Don’t Be Late: Simple Lessons That Automotive JIT Inventories Offer Across Industries

Scott AsaiLeave a comment

Collaborative post – may contain affiliate links

Originally developed by Toyota in the 1970s, just-in-time (JIT) inventories offer a to-the-bone way to manage leaner inventories. Far from having to pay for the storage of unlucrative and often unneeded stock, the JIT shift has certainly transformed the automotive world, a fact that’s proven especially imperative when delays elsewhere threaten to unravel supply chains in their entirety.

In the face of increasing money struggles and productivity delays across industries, the value of JIT, or at least the benefits that it brings to the table, is becoming more universally relevant than ever. While this doesn’t necessarily mean that a repeat model would be right for your business, it certainly highlights the need to reassess inventory management in light of recent challenges. Here, we’re going to help you see how by especially considering the JIT benefits that enabled a swift automotive recovery, and an estimated 7-9% market growth in 2021 alone. 

Benefit 1: Cost-effective production

With businesses losing vast amounts of money over the past eighteen months and facing further cost setbacks from the need for diversification into online markets etc., it’s fair to say that budgets are tight. As such, piling resources, time, and profits into the development of stock that sits in a warehouse (which you also pay for) simply isn’t viable right now. By comparison, JIT inventory management that involves working more closely with suppliers to meet real-time demand ensures only the production necessary to keep consumers happy. While you might not want to go all out with lean inventories as such, keeping stock to a minimum, and taking the time to more realistically predict demand and output using analytics, can certainly better help to preserve money when you need it the most. 

Benefit 2: Continual quality improvements
The improvements necessary to keep up with an ever-changing landscape can be difficult to implement if you’re still shifting stock that’s been in storage since last November. Leaner inventory management on an as-needed basis is therefore far more receptive to quality improvements. Toyota is certainly a great example of how to adapt, with their latest EV releases being just one in several cutting-edge adjustments seen in Toyota service repair manuals across history. While companies in other sectors may prefer to keep some stock on hand for security purposes, streamlining warehouses and focusing instead on new development could quickly prove imperative in the face of quickly-changing consumer expectations.

Benefit 3: Improved supplier relationships

By encouraging faster turnovers and responsive production for disaster preparedness, JIT inventories also improve supplier relationships. In-the-moment updates and the ability for partners to request changes at the development stage are certainly imperative for automotive supply networks that often span numerous parties and locations. Even for small scale supply networks elsewhere, a more in-the-moment, speedy delivery focus based on the work you’re doing now, rather than parts created two years ago could be transformative. 

JIT inventories aren’t for everyone, but as supply disruptions continue to wreak havoc across industries, it’s certainly plain to see that leaner inventory management offers some important lessons worth learning from.

3 Business Principles We Hope You Follow

Scott Asai5 Comments

Collaborative post – may contain affiliate links

It is always good to have principles in business because it can enable you to achieve more. With that in mind, here are three business principles that we hope you will follow. 

  1. Security should never be an afterthought 

With all the threats out there these days, you now know you must protect your system with a good antivirus. But in a market choke-full of products, it can be dizzying settling on the right one. So what makes a solid anti-virus? One of the most vital tasks a good antivirus should do, is accurately and reliably detect any of the different types of malware. Surfing the net is a bit like walking through a minefield. Every link you click on could potentially harbor that virus, Trojan, or worm. And that’s why your antivirus should have a comprehensive and up-to-date database, which will detect malware before it has the chance to corrupt your computer. The next feature you should have your eye out for is the software’s ability to thoroughly scan your computer. Of course, anti-virus software is not enough. There are so many other security features and elements that are required to protect your business. This includes everything from encryption and network segregation to multi-factor authentication and password protection. 

  1. Listening to your employees is a must

You can always learn the most about your business by listening to your employees. After all, they are living in it every day! They are the ones that need to complete tasks and objectives, and this is why you need to listen to what they have to say. This is especially important when it comes to health and safety. If your employee tells you that something is not safe, you need to listen to them. There are companies like Versatile Systems that can assist you with this if you need to make changes to the physical structure at your business, for example. 

