Supply chains are driving fundamental and transformational changes in today's organizations. More than that, supply chains challenge the very mental models and core processes that guide most of what people do at work. They challenge the prevailing organization paradigm, requiring significantly more focus on customers, horizontal relationships, integrative thinking, and dynamic and continuous adaptation. These values are difficult to consistently reinforce and support in siloed structures and can't be changed by sophisticated technology alone. Thus, all the promise of supply chain transformation hits an inevitable brick wall!
The total number of U.S. polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plastic containers and bottles collected and recycled in 2011 is a record, according to a report from the National Association for PET Container Resources (NAPCOR) and the Association of Postconsumer Plastic Recyclers (APR).
With the holiday season right around the corner, the International Council of Shopping Centers is forecasting a 3.0-percent sales increase for the traditional November-December holiday period.
It's no mystery why companies emulate their most successful peers. Tried-and-true approaches often seem preferable to starting from scratch, whether for developing new products or running efficient supply chains. The quest for such methods went global during the 1980s and 1990s as European and U.S. companies sought to retool their operations by transplanting Japanese factory practices, such as kanban and just-in-time production. Management consultants - ourselves included - naturally facilitate the process by extolling successful companies as models from which others can learn proven practices that reduce risks.
Manufactured exports - a bright spot of the U.S. economy in recent years - are set to surge. Combined with jobs created as a result of reshoring, higher U.S. exports could add 2.5 million to 5 million jobs by the end of the decade, as manufacturers shift production from leading European countries and Japan to take advantage of substantially lower costs in the U.S., according to new research by The Boston Consulting Group.
The days of most tax-free internet shopping in California are over. After years of controversy, the world's largest online retailer, Amazon.com Inc., has begun collecting state and local sales taxes on California purchases. Depending on where you live, sales taxes in the state range from 7.25 percent to 9.75 percent.
Advocates for a level playing field between traditional brick-and-mortar retailers and their online-only competitors are celebrating the implementation of "sales tax fairness" in California. Last week, online-only retailers, such as Amazon.com, began collecting state sales tax in California.