Día: 20 abril, 2010

¿Cómo saber si nuestra empresa necesita Lean Management?

El Lean Management permite eliminar el desperdicio en los procesos de producción, es decir, todas aquellas tareas que insumen tiempo y recursos, pero que no agregan valor al producto final. Aquí, algunas pautas para indagar si necesitamos aplicar Lean en nuestra empresa…

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El Lean Management permite eliminar el desperdicio en los procesos de producción, es decir, todas aquellas tareas que insumen tiempo y recursos, pero que no agregan valor al producto final. Aquí, algunas pautas para indagar si necesitamos aplicar Lean en nuestra empresa…
Por Guillermo Briasco

En un artículo anterior en MATERIABIZ, hemos presentado los conceptos fundamentales del Lean Management.

La palabra Lean significa “magro” o “delgado”. Por lo tanto, aplicar Lean Management a un proceso es, básicamente, eliminar el desperdicio, es decir, toda aquella tarea que insume tiempo y recursos, pero que no agrega valor al producto final.

Si comparamos a un proceso ineficiente con una persona excedida de peso, justamente lo que hace la implementación del pensamiento Lean, es eliminar esos “kilitos de más” que tiene un proceso productivo.

Pero, ¿cómo saber si nuestro proceso productivo está “excedido de peso”?

Las personas cuentan con balanza, espejo y cinturón; y por más que se intente, ahí no hay engaño posible.

Desafortunadamente, aún no existen estos dispositivos para darnos cuenta si el proceso de nuestra planta necesita Lean. No obstante, sí disponemos de otros indicadores.

Si, en un proceso productivo, somos capaces de identificar, como mínimo, cuatro tipos diferentes de desperdicio, esa empresa es candidata al Lean.

Para identificar esta clase de pérdidas, hay que recorrer las plantas o, como dicen los japoneses (que algo saben de Lean), ir al “Gemba”, el lugar donde las cosas suceden.

Hagamos, por unos segundos, el ejercicio de imaginar que “somos un producto” que va de operación en operación a través del proceso. Analicemos entonces nuestra odisea como “productos”, los distintos tipos de desperdicio que se generan y las posibles soluciones.

Desperdicio de Stocks en Proceso/Inventario Leer más “¿Cómo saber si nuestra empresa necesita Lean Management?”

El sistema Lean, eliminando los desperdicios en los procesos de producción

Un cliente encargó seis sillas a un fabricante. Y le dijeron que podrían entregárselas en 45 días. Pero, ¿realmente es necesario un mes y medio para fabricar seis sillas? Una introducción al sistema Lean y la eliminación de desperdicios en los procesos de producción…

En realidad, si se identifican los tiempos de cada operación y luego se los suma, fabricar seis sillas probablemente no lleve más de un día. La diferencia entre 45 días y uno es puro desperdicio.


Un cliente encargó seis sillas a un fabricante. Y le dijeron que podrían entregárselas en 45 días. Pero, ¿realmente es necesario un mes y medio para fabricar seis sillas? Una introducción al sistema Lean y la eliminación de desperdicios en los procesos de producción…
Por Guillermo Briasco

Una persona va a comprar sillas a un fabricante de primera línea. Tras elegir el modelo, el color y el tapizado, el vendedor le dice que, para cerrar la compra, debe dejar una seña del 50 por ciento y que el plazo de entrega es de 45 días.

Pero, ¿cómo es posible que una empresa que exporta y vende miles de sillas por mes, demore 45 días en entregar seis? ¿Realmente es necesario ese tiempo para fabricarlas? ¿Cuánto se demora en cortar la madera, maquinarla, lustrarla y ponerle el tapizado?

En realidad, si se identifican los tiempos de cada operación y luego se los suma, fabricar seis sillas probablemente no lleve más de un día. La diferencia entre 45 días y uno es puro desperdicio.

Según el “diccionario Lean” (o Just in Time, para los más veteranos en estas lides), “desperdicio” es toda actividad que insume recursos pero que no agrega valor. Por “agregar valor”, entendemos toda aquella operación que genere una transformación física del producto.

