No Room for Complacency

The world has changed a lot since December 2010. The past year, 2011 has been a difficult year for the many with a few exceptions. The Centre, while continuing to promote the private sector voice for Competitiveness and provide a unique leadership function, has not been immune to the recession and cost cutting.

The  government’s plan for the pain to stop by 2015 is now only a dream due to the Euro crisis and the growth in 2016 will be similar to Japan’s lost decade. Not that the strategy is in doubt. Spending cuts will have to continue so that the government and the nation can live within their means.

On the positive side there is an opportunity for Northern Ireland to transition more quickly through investment into higher value technology jobs with new export opportunities while rebalancing the economy.  Renewable Energy for example is at the cross roads. Wind, solar, biomass & geothermal sector has grown in fits and starts. There is potential to build momentum to become a self-sustaining industry. (Eg: Chinese PV module manufacturers have increased their share of the global market in the last four years to more than 50%.) Energy prices will evidently continue to rise as Asia and the emerging Markets consume more and more while Northern Ireland’s Competitiveness will continue to be negatively impacted unless we address the issue and use our own natural resources of wind and wave to underpin our energy security and hold down costs over the longer term.

Regulatory tensions are constraining growth and there seems to be a lack of innovative thinking or the will to remove the regulatory and in some cases planning road blocks that would allow progress. In many cases we are betting on the rising births of new companies from start-up, to scale up to help to address the need for growth in employment opportunities. So we need to start coping better with ambiguity as there is nothing certain anymore. The bottom line in all this is that we will continue to live with unpredictability yet Northern Ireland needs to be more competitive. This means slicker businesses, a smaller public sector, more export growth and a step change in innovation and leadership behavior.

So as 2011 draws to a close and a pause to enjoy the holidays, we at the Centre for Competitiveness look forward to continuing to work with you, to meet the challenges of 2012 and beyond. When more than ever we need a revolution in thinking and practice – Dreamers, Drivers and Doers.

Bob Barbour
Chief Executive

How Santa Claus uses Business Improvement to ensure every child has the right present on Christmas morning

One of the busiest manufacturing operations in the world, with customers spread all over the globe and an extremely demanding delivery schedule has been sharing the secrets of their success.

Leadership Secrets of Santa Claus

Santa has 8 principles for leaders that lay the foundation for an effective, jolly workshop. By remembering that as leaders we have responsibilites to both the gift-getters and the gift-makers, Santa gives us some useful tips applicable to all our organisations.

Click here to read more

How Santa’s workshop uses Lean to meet rising needs for efficiency

Bernie Holly, Santa’s Lead Quality Elf Engineer, gives some insights into how they use tools such as process mapping, fishbone diagrams and project prioritisation to eliminate defects and increase child satisfaction.

Click here to read more

Why do organisations apply for a quality award?

With the Quality Awards ceremony just a few weeks away some people have been wanting to better understand what the Quality Awards process is about and why an organisation might enter. Gaining recognition at the Northern Ireland Quality Awards is one of the clearest ways to both demonstrate the current Excellence of an organisation and build for future success.  From the broad range of past winners, as well as  improving their business performance, many have gone on to achieve further awards at UK and European levels, making Northern Ireland one of the most successful regions of Europe. Our ambition is to see more businesses and organisations from across Ireland use this approach to help secure their future success.

Recognise Your Achievements

Munster Simms Engineering and Diageo Baileys receiving their awards from Enterprise Minister, Arlene Foster MLA

The Northern Ireland Quality Awards process was established in 1994. Based on the internationally recognised EFQM Excellence Model, the process provides one of the most robust means of assessing how well an organisation is performing. The criteria, whilst comprehensive, are appropriate to all types and sizes of organisation, irrespective of sector. Of the 200 plus organisations that have been involved in the process, the applicants include micro-businesses, Government Agencies, Large Public sector Departments, Councils, Schools and Colleges, Hotels, multi-national private companies and those from the Voluntary sector.

Why Do Organisations Get Involved?

