Theory of Constraints
One might think that the Theory of Constraints (TOC) was closely related to the concept of constraints in terms of mathematical optimization; however, this is not the case. Within the context of TOC, the “constraint” is used as a central point of focus for the organization. The fundamental process TOC urgres businesses to follow is [...]
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SCOR
The Supply-Chain Operations Reference-model (SCOR) is a process reference model that enables users to address, improve, and communicate supply chain management practices within and between all facets of the organization, its suppliers, and its customer relationships. As a management tool, the span of SCOR is vast – covering the supplier’s supplier to the customer’s customer. [...]
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Six Sigma
Background The management strategy now known as “Six Sigma” was originally deployed by Motorola. Six Sigma originated as an offshoot from an internal research paper which demonstrated the statistical correlation between product quality and rework in the manufacturing process. What was most interesting to Motorola executives at the time was the relationship between product performance [...]
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The Balanced Scorecard
A Balanced Scorecard (BSC) can provide an organization with a unified notion of success and allow employees to work on the most appropriate activities and achieve the most desired results. Rather than just tallying a number to track performance, a Balanced Scorecard consists of four key perspectives which allow a proper framework to be formed [...]
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Total Quality Management
Rather than targeting a specific process or business activity, Total Quality Management focuses on overall quality improvement attained through the establishment of a corporate culture that strives to improve the effectiveness of all operational processes. The identification of ‘root causes’ for the most costly of defects is of primary concern. Once these root causes have [...]
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Economic Value Added (EVA)
Economic Value Added (EVA) is a method used to try and ascertain what the true profit of a company is at a given point in time. At a basic level, EVA can be expressed as net operating profit, less taxes and also subtracting a charge for opportunity costs. EVA has become an important valuation [...]
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Tableau de Bord
Translating from French to English, Tableau de Bord is equivalent to an “instrument panel,” and long before it was well known as a management technique, engineers around the world were using them as part of their day to day management of process operations and other functions within their respective domains. It was in France where [...]
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