Song From A Broken Record

KPMG, the public accounting behemoth, recently conducted an international Global Manufacturing Outlook survey, as reported by big4.com on 11 February.  The two major conclusions?  One was that focusing solely on cost has damaged business relationships.  No surprise there.

The other was that 66% of respondents also ranked cost as their first priority in managing supply chains.  "When will they ever learn?" sang the unattainable goddess of my mis-spent salad days, Joan Baez.  (Pete Seeger, who wrote the song, was attainable, but not nearly as fetching.)

Apparently never, although one executive survey respondent did caution that those following traditional low cost models risk losing market footholds.

We used to say that continuing to do the same things in the same ways and expect different results was a definition of mental illness.  I see no need to change that tune.

PS: Re: my last blog, any crude oil price per barrel number (e.g., $100, $125, $150) is not actually a barrier, but a milepost on the road to a bad place.