Is Your Baby Ugly?

I recently sat in on a session led by Tim Ash of Site Tuners, who opened up the session by stating, “The baby is ugly.” Well, that got everyone’s attention. Tim went on to say that so many of us are so emotionally tied to our websites that we can’t objectively admit when they aren't working anymore.

We had just launched an update to our own website, and as Tim went through his seven deadly sins I had to confess to myself that we violated several of his concepts.  I realized that he is right in so many cases about the real functionality of most sites. Too many sites are built by designers to look pretty, but are terrible when it comes to the usability of the customer. 

It made me wonder if many of the same truths apply to social media. You always hear that "content is king.” I agree that rich, relevant content is crucial, but as I scan my Tweetdeck channels I see so many that post things only relevant to them. Is that really what followers want to read over and over? I think not. I also struggle with how to post the right content for all the different types of followers I have on Twitter. I think, like with websites, that some people have to admit their 140 characters just look ugly — no call to action, bad or broken links, strange shortening and poor content.

So, for 2012 I am taking off my rose colored glasses and making an effort to really look at our online marketing from our customer’s point of view. I hope we can consistently birth beautiful babies!

A Different Kind of Christmas Story

This is a time of year that many sit down and share traditional holiday stories with their children. Families reminisce and tell tales of past family members and of times gone by. As I sit here at my desk in my factory in California I also think of stories; one where California had a GDP larger than most countries, and one of where the United States had the best skilled workers in the world and could make anything the country needed or wanted.

As I visit high schools in my area and talk to kids, they are not hearing the story that the USA is still the preeminent manufacturer in the world. A story that is OK and should be revered when someone can take raw materials and make it into a desired end product and that having such a skill will pay you on average $20K more a year than a service-based job. A story of how America makes products in the greenest fashion in the world — especially here in California.

So my wish for 2012? That California and the entire U.S. will write a robust and exciting chapter for manufacturing. That once again, young students (both male and female) will see the promise of working in the manufacturing sector. That every student will be given opportunities for hands-on learning within the high school environment. That we provide every means possible to promote a STEM curriculum within our schools. That we once again as a nation have pride in our craftsmen, trade workers, machinists and engineers.

This is the chapter I wish to write within the story of manufacturing. What’s yours for 2012?

Why California Manufacturers Need Flex Time

It may come as a surprise to you but in California the wage and hour laws for the manufacturing sector do not allow for flex time. We are governed by an eight hour day versus a forty hour week. I find this law so out of step with how business and personal lives work in 2011.  If a company is brave enough, here is the process they can try to go through to achieve flex time.

 

Currently, in order for employees to adopt an alternative workweek schedule, an employer must conduct a secret ballot election with two-thirds of employees in the work unit approving the proposal. The process is complex, and any misstep by the employer could lead to costly lawsuits.

Under current (and very detailed) Industrial Welfare Commission wage orders, employers may institute alternative work schedules only if a supermajority of affected employees agree to the arrangement in writing and by secret ballot. Employers must hold discussion meetings at least 14 days before secret ballot voting. Two-thirds of the company’s employees must agree to the change. Any deviation from the rigidly controlled process voids the election and subjects the employer to potential lawsuits that can seek up to three years of back overtime pay for affected workers, along with huge penalties and fines.

Moreover, variances in schedules or the use of more than one schedule—unless it was offered in the secret ballot election—are prohibited without repeating the voting process. This in effect eliminates most employers and employees from choosing schedule options such as compressed workweeks.

So today my HR Manager Katie Mendoza went up to Sacramento to testify in front on the Senate Labor and Industrial Relations Committee. I appreciate that the California Manufacturing and Technology Association is behind changing this law to help support manufacturing viability in our state. Below is the letter she will be presenting on my behalf.

November 14, 2011

Dear Senator Lieu, 

Bishop-Wisecarver Corporation (BWC) is a family owned manufacturing company incorporated in 1950, that in its second generation is WBENC certified woman-owned. We have made a variety of industrial products over the years and currently specialize in guide wheels and guided motion technologies. My father founded the company and I have been working for BWC since 1991.

Our product line includes quality made components and accessories, manual linear guide systems, actuated linear guide systems, and rotary guides and systems. Stainless steel, high temperature, and clean room compatible products are among Bishop-Wisecarver's more recent product introductions. Our more popular product offerings include the following trade names - DualVee®, LoPro®, UtiliTrak®, and GV3. New product development continues to be an ongoing process at the Bishop-Wisecarver Corporation, with innovative designs being introduced at regular intervals.

We have 51 employees of which 14 are part of Steel Workers of America.  We have a proud history that mixes both strong values and continuous improvement. Our commitment to quality and our customers has enabled us to achieve sustained growth with our various product lines since the beginning. We are also committed to the next generation of engineers and machinists. We are an active supporter of local STEM programs and FIRST robotics.