EFQM Excellence Model

The reasons for engagement are varied. Some organisations want to provide a structured means of prioritising and managing Improvement or are looking for a valid vehicle to measure progress over time. Others again view the external validation as a useful source of feedback for Improvement. All Applicants are allocated a team of trained assessors who, after reviewing a submission document which addresses the criteria of the Excellence Model, conduct a site visit. The purpose of the visit is to verify that the organisation has structured approaches in place to managing all aspects of activity ( Planning, People, Partnerships, Financial, Environmental, IT, Processes). Furthermore, there is evaluation of how the organisation measures performance across a range of indicators (Customer, People, Societal, Financial). The team bring together their analysis into an in-depth feedback report drawing out all the key strengths and areas for improvement.

In essence, the Judging Panel are determining how well the “business is run”.

Benefits

Slemish College and St Patrick's College, Maghera receiving their awards from Enterprise Minister, Arlene Foster MLA

There is now plentiful research to demonstrate the link between a structured approach to managing Improvement and improved organisational performance. In the short-term, the benefits may relate to improving approaches and activities but over time, because the Model asks that an organisation focuses not on measuring per se, but on what is important to measure, there is a clear link between improved results and “how things are done”. Indeed, many organisations apply on a repeated basis as, over time, they generate the trend information to help demonstrate progress.

To learn more about the Process and the benefits achieved by the many organisations who have been involved, please contact George Wilson at 028 9073 7950 or george.wilson@cforc.org

The Northern Ireland Quality Awards are sponsored by Hewlett-Packard, The Department of Finance and Personnel, Invest Northern Ireland, NIE, and Translink.

Visit to USA Council of Competitiveness Manufacturing Summit 2011

The summit was attended by CEO’s from the major USA Industries, University Vice Chancellors, academics and senior Public Sector representatives along with members of the Global Federation of Competitiveness Councils of which the Centre for Competitiveness is a member. The purpose of the summit was to launch a “MANUFACTURING CALL TO ACTION” in order to create an American manufacturing movement that would transform current manufacturing practices with a new approach underpinned by high performance computing. This was Manufacturing’s wake-up call, as structural changes in the global economy had created opportunities as well as challenges to achieving the next-generation productivity through smart innovation & manufacturing. Pilot projects had already been tested by companies such as General Electric, Proctor & Gamble and John Deere that demonstrated a step change in productivity improvement of up to 80% with significant cost reductions throughout the supply chain. The adoption of digital fabrication methods with the support of the national laboratories and the tera-grid communications network would provide the necessary support systems to create a 21st century manufacturing process and a skilled labour force.

This transformation is going well beyond 6 Sigma and Lean incremental improvement levels to breakthrough @ 80% – 90% improvement in process performance gaining profitable time to market with a much lower cost of entry. This new manufacturing transformation is the result of signification innovation and breakthrough thinking by the council and its members.

Innovation Drives:

-       Technology – new platforms

-       Business Process Innovation

-       Business Model – grow new models

A comparative presentation was made by Cesar A Hidalgo – Assistant Professor, The Media Lab, MIT between Korea and Peru entitled “Economic Complexity of Nations” with a vision of challenging the next decade and how to navigate it by “Rebuilding America and Avoiding the Next Bubble.” The Assist Professor used a revolutionary way of looking at world trade and understanding variations in countries paths to prosperity based on the work of Professors Ricardo Hausmann, Harvard and Cesar Hidalgo, MIT.  The presentation was based on the “Atlas of Economic Complexity” which is rooted in a set of ideas about how to measure economies based not just on the quantity of products traded, but also on the required knowledge and capabilities to produce them. Peru – Coffee, Korea – Hi Tech innovations.  In 1974 Peru had a richer economy than Korea, the reverse is true today – what made the difference?  Capabilities! In the end, building this new platform for integrated delivery of new products through software and high performance computing with transform USA manufacturing throughout the next decade.

