Carts get left in the parking lot regardless of the weather or temperature outside, leaving employees having to go out in the rain, snow, sleet and freezing temperatures to perform this high labor duty.  Collecting just a few carts at a time could make the process take far too long, and trying to collect a dozen all at once could lead to an unnecessary injury – manual cart collection, especially in less than favorable weather, is a lose-lose situation.

A cart retriever from DJ Products can take all of the hassle out of collecting shopping carts by removing the stress and strain on the employee and allowing the task to be performed at a much faster pace.  DJ Products cart retriever can easily handle a line of up to fifty shopping carts, allowing an entire parking lot to be cleaned of carts in a fraction of the time it would take to perform the collection manually.

The Cart Retriever makes this once dreaded job much safer and much easier and it frees up many more man hours for employees to attack other jobs inside the store to potentially create more revenue.  When employees aren’t pre-occupied with cart collection, more product can make its way on to the shelves, more customers can be served and the establishment can be kept organized and clean.  Increasing productivity in the workplace without risking employee safety is the best way to increase profitability and the Cart Retriever does just that.

Got Power Movers for Industrial Uses? Get Electric Carts for Your Office, Too

At DJ Products, we make a number of material handling solutions that are used in warehouses, hospitals, hotels and a number of other workplaces where workers need to transport heavy loads. And if you are already using our products in these areas, then you know that our power movers and trailer movers eliminate the pain and strain of manually pulling and pushing a heavy cart and wheeled equipment and are also less costly, smaller, and more maneuverable than traditional powered equipment.

But have you also considered using a simple electric cart for other areas of your enterprise? People in your offices may have need of an electric cart for transporting office supplies—boxes of paper, printer cartridges, samples for demonstrations, food orders for group meetings, and presentation materials such as projectors.

Just as you do not want the staff on the industrial side of things becoming strained, you also do not want your office staff hurting themselves either. There is a temptation for people in offices to think that they can just carry heavy loads on their own since they are not doing the kind of heavy lifting that warehouse workers do on a regular basis. They may not have an appreciation for the kind of musculoskeletal strain that carrying a cumbersome load ‘just this once’ can produce.

You and your busy staff will appreciate how our electric cart arrives charged and requires no assembly, so you can put it to use right away. In fact once you have an electric cart for use in the office, you will wonder how you managed without it.

Tough Times Call for Worker Morale Boost

The poor economy has been tough on American businesses, but it’s been tough on American workers too. Many employers are fighting low morale in their work forces as employees struggle with increased stress from financial worries on the job and at home. Poor morale negatively impacts production efficiency and product quality, decreases customer service, and can result in higher levels of workplace injury and absenteeism. Savvy businessmen will keep an eye on employee morale and address issues before they start to affect work quality.

The poor economy has created significant on the job stress for American workers. Many workers fear losing their jobs or being caught in the next round of layoffs. Even unpaid furloughs can cause significant financial strain. Those who still have jobs may not only suffer from survivor guilt when friends are laid off, but feel the pressure to pick up the slack from a reduced work force. With most companies cutting personnel to reduce costs, workers are being forced to accomplish more work with fewer people. Hiring freezes, loss of bonuses, reduced health care benefits and other measures necessary to keep businesses operating put further financial pressure on workers and have a demoralizing effect on a workforce that already feels over-burdened. Add in financial worries at home — mortgage payments, fear of foreclosure, high credit card bills, rising medical costs, high food and gas costs — and it can be tough for workers to fully focus on the job and stay motivated.

Business owners may have to step in and give workers a morale boost to help them get through these tough economic times. Here are some things business owners can do to boost morale and make workers feel needed and appreciated:

  • Personal touch. Make an effort to know your employees individually. Let them know you care about their lives, families and goals. In large operations, shift or line managers may fill this role; but anytime the owner recognizes employees personally, it boosts morale.
  • Roll up your sleeves. Whenever you can, roll up your sleeves and work along side your employees. Employees appreciate a boss who doesn’t mind getting his hands dirty and is willing to share the load.
  • Make it personal. Spend more time communicating face-to-face and less time communicating via email, phone and memorandums. Taking the time to make communication personal shows you value your employees as individuals.
  • Empower. Ask your employees for input and suggestions. Showing you value their opinions allows employees to feel they have a personal stake in the company.
  • Share your vision. Share your ideas and dreams for the business with your employees. Let them know you understand their concerns and are working toward a brighter future for all of you.

New Marketing Strategies Needed to Survive Lean Years Ahead

With the economic prognosis dim for 2009, U.S. manufacturers and businessmen need to rethink basic marketing strategies. Gone are the comfortable days of order backlog that manufacturers have enjoyed since the post-WWII. Everyone is scrambling to find new customers and new markets for their products. As Doug Gregory of Diamond Group Marketing pointed out in a February 9, 2009 article on Manufacturing & Technology eJournal, “you can’t cut and save your way to survival and profitability.”

To survive the next few lean years, you’re going to have to take excellent care of your current customers and work hard to find new ones. Gregory recommends a number of marketing strategies proven during previous downturns to help companies survive and even thrive. We’ve added some comments based on the benefit of our own experience here at DJ Products in building a successful material handling company with a national reputation for innovation, quality products and superior customer service.