I value my employees and their feedback and feel it is important to ask for their feedback and implement their ideas.  At the end of 2010, I asked employees, several questions, but the one that stood out the most in regards to flexible work schedules was, “BWC would be a better place to work if…”  I received multiple responses like the ones below: 
   “The ability work 9/10 – to have every other Friday off”
   “Have more flexible hours – work 4/10’s and have Fridays off or 9/10s and have every other Friday off.” 
   “More flexibility with work time.”
   “Flex work hours or alternate schedules would be good.”

In addition, you will find a list of signatures of employees that support a flexible work schedule.  Unfortunately, due to business needs, they could not come to voice their support.

If as a company we were able to implement a flexible work schedule it would increase our productivity, employee morale and customer satisfaction.  I am a firm believer in providing exemplary customer service and being the customer’s first choice.  With this change, it would boost the morale of my workforce enabling them to provide even better customer service.

I truly thank you for your time and consideration of this important decision.  Unfortunately, due to business travel I am unable to attend, but my HR Manager, Katie Mendoza will be there to represent Bishop-Wisecarver Corporation and the employees.

If you need any additional information or you would like to meet or speak at a later date, I would be happy to help in any way possible.

Warmest Regards,

Pamela Kan

President

Bishop-Wisecarver Corporation

cc:           Senator Mark Wyland (Vice Chair)

                Senator Mark DeSaulnier

                Senator Mark Leno

                Senator Alex Padilla

                Senator Sharon Runner

                Senator Leland Yee

Lessons From the Top of the World

At the PTDA Summit in Washington DC a couple of weeks ago I had the pleasure of hearing Alison Levine give the keynote address. Alison is an adventurer and mountaineer even though she has a medical condition that makes it even more life-threatening to climb extreme elevations. She has climbed the highest peak on every continent, served as the team captain of the first American Women’s Everest Expedition and skied across the Arctic Circle to the geographic North Pole.

Here are my takeaways from her speech. One thing about climbing mountains, it puts critical decisions into perspective really fast. Plus your judgment better be good, since a wrong decision can cost you and/or others your lives.

• Do more with less. Amen! I think especially in America we desperately need to learn this lesson. I feel there is a real fundamental issue with storage warehouses popping up all over the place.

• Do whatever it takes. It’s that old “a job worth doing is worth doing well." Put your best step forward every day.

• Ask the right questions … and keep asking. It can be easier for others to say no then for them to help you with the solution. Keep asking questions until you get to yes.

• Don't let fear stop you from doing things you want to do. Sometimes you just have to step up to the plate and go for it. I have found this to be very true. You can always “what if” a situation to death and rationalize not doing it, but growth comes from saying yes to those experiences that will stretch you.

• The team has to care about the team — but they also need the right skills for the environment. I think any manager can agree with this. It can’t be just the leader who cares about the team and the end goal. It has to be felt and wanted by all on the team. At the same time, alignment and passion for a goal isn’t always enough, there has to be the right match of skill sets and resources to get you to the end game.

• Take a big goal and break it down into smaller parts. What has to happen to get step one, etc. We all hear about setting BHAGs, but that can be overwhelming to the team and to the process. Breaking a big goal into key milestones makes it much easier to tackle.

• Even when going backwards you can still be making progress. Just going forward is not always progress. This doesn’t sound right, but boy is it true. Especially in my experience with product development. Sometimes you have to go backwards to get to the right outcome. Course corrections are a reality, charging ahead without checking in to the goals and the current reality can be extremely costly.

• Fear is OK — complacency is what will kill you. Fear is actually a good tool you can use to your advantage. You have to be able to react to the environment around you as things are shifting. Even when things are calm there can still be risk

• Build relationships. It is not just about being social – it is about creating a support system. That may even be with other teams, allies, or competitors — cross teams. Think about whom outside our team will you need to call on for help? Work to form strategic partnerships. NO ONE gets to the summit by themselves.

• Sometimes no matter how good you are prepared — things can still go wrong. How you react to the situation is key. Will having setbacks blows up your team or will you manage it so that it bonds the group together?

• Deal with change – “storms” are ALWAYS temporary. You just have to be able to take action based on the situation not your "plan." You have to realize that your plans are always outdated. Focus on execution versus following a plan

• Celebrate each milestone of the process.

• Have the judgment to make tough calls. Do you have the ability to turn around and walk away from the deal that is no longer good? You also have to be able to make good decisions even when the conditions are far from perfect. If the conditions aren’t right, cut your losses turn around and walk away. Remember, one person’s poor judgment can take down an entire organization. It is not about reaching the summit but the lessons you learned along the way and how you use those lessons going forward. There will always be more mountains to climb.

• Embrace failure. Previous failures are important tools for learning and achieving future goals. Make sure you can tolerate failure. You need room to fail to get innovation.