Observando un proceso a través del prisma Lean, lo que se ve es que transportar piezas en proceso de un lugar a otro, contarlas, almacenarlas, inspeccionarlas, reprocesarlas, etc; son operaciones que no agregan valor.

Así, volviendo a nuestro ejemplo, si seguimos una silla a lo largo de esos 45 días, podremos apreciar varios tipos de desperdicio: transporte de piezas, esperas para ser procesadas, productos defectuosos que deben ser sacados de la línea y ser reprocesados o descartados, movimientos innecesarios de operarios, etc.

El común denominador es un gran lote de piezas en proceso (donde seguramente estén las seis sillas en cuestión).

Precisamente, la aplicación de los conceptos Lean busca eliminar el desperdicio, es decir, reducir la brecha entre el ciclo de fabricación actual y aquel que considera sólo las operaciones que agregan valor.

Para lograrlo, lo primordial es especificar el valor; que no es otra cosa que determinar qué cualidades de un producto o servicio valora el consumidor final (es decir, cuáles son los atributos por los que paga). Leer más “El sistema Lean, eliminando los desperdicios en los procesos de producción”

Now Watch TV Channels From All Around The World Free Of Cost With TvTube


Do you have a high speed broadband connection but not know how to kill your boredom? What if I told you that you could view any one of countless television channels from all parts of the world using only your broadband internet and without spending a penny? Surely you could find at least one interesting program on one of those countless channels, a program that will entertain you and help pass your time.

tvtube

Watching any channel from around the world is exactly what can be done using TvTube.

From sports channels to documentary ones, TvTube is a great resource for TV channels. The channels are categorized nation-wise and genre-wise.

At the site’s homepage we can see channels being currently watched, most popular channels, and the recently added channels.

tvtube1

A search box is also located in the top right of the homepage which facilitates finding any channel we are looking for.

tvtube2

Clicking on the name of a channel starts its broadcast within a player in the browser. Leer más “Now Watch TV Channels From All Around The World Free Of Cost With TvTube”

Cuatro maneras de extraer más valor al marketing digital


Las empresas deben hacer profundos cambios operativos, estratégicos y organizacionales para ser anunciantes digitales eficaces y ser más ágiles, más productivas y acelerar el crecimiento de los ingresos.

Desde los mismos orígenes de Internet, los anunciantes la vieron como un extenso laboratorio para aumentar ventas y generar lealtad. La mayoría fracasó.
Por su parte, los consumidores adoptaron la tecnología digital según su conveniencia y al hacerlo alteraron totalmente la forma de hacer sus decisiones de compra.
Hoy, las empresas que entienden esta evolución están haciendo de la interactividad digital el centro de sus estrategias de marketing, y de acuerdo con eso, reconsideran prioridades, presupuestos y reformulan procesos y habilidades.

Los que más éxito tienen se limitan a cuatro fuentes de valor para sus actividades digitales. Primero, coordinan sus actividades para iniciar al consumidor en un viaje de compras cada vez más digital. Segundo, dotan a sus marcas de contenido que permita al consumidor crear su propia identidad de marca y, al hacerlo, convertirse en embajador de la marca. Tercero, reconocen la necesidad de pensar como editores multimedia en gran escala mientras manejan un aumento increíble en el contenido que crean para sostener productos, segmentos, canales y promociones. Finalmente, esos anunciantes programan estratégicamente cómo juntar, aprovechar y usar esa cantidad increíble de datos digitales de que disponen ahora.

La diferencia del marketing digital

En realidad, siempre se ha sabido que los consumidores tienden a emprender un viaje de varias etapas cuando hacen sus decisiones de compra. Y sin embargo, muchas compañías siguen concentrando recursos de marketing en sólo dos etapas: marketing de marca para atraerlos en el momento en que empiezan a considerar productos, y promociones en el punto final de la venta para inclinarlos a su favor cuando están a punto de hacer la compra.

