Manufacturers must make hard decisions about whether they “make” or “buy”. Some will become assemblers: slotting together sophisticated components pre-assembled by subcontractors, with their core skills lying in design and marketing. Others will take on the subcontracting role: some will choose to specialise in delivering rapid turnaround on build-to-order items; others will focus on achieving the lowest unit cost for high-volume standardised products. Manufacturers must find the right niche in the value chain to match their strengths, and be prepared to outsource or offshore work that can be better handled by partners.
Whatever strategy they choose, manufacturers need processes and supporting systems that allow them to manage their operations effectively and deliver the same or higher levels of service to customers. And with “service” becoming an increasingly important factor for success, they should look to the techniques already being used by their counterparts in service industries to harness IT for competitive advantage.
We work with clients in the manufacturing sector to implement programmes that deliver lasting value . These include:
• redesigning processes to streamline activities and reduce costs;
• consolidating or virtualising technology platforms to create more agile IT operations that deliver enhanced levels of service more cost-effectively;
• implementing new IT architectures;
• setting up shared services centres to eliminate duplication and create economies of scale;
• ensuring the organisation is in the right shape for successful outsourcing or offshoring; and
• identifying opportunities for growth, by creating an end-to-end view of services, so that clients can achieve new sources of revenue.
Through these services, we help clients identify the best approaches for increasing both efficiency (through strategic use of IT) and effectiveness (through adoption of best practices). Our proven approach to change management enables us to deliver significant improvements in performance for our clients.