• Perspective – when you finally reach that summit or end goal, take time to reflect and learn. Make sure you get new viewpoints and learn from the experience.

Fresh Eyes

I am part of a program called Strategic Coach .At my last session we focused on how to become intentional. As we roll into the end of 2011 and look toward 2012 I think this is a great topic to disucss. We are all starting to work on our plans for the next year. How we approach this task is very critical. It is especially tough right now with so many uncertantainties happening in the US markets. One example that was shared with us really hit home with me. I have continued to think about this passage on many occasions since my class.
 

Sir Lawrence Olivier example:  Before every play, he’d look through the curtain and say “this is not last night’s audience. This is not last night’s theater. This is not last night’s play. I am not last night’s character. This is not last night’s script. This is not last night’s cast” He would progressively get more and more scared and would take himself back as though it was opening night again, with all that same energy. Even though he’d done it really well the previous night, he couldn’t count on it this time. Every new situation needs to be seen with fresh eyes, so you have to remind yourself. You want a balance between the emotions of fear and excitement so your motivation is at its highest to do the best possible job.

I find this concept powerful in so many ways. In my industry of industrial products, specifically linear motion products, I find a pervasive culture of the use of the “milkman run”.  This is the habit of habitually calling on the same customers over and over again. What really frustrates me is how often the “script” that is played while making these visits is just the “script” that was used on the last visit. The salesman often makes assumptions as to what the customer needs are and where they are on their project. How much more could be achieved if they took on the Sir Lawrence Olivier example? If they went into new opportunities or even current customers but with no preconceived notion of the customers’ needs or wants? Let the customer define a new “script”. How many more opportunities could be discovered?

So how can we apply this when doing our budgets and sales forecast for next year? Do you have clear intentions of your desired future state? Are your goals clearly defined and based upon facts, not assumptions? 2012 is not a repeat performance of 2011. Are you looking at your forecast with “fresh eyes”? How high is your enthusiasm and motivation level when planning for 2012? Will you be ready for the opportunities that lie ahead?

While the world appears to be in a state of flux I am still optimistic for the year ahead. I can envision a new “script”. I am working on seeing the trends that will lead to a new “play” being written all together. It is an extremely dynamic situation that is playing itself out and while I cannot control what is happening in the world, I can control how I and my company react. And as the sign in the Boston Celtics locker room states: “The game is scheduled, we have to play it, we might as well win.”

Spiffs, Chachkies, Trinkets, and Giveways, It’s a Battlefield!

I don’t know about your company but here at Bishop-Wisecarver conversations always get heated up when we start talking about our trade show giveaways. We are currently preparing for our next big show which will be FabTech in Chicago, November 14-17. If you are going to the show you can sign up for an appointment here. We will be showcasing our brand new booth creatively constructed for us by the fabulous folk at Mirror Show Management.

One school of thought is that engaging and fun handouts are valuable as a source of brand awareness. People love to play with fun and creative stuff and if they really like it, the item may actually find a home on their desk; conveniently with your logo starring at them. The hope is that the next time they are in the market for a product like yours, they’ll think of your company faster or sooner, and ultimately you may gain a sale.

Another faction of the group solidly believes (probably because they are engineers) that handouts must serve a purpose. They need to help our customers with something, ideally in reference to our products. They want there to be value in what we give away, or why do it at all?

Which leads me to the last camp, all giveaways are worthless. No one values them regardless of what the item is and nine out of ten times it is just going to end up in the hands of the vistor's children; thus no value to the customer and not even a useful tool in promoting brand awareness. Not too many seven year olds care about DualVee guide wheels or how to solve their linear motion issues!

So what camp are you in? Make it fun? Make it useful? Or just don’t even bother? What is the best giveaway you ever got? I’d love to read your ideas and feedback.

Who Will Win the Manufacturing Race?

I have just finished up a week of travel in India, and while I have been to Asia numerous times, this was my first visit to India. I toured numerous manufacturing facilities, and was very impressed with what I saw.

Our press in the states is filled on a daily basis with information about China and the country's growth. The Chinese government makes no bones about their plans around manufacturing and their desire to be the largest manufacturing power in the world. I wish our government had the same desire. The facilities in China are rapidly improving, as well as the infrastructure. Yet, after my visit to India, I wonder if in the end India may be the biggest winner of all.

I was impressed with what I saw in this country -- a desire to learn and succeed. In China, there is still a drive being pushed by the government, but I often feel that people operate in large out of duty to the collective good and the will of the government. In India, the desire rests at an individual level. Maybe I perceive India this way though because of my own American drive for personal growth and prosperity?

Only time will tell who will ultimately win the manufacturing race. Who knows, America may still recoup and regain the power it once had in manufacturing. But after this trip, I no longer believe it is a slam dunk in favor of the Chinese.