La tecnología digital está cambiando todo eso. Los consumidores que antes pedían recomendaciones a familiares o amigos sobre algún producto que necesitan ahora encuentran online la opinión de los usuarios, comparan precios y evalúan opciones en los socios de redes sociales. Ese fluir de información no solamente da poder a los consumidores sino que además permite a los departamentos de marketing participar en esa conversación.

Pero pasar de una mentalidad de ventas “de una sola mano” a una relación de doble vía con los consumidores requiere cambios fundamentales en la manera en que los anunciantes hacen negocios. Algunos los han hecho e hicieron pruebas con todo lo que se les ocurrìa pues no sabían a ciencia cierta qué funcionaría y qué no. Vehículos digitales como videos publicitarios, contenido auspiciado y promociones online. Siguen apareciendo nuevas formas de entrega publicitaria online, con sitios renovados y aparición de múltiples micrositios para productos específicos. Las empresas están comprando miles de palabras clave para búsquedas y nuevas agencias siguen apareciendo para atender el deseo de los anunciantes de contenido innovador. Si bien muchas de esas iniciativas son sensatas, a veces falla la implementación, lo que significa más gastos con pocos resultados.

Experiencia integral para el consumidor

Sea a través de emails de marketing, o por búsqueda de productos online o por uso de dispositivos móviles para buscar cupones, los clientes de hoy interactúan continuamente con las marcas a medida que se acercan a la decisión de compra. Y sin embargo, esos contactos son manejados, por lo general, por sectores completamente diferentes de una organizaciòn. Los canales digitales pueden unificar esa experiencia e impedir que se escape la oportunidad. Claro que no es fácil coordinar contenidos en toda la experiencia del consumidor, pero lo que se pierde si no se hace podría ser más difícil de afrontar.

Inspirar a los clientes para que le ayuden a estirar el presupuesto de marketing Leer más “Cuatro maneras de extraer más valor al marketing digital”

FT ComMetrics Blog Index 2009


Just a few years ago, companies had hardly considered blogs as a viable option for corporate communication. Today, they are getting ever more attention. Some of it has been applied in the last six months.

This is the latest version of the FT ComMetrics Blog Index – FTCBI – we update it regularly. If you wish to have a look at the FTCBI that was published in the Financial Times please visit:

FT ComMetrics Blog Index – 2009-05-14

Rank Company RSS
1 Google 100 8 0 0 652305 186946
2 Viacom 33 6 0 0 1062705 23126
3 Adobe 25 6 0 0 37262 24795
4 Nokia 23 7 0 0 236757 9100
5 Microsoft 21 8 0 0 44514 1009
6 Yahoo! 20 7 0 0 29072 5380
7 Dell 19 7 0 0 77 4900
8 eBay 18 6 0 0 29700 6178
9 Reuters 17 6 0 0 263907 21
10 News Corporation 16 6 0 0 12890 1585
10 American Express 16 6 0 0 5289 2536
12 Cisco 15 6 0 0 34168 142
12 Boeing 15 6 0 0 29643 324
12 Johnson & Johnson 15 6 0 0 18221 342
12 Amazon 15 6 0 0 7521 36
12 General Electric 15 6 0 0 6984 267
12 Oracle 15 6 0 0 5655 325
12 Toyota 15 6 0 0 5435 205
12 Coca-Cola 15 6 0 0 5186 267
12 Time Warner 15 6 0 0 3721 55
12 Hewlett Packard 15 6 0 0 3485 0
12 Wells Fargo 15 6 0 0 1398 75
12 Telenor Group 15 6 0 0 750 4
12 Accenture 15 6 0 0 299 3
12 E.ON 15 6 0 0 37 0
12 Alcoa 15 6 0 0 30 2
27 Daimler 13 5 0 0 24296 312
27 InBev 13 5 0 0 22266 123
27 Siemens 13 5 0 0 19252 46
27 EMC 13 5 0 0 15429 301
27 Emerson Electric 13 5 0 0 7269 220
27 Nike 13 5 0 0 5611 325
33 Berkshire Hathaway 12 5 0 0 7906 39
33 Fedex 12 5 0 0 4274 82
33 BNP Paribas 12 5 0 0 4153 38
33 GM 12 5 0 0 3818 261
33 Deutsche Telekom 12 5 0 0 2613 15
33 France Telecom 12 5 0 0 2242 32
33 Wal-Mart 12 5 0 0 2193 145
33 Chevron 12 5 0 0 369 14
33 Johnson Controls 12 5 0 0 340 9
33 GlaxoSmithKline 12 5 0 0 106 15
33 Ericsson 12 5 0 0 73 0
33 IBM 12 5 0 0 30 0
33 Royal Bank of Canada 12 5 0 0 23 4
33 SAP 12 5 0 0 7 0
33 Henkel 12 5 0 0 0 22
33 Volvo 12 5 0 0 0 4
49 BBVA 10 4 0 0 23796 326
49 BASF 10 4 0 0 9339 19
49 Telia Sonera 10 4 0 0 8415 74
49 Samsung 10 4 0 0 5187 17
49 Swisscom 10 4 0 0 4127 32
49 Bank of America 10 4 0 0 1020 28
49 Cadbury Schweppes 10 4 0 0 729 23
49 Procter & Gamble 10 4 0 0 609 10
49 Petro Canada 10 4 0 0 496 24
49 Sony 10 4 0 0 244 2
59 Kraft Foods 8 3 0 0 1832 34
59 Telstra 8 3 0 0 501 6
59 Sygenta 8 3 0 0 334 0
59 Deutsche Bank 8 3 0 0 112 1
59 Fiat 8 3 0 0 32 0
59 Aviva 8 3 0 0 25 0
65 Nissan 5 2 0 0 23600 211
65 ABB 5 2 0 0 184 2
65 Novo Nordisk 5 2 0 0 69 3
65 Unilever 5 2 0 0 38 0
65 Royal/Dutch Shell 5 2 0 0 23 0
65 Centrica 5 2 0 0 7 0
71 McDonald’s 0 0 0 0 8103 334
71 ING 0 0 0 0 4760 37
71 Verizon Communications 0 0 0 0 3279 47
71 Renault 0 0 0 0 674 46
71 Arcelor Mittal 0 0 0 0 433 6
71 Nestlé 0 0 0 0 37 1
71 UPS 0 0 0 0 0 0

© ComMetrics – CyTRAP Labs GmbH 2009-05-13.

    Note. Some of the calculations used in this table draw upon publicly available information that has not been independently investigated by ComMetrics – a division of CyTRAP Labs GmbH. Other data were independently investigated and collected by ComMetrics. Rankings do not represent a guarantee of future performance for blogs.
    In the case of several blogs from one company (e.g., Daimler, Dell, Google, Oracle and Wal-Mart), the highest ranking one is included in this list.Check out more about the methodology used and composite indices applied.
    Blogs that require registration to gain access are NOT included in this list because gated communities do not follow the Internet’s philosophy of making information freely and easily available to the public.
    Methododology.
    The FT ComMetrics Blog Index ranks the effectiveness of the corporate blogs of the top 75 companies from the US, Europe and the rest of the world listed on the FT Global 500 2008 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting              500 2008      end_of_the_skype_highlighting.
    To create the table, the highest-scoring corporate blog is given a ComMetrics Footprint score of 100, and other scores are recalculated as a percentage in relation to that top score. The corporation with an overall score of 100 is therefore not necessarily top in every category; rather, it has accumulated the highest composite score.
    To arrive at a corporation’s rank, we examine the data for each indicator and standardize the value for each about its mean using z-scores. All criteria are then aggregated and re-standardized. The following categories are used in the table of raw data.
    ● Google PageRank interprets web links and assigns a numerical weighting to each site.
    ● Technorati Authority analyses the number of links to a blog from other sites.
    ● Technorati Ranking rates blogs according to authority and popularity.
    ● Yahoo! InLinks monitors links to a blog.
    ● Google Blog Search is a search engine for blogs that produces lists of results, the
    ●ComMetrics Footprint is the rankings we calculate using the above indicators.