  • Aggressive marketing. Many companies cut back on marketing efforts during a downturn. Survivors will buck the tide and increase marketing across the board. During tough economic times, potential customers do more shopping around looking for the best bargains. Getting your company name out there where they’re looking gives you a better chance to snag the sale.
  • Customer service. Without your customers you won’t have a business. Keeping customers happy must always be a top priority. During economic downturns competition heats up and you have to work even harder to keep your customers from jumping ship and going with the competition. Keep in regular contact with your customers so you’re right there to meet their needs as they arise. In a downturn, companies typically decrease inventories to cut expenses. You’ll benefit if you can provide customers with fast order turnaround and guaranteed delivery dates.
  • Strategic diversification. A tight economy forces you to expand and diversify your customer list, but make sure you don’t lose your core focus. You don’t want to dilute the expertise that sets you apart from your competitors and draws customers to you in the first place. Look for new customers with needs similar to those you now serve. Take a look at your current customers’ competition. With the same needs as your present customers, they present a ready market for your products.

Next time: Where to look for new marketing opportunities.

Where to Find New Marketing Opportunities

Competition is even tougher than it was before. Most sectors of the economy are expected to post losses through 2009 with little improvement expected until sometime in 2010. The bottom line is that for the next year or two everyone is going to be scrambling for a bite of a much smaller pie. In our last post we shared survival tips from DJ Products’ own experience and from Doug Gregory of Diamond Group Marketing (see his February 9, 2009 article on Manufacturing & Technology eJournal). Aggressive marketing, superior customer service and strategic diversification can help your business survive a bear economy, but to thrive you’re going to have to start searching for new customers.

Gregory and others agree that there are bright spots glimmering amidst the general economic gloom. Certain industries are expected to thrive and grow in the coming few years despite the downturn. Savvy firms will target marketing and sales campaigns to take advantage of expected growth in the following economic sectors:

  • Food industry. As Rally’s, a local burger joint, advertises, “You gotta eat!” The entire food supply chain from farm to table provides multiple opportunities for growing your customer base. Agricultural equipment, fertilizer, transportation, processing, packaging and retailing are just the tip of the food industry pyramid.
  • Pharmaceutical/health care industries. Baby Boomers, the world’s largest population segment, are aging. Demand for pharmaceuticals, health care products and health care services is expected to increase and remain steady over the next three decades.
  • Energy industry. Companies that produce, process or deliver energy products are excellent growth targets. With support from President Obama, increasing federal funds will fuel the development of alternative energy options. However, viable nationwide replacement of current energy sources is years, even decades, in the future. Current oil, gas and coal operations are expected remain strong with increases coming in their development of new, cleaner, more cost efficient applications for their products.
  • Transportation industry. Traditional transportation will still flounder for a while until production volumes and consumer spending improve. But there will be opportunity in infrastructure improvement and rebuilding fueled by federal stimulus spending and job creation. And watch for opportunities in new public transportation options still on the drawing board. Last year public transportation ridership posted a 52-year record high. As America struggles with energy issues and global warming, expect increases in innovative mass transit projects.
  • Look south. Southeast and Gulf Coast states are experiencing a manufacturing boom benefiting in part from post-Katrina spending. Census figures indicate that Americans are moving south, seeking jobs and better weather. Environmentalists are leery about the Southwest, however; which is already experiencing water shortages and some fear believe is on the cusp of long-term, possibly terminal draught.

Changes Coming to U.S. Workforce

If the current economic downturn has revealed any truths, it’s that the basic premise upon which employer-employee relations has been based in America is changing and must continue to evolve. Business owners can no longer afford to assume the role of in loco parentis. The cost of comprehensive health care and lifelong pensions has simply become too great for employers to be expected to take care of their employees the way they did 50 or even 20 or 10 years ago.

Gone are the gold watch days when people could expect to find a job fresh out of high school or college and stay with the company until retirement 30 years later. Employees no longer feel that kind of loyalty toward their employers any more. And technology is changing so rapidly that business owners can’t guarantee that today’s job will be needed five years from now. Naturally, these aren’t new ideas. Like all things, the business world is always evolving; technological advances seeming to speed change with each coming year. What’s new is that long-standing employee groups like the United Auto Workers are finally realizing that the employer-employee patterns that worked for their grandparents simply aren’t viable in today’s workplace.

With unemployment at a 25-year high, jobs may be scarce now; but work will return. But when it does, jobs are likely to be different. Both employers and employees should prepare themselves to face a workplace that may be vastly different from the one we enjoyed before the economy fell apart. In its May 25, 2009 issue, Time magazine addressed these issues, predicting a workplace that is “more flexible, more freelance, more collaborative and far less secure.” According to Time, the next generation of business owners and managers will bring new values to a business world where women will control an increasingly bigger slice of the pie. With the demise of the steel industry and potentially terminal illness of the auto industry, Time also sees jobs leaving the Midwest in droves and moving to Texas and the Southwestern states or Georgia and Florida.

Job expectations, business education, career paths, benefits, retirement, work-life balance, environmental savviness, management style, office spaces and manufacturing are all in for some major upheaval. Next time we’ll explore coming changes in the business world.