  1. Always dedicate yourself to learning

Aside from the points that have already been mentioned, if you work from home or you want to progress your business, you should always look for ways to enhance your skillset and achieve more. You can do any course online today. So, why not take one of these courses in your spare time so that you can better yourself and take your business forward? When choosing what course to do, you need to think about what is genuinely going to take your company to the next level. Don’t choose something simply because you think it is easy or it will be fun; you need to know it is going to offer you a competitive edge. 

So there you have it: three business principles that we hope you follow. If you follow these principles, it can help your business to achieve more success. It is important to make sure that you always have some principles that you believe in because this shapes your company culture and the type of business you run. Add some more to the list yourself!

Future-Proof Career Ideas for Millennials to Consider

Scott Asai1 Comment

Collaborative post – may contain affiliate links

It really is a worrying time to be a human who needs to work for the next few decades. The future really is upon us and more and more technology is taking over the work that would normally be assigned to us. 

That’s why, if you are really smart, you will be looking towards the future when working out your career goals. As a millennial, you still have a long working life ahead of you and by being proactive and gaining skills that will always be in demand, you can ensure that you are always high on the shortlists when looking for a new position. With that in mind, let’s take a look at some of the most future-proof careers you might want to pursue:

Cybersecurity professional

Now that we do most of our… well everything online, it is pretty safe to say that cybersecurity experts are always going to be in high demand. Cyber hacks can bring businesses down faster than almost anything else, and of course, hacks on our personal data can be devastating too, so although the role may grow and change over the years, cybersecurity roles are almost certainly here to stay.

Healthcare professional

Although it is highly likely that robots will be carrying out various medical procedures in the future – if you look at Robotunits you will see that robotic technology is already being used very effectively in various other sectors – however, it is very unlikely that robots are going to take over healthcare altogether. After all, humans are best placed to take blood, check the patient for symptoms and ensure that all procedures are carried out carefully, so again, it is fair to say that most healthcare roles, especially at the highest levels, are here to stay.

Data scientist

Whether we realize it or not, data plays a huge role in our day-to-day lives, It helps insurance companies make decisions about our cover, it enables businesses to target their marketing efforts to the best people, and it allows us to identify trends in healthcare amongst other things. Although technology is sure to play a continuing role in collecting and analysing data to some extent, data scientists are always going to play an important part in the process by giving a human eye to the various tasks associated with extracting data and making sense of it.

Delivery logistics

Now that so many of us buy so much stuff online, the world of delivery logistics is likely to be a pretty safe bet careerwise. Yesk we will probably have automated vehicles and drones delivering our packages in the future but humans will still be needed to oversee the whole production and ensure that any kinks are ironed out and problems solved as effectively as possible.

If you train for any of these careers, chances are you will have a long and pretty stable career while others around you struggle to adapt to the world of the future, so at the very least, please do consider them.

Tips For Protecting Your Business: Online and Offline

Scott AsaiLeave a comment

Collaborative post – may contain affiliate links

How do you protect your business online and offline? If this is a question that has been on the back of your mind, then it’s time to get some answers. So many things can affect your business – from hackers to competitors. This article has compiled a list of strategies for protecting yourself in the digital world, so you don’t become another statistic.

Be Mindful of Social Media Networks

Social media platforms are great ways to stay connected with customers, but they also present security risks and should be monitored closely. In addition, users often forget about privacy settings, which means everything shared on these sites could make its way into the public domain if you don’t carefully consider it when posting content. Remember: what you post on the internet stays on the internet.

Guard Your Address

A great way to protect your business is by guarding your address. Of course, if you’re a sole trader, this might not be an issue. Still, if you have any employees who need access to company accounts and records, it’s essential that they also safeguard their personal information. That means keeping all of their information safe too.

Your online address needs safeguarding, too; you can choose to sign up for a new email account if you don’t feel safe with your current one.

Be Careful About BYOD

Bring Your Own Device, or BYOD for short is a great way to increase productivity. Still, it also increases security risks by allowing employees access to sensitive company information from their own devices. Therefore, it’s a recommendation for companies to implement policies restricting this practice to reduce any vulnerabilities.

