Over the last couple of months I have been working to update and improve my on time delivery system (you may have seen earlier incarnations - including the OTIF Improvement Course). The revised system has been expanded to include more templates, continuous improvement suggestions and ideas to expand the system and help you quickly realise the benefits of simpler and more efficient on time delivery performance. The system now comes with a 30 day email program to coach and guide you through the implementation of the system into your business. All of the original management structure and meeting formats are still in the system. This is the same system I share with my clients as they take the 'blood, sweat and tears' out of their own on time delivery improvement journey. The system is priced at $129.00 (USD), but to celebrate the launch I am offering you the system for only $50.00. To get your copy of The OTIF Improvement System at this reduced price please use the discoun

When it comes to delivering on time, how much of your focus is on the early business process steps? I find that many businesses might fixate on on time delivery to their customers (rightly so, of course) but don't look at what is going on at the stages before the final step. Here are some ideas to whet your appetite when it comes to improving OTIF (On Time In Full) for your organisation. Recognising and discussing the domino effect Each step in your process feeds the next step. A failure to deliver on time at one of the upstream activities can snowball and really push out your deliveries. Being aware of this phenomenon and having an ongoing discussion about this in your business is a good first step. If your team aren't willing to discuss this issue then it is unlikely to get resolved. Make internal OTIF part of your normal conversation and change will be much easier later on. Develop KPIs that support on time delivery Most of us have KPIs (Key Performanc

It's discount time again! If you would like to improve your OTIF (On Time In Full) delivery performance quickly then check out The OTIF Impro vement Course . Available as an immediate download, you will be able to review and implement my tried and tested management framework quickly. Templates, examples and step-by-step instructions are included with my course - all available immediately after purchase. The best bit is (apart from the results) is that the course can be completed and implemented quickly. Back to the discount... if you use the link below you will be able to purchase the course for $20, instead of the regular price of $47. To find out more about the course - click here . Remember to use discount code OTIF20 at the checkout, or use the link below to get your discount. 0,The OTIF Delivery Course Here's to your new level of delivery performance, Giles About the author Giles Johnston is a Chartered Engineer who specialises in helping busin

If you know me personally you will be aware that I am not a huge football fan... but I do love a World Cup. As with most things that I watch, or participate in, I like to learn something from the experience. Tonight, whilst watching the Uruguay vs Portugal match I was comparing the set pieces that the teams have prepared with the idea of scenario planning in business. For many businesses scenario planning is something that is in the domain of strategic work and is for executives only. This isn't accurate of course and applying the idea of scenario planning to your operational activities is a great way to drive up your operational performance when the going gets tough. In football their scenario plans (or, set pieces) are carefully considered. When a certain situation faces a team they can then choose to enact one of their set pieces, hopefully increasing their chances of success. The key point is that these set pieces have been thought about in advance. In business, mo

Earlier today I was in a conversation with a Procurement Manager for a very busy national business. We were discussing the triggers that were missing within their business for identifying and communicating the long lead-time items on projects. You'll know the sort of things that I mean, the items that you can't pick up next day and typically cannot be replaced with a similar item. The manager was half complaining, half justifying the actions of the business. Whilst it is true that the world hasn't stopped to date because of this linkage being missed out in the business it is also true that they only achieve their mediocre on time delivery results through blood, sweat and tears. This is also the case for many businesses, and it can be different by changing just a couple of minor things within a business. Let me give you a few examples. Fixing the parameters of a capacity planning tool and enforcing the output of the capacity plan allowed one business to improve their

When businesses are struggling to deliver their products and services on time I often see the conflict between the doing tasks and decision tasks. It seems to be a balance that most of us have to deal with at some point in our careers and I think that most of us have a natural preference. As we progress through our job roles we move from lots of doing to lots of decision making, and in-between will be that balance where we find that just working harder won't be the solution. However, when there are decisions to be made in a business it is important for us to be aware of which side of this balance we are leaning towards.

Many times when I speak to a business for the first time I have to get past their mask. The mask I am referring to is the perfect business process maps that they cling to. To get into meaningful business improvement activities it is vital that you can get past the process maps that adorn your walls and quality management systems and get into the ‘warts and all’ reality of your business’ activities. This article looks at three areas that can help you jump start your improvement activities when you are mapping out what takes place in your business.

Often when I am faced with a new project, and there is a productivity / on time delivery issue the topic of 'role drift' comes up. As I hinted in the title of this blog post when the various roles within a business are focused appropriately on producing specific 'deliverables' productivity usually follows. Or, put in different ways:

I often get asked the question " am I on the right tracks with my improvement journey? " Whether this question is posed by new clients, old clients, email subscribers or via my websites it doesn't matter. At times we can all feel lost with our improvement projects.

If the checklist is designed to help you minimise mistakes, costly rework and delays then the answer is a definite yes! A Sunrise Meeting is a great example of an effective checklist Isn't it odd then that so many businesses don't make the most of checklists?

Many businesses focus heavily on the world around them, rather than the world inside the business when looking to manage supply chains. Getting the balance right between flexible and formal is a challenge that we all face, and getting it right can make a big difference to how consistent and how easy it is to deliver on time. For ideas on this please read my article ' Take Control of Your Internal Supply Chain to Improve On Time Delivery ' which you can read here - http://www.systemsandprocesses.co.uk/?p=1936 About the author Giles Johnston is a Chartered Engineer who specialises in helping businesses to grow and improve through better business processes. Giles is also the author of Business Process Re-Engineering and creator of the ' Making It Happen ' continuous improvement toolkit.

It's a good question, one that we sometimes forget to ask. If you want your processes to deliver on time , then starting on time is one of the best (and simplest) strategies that you can deploy. But, let me twist this question around slightly...

I often get asked what is the best way to improve a business' on time delivery performance. My answer is 'get really good at the basics'.

Scheduling is a skill for many people, an effective schedule can make a big difference as to whether a project is delivered on time, or not. I have noticed a very basic mistake that gets made with scheduling that I want to share in this post. Do you make this same mistake?

There is a lot written about high performing teams . Understandably this is an important topic; if your team works well then you can achieve more than with just the individuals put together. Do your teams work like a team, or are they just a collection of people who are called a team?

At first glance you might be thinking that this is an obvious question to answer for your business. Over the years I have come to realise that many people try to tick things off their 'to do' list early, just to get the feeling of achievement from having them ticked off. I see the same effect taking place when businesses report internally (and even externally, in some cases) on the progress of projects and production.

Did you know that if you subscribe to my monthly emails that you get more than just a copy of my on time delivery improvement guide You're Late ?

Do you want to save $20 off the price of my On Time Delivery Kit ?

The age old strategy of 'under promise and over deliver' is one that often goes wrong, doesn't it? Have you seen it go wrong in your business? For example - a customer is chasing you for an update on a late order and you give them your best delivery prediction.... only to watch it fall apart and witness your customer getting more and more irritated. Not only are they now angry at you / your business, you're now feeling less than brilliant. So how about these three pointers, should you find yourself in the same position?

"We deliver everything by the 35th of the month!" That's what I was told by a frustrated Finance Director. On time delivery is a challenge for many businesses, especially when the goal posts appear to move on a daily basis. But, what do you do if you recognise this problem within your own business?