Tag Archives: competition

Amazon Fire tablet pricing and capabilities and associated competitiveness

An article in the Wall Street Journal (Sept 28, 2011) described the $ 199 pricing for the Amazon Fire – a color tablet that works using wi-fi, has a smaller screen (7 in) than the iPad, has free access to … Continue reading →

Posted in Ecommerce, Operations Management, Supply Chain Issues | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

FDA responsible for generic drug shortages ?

An article in Forbes (http://www.forbes.com/sites/aroy/2011/06/24/drug-shortages-the-new-death-panel/) describes strong FDA enforcement of Good Manufacturing practices with zero tolerances for generic manufacturers. Any violation causes shut down of a production line, with alternate suppliers requiring lengthy permissions to ramp up to compensate. In … Continue reading →

Posted in Global Contexts, Service Operations, Supply Chain Issues | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The impending channel conflict as style magazines link to ecommerce sites

A New York Times article (Sept 26, 2011) describes plans by fashion magazines such as GQ, Vogue and Esquire to link styles they present to sites where readers can purchase clothing. At the same time advertisers in these magazines like … Continue reading →

Posted in Collaboration, Ecommerce, Operations Management, Service Operations, Supply Chain Issues | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

The New Kindle vs the iPad battle

A New York Times article (Sept 26, 2011) describes the impending release of a new tablet by Amazon.com and the ensuing battle with Apple. Amazon provides content – ebooks, music, entertainment – but adding email and games covers the bulk … Continue reading →

Posted in Ecommerce, Global Contexts, Service Operations, Supply Chain Issues | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Internet productivity and future employment across supply chains

An article in the International Herald Tribune (Sept 24, 2011) describes a presentation by Yuri Milner, a Russian investor in Facebook and Zynga.  He describes internet based companies generating revenues of $ 100 million per employee compared to 10 to … Continue reading →

Posted in Ecommerce, Global Contexts, Operations Management, Service Operations, Supply Chain Issues | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Marvin Windows and the no layoff decision

An article in the New York Times (Sept 24, 2011) describes the”no layoff” strategy used by privately held Marvin Windows of Warroad, MN.  To reduce costs, employees saw cuts in perks like tuition reimbursement, overtime, salary cuts of 5 % … Continue reading →

Posted in Operations Management, Service Operations, Supply Chain Issues, Sustainability | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Airbus and Boeing long term airplane demand forecasts

An article in the New York Times (September 19, 2011)  states that Airbus predicts that a demand for 27,800 airplanes by 2030 with a potential revenue impact of $ 3.5 trillion and an implied air traffic growth rate of 4.8 … Continue reading →

Posted in Global Contexts, Operations Management, Supply Chain Issues | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Ecommerce, couriers and cash on delivery in India

An article in the New York Times (Sept 14, 2011) describes FlipKart – an ecommerce company in India that employs couriers for home delivery of orders with cash paid on delivery. Given the preference for cash transactions and payment ion … Continue reading →

Posted in Ecommerce, Global Contexts, Service Operations, Supply Chain Issues | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

Two Tier pay in the US auto industry

A New York Times article (Sept 13, 2011) describes the practice of hiring new workers at $ 14 per hour while paying older workers twice that amount. These new employees permit manufacturing at price points comparable with global competition and … Continue reading →

Posted in Global Contexts, Operations Management, Supply Chain Issues | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Manufacturing Productivity and Small Business Survival

A New York Times article (Sept 7, 2011) describes the labor productivity increase for a small manufacturer with labor costs holding at $ 337 per hour from 2005 to 2010 but the number of employees dropping from 20 to 40 … Continue reading →

Posted in Global Contexts, Operations Management, Supply Chain Issues | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment