Manufacturing companies are increasingly developing global operations to take advantage of lower costs, geographic locations, and resource availability. However, managing global manufacturing operations remains a significant challenge. This article explores 10 key issues, challenges, and potential solutions for multi-national manufacturing organizations operating globally, such as developing a clear management philosophy and organizational structure, implementing common global systems, facilitating collaborative operations, and focusing on brand management and process quality improvement initiatives.

2. Developing Global Manufacturing
Operations

3. Manufacturing companies have started venturing globally
to take advantage of low cost manufacturing, geographical
location, resource availability and so forth. Developing and
managing global manufacturing operations have
continuously been a challenging task for company's world
wide. Visit David Pulman GSK for more info. This article
attempts to explore 10 most significant issues of concern,
challenges faced, and potential solutions for multi-national
manufacturing organizations as they start operating
globally.

4. 1. Management Philosophy
Management philosophy guides the stakeholders of the
organization in providing an understanding of what the
Company's operations are, where they are heading towards,
and why they are in business. Companies need to provide a
clear statement of their vision, mission and values to the
stake holders. It becomes vital especially in a global
company to dedicate thought and efforts in framing this
philosophy, as individual companies may have slightly
different focus, but the group as such should sail towards a
focused destination.

5. Equally important are the business policies and strategies
by which the Company targets to achieve its vision. As the
company's grow and become multi-national, it becomes
imperative to have a clear organizational structure at entity
level and individual level. This would form the basis for
better communication, development of collaborative
operations, and effective decision making. Notably,
organizations should adopt ways of proving its
commitment to the strategies and philosophies, link their
operational and tactical activities towards their vision, and
continuously communicate them to their stakeholders.

6. 2. Systems and Systems Thinking
Systems are procedural approach that channels the individuals,
departments and the management in effective operations at all
levels. An organization operating in different countries need to
have a common system by which they deal with operations at
same level in their entities. This provides a visibility for
individuals from different entities in collaborating their work
with each other.
The concept of Systems Thinking evolved with the development
of supply chain integration. Organizations that concentrate on
the individual development of the entities often fail to notice the
integrated links and the advantages they can extract off them.
Systems Thinking would help look the whole network of entities
as one organization, with one business and one objective, and
focus on overall development across the supply chain.

7. 3. Collaborative Operations
Collaborative operations help organizations take advantage
in areas such as utilization of low operations cost, skilled
labor, material availability, and so forth though it poses
high demands on seamless business processes,
interoperability, supply chain visibility, demand
forecasting, and customer integration.

8. 4. Branding
As companies go global, brand management becomes a key
aspect. Customer's perception for a product varies with the
country in which it is manufactured. This urges Multi
national companies to concentrate on development of
brand and strongly commit to their offerings. This becomes
an issue of concern especially for companies that go global
before creating a niche brand in the market. Multiple
brands and multiple product offerings are to be handled
with appropriate concern.

9. 5. Sigma Level
Sigma is a statistical term to express how much a process
varies from the target. Sigma level allows comparison of
process performance through out the entire organization,
provides figures on overall yield, and DPMO. Though
industries have risen to the level of six sigma targeting
3.4DPMO, a lot majority of the companies lie in 3 sigma
level where they spend at least 30% of its revenue on
defects, corrections, reworks, and rejects. Global companies
should have a focused roadmap on improving the sigma
level and link them to their business strategies.
https://twitter.com/DavidPulman

10. 5. Sigma Level
Sigma is a statistical term to express how much a process
varies from the target. Sigma level allows comparison of
process performance through out the entire organization,
provides figures on overall yield, and DPMO. Though
industries have risen to the level of six sigma targeting
3.4DPMO, a lot majority of the companies lie in 3 sigma
level where they spend at least 30% of its revenue on
defects, corrections, reworks, and rejects. Global companies
should have a focused roadmap on improving the sigma
level and link them to their business strategies.
https://twitter.com/DavidPulman