"strategy matters as much as execution"

É sempre assim, crescer por crescer dá nisto:

"emerging market companies that focus primarily on top-line growth tend to become less coherent over time. One-time fixes pile up to create a hodgepodge of ill-fitting processes and ad hoc solutions. Without a solid foundation, companies begin to experience operational problems, such as poor quality, customer defections, low employee morale, and poor inventory management.
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In emerging markets, as in the developed world, strategy matters as much as execution."

Qual é a estratégia da sua empresa, no mercado nacional e no mercado internacional?
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Trecho retirado de "Why Strategy Matters in Emerging Markets After All"

“This industry doesn’t have a future in China”

"Now, with labor and other costs rising at home, Chinese textile entrepreneurs are looking east over the Pacific and wondering whether it’s time to move back
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“This industry doesn’t have a future in China,” said Zhu Shanqing, chairman of Keer Group. “It’s not just been difficult to grow, but it’s difficult to survive.”
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Mr. Zhu is chairman and founder of Keer Group Co., which has agreed to invest $218 million to build a yarn-spinning factory in Lancaster Country, South Carolina. The factory will in part use the German-made machines Keer has been running in Hangzhou for the last 10 years.
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Mr. Zhu–who sports a bowl haircut that seems at odds with his otherwise natty style of dress and who has a thing for French red wines–said the decision to relocate some of his company’s production to the U.S. is due to “constantly rising” production costs at home.
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Mr. Zhu considered Vietnam, Pakistan and India, but currency volatility—and the lack of financial tools to hedge foreign exchange risks—in those economies steered him toward the U.S.
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He estimates that costs for one South Carolina worker are about six times more than one in China, but that the difference could shrink to three times by 2015.
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A major saving will come from what the firm pays for cotton.(Moi ici: Assim que o Grande Planeador entra, começa a borrada que só se repercute anos depois) ... Beijing imposes tariffs that can run as high on 40% on imports. Imports are also limited by quotas. That’s resulted in cotton selling at higher prices in China than the rest of the world.
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Other Chinese textile firms in the Hangzhou area are also looking at the viability of producing in the U.S., said Mr. Zhu: “Our neighbors are definitely watching us.”

Trechos retirados de "Why One Chinese Textile Maker Sees His Future in the U.S."

No país das colheres de sopa

"Vamos todos emigrar para o país sem estado. Fica ao lado do país da concorrência perfeita." Propunha o nosso Mário Cortes em Março passado.
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Depois de 7% da população portuguesa, 700 mil pessoas, ter emigrado silenciosamente entre 1998 e 2008 (mais de 100 mil só em 2008), continua o fenómeno "Entre 100 a 120 mil portugueses emigraram este ano".
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As pessoas não precisam de emigrar para um país sem Estado, basta-lhes um com menos Estado que este, ou um onde possam ganhar a vida.
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No país das colheres de sopa, "Retroescavadora", um país onde tanta gente julga que o dinheiro que as empresas ganham é automaticamente dos patrões, como se não houvesse uma rastreabilidade fiscal, é natural que o tipo de emprego que se cria seja este:

Precioso para toda a comunidade. Contudo, acabando os empregos no Estado, não há procura suficiente para as fornadas de universitários por um lado. Por outro lado, para os empregos do salário mínimo, continua a sentir-se o efeito da Ásia (toda uma década quase sempre a diminuir).

Como será com as outras?

Mais uma figura que me fascina...
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Quem haveria de dizer que ambos os tampos são iguais...
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Se é tão fácil iludirmos-nos em coisas que se comprovam com régua e esquadro, como será com as outras?

Acerca dos consultores de compra e dos modelos de negócio que os vão promover

"It turns out, though, that the ease of making a choice isn’t inherent in the choices themselves, according to the new research, but has much to do with the state of mind of the chooser. This finding overturns the notion, widely accepted by choice researchers and ordinary people alike, that some choices are intrinsically easier than others. And, if properly understood, the study results can help marketers make it easier for buyers to reach a buying decision.
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But the researchers also knew of previous research that indicates that thinking of another person puts people in an abstract, big-picture frame of mind. When we think of a problem or a decision on behalf of another person, especially a person we’re not close to, we tend to get to the crux of the issue instead of getting stuck on distracting details."

