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Issue #125
Hi Friend,
 Do you remember what you were doing on April 8th 2004? I do because that is the day that I wrote my first blog post. This month marks the 10th anniversary of my online writing!
At the time it was a bit of an ‘out there’ thing to do. People didn’t know what a blog was and didn’t routinely go to Google for any and all information. Partly this was because in 2004 broadband connections were new and (relatively) slow. 3G was still a year or two away and Wi-Fi was not widely available. All of which didn’t matter much because smart phones and iPads hadn’t been invented (the iPhone was still 3 years away). In 2004 there were no LinkedIn groups or discussion forums. At the time LinkedIn had just 600,000 users (I was user #684,523). Now they have 260MM!
Connectivity developments in the past 10 years have significantly changed the way that everybody can access training and development. Back then if you wanted to undertake some training you could only really do that in-person or by snail-mail correspondence. For most training this meant waiting until an event was scheduled, hoping that you would be available, then sometimes traveling to another city, and then after the event being on your own to apply what you learned.
These days, thanks to a range of services such as Skype, GoToWebinar, YouTube and other video services, plus sophisticated website management, the training that you need is now instantly available when you need it. No travel and no waiting. And after you are done you can get support for your ongoing execution. It is a vastly different landscape.
But some things don’t change, and this brings me back to that first blog post. That post dealt with ‘a classic trap for spare parts inventory optimization and reduction’. And the trap was this: a client that I was working with at the time was not making the expected progress with executing the ICR process and the reason was that they were measuring only the end target, not tracking the actions required to get there. There was no transparency of the actions taken. (You can read that first blog here: http://sparepartsknowhow.com/178.) Once we corrected this they went on to great success.
One thing that I have learned in the past 10 years is that spare parts inventory reduction is simple but not easy. Smart inventory reduction; the type of reduction that ensures that you make good choices and stock the right quantity of the right items, that involves all the key players, that keeps your plant going and your working capital low, takes work. It doesn’t come from software. Software can be a tool but you need the right framework in which to apply that tool, otherwise its far too one-dimensional. It comes from training and developing your team and systems and then ensuring appropriate execution.
That simple original blog post has grown into our online resource center at SparePartsKnowHow.com featuring hundreds of articles, training videos and other resources, so now the opportunity for team and systems development is available at the click of a mouse. No waiting and no travel.
If you would like to upgrade to a Premium Subscription follow this link: http://sparepartsknowhow.com/premium-membership/#.U0c5tF7VE8M
If you would like to go one better and bring your whole team on board contact me directly to discuss a Company Subscription (just reply to this email).
And remember, if you like what we do, please don’t keep it a secret – share this email with your colleagues and even your boss!
Keep on improving,
Phillip Slater
Founder, SparePartsKnowHow.com
P.S My second blog post introduced The 5 Myths of Inventory Reduction and the e-book that resulted has become our most downloaded item. Please visit http://www.initiateaction.com/5MythsofInventoryReduction.htm if you would like a copy.
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