What will happen during the current economic downturn? Tough recessionary times would suggest that more emphasis should be placed on this effective communications medium. We’ll keep you posted.

P.S. – Some would say that there are no good indicators other than a site’s own unique visitor numbers and bounce rate. However,  these measures are increasingly inaccurate when attempting to determine the value derived from non revenue-generating activities like blogging. Of course, the indicators and composite indices we provide above may not give you the whole truth and nothing but the truth either.

Thus, data do help demonstrate a trend and while the difference between 90 versus 120 backlinks may be real, it is not necessarily something to worry about. Still, if your backlinks dropped or your competitors’ backlinks improved significantly within the last six months, then getting your social media budget approved probably just got more difficult. Unless you can show how this will help to move your blog up in the rankings.

http://ftindex.commetrics.com/

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A Beginner’s Guide: Stepping Into Web Design Industry


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Perhaps you’ve got some experience in the web industry but unsure what to do next. Or perhaps you are new to web design and you’re just starting out. Whatever the case, you are not alone. There are many others like yourself who are still feeling their way around in the dark.

Stepping into Web Design Industry
Image credit: Jaganatha

The web design industry is a big machine. Whatever dreams you may have of becoming an established designer might seem close to impossible. Especially since you run the risk of facing major problems like the lack of financial stability, lack of clients and jobs, and insecurity due to the lack of confidence in getting jobs etcetera. However, take heart. Nothing is impossible, but also know that nothing is easy.

If you are a new designer hoping to make a name for yourself in this industry, here are a few useful tips to help you keep afloat.

Your First Foray into the World of Web Design

You probably have many questions and concerns as a newcomer. Regardless of your background, knowledge or skill, you might still feel at a loss as to where to begin.

Stepping into the Unknown
Image credit: artofthemayerniks

It all comes down to the individual. There is no right or wrong in regards to how to, or whether you should even become a web designer. However, like any other career path, you must have drive and passion to succeed and be at the top of your game in the industry.

If you have a degree, don’t be complacent; having a degree doesn’t automatically mean that you will have a successful career in web design. However, as discussed in our previous article – Self Taught vs. Formal Education with Showcase of Design Schools, having a degree sometimes can give you an advantage.

In order to be successful, one must always be willing to continue learning. We continue learning every day of our lives. A web designer especially, will continuously learn something new because he or she can never know everything about web design.

With the rapid advancement of technology, it is necessary to constantly update yourself in order to keep up with the latest trend or technology and succeed in this field. This is where passion for the industry and the drive to excel come in handy. Self improvement is a must for all web designers.

Becoming a freelancer might come across as an easy path to take. If you have the technical skills, having the freedom to work when it suits you sounds like a great idea. But is it really? There are plus and minus points to being a freelancer. However, most experienced web designers will advise any newcomer that it is best to work for someone else first.

Don’t knock working for others right off the bat. Whether you start out working for a small agency or a large company, the experience you gain from those first years and projects there will teach you many things necessary to survive when you’re out there on your own. Working for others will allow you to learn how to communicate with clients without the pressures of messing things up while handling every aspect of the job. Also, working for someone else ensures that you have a stable income and be able to focus on the creative aspects and developing better technical skills of the job.

Resources:

Portfolios – The Doorway to Success

Every web designer’s must have is a good portfolio to showcase their abilities. If you can’t even create a decent portfolio to advertise what you can do, how can you instill confidence in potential clients that they can entrust their projects with you? Put lots of effort into building a good portfolio website and your hard work will pay off eventually.

Doorway to Success
Image credit: ..Peter

Design software doesn’t come cheap. As a newcomer, you might not be able to afford a professional version of various design software. However, there are options you can consider. You can take advantage of a fully functional 30-day trial version of Photoshop. A more permanent alternative could be to use Photoshop Elements or to purchase a second hand version of the more pricey software in the market today. There is also free software that is available for download online like the ones shown below.