China Export & Import Opportunities for NI firms

The Centre for Competitiveness has opened up a contact base in Shanghai with a small firm “LIPAU” involved in exhibitions, support and sourcing. The Chief Executive Lili Tang is married to a local man from the Limavady area. (They live between both locations so his wife can keep her Chinese passport). Arrangements can be made to meet either of them if requested.

Lili has over 10 years experience as head of design for German and Japanese top tier companies with operations in China and knows the Chinese market quite well, including a lot of experience helping European companies to break into the Chinese market.

The company offers leading edge design, access to a vast network of suppliers and comprehensive support for companies’ entry into Chinese market as well as the full range of outsourcing services. Please feel free to contact them directly and should you require any assistance the Centre will be glad to provide you support.

Contact details below

Bob Barbour
Centre for Competitiveness
bob.barbour@cforc.org

UK Office
Lili Tang
Chief Executive
Tel: +44 (028) 777 23981
Fax: +44 (028) 777 29086
Email: info@lipau-shanghai.com

Shanghai Office
Tel: +86 21 36397996
Fax: +86 21 60825924
Email: info@lipau-shanghai.com

WEB: http://lipau-shanghai.com/english/contact.html

International Leadership & Innovation – NEW

The Centre for Competitiveness and IoD Northern Ireland, in co-operation with both Queens University Leadership Institute and the University of Ulster, have joined together to create a unique and radical approach to providing leaders in the private, public and voluntary sectors with practical world class tuition in international leadership and innovation skills without having to travel overseas.

The programme is designed for Managing Directors, Chief Executives and company Directors, who currently operate or plan to operate their business internationally. Tutorial workshops will be structured to support breakthrough thinking and big impact improvements in business performance.  With years of experience of international trade, negotiation, top academic incubation and teaching, our team of tutors has insights into the most creative spaces in the world.

The programme is NOT designed for academic achievement but to address the day-to-day practical problems and opportunities facing leaders within their own working environment. Workshops are organised to last for 1.5 days off-site for intensive tuition and problem solving periods covering individual and group activities five times per year.  The workshops are supported by highly respected University Professors from leading universities in Europe and the USA (details attached).  Follow-on mentoring appropriate to business needs can also be arranged.  The future “has become a moving target.” Uncertainty today is not an occasional, temporary deviation from reasonable predictability; it is a basic feature of the business environment.” Pierre Wack, HBR. Leadership groups will form from the workshops and inter-disciplinary groups will meet to devise, design, develop and deliver ideas in products, goods and services.  It will be a jacuzzi in which ideas blend.

A start-up pilot workshop was arranged for a maximum of 20 participants on Friday 21st and Saturday 22nd October 2011 (am) at the new Queens University Leadership Institute, Belfast.  It was led by two international University Professors from Sweden and Finland supported by the Course Director, Professor Alistair Fee, visiting Professor of Innovation at Queens University, Belfast. To ensure that the tuition delivered meets the needs of the participants, the Programme Director assessed individual needs on application through confidential interviews prior to each workshop.  Registrations of interest were made through the Centre for Competitiveness on compete@cforc.org or the Institute of Directors on iod.northernireland@iod.com.

Leaders wishing to be included in the pilot programme were asked to meet entry level requirements regarding aspirations for their organisation and these are outlined in the programme prospectus, a copy of which will be available to those wishing to participate. The programme was innovative in how it teaches leadership and innovation – by doing, by practising, by building teams and by example.

In order to keep the costs associated with engaging international professionals at a reasonable level, especially for SMEs, the workshop size has been designed for 20 participants at a cost of £3,000.00 for each 1.5 day engagement including a networking dinner, refreshments, networking arrangements, administration and workshop materials.  Companies with access to Invest NI or DEL support were advised to contact their client Executive to seek support for the cost of participation.

The first tutorial and workshop is being followed by the cohort of the leaders meeting again at a breakfast session in December to follow through on actions from the first cohort and decide on next steps.

