I recently read that Wal-Mart wants to use a computerized employee scheduling system to ensure that employees are in the stores when consumers are shopping. They would use historical data to create employee work schedules that would increase customer satisfaction and improve productivity. Can you believe employees are objecting to this?
There are distributors I know in our industry that are already using software that looks at historical phone traffic hour by hour over the past week, month, or year; incorporates vacations, meal time and breaks, and creates schedules for call center employees that have them on the job when customers normally call. The results are more satisfied customers and call center employees with pre-planned schedules, a win-win situation if there ever was one.
Even in the warehouse, a flexible work schedule that has people working when there is work to do results in warehouse efficiencies and ultimately increased customer satisfaction.
Having people on the job when there is work to be done and customers to be helped? Gee, what a neat concept!
Briggs & Stratton says that its engine sales were down 30% for the first half of its fiscal year and engine units were down 33% year over year. Besides the obvious lack of hurricanes hitting the US and early snow, Briggs stated that “manufacturers of lawn equipment have chosen to assemble closer to the spring selling season.” It appears that retailer focus on managing tighter inventories and delaying orders closer to the selling season is affecting both engine and equipment manufacturers.
Mass retailers are a “900-hundred pound gorilla” affecting our entire industry daily. Never doubt for a minute that what affects one OPE industry participant won’t ultimately affect us all.
Make sure you read the industry forecasts in the January and February 2007 issues of OPE magazine. Here's a few thoughts that caught my attention In the January issue. The suggestion that dealers focus on maximizing cash flow in 2007 is a good one. There are even a few ideas on how to get started planning your cash flow. The new combined Green Industry and Equipment EXPO (GIEE) in Louisville is generally seen as very positive, but there is still an underlying sentiment that, like the former Green Industry Expo (GIE), the show should move around the country and eliminate the perception that dealer attendance is predominately regional. 2007 will be flat, but there is an expectation that consumers cannot delay OPE purchases indefinitely. Also the ongoing debate continues about whether a dealer should only offer a single product line exclusively, or be able to offer their customers a choice of brands and service multiple product lines. Grab the January and February issues of OPE and read these forecasts. Then, create a plan to help you to be better prepared to react quickly to developing industry, marketplace and weather conditions in 2007.
Globalization continues to affect the our industry and US manufacturing in particular. Briggs & Stratton is “evaluating the future direction of (their) Rolla, Missouri (engine) plant.” Briggs cites the success of their China engine operations, the continued cost pressures from the market (competition), and cost increases brought about by government regulations as the reasons it is evaluating the future role of this engine plant. They’ll announce a decision in about 6 months. At the same time they are putting a new plant in Newbern, TN, to produce products for their Power Products segment. And in December, 2006, Briggs began assembly of engines for walk behind mowers in the Czech Republic for the European market.
Major companies in our industry are always planning ahead and reacting quickly to a rapidly changing business environment. You should too.
When you have a free minute, email a few comments to anonymous.distributor@gmail.com about how your business is doing this spring and include where you’re located. Or go to the Anonymous Distributor Blog at http://anonymousdistributor.blogspot.com/ and leave a comment at the question “How’s Business?” I’d like to hear from you.
There are distributors I know in our industry that are already using software that looks at historical phone traffic hour by hour over the past week, month, or year; incorporates vacations, meal time and breaks, and creates schedules for call center employees that have them on the job when customers normally call. The results are more satisfied customers and call center employees with pre-planned schedules, a win-win situation if there ever was one.
Even in the warehouse, a flexible work schedule that has people working when there is work to do results in warehouse efficiencies and ultimately increased customer satisfaction.
Having people on the job when there is work to be done and customers to be helped? Gee, what a neat concept!
Briggs & Stratton says that its engine sales were down 30% for the first half of its fiscal year and engine units were down 33% year over year. Besides the obvious lack of hurricanes hitting the US and early snow, Briggs stated that “manufacturers of lawn equipment have chosen to assemble closer to the spring selling season.” It appears that retailer focus on managing tighter inventories and delaying orders closer to the selling season is affecting both engine and equipment manufacturers.
Mass retailers are a “900-hundred pound gorilla” affecting our entire industry daily. Never doubt for a minute that what affects one OPE industry participant won’t ultimately affect us all.
Make sure you read the industry forecasts in the January and February 2007 issues of OPE magazine. Here's a few thoughts that caught my attention In the January issue. The suggestion that dealers focus on maximizing cash flow in 2007 is a good one. There are even a few ideas on how to get started planning your cash flow. The new combined Green Industry and Equipment EXPO (GIEE) in Louisville is generally seen as very positive, but there is still an underlying sentiment that, like the former Green Industry Expo (GIE), the show should move around the country and eliminate the perception that dealer attendance is predominately regional. 2007 will be flat, but there is an expectation that consumers cannot delay OPE purchases indefinitely. Also the ongoing debate continues about whether a dealer should only offer a single product line exclusively, or be able to offer their customers a choice of brands and service multiple product lines. Grab the January and February issues of OPE and read these forecasts. Then, create a plan to help you to be better prepared to react quickly to developing industry, marketplace and weather conditions in 2007.
Globalization continues to affect the our industry and US manufacturing in particular. Briggs & Stratton is “evaluating the future direction of (their) Rolla, Missouri (engine) plant.” Briggs cites the success of their China engine operations, the continued cost pressures from the market (competition), and cost increases brought about by government regulations as the reasons it is evaluating the future role of this engine plant. They’ll announce a decision in about 6 months. At the same time they are putting a new plant in Newbern, TN, to produce products for their Power Products segment. And in December, 2006, Briggs began assembly of engines for walk behind mowers in the Czech Republic for the European market.
Major companies in our industry are always planning ahead and reacting quickly to a rapidly changing business environment. You should too.
When you have a free minute, email a few comments to anonymous.distributor@gmail.com about how your business is doing this spring and include where you’re located. Or go to the Anonymous Distributor Blog at http://anonymousdistributor.blogspot.com/ and leave a comment at the question “How’s Business?” I’d like to hear from you.
No comments:
Post a Comment