Resources:

Not every designer can be good at both design and coding or programming. However, learning how to code and how to translate your designs for the web by reading online tutorials and books is a reflection of the dedication and passion you have for the field. Your willingness to learn and to upgrade yourself is an essential trait that will be attractive to both employers and clients alike. If coding is not your strong point, it can of course be outsourced. However, that would defeat the purpose of striking out on your own as a freelancer when you still need to rely on others to complete the jobs you take on.

Yes, your portfolio must be creative and give others a sense of your personality and style. However, you must not forget that it is first and foremost a showcase of your work and your skills. Prospective clients will need to see your previous work to be able to determine if they like what you can offer them. Prepare to be judged. Your portfolio will be one of the key deciding factors as to whether potential clients hire you or not. The problem with design or any creative field is that everything is subjective. Not everyone’s likes and tastes are the same. We are all entitled to our personal opinions. As such, not everyone will like your work. Learn to accept criticism and how to differentiate between the constructive criticisms from the negative ones. A designer must be able to handle criticism to grow and improve.

More resources:

Here are a few simple but inspiring web design portfolios:

Blog Your Way to Recognition

Blogs are a popular trend at the moment. They are easy to create and maintain. In fact, having an online blog can work to your favour to support your creditability and to connect with your audience. With the many resources available to help you create a blog, the real question is not how to create a blog as a web designer, but why it is useful.

Recognition
Image credit: D to the Kath

Blogs, short for web log, are basically an online journal or diary. People keep blogs for various reasons. Some use blogs to advertise their business and boost sales; others use blogs to network, or purely for personal reasons and purposes.

Web designers can use blogs to support their portfolio and to promote themselves as designers. It is also a very good way to boost search engine rankings. Each time you publish an entry, you increase the likelihood of your blog being discovered. This will in turn help you to be recognised as a designer.
It is also a good way to allow your clients to get to know you better and to determine if you are a person worth working with. It is not just important to be a good designer. You must also be a person of good character in order to attract potential clients to trust you and seek you out to handle their projects.

As such, ensure that the quality of your blog is relevant and interesting to readers so that you will gather a following and make a name for yourself.

Resources: Leer más “A Beginner’s Guide: Stepping Into Web Design Industry”

The 5Cs of Choosing the Right Client


Previously on Onextrapixel, we’ve looked at the 5 Cs of Hiring a Freelance Designer. Today’s article will turn the tables around and explore the 5 Cs freelancers should look out for in a client.

The 5 Cs is not an unfamiliar subject to those of us living in a busy metropolitan regardless of which continent or country. Living in this modern and fast paced society, the need for the 5 Cs (Cash, Credit Cards, Condominium, Career and Country Club Memberships) is a confirmation of the high standard of living we have today.

5Cs of Choosing the Right Client
Image credit: Shutterite Co. /Kelly hofer

Although many have goals to attain all 5 Cs, this article explore 5 very different attributes that are also important especially for freelance web designers.

As freelancers, many times, the power is out of your hands. Clients are the ones with the upper hand because they have the option to choose from various candidates vying for their project. Although you have no control over whether clients will choose you over others, you can work on the things that you have control over to put your best foot forward and give it your best shot.

Clients have a right to choose. So do freelancers. You can choose to politely reject the job offer if they do not meet your own expectations. The idea is to meet each other half way and come to a mutual understanding and agreement. It’s time every one played by the rules; fair and acceptable rules.

The 5Cs of Choosing Clients

Before you go ahead and accept a job offer, these are some guidelines you can follow to determine if the client is worth working for. The following is a characteristic scan on five key areas you should take note of when you consider taking up a project from your clients.

Lack of Condescension

Respect is a key component in every good working relationship. Money isn’t everything; and money shouldn’t be used to make others feel small and inferior. If potential clients treat you with condescension and think that they are cut above the rest, working for them will be a rather unpleasant experience. They will not be open to equal and fair communication and discussion and this will greatly affect the process and the end product of the project itself.

Condescension Leer más “The 5Cs of Choosing the Right Client”