Install an Antivirus Software

As internet security risks continue to increase, businesses must take the necessary precautions by installing anti-viruses on all workstations and servers. The great thing about these programs is they often come with firewalls that can help protect your computer against outside attacks.

Take Advantage of Two-Factor Authentication

Two-factor authentication is a great way to protect your online accounts. This process requires users to provide additional information beyond their password when signing in, such as a code sent via text message or an automated phone call which you can use as another layer of protection against unauthorized access. Be sure to enable this feature on all essential accounts.

Limit Administrator Access

Administrators are the only users who should have full control over company computers and servers to prevent unauthorized changes. However, if user accounts have too much privilege, it can lead to security breaches, so limit what they can do on their computers as best you can.

It’s essential to keep a close eye on company information; this can be difficult if you don’t have the necessary tools in place. With all of these strategies in mind, your business should remain protected against vulnerabilities and threats that could compromise data security. Stay vigilant.

Protect Your Devices

Take steps to protect all of the devices used for company purposes, including computers and mobile phones. This step is significant when accessing business information from outside networks like public WiFi hotspots because these connections tend to be less secure than home or office connections. If you don’t have a security suite installed on your devices, you should prioritize this.

Unconventional Business Ideas Drawing Profit from Corporations

Scott AsaiLeave a comment

Collaborative post – may contain affiliate links

With all the negative press of massive corporations like social media platforms, financial institutions, and manufacturers, they always need to look their best. This means behaving well on TV, presenting a unified outward appearance, and protecting their assets. But they cannot do this alone. As such, they hire outside help from unconventional business ideas drawing profit from their need to look good and present themselves well.

Cleaning on a Massive Scale

Their size doesn’t matter, and that is debatable. Yet when it comes to corporate displays of power and prominence, the bigger, the better. And massive corporations love nothing more than to show their success with an enormous skyscraper or excellent office building. So these steel-framed behemoths, such as 30 St Mary Axe in London, are clad with thousands of square meters of glass panel windows. And just like your windows at home, they need to be cleaned.

High-rise commercial and residential cleaning projects that companies like Shine On Group handle are worth a pretty penny in contracts. Not least because such a task requires specialist knowledge, skills, and dedication. For example, an average New York skyscraper will take you and a team around one month to clean from top to bottom. And given smog and debris, you need to start all over again when you are finished.

Meta Security

The issue of security plagues the corporate world. Cybersecurity, corporate espionage, the theft of trade secrets, social engineering, and antitrust are prime examples. Therefore, you can negotiate a large contract for protecting a company from harmful outside influence. The costs vary depending on what is required. And you can make a lot of money from specialist security such as proactive hacker deterrence where trained experts are employed, such as:

  • Armed personnel
  • Cybersecurity experts
  • Security guards
  • Premises inspectors
  • Damage regulators
  • Health and safety personnel

In the United States alone, the private security sector is worth almost $130 billion. Access controls and clearances are handled by barcodes, QR scans, and biometrics. While IT systems are isolated onto your own network and defending using honeypots and fail-safes to detect intrusion. Armed guards and private security are also hired to protect the most sensitive locations and VIP corporate personnel. 

Digital Mapping and VR

Like corporations love to show off their skyscrapers and impressive buildings on the outside, they also love presenting the interior. Typically this is done with promotional videos and publication photographs. Yet, technological advancement has taken this a step further. Complete immersion into the corporate office building is possible using virtual technology from a remote location anywhere in the world. This has proven helpful to real estate agencies throughout the pandemic.Digital mapping with laser-based sensors means any structure, site, or interior is faithfully recreated inside digital imaging software. This is then converted into a virtual reality program navigable by anyone wearing a compatible device. The technology is becoming so successful that there is a market for virtual real estate. People are making a profit selling computerized homes and offices that don’t exist in the real world. Instead, these are copies of actual buildings or fictional locations.

