A self-proclaimed “visionary” doesn’t always understand the true meaning of partnership.

In a perfect world, there would be truth in advertising.

It would be jaw-dropping to hear a politician say:

“My statements yesterday regarding the ignorance of voters on the issues of the day were not taken out of context. I meant every word I said, down to the last comma, semicolon and exclamation point, and I stand by them. Many of you don’t even know what a semicolon is, much less how to use it. What’s more, exploiting that gift of voters’ ignorance has propelled my political career and enhanced my electoral viability. Systems are meant for gaming, and I’m seizing the moment my schooling and ambition has set for me. Here in the land where preparation meets opportunity, mine eyes have seen the glory. God Bless America!”

Or to hear a certain classism laid bare with this frank preschool prospectus:

Lean Six Sigma training leads to effective, intrinsic problem-solving.

Much has been written on the “how” of Lean Six Sigma. This column discusses the “why” behind Lean Six Sigma. SigmaTron’s facility in Tijuana, Mexico, began implementing its Lean Six Sigma program in 2018 as a way to instill a focused process improvement methodology in its automotive and medical customer projects. A consultant was brought in for initial training, and I volunteered to be the internal champion after agreement that the necessary management support and resources would be put in place. The initial training sessions were designed to train the engineering team as Green Belts and select production personnel as Yellow Belts.

One challenge in an electronics manufacturing services company is each customer has control of their design. While some incorporate EMS-driven design for manufacturability (DfM) recommendations, others do not. Although SigmaTron’s production personnel wanted to solve production problems as they arose, the root causes were often difficult to identify using basic quality tools such as pareto charts without a strong problem-solving methodology. With Lean Six Sigma training, the team evolved from engineers and technicians trying to fix problems to a cohesive team with the necessary tools to rapidly identify issues, brainstorm possible root causes, test hypotheses, and implement the best solution. Issues that had taken weeks to analyze with prior methods were addressed in days or hours.

As the pandemic becomes endemic, restoring order to the world’s prices and supply chains will take time and won’t be easy.

As we all adjust to the reality that Covid and its derivatives are here to stay, communities around the world are beginning to rebuild economically: returning to work, reviving businesses where possible and making new plans if not.

It is no surprise materials, inventory and shipping are in short supply and are often stuck in the wrong places. In some cases, services that companies used to rely on are no longer available because the suppliers have gone out of business. Workforces are depleted, and some knowhow, skills and experience have been lost. Rebuilding is not as straightforward as opening the factory doors, picking up the tools that were put down at the beginning of 2020 and getting on with it. Even now governments are still mandating measures such as the sudden full lockdown of Shanghai, which has severely impacted road and air transport. We must still expect the unexpected!

There certainly is the opportunity to build back better, but let’s not be simplistic. The world we built was highly sophisticated and interconnected – an ecosystem of ecosystems. It won’t be easy. It will take time. New leaders and innovators need to acquire the skills required to replace those we’ve lost. And we have other challenges too, like protecting the environment and transitioning to more sustainable ways of living. As if that wasn’t enough, further new tensions are adding to the pressure on resources and, as a result, prices.

Review pricing with current and outside suppliers to confirm you are paying the going rate.

“We don’t have the bandwidth to move business.”

That's what a printed circuit board buyer told me recently.

Let’s unpack that because it could be a shortsighted attitude.

When an EMS firm puts a PCB supplier on its AVL, it often asks only for pricing on new projects. When it comes to existing work, the response is often, “We don’t move boards once they are placed,” or, “we don’t have time to rebid those,” or, “it takes too much effort to move to another vendor.”

Even in the face of rising board costs, many buyers and procurement managers resist moving production away from suppliers they’ve used for years.