The Sunday Parade Magazine newspaper insert, of all rags, had a couple tidbits to ponder this morning. Sandwiched between silly celebrity gossip and weight loss ads was an interview with Ford's Alan Mulally.
We supported the government helping GM and Chrysler temporarily because, if they had gone into freefall, they would have dragged all the suppliers into bankruptcy, and that would have dragged us down. In the long term, though, auto companies ought to be independent businesses.
Perhaps, but that long term may come back to bite Ford. It's just a tad difficult to compete with an organization that can print money, shift costs to unrelated enterprises so it appears to book less of a loss, and create underlying policy that creates a lopsided competitive environment. Gee... where have I heard that before?!
shift overseas?
We operate everywhere around the world, and our plan is to make our vehicles where we sell
them. That was Henry Ford’s original dream. We’re in a very competitive industry in an
interdependent world. Consumers will decide which businesses survive based on who makes the best
products most efficiently.
Bingo. The consumer drives the value equation, not the company. And manufacture where you sell. The non-financial concept that is lost on the outsourcing lemmings.
I said there were two articles... the second is on the US Postal Service.
through storms of all kinds. But changing technology, a global recession, and rising debt now
threaten the national mail service.
By any measure, the U.S. Postal Service’s financial condition is dire. Mail volume is
expected to drop nearly 14% this year, and the post office estimates that it will lose $7 billion.
The solution is typically short-sighted.
its workforce through attrition and buyouts, automating mail sorting, realigning routes, and
freezing executive salaries.
How about a basic reevaluation of what the consumer wants and what methods, technologies, and processes can be created to deliver that value? Ever think that a 200+ year old service might need a significant reinvention every century or so?
postal services to competition from private companies in recent years. “A private company might be
more innovative, and that could help keep prices more stable for consumers,” says Prof. Michael
Crew, who heads Rutgers University’s Center for Research in Regulated Industries.
Wait a minute... I thought private companies and privatization was the root of all evil. Hmmm...