Tips that will Help you to Become a Successful Solo Entrepreneur

Scott AsaiLeave a comment

Collaborative post – may contain affiliate links

Being a solo entrepreneur does not mean that you are truly destined for a life of solitude.  It also doesn’t mean that you are putting yourself on the path to financial ruin. Sure, there will be tough moments when you need to make big decisions, and you may find yourself working hours that are incredibly unsociable. That being said, it’s not the load of running a business that will break you down. It is the way that you carry it. Becoming a solopreneur is easily one of the most exciting adventures you can hope to embark on. On top of this, you may find that you have so much freedom when it comes to making decisions. If you want to make sure that your solo venture is successful, then the only thing that you need to do is take a look below.

Create a Plan

If you have decided that life as a solopreneur is for you, then the most important thing that you have to do is make sure that you build a very successful routine. You have to know where you do your best work, and what time you are able to get the most done. Most solopreneurs have fantastic morning routines that help to set them up for the rest of the day. If you can build a regular routine and if you can build a good working pattern, then this will set you up for the rest of the day. Look at the responsibilities you have right now and when you have a good idea of how many hours you have in your working week, you can then easily plan out your schedule.

Embrace Others

Sure, you will be working as a solopreneur, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t connect with other people. You need to make sure that you research which big influencers are in your neighborhood, and you also need to sign up to any business programs that are present as well. This will help you to become the best that you can be, and it will also help you to stay motivated. When you have done this, you can then try and find entrepreneurs on a global level. You have to ask them to share their experiences with you and you also need to connect with them on social media if you can. Embracing global connectivity will help you out a great deal, so make sure that you do not overlook it if possible. When it comes to connecting with people, it never hurts to sign up with a good marketing agency. Try and find someone who is a specialist in your niche. If you are a photographer for example, then consider signing up with a marketing agency for photographers.

Balance your Books

It’s super important that you take things at your own pace. You won’t get anywhere if you burn yourself out or if you don’t track your cash reserves. Success is possible if you build a good business on a strong foundation. Make this happen by developing a great service and also by making sure that you have a good social media presence.

Creating Your Company Disaster Preparedness Plan

Scott Asai1 Comment

Collaborative post – may contain affiliate links

Does your company have an emergency preparedness plan? No one is immune from a disaster, and it can happen to anyone at any time. However, what can set you apart is how prepared you are for an emergency or disaster and how quickly you can get back up and running again afterward.

Assess The Risk

Risks can come in any form. Both manufactured and natural, especially if you have physical premises in an area affected by adverse weather conditions. You need to look at the more imminent threats to your company and what you are more at risk for. This can be blizzards, wildfires, threats or violence to staff, or increased break-in and theft attempts for high-value products or equipment. Once you have identified the risks, you can prepare a plan.

What Protective Actions Can You Take?

Each emergency scenario has a correct answer that can save lives if taken care of immediately. Plan to implement one of the following actions, depending on the situation: evacuation, shelter in place, or lockdown. Take steps to ensure that your personnel are properly trained and are aware of each protection measure you have implemented.

Who Are The Key Contacts People Need to Know?

It’s critical to identify who in your business has the skills and training needed in an emergency. Do your employees know CPR? Who will be the internal and external point of contact for instructions and information? Who is responsible for chemical spills? Who knows the facilities well and can help limit the damage?

Include in this list third-party contractors who can help you to remedy any damage you might sustain. This can be anyone from a security expert for data breaches online, a Water Damage Restoration Company, structural engineers, construction companies, and more. Anyone who can help you to get back up and running if you suffer damage to physical buildings.

Inventory

Make sure you have a full and thorough inventory list of all the items you might need on-site. This can include bottled water, flashlights, fire extinguishers, medical supplies, tools, etc. Know where this is located and how to access this in an emergency so if you need it, you can know exactly where to find it and what will be there.

Keep Up To Date

Snowstorms, hurricanes, tornadoes, and other natural disasters are now better predicted. Preparing for storms includes assessing damage, protecting undamaged property, salvaging, and cleaning up afterward. Keep an eye out for potential weather disasters to minimize damage and business inconvenience.

Make sure to monitor all types of threats to your company. However, they might appear.

