Know
Your Business
I was was reminded -
again - how
important it is to understand how the business you're in works.
The first reminder came
when I
learned that UPS trucks don't make left turns. Think about that for a
second. UPS has determined that left turns are EXPENSIVE. There's more
idling time, which is expensive. And there's more accidents, which are
VERY expensive. UPS manages its business carefully, and it know these
things, so it had its routing software set up to eliminate left turns.
You might think that's a nice thing...but UPS thinks it's good
business. How good? UPS has about 90,000 trucks...and this change alone
saves them ELEVEN THOUSAND TRUCKS.
That is not just
nice..that is
SMART.
And
for me, that's not just smart... that is soooooooo COOL!!
Need
more? American Airlines prints marketing messages on the napkins that
it gives out to go under every drink it provides. [The latest: "Turn
flights and everyday purchases into lifetime memories."]. That costs
money, right? Sure it does: plain napkins are cheaper than napkins that
are printed upon. Soooooooo, if you're a flight attendant, you're told
that you're supposed to place the napkin on the tray SO THE MARKETING
MESSAGE IS READABLE BY THE PASSENGER
Niiiice.
This isn't
micro-managing...this
is managing your business, because you know your business.
Do you know your
business? Do
you know what drives revenue? What are the biggest costs? What are the
controllable costs? How can you contribute?
If you don't know the
answers to
these questions you should. Management doesn't happen in a vacuum. It
happens in the context of a business.
A business you oughta
know.
Did
You Know?
... you can sort all
our
podcasts by topic? If you're looking for all the casts on feedback or
evaluations, presenting or project management you can sort the casts
easily using topics. On the home page, click on the blue podcast link.
Click the drop down, which will be showing 'none' and all topics from
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