"Abundance of choice is today the norm. That is due to the Internet. A physical shop is always limited by its physical space. The Internet knows no limit.
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The first battle cry in e-commerce and on the web was that now people have more choice than ever. More choice, the better was the value proposition. There was no limitation any more. You find any product today on the web in thousands of variations.
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We have now more choice than we can cope with.
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The next years we will see many new business models that put the right choice in the center of the value proposition and build a business model around this."

Trecho inicial retirado de "Uzma Khan: Making Hard Choices Easier for Customers"
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Trecho final retirado de "The Abundance of Choice. A Call For a Fresh Value Proposition; The Need For the Right Choice"

Tem a palavra o Tribunal Constitucional

"Yet the very things that made it so attractive to buy an electric car are now under pressure. Two incentives in particular have become victims of their own success: the ability to drive in bus lanes and free public charging spots.
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During rush hour on Dec. 3, they made up 75% of the 829 vehicles that drove on the bus lane. After accounting for taxis, two-wheelers and mini-buses, all of which have the right to use the lane, buses made up only 7.5% of the traffic in the lane. According to the paper, bus lanes can handle only about 1,000 vehicles per hour because of the many entries, exits and bus stops.
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Charging facilities are also over-subscribed. The total number of public charging facilities in Norway is only 5,000. Oslo, the capital, has a mere 500,
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Things are only going to get worse. Car manufacturers have cottoned on to the popularity of electric cars in Norway and they’re piling in.
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 “I am afraid that within one year this problem will be so big that the government will be forced to change the rules,” says Bjart Holtsmark of Statistics Norway."

E os direitos adquiridos?
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E o princípio da previsibilidade?
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E o princípio da imutabilidade?
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E o princípio da realidade?
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Deve haver inconstitucionalidade por aqui...
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Trechos retirados de "Norway is starting to have more electric cars than it can handle"

e, três meses depois de Agosto de 2013

Evolução do número de desempregados inscritos nos Centros de Emprego entre Janeiro de 2011 e Novembro de 2013:

A evolução homóloga do desemprego e a evolução mensal do desemprego entre Janeiro de 2011 e Novembro de 2013:

A figura que se segue tira uma fotografia da evolução homóloga do desemprego em Novembro de 2013 e, mostra onde está a ser criado emprego líquido (barras negativas):

Em Janeiro havia 1 barra negativa, 18 em Outubro e, agora, em Novembro, 19 quase 20. As ofertas de emprego no IEFP em 2013 aumentaram mais de 61% em comparação com o mês de Novembro de 2012.

Finalmente

Ás 17h11!!!

O dia mais importante do meu calendário profano!!!
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O dia em que as noites começam a minguar.

Tudo culpa de uma moeda fraca...

"As exportações de mercadorias da Região do Norte continuam a observar um crescimento bastante mais acentuado (embora em desaceleração) para os destinos situados fora da União Europeia. No comércio extra-UE, o valor das exportações da Região do Norte cresceu 9,1%, em termos homólogos, no 3º trimestre de 2013 (que compara com 9,4% no 2º trimestre e com 13,0% no 1º trimestre). Nas vendas da Região do Norte para a UE, pelo contrário, observa-se um crescimento homólogo mais moderado (cerca de 3,4%, em valor), mas em recuperação (uma vez que a variação tinha sido negativa no início do ano e foi inferior a 1% no 2º trimestre). Assim, foram as vendas para a UE que no 3º trimestre justificaram a aceleração de crescimento das exportações da Região do Norte.
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No 3º trimestre de 2013, o maior contributo para o crescimento em valor das exportações da Região do Norte face ao período homólogo do ano anterior foi assegurado pelas exportações de calçado, com uma variação homóloga estimada de 14,1%. Seguem-se, por ordem decrescente do respectivo contributo para a variação global das exportações da Região do Norte, as exportações de máquinas, aparelhos e instrumentos mecânicos (com uma variação homóloga de 23,5%), de máquinas, aparelhos e materiais eléctricos (+10,2%), de vestuário de malha (+10,1%) e de plásticos e suas obras (+19,1%)."

Tudo culpa de uma moeda fraca...
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Trechos retirados do "Norte Conjuntura" relativo ao 3º trimestre de 2013.