Be Financially Prepared

In the worst-case scenario, emergencies might result in the loss of life. However, even in the best-case scenario, they will almost certainly be expensive. Make sure you have contingency cash set up in case of damage or disruption – it could turn out to be the best investment you ever make.

Business owners, understandably, keep their attention focused on the bottom line. When it comes to an emergency, though, the only thing that matters is whether or not you are well prepared.

How to Emulate Successful Entrepreneurs

Scott AsaiLeave a comment

Collaborative post – may contain affiliate links

Do you ever wonder how an entrepreneur gets so successful? How did they do it? What do they do on an average day? These and other questions can leave you thinking if you’re doing anything right or wrong with your own business. While there may be some mysteries as to how successful entrepreneurs do their work and how they spend their day, there are small ways that you can emulate these successful entrepreneurs. Here are some great tips that successful entrepreneurs do that you can imitate themselves!

Setting realistic goals

Any successful business owner knows that whatever goals that they set for themselves and their business have to be obtainable. Smart and successful owners accept their current position and will go about taking small steps to achieve great things. Maintaining this major focus while going about it slowly is the best way to make your goals far more achievable. Also making small phases for goals such as weekly or quarterly is another great way to create easy and realistic goals that can have a major impact on your business.

Love what you do

Successful entrepreneurs love what they do, their work is their passion. Their work is their passion not because they’re a workaholic, but because they truly enjoy what they’re doing and want to continue moving forward doing it. This element of passion is what sets a person apart. Loving what you do and having a passion for it is going to make your work seem far more excellent and you’ll be less likely to feel any negative feelings such as dread. But having this passion for all of the work that you do will also prevent distractions, so you won’t become side-tracked.

Staying focused

Having a clear vision and staying focused on it is going to be one of the key components to how an entrepreneur gets successful and how they stay so successful. They keep connected to their visions whether it be through writing it down, having a vision board, daily reminders, or possibly other ways to keep connected to how they want their destiny to be. They also know helpful tips to keep their business and private life separate. It’s important to try to avoid any distractions and to keep your eyes on the prize.

Networking with like minded people

You don’t need to try to attempt to network with millionaires or owners of Fortune 500 companies. You instead just need to network and be around like-minded people who want to learn, who aim to be successful, or are staying focused. Networking with like-minded people will help in finding inspiration and accountability. There are plenty of networking events where you can find like-minded people.

Always being open to learning

There’s always time to keep on learning. The passion of always wanting to grow and learn is going to be a major aspect of how your business will expand. This is something that entrepreneurs constantly keep paying attention to. They read through books, attend courses, workshops, go to summits, hire a coach, do a program, visit seminars, or anything else as long as it allows them to further their education. Being open to growing and developing is going to have a major impact on your and your business in the long run. Doing things such as this is going to allow you to give your small business a big presence.

Small Business Owners: 8 Practical Business Growth Ideas

Scott Asai1 Comment

Collaborative post – may contain affiliate links

Generating more customers is a crucial business growth strategy. However, it is easier said than done. But that should not always be the case. Here are practical business growth ideas for small business owners.

Know your customers 

The first step is to understand your customers. Know their needs so you can tailor your products and services to meet those specific needs. You have to gain insight into your clients. To make this more manageable, you should personalize your services and ask for feedback. A survey is another perfect way to understand your clients. 

Improve your customer service

The customer experience (CX) is fast becoming a crucial factor when it comes to business growth. You have to ensure your customer service is exceptional to retain your existing customers and attract more. When you offer great customer services, your clients are more likely to refer other people to the business. 

Leverage the power of social media 

Social media has become a very powerful business tool. Increasing your social media presence is a great marketing strategy. Additionally, you can use social media influencers for marketing your brand and promoting your growth. Use this company to build your profile and attract new customers through social media campaigns. 

Create a network 

Networking is one of the best business growth strategies. Invest your time and money into building networks that will help you achieve the desired growth. Nowadays, business is all about who you know instead of what you know. Networking will allow you to build positive relationships with like-minded people in the industry and beyond, such as David Shulick, who can help with growth forecasts, for example. You can also use your network to gain more customers and experience. 