These fall into three tracks depending on the individual leaders preference:

Track 2 – Leaders may choose to join an International study visit

Track 3 – Personal coaching and mentoring

Track 4 - Join the Centre’s CEO Leadership Club meeting 1 day/ Quarter

The next Tutorials and Workshops are scheduled for 2/3 & 5/6 March 2012 involving one new cohort and a follow-on with the existing cohort.

 

Great Leaders       Need   Great Tutors

The Greater the Problem                        -            The Greater the Pain

The Greater the Pain                             -            The Greater the Insights

The Greater the Insights                        -            The Greater the Paralysis

 

Socrates:  An unexamined life is not worth living

 ————————————————————————————————————————————————-

Get Involved! – Contact Bob Barbour for more information and to reserve your place. Tele 9073 7950 or email bob.barbour@cforc.org

 

Excellence in Action – EFQM Awards 2011

Building a sustainable high-performing organisation in today’s volatile world is a challenge. However, it is not impossible… The results revealed during the EFQM Awards process in 2011, were the best results we have seen since 2006.

This quest for Business Excellence backed by a prize, started 20 years ago, showcasing role model organisations and good practices well beyond the companies applying for the Award. The success of the EFQM Excellence Award programme in achieving sustainable growth encouraged leaders to apply it in increasingly more sectors.

This year, the standard of applications we received has been the highest we have ever seen. These organisations demonstrate that even during the current challenging conditions, there are opportunities. Opportunities to grow; opportunities to develop new, innovative ways of working; opportunities to increase the value they deliver to their customers and other stakeholders.

In this edition of “Excellence in Action”, we give you a taste of how today’s leading organisations successfully navigate the storms of change. How they use the EFQM Excellence Model and our network to achieve operational excellence, improve financial performance, increase customer service and to win new markets.

Pierre Cachet,
Chief Executive Officer, EFQM

(Click on the image to download the full details on all of this year’s winners)

For more information on using the EFQM Business Excellence model to achieve superior performance for your organisation contact George Wilson on 028 90737950 or george.wilson@cforc.org

Benchmark Your Standards of Corporate Governance

10 Tenets of Good Corporate Governance from the Institute of Corporate Directors, National Competitiveness Council, Philippines

1. DEVELOP AND EXECUTE A SOUND BUSINESS STRAGEGY
Shareholder return is optimized. In every Board meeting a strategic issue is discussed

2. ESTABLISH A WELL-STRUCTURED AND FUNCTIONING BOARD
Board with Directors of proven competence and integrity. 30% of whom are independent creates value for enterprise.

3. MAINTAIN A ROBUST INTERNAL AUDIT & CONTROL SYSTEM
Enhance operational effectiveness, deter fraud, safeguard company assets and ensure compliance.

4. RESPECT AND PROTECTS THE RIGHTS OF ITS SHAREHOLDERS, PARTICULARLY THOSE THAT BELONG TO THE MINORITY.
The governing principles of “One Share”, One Vote” with basic political, economic and governance in an equitable, timely and transparent manner

5. ENSURE THE INTEGRITY OF ITS FINANCIAL REPORTS
External auditors must be beyond reproach, with transparent fees, reporting to the Board.

6. RECOGNIZE AND MANAGE ITS RISKS
Enterprise-wide Risk Management system should be in place and properly functioning overseen by board committee.

7. ADOPT AND IMPLEMENT AN INTERNATIONALLY – ACCEPTED DISCLOSURE AND TRANSPARANCY REGIME.
Have a written policy on disclosure rules.

8. RESPECT AND PROTECT THE RIGHTS AND INTERESTS OF ITS EMPLOYEES, COMMUNITY ENVIRONMENT AND OTHER STAKEHOLDERS.

9. DO NOT ENGAGE IN ABUSIVE RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS AND INSIDER TRADING
Have a written policy on transactions with related parties.

10. DEVELOP AND NURTURE A CULTURE OF ETHICS, COMPLIANCE AND ENFORCEMENT.
Adopt a code of ethics that guides corporate/individual behaviour for strict compliance with a clear policy against offering or receiving bribes.

