Connected Corporation: How Leading Companies Manage Customer-Supplier AllUntil now, the relationship between a company and its customers or suppliers has consisted of arms-length haggling over the price of a part or a service. Today, reveals alliance expert Jordan D. Lewis, customers and suppliers are actually embracing each other—sharing data, design work, and even research and development. The result, Lewis finds, has been a dramatic improvement in each firm's costs, quality, cycle times, and customer satisfaction—without added expense. Building on his groundbreaking work, Partnerships for Profit, Lewis shows managers how to maximize the potential of these new customer-supplier alliances—described by the Wall Street Journal as a "revolution"—by drawing upon his hands-on experience and research with best-practice firms worldwide such as Motorola, Chrysler, and Marks & Spencer. Although more and more firms now recognize the importance of customer-supplier alliances, few actually know how to make them work. Using interviews with employees ranging from top executives to purchasing and sales people, Lewis takes the reader inside these leading-edge companies and their top suppliers to show precisely how the "connected" corporation can double its competitive resources by forging customer-supplier relationships for greater financial strength, higher market share, more value, and increased operating flexibility. Lewis provides the tools managers need to structure and manage effective and successful alliances. He discusses all of the initial questions on how to get started—when to use alliances, how to choose the best partners, and how to set clear objectives targeted on high performance. Specific techniques are presented to foster joint creativity—from building interfirm teams to systems-based thinking—as well as methods for monitoring alliance performance and progress. Lewis also shows ways to develop the foundation of cooperation, negotiation, and trust between partners which is so crucial in achieving optimum competitive advantage. By capitalizing on the new customer-supplier alliances, any firm can increase its competitiveness regardless of industry, company size, or whether its focus is on goods or services. Lewis provides managers of all types with the framework they need to avoid the pitfalls and enjoy the full benefits of the connected corporation. |
Contents
GETTING STARTED | 14 |
Alliances Versus Market Transactions | 18 |
CONDITIONS FOR HIGH PERFORMANCE | 37 |
Comparing Benchmarking and Focused Competition | 44 |
Encouraging Suppliers to Excel | 68 |
PRACTICES FOR JOINT CREATIVITY | 70 |
Customer and Supplier Performances in Isolation | 83 |
COOPERATING FOR MORE VALUE | 86 |
BUILDING TRUST AND HIGH PERFORMANCE | 166 |
Building Trust Between Partner Firms | 190 |
ORGANIZING THE INTERFACE | 192 |
LEVERAGING THE CORPORATION | 220 |
Comparing Central and Local Design | 226 |
NEGOTIATION BETWEEN PARTNERS | 243 |
SUCCESSFUL ALLIANCE PRACTITIONERS | 263 |
Managing Alliance Continuity | 272 |
Example of Motorolas Spider Chart for Automated FactoryTechnology | 98 |
COOPERATING FOR BETTER TIMING AND COSTS | 106 |
Sources of Joint Time Reduction | 114 |
Alliance Cost Reduction Sources | 128 |
SUPPLY BASE MANAGEMENT | 130 |
Ratings for Supply Alliances | 141 |
MANAGING CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT | 154 |
Continuous Improvement Practices for Working with Suppliers | 163 |
Other editions - View all
Connected Corporation: How Leading Companies Manage Customer-Supplier Alliances Jordan D. Lewis No preview available - 2007 |
The Connected Corporation: How Leading Companies Win Through Customer ... Jordan D. Lewis No preview available - 1995 |
Common terms and phrases
activities areas Barry Morris benchmarking benefits better Bob Galvin changes Chrysler commitments commodity manager contrast cooperation corporate cost drivers create customer and supplier customer-supplier alliances customer's cycle delivery Denis Desmond discussions early design engineering equipment example executive factors firm's firms focused competition global innovation integration interface internal inventory investments involved issues joint keiretsu Kodak levels long-term Lycra manufacturing Marks & Spencer meet ment metrics Molex Motorola needs negotiations Northern Foods objectives opportunities organization Paging Products Group partners PCEC percent performance Philips Consumer Electronics planning plant pliers practices preferred suppliers printed circuit boards problems purchasing quality audits reduce relevant require response retailer rivals says Schedule Sharing Six Sigma sourcing specific strategic supply alliances supply base supply relationships target tion tomer trust understandings unique value chain volume wants