Create and host an event 

Creating and hosting an event is a great way to promote your brand and expand your customer base. For instance, you can create an exhibition and invite an industry leader to offer a keynote to your customers. This strategy will encourage more people to interact with your products and services.

Nurture your existing customer base

Do you have strategies to nurture your clients? Start creating lasting relationships with your existing customers to improve the retaining rate. There are many ways of doing this. For instance, you can improve how you stay in touch with your customers. Additionally, you should find new opportunities to increase production to cater to the growing customer base. 

Create brand awareness through CSR

Creating brand awareness is essential if you want to grow your business. Initiate community development projects or sponsor a community tournament or event to raise your business profile. Corporate social responsibility is an excellent business strategy to give back to the community and raise brand awareness. 

Track your progress

With all things said and done, you should evaluate your performance to see what works and what does not work for your business. Monitor your systems and identify areas that need improvement to boost growth. Accordingly, do not be afraid to try out different strategies until you find what is best for business growth. 

Final thoughts 

If you are a small business owner, growth should be in your goals. What you do and how you do it determines the success of your company. Give your business a big presence by going online and using social media influencers, among other tips. 

5 Ways To Give Your Small Business A Big Presence

Scott Asai2 Comments

Collaborative post – may contain affiliate links

For a lot of small businesses, one of the most difficult things is competing against the bigger companies in your industry. A lot of people tend to trust bigger businesses, as they view them as more reputable. In order to create a similar feeling towards your company, you need to look for ways to make your business appear bigger than it is. There are a number of ways you can do this, as you will discover below.

  • Choose a prestigious address – One of the best ways to make your business appear bigger and more professional is to choose a prestigious address. This is something you can do with ease nowadays, as there are many companies that give you the opportunity to set up a virtual address. This means you can show a physical business address on your website, yet your mail will be emailed to you. This enhances convenience while also enabling you to build a great brand image and make your business appear bigger than it is. You should also make sure you have a prestigious business phone system set-up as well.
  • Pay special attention to your website – Your website says a lot about your business and your brand. If your website looks amateurish, this will make your business look unprofessional. You don’t need to spend a fortune on your website, but you do need to get it right. It should look sleek and sophisticated while representing your brand image. It also needs to load quickly, be optimised for use on all devices, and be easy to use and navigate. Plus, you should ensure your website is optimised for search engine result pages so that you can increase your presence, which will, in turn, make your business appear bigger and more reputable. After all, when you search for a business on Google, you are more likely to find one of the top results more trustworthy than a company languishing on page three, right?
  • Grow your social media presence – The importance of being active on social media cannot be ignored in the current day and age. There are many social media platforms to choose from, and it’s all about being active on the social media networks that your consumer base uses. With the exception of Facebook, which appeals to all, each social media network has a different, distinct demographic. For example, Pinterest largely appeals to females of college age. If this isn’t your target audience, you could be wasting a lot of time and effort trying to build your business up on Pinterest.
  • Use a virtual private branch exchange (PBX) – For those who are unaware, this refers to a type of telephone system that gives you the ability to switch calls between a number of lines while also allowing all members of staff to share the same, single phone system. You don’t need to spend a fortune on such a system when there are cloud-based options available, for example, those that use voice over Internet protocol (VoIP). By being able to provide a number of different extensions for your company, as well as selecting your own phone number, you will be able to make your business appear bigger and more professional.
  • Use larger invoice numbers – One easy and effective way to make your small business appear bigger is to use larger invoice numbers. If you use small invoice numbers, for example, let’s say you send an invoice with #12 at the top of it, this makes it appear like your business only opened a week or so ago. It shows that you only have a small number of customers. If this is not the sort of image you want to project, it is better to use larger numbers. For example, you could start your invoices from 1000 instead of 1, meaning you would put #1012 at the top of your invoice rather than #12.

As you can see, there are a number of different strategies you can use to make your small business appear bigger than it is. If you follow the tips that have been mentioned above, you can make your business look more established, and this will generate a greater sense of trust, which will make people feel more secure when choosing your business over others in the industry.