Leica e jtbd

"A empresa investiu 22 milhões de euros na modernização das instalações e de algumas máquinas e decidiu também aumentar a capacidade de produção. Para prevenir, a Leica Portugal tem ainda cinco mil metros quadrados para expansão se for necessário, mas entretanto, a fábrica antiga — que era suposto ser vendida — foi reactivada porque há muitas encomendas. Contra todas as expectativas, a Lcica continua a bater recordes nas vendas e no número de trabalhadores. Só este ano, a empresa contratou cerca de 70 trabalhadores.
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"Somos quase 850. Estamos com um volume de encomendas que nem sonhávamos em 2008", disse Carlos Mira O ex-libris da marca, a Leica M, tem sete meses de lista de espera em todo o mundo. As encomendas chegam sobretudo da China, Japão, Coreia, Tailândia e EUA"

Quem compra uma Leica, compra uma máquina fotográfica? Compra mesmo uma máquina fotográfica?
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Qual o customer jobs-to-be-done realizado por uma Leica?
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Trecho retirado de "Leica: não há duas iguais"

O inferno socialista

• "Operadores logísticos criticam o “monstro da burocracia informatizada” nas regras de transporte"
• "Quiosque de Catarina Portas sem licença devido a casa-de-banho"

"Why Change is so hard"

Daqui.

Acerca das curvas de Stobachoff

"Within any given customer base, there will be differences in the revenues customers generate for the firm and in the costs the firm has to incur to secure those revenues. While most firms will know the customer revenues, many firms are unaware of all costs associated with customer relationships.
In general, product costs will be known for each customer, but sales and marketing, service, and support costs are mostly treated as overhead. Customer profitability analysis (CPA) refers to the allocation of revenues and costs to customer segments or individual customers, such that the profitability of those segments and/or individual customers can be calculated.
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customers, too, differ in their consumption of resources. The size and number of orders, the number of sales visits, the use of helpdesks, and various other services can be very different for each customer. Consequently, some customers incur more relationship costs than others, leading to different levels of customer profitability.
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It is considered good industrial marketing practice to build and nurture profitable relationships with customers. To be able to do this, a firm should know how current customer relationships differ in profitability, as well as what customer segments offer higher potential for future profitable customer
relationships."

Trechos retirados de "The implementation of customer profitability analysis: A case study"

Marcos 6, 4

""Portugal poderá, em breve, atingir uma nova época dourada na área têxtil, exactamente através do design e da moda. É importante produzir em sítios de confiança e Portugal é de confiança. Portugal está no bom momento para a criatividade", disse Agatha Ruiz de la Prada, no encerramento da inauguração da IMOD - Incubadora de Moda e Design de Santo Tirso."

Santos da casa não fazem milagres

Trecho retirado de "Agatha Ruiz de la Prada: "Portugal pode atingir em breve uma época dourada no têxtil""

O morto mercado interno

Lembram-se de "O mercado interno não está morto"?
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Fiquei seduzido pelo desafio contido neste título "Aumento da concorrência ajudou a venda recorde de máquinas Bimby" mal o li.
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Marca de topo passou incólume pela crise e, quando aparecem as ofertas low-cost... atinge vendas recorde!!!

"foi a primeira vez que a Vorwerk, em Portugal há 13 anos, conseguiu vendas mensais na ordem das cinco mil unidades.
Os robots de cozinha multifunções invadiram o mercado no último ano e chegaram finalmente às prateleiras da grande distribuição. Em Setembro, o grupo Sonae (dono do PÚBLICO) colocou à venda a Yämmi nas lojas Continente e Worten, por 349 euros, menos de metade do valor actual da concorrente Bimby (que custa 966 euros)." 

Curiosidade do dia

"The economy of the future will not be the economy as it is now"

Um discurso que não anda longe da mensagem deste blogue sobre aquilo a que poderemos chamar emprego em Mongo:

"You can’t avoid peer-to-peer marketplaces.
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They all facilitate integration into the economy without the need to secure employment from a large company.
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Instead, the growing peer economy enables people to monetize skills and assets they already have. Vendors and providers on these platforms choose when to work, what to do and where to do it, sidestepping traditional constraints of geography and scheduling.
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Embedded in this concern are assumptions as to what constitutes a job: that it be full-time, offer benefits, and provide a livable income. These parameters make up a framework, one that is baked into our society. But this framework—which dominated 20th century work—has been on the decline since the late 1970s.
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Though it may seem “timeless”, the 20th century framework for work is not the first such formulation and it will not be the last. There were other mainstream understandings before it—factory work, piece-meal work, craftsmanship and apprenticeship—and undergirding them were a mix of cultural and political factors.
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the peer economy is well positioned to rival our popular understanding of work. The peer economy won’t take over where the framework of full-time employment once sat, but it does change our understanding of what “full work” could mean.
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The economy of the future will not be the economy as it is now. The challenge before us is to reimagine what full work means, not based simply on how we’re used to conceiving of it, but based on a consideration of what we deem most valuable (independence, security, connectedness, etc.).  Thanks to similar movements—from unions to vulnerable workers to urban and rural cooperatives—the threads for that conversation are already there. Let’s make something of it."

Trechos retirados de "The Peer Economy Will Transform Work (or at Least How We Think of It)"

Experience curve...

A "experience curve" vale cada vez menos...

"“The experience curve is the means of measuring probable cost differentials,” BCG wrote in 1973. “A difference (i.e., a ratio) in market share of 2 to 1 should produce about 20 percent or more differential in pretax cost on value added.” In other words, if you command twice as much market share as your nearest competitor, your pretax cost of doing business ought to be 20 percent lower than that competitor’s. This model led, in turn, to another “powerful oversimplification” (Henderson’s term) from the offices of BCG: the “Growth-Share Matrix.”

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If you make 1 million widgets out of the 100 million widgets produced every year, you have a 1 percent market share. If your largest competitor makes only 500,000 widgets, you have a relative market share of two times, and you should have a 20 percent cost advantage over that competitor.
Or you would have up until about 1978. In that year, BCG revised downward the power of the experience curve: from 20 percent to 10 percent. Presumably, this came as an unpleasant surprise to those CEOs who, in the previous decade, had been using the Growth-Share Matrix to make some of their most important decisions. But most likely, it did not come as a surprise to those managers of highly profitable companies who somehow managed to make big returns despite their relatively small market share."

Basta recordar o calçado e o destino dos super-eficientes...
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Agora vejamos isto:

"Claims that 3D printing (also known as digital printing) is poised to shake up the manufacturing industry in dramatic fashion have been on the rise. A September 2013 report from investment advisor the Motley Fool even went so far as to assert that the new technology will “close down 112,000 Chinese factories...and launch a 21st-century industrial revolution right here in the U.S.A.” As much as we would like to see manufacturing return to Western shores, we’re a bit less sanguine than the prognosticators. Indeed, before we send pink slips to millions of Chinese workers, we need to step back and analyze 3D printing through the lens of the experience curve, and how it both drives and responds to consumer adoption of new technologies. And before we predict widespread change to the manufacturing industry’s structure, we must reflect on how economies of scale and total landed cost drive investment decisions."

Os cemitérios estão cada vez mais repletos de empresas que confiaram demais na "experience curve"

"The argument for displacing Chinese workers stems from a questionable assumption that 3D printing eliminates the need to seek economies of scale."

Eheheh a lógica das economias de escala... como se tal explicasse o sucesso das vendas e preços do calçado, ou o retorno do têxtil, ou do mobiliário, ou da cerâmica, ou...

Primeiro trecho retirado de "Where value hides" de Stuart Jackson
Segundo trecho "A Skeptic’s Guide to 3D Printing"

Qual é a relação com o Índice de Gini e o salário mínimo?

Qual é a relação com o Índice de Gini e o salário mínimo?

"In today’s global economy here is what is scarce:
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1. Quality land and natural resources
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2. Intellectual property, or good ideas about what should be produced.
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3. Quality labor with unique skills
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Here is what is not scarce these days:
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1. Unskilled labor, as more countries join the global economy
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2. Money in the bank or held in government securities, which you can think of as simple capital, not attached to any special ownership rights (we know there is a lot of it because it has been earning zero or negative real rates of return)"

Trechos retirados de "Average Is Over: Powering America Beyond the Age of the Great Stagnation"

Acerca da ISO 9001 e das cenas nas auditorias

Uma lista a crescer "The ISO Apocrypha", infelizmentemente cómica e actual.

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ainda este mês, dois projectos ISO com uma ou outra cena destas.

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Acham que faz sentido, na acta da primeira revisão do sistema, discutir as decisões tomadas em anteriores reuniões que ainda não aconteceram?

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Pois...