The document discusses issues at LedgeRock Natural Stone Products around meeting customer expectations. It notes long lead times, late deliveries, missing parts and poor communication are causing problems for sales, production, and customers. It proposes strategies to clarify goals and mission, improve communication between sales, production and customers, and understand organizational capabilities and capacities to better manage expectations.

1. LedgeRock Natural Stone Products Meeting Customer Expectations

2. Overview of Current Situtation

4. Late Deliveries

5. Missing Parts

7. Dealing With Irate Customers

9. Increased Incidence of Poor Communication with Production

11. Sales does not communicate appropriate delivery dates

12. Lack of understanding of the difficulties in the production process

13. Sales does deal with difficult situations leaving the customer unaware of potential problems or delivery issues

19. Management must promote this mission throughout the value chain

21. Improve Communications Management establishes protocols Breakdown barriers that interfere with communication (entrenchment) Ensure sales communicates with customers reasonable lead times Ensure sales prioritizes orders and communicates importance to production Sales needs to understand that a shift in production will affect other customers and a consensus needs to be reached before such a shift can take place Order review with production to minimize errors in manufacturing Production needs to communicate to sales potential problems in the production and delivery Sales needs to communicate with customers problems with order in a timely manner Sales needs to establish reasonable customer expectations, false promises or avoidance does not lead to more loyal or happy customers Both sales and production need to understand each others roles Capacities and capabilities need to be understood by both parties Regular production and planning meeting prioritizing and reviewing in house, upcoming and potential orders establishing realistic delivery dates Consistent customer follow up to communicate order status Consider an ERP systems which integrates organizational functions

22. What is ERP A Complete Enterprise wide integrated business solution providing software support for modules such as : Marketing and Sales Field Service Product Design and Development Production and Inventory Control Procurement Distribution Industrial Facilities Management Process design and Development Manufacturing Quality Human Resources Finance and Accounting Information Services Slack et al. (2004)

23. ERP Overview Current Systems To Distributors Accounts and Invoicing System Distribution Planning EDI Orders From Customers CommonDatabase To Suppliers Order Validation Purchasing System From Customers Sales and Marketing System Plant and Facilities Management Product Management System (Inventory) Slack et al. (2004, p. 508)

24. Advantages of ERP Enhanced visibility of information Need for discipline to maintain system Sharpens management understanding of every process within organization Leads to common or best practices Uniform implementation Minimizes idiosyncratic behaviour, (disruption in one part causes disruption to others) Absolute visibility Forces business process-based changes, making all parts more efficient Greater sense of control of operations Enables more sophisticated communication with customers, suppliers, business partners (more accurate and timely information) Integrating entire supply chains including suppliers’ suppliers and customers’ customers Client/server architecture (open to anyone who is linked to central computers) Decision support facilities , operations decision makers to include latest information External extranet systems linked to customers and supply chain partners Linked to standard applications such as Excel, Word, etc. Able to operate on common platforms such as Windows Web integration Slack et al. (2004, p. 505-510)

25. Disadvantages of ERP Rigidity of discipline is difficult to achieve Rigidity may be inappropriate for all parts of the business Full integration difficult to achieve in practice Can be expensive Communication between legacy systems sometimes problematic Can be disruptive to organization May not result in desired returns Slack et al. (2004, p. 506 - 509) Example ERP for Small to Midsize businesses

27. Could involve changing currently normally functioning processes

28. May require modification to fit current organizational processes

29. Re organization costs may be involved

30. Potential for errors to creep into process

31. Customization will slow down process

32. Difficult to upgrade software Slack et al. (2004, p. 509)

33. Conclusion To meet customer expectations it is necessary to Clarify Mission and Goals so all employees understand the organizations purpose and their roles in it Improve Communication between departments Understand organizational capabilities and capacities and not make commitments the organization cannot keep

34. References Johnson, G, Scholes, K, Whittington, R (2006) Exploring Corporate Strategy (7thedn), Pearson Education Limited, Essex, UK Microsoft Office (2010) Templates Presentations [online] (cited July 12, 2010) Available from http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/templates/CT010145006.aspx Owen Sound Ledgerock (2010) Ledgerock Natural Stone Products [online] (cited July 14, 2010) Available from < http://ledgerock.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=frontpage&Itemid=1> SAP (2010) SAP Solutions for Small Business and Midsize Companies [online] (cited July 14, 2010) Available from http://www.sap.com/solutions/sme/index.epx Slack, N, Chambers, S and Johnston, R (2004) Operations Management (4thedn), Pearson Education Limited, Essex, UK