Global Competitiveness Summit

GLOBAL FEDERATION OF COMPETITIVENESS COUNCILS

The Global Federation of Competitiveness Councils upcoming Competitiveness Summit and 2011 Annual Meeting of the Global Federation of Competitiveness Councils, November 21-22, 2011, will be held in Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil at the Plaza São Rafael. The 2011 co-vice chairs and founding members of the GFCC, Brazilian Agency for Industrial Development and Brazilian Competitiveness Movement, will host this two-day, high-profile event.
The Competitiveness Summit on November 21 st is a three-hour, invitation-only discussion featuring GFCC Members, Brazilian officials and CEOs centered on the current state of global competitiveness. On the evening of November 21 st the Governor of the State of Rio Grande do Sul, Mr. Tarso Genro, will graciously host a Gala Dinner for attendees. On November 22 nd the GFCC members and their delegations will meet for the 2011 Annual Meeting of the GFCC . This meeting is designed to support the GFCC and its member organizations in their implementation of the GFCC’s initiatives/projects, and promote the collaboration of member countries. The two-day event will also include the possibility for private meetings between the GFCC member delegations and Brazilian business and public sector leaders. The Centre for Competitiveness in Northern Ireland is a member of the Global Council and we strongly encourage our members to take advantage of this distinct partnership and relationship building opportunity, and to consider being part of a delegation of CEOs and public sector leaders from Northern Ireland to the events in November. . The revised 2011 Global Competitiveness principles will be launched during the summit along with a members best practice benchmarking report on policy implementation in member countries. For more details contact bob.barbour@cforc.org or telephone 02890 737950

Centre for Competitriveness Technology Watch

Israel – Recent Technological Innovations

Brain Stimulating Device: – A breakthrough device, developed by Israel
seems capable of stimulating areas of the brain responsible for memory
and learning leading to improvement in cognition and decision making
in Alzheimer’s disease. The new electromagnetic stimulation systems
appears to change the course of the degenerative Alzheimer’s disease
and allow patients to regain faded skills. Clinical results show measureable
improvement after a few weeks of treatment, superior in improvements
achieved with available drugs.

Energy you can see Through: – A new solar window from Israel is set to
revolutionize the construction industry. The innovative product from
Israeli company Pythagoras Solar combines energy efficiency, power
generation and transparency. The company has designed the world’s
first transparent photovoltaic glass unit which can be easily integrated
into conventional building design and construction. Pythagoras Solar
design was selected from nearly 5,000 entrants as a winner of
the prestigious GE prize. which recognizes the most promising
innovations for capturing, managing and using energy in buildings.
The design uses direct light to generate energy and this is done
with something that doesn’t look like a solar panel, but a window,
making the whole concept more attractive to architects

NANO Satellites: – Israeli technological breakthroughs have led
tom the building of new nano satellites that can be sued for a
variety of purposes. Yechiel Shalev, head of Israeli Aircraft
Industries told Israeli press that, nano satellites weigh only a
few kilograms and are different to anything we’ve built so
far. Instead of using one of the large satellites for an
operation, we can use several small ones. One of the new
generation of satellites is the OpSat 3000, a new observation
satellite. The OpSat 3000 will use technologies developed in
Israel, including new optical control systems. The picture it
will send back will be more accurate and at a higher resolution
than anything previous.

Wireless Power:- Procter & Gamble recently announced a joint
venture with Israeli company Powermat, aimed at advancing
wireless charging technology. The new undertaking will be
called Duracell Powermat. Powermat technology allows electronic
devices like smart phones & MP3 players to be charged wirelessly.
The companies believe that Powermat’s technology added to
Procter & Gamble’s strong consumer understanding and market
capabilities will make the new undertakings a success.

More Visitors to Israel:- According to figures released by Israel
Airports authority, July 2011 was the busiest month in the history
of Ben-Gurion Airport. Some 1.365 million passengers passed
through the Airport during the month, this was 15% up on the
same month last year. The busiest day was Thursday, July 28,
with 61,091 passengers on 373 flights.

Acknowledgement to Israeli press