The O+F Advisor provides the expert strategic advice and practical techniques that Operations professionals urgently need to improve efficiencies, productivity, cost savings, and customer service. The O+F Advisor covers the entire fulfillment process from the moment an order is entered to its delivery at the customer’s doorstep.
 Four Things to Know Before Buying a Robotic Palletizer
By: By Patrick Barnard
Robotic palletizers are becoming increasingly popular in medium- to smaller-sized distribution centers as they look to reduce labor costs, increase throughput, and improve reliability, safety and ergonomics....
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Let Them Know You’re Green
By: By Curt Barry
Do your customers know what you’re doing for the environment? At the ACMA Forum in Washington, D.C. in June, many of us in attendance were floored when we realized how little we had done to communicate our green efforts....
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Eight Steps to Sustainable Packaging
By: By Bob Makofsky
Once upon a time – say, maybe a decade ago -- few companies mandated socially responsible products and practices in their day-to-day business operations. The climate has changed, and sustainability isn’t just a sound business objective: It’s producing healthy bottom-line results....
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Outsource Your Logistics Without Fear
By: By Ron Cain and Andy Dishner
Is there a single function you can’t outsource? Probably not. Companies are now farming out many processes to third parties—everything from marketing to supply chain to back office.
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Contact Center Retention: A Supervisor’s Job
By: By Penny Reynolds
Everyone knows contact centers have high turnover rates. But many managers have little idea of what this churn is doing to their operations. They think they are helpless to do anything about it....
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Gatorade Warehouse Drinks Up the Sun
Ever thought about going solar with your warehouse? That’s what Gatorade, a division of PepsiCo, is doing with its 797,000 sq.-ft. manufacturing/warehouse/distribution center in Tolleson, AZ.
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Contact Center Attrition: Why Agents Leave
By: By Penny Reynolds
Seeking ways to reduce attrition in your contact center? Look to your supervisors to build employee loyalty and prevent agents from leaving “prematurely.”...
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Steps for Becoming a ‘Lean’ Distributor
By: By Dr. Perry Daneshgari and Michelle Wilson
The distribution industry has always tried to be at the leading edge of technological innovation. However, technology, at best, will keep an industry at par with national averages with respect to productivity. To excel and exceed national averages, the application of technology must be supplemented with innovation in processes—that is, with the application of business and lean principles....
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Leading Based on Needing
By: By Kathryn Jackson
Using needs-focused leadership in your call center is a great way to improve agent performance and at the same time boost employee satisfaction....
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Use ‘Needs-Focused’ Leadership to Improve Your Call Center
By: By Kathryn Jackson
Looking to improve your call center’s leadership? Try “needs-focused leadership,” which is all about having your managers assume different roles in order to give your agents what they need to grow and improve in their jobs....
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Green Packaging Round-Up
Packaging companies are jumping on the green bandwagon with new eco-friendly products that are priced competitively against traditional packaging products. What follows is just a sampling of some of the green offerings out there:...
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Is Your Warehouse ‘Employee Friendly?’
By: By Sam Flanders
The warehouse isn’t exactly the cheeriest of work environments.
But your distribution center doesn’t have to be a gloomy, depressing place that your employees hate coming to every day. There are a lot of things you can do to make your facility more “employee friendly” – and they don’t have to cost a lot either....
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Look at Processes First when Improving Your Warehouse
By: By Sam Flanders
When looking to improve the efficiency of your warehouse, it’s always best focus on processes first before investing in new equipment and software. Otherwise you’re putting the cart before the horse....
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How to Choose a Workforce Management System
By: By Penny Reynolds
Today’s workforce management (WFM) systems can help call centers accomplish more work, at a higher level of service, and at a lower cost. These automated systems save substantial management and clerical time, and also reduce labor costs by optimizing staffing resources. But how do you go about selecting the right WFM system for your call center?...
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Zappos DC Does the Robot
By: By Patrick Barnard
Ever considered robots for your warehouse? Online shoe retailer Zappos.com now has a fleet of 70 working in its distribution center...
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Parcel Carrier Performance: What to Track
By: By Rob Martinez
If you’re a volume shipper, you have to manage your parcel carrier. If you don’t, you miss significant opportunities to improve service and save money...
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Roadway Goes Heavy on Parcel Delivery
By: By Patrick Barnard
Transportation services provider Roadway is going after the home delivery business. The company has teamed up with NonstopDelivery, a third-party logistics provider specializing in home delivery and supply chain management, to roll out a final mile delivery service for heavyweight goods throughout the U.S....
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Tread Lightly When Improving Warehouse Operations
By: By Sam Flanders
A period of economic downturn can be a great opportunity to plan out and implement improvements in your warehouse operations. You might, for example, aim to significantly lower labor costs, reduce error rates, decrease stockouts, or improve the quality of your delivered orders. But it’s important to pace out such changes slowly and carefully.
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Do You Need a Workforce Management System?
By: By Penny Reynolds
Labor is the single biggest expense facing any contact center -- which is why getting the right number of agents in place to answer incoming calls, place outbound calls, respond to emails, and handle Web contacts is critical to contact center success and profitability....
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