Mark Sutcliffe

Mark Sutcliffe is the president of CDC Factory, the company’s manufacturing operations management (MOM) division. The MOM solution transforms manufacturing performance by empowering people to make real-time actionable decisions. Sutcliffe is an acknowledged authority on continuous improvement and change management practices, centered on technology. He is a frequent speaker at industry conferences in Europe and the U.S. on the subject of deploying technology to leverage “human capital” and achieve breakthrough performance across the whole enterprise. After an outstanding career in enterprise software sales, Mark formed MVI technology in 1991 to provide leading-edge improvement technology to the food & beverage manufacturing sector. In the fourth quarter of 2006, MVI was acquired by CDC Software and the product line has posted consistent record sales quarters.

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The Power of the Plant Floor

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Research Reveals Plants are Flying Blind

November 20, 2008 | Link This | Email this | Comments (0)

My company will soon publish some startling research that we have conducted with AMR Research about the use of metrics in food and CPG plants. What makes this research startling is that, in a nutshell, an overwhelming majority of companies either do not have proper plant metrics in place, or do not have enough confidence in their metrics to use them for meaningful decision support. In other words, manufacturers are flying blind.

Since this blog is titled “The Power of the Plant Floor” I bring up this topic because I believe that this dire state of plant metrics is, indeed, a threat to the power of the plant floor. How can the plant floor have any impact on improving operations if there are no reliable metrics that show what it is doing?

In the food sector specifically, margins have gotten squeezed by rising commodity...Read More
Industries: Manufacturing Issues

Recent Posts

No Time to Panic: Part 2, Smart Responses from Food Industry Leaders

October 31, 2008 | Link This | Email this | Comments (0)

In my last post, I cited two examples of course corrections that food producers were making to preserve their margins and their brand leadership. The existing long-help processes or behavior norms, also known as, “the sacred cows” are most often never deviated from. So, congrats to those leaders of companies who dare to challenge the “sacred cows” in response to today’s economy. I mean, isn’t this why the big bucks are being paid??

The hallmark of sophisticated management is not process adherence or staying with “norms” any more than being a skipper in the America’s Cup is about knowing how to tie a Bowson’s knot or leaving the sails in a text book configuration, (that steady state behavior pattern does not win the race). Neither is it about erratic and ill-considered tactical ...Read More

Industries: Manufacturing Issues

Recent Posts

No Time to Panic: Part 1, Smart Responses from Food Industry Leaders

October 20, 2008 | Link This | Email this | Comments (0)

Amid the dire economic headlines of the past several weeks, two stories about food production in the Wall Street Journal caught my eye. They both point to strategic course corrections that food companies are making to respond to accelerating input costs and pocketbook-conscious consumers. They both remind us that the seemingly ironclad policies and practices that exist in our organizations are only relevant in the context of the macro-economic environment in which we operate.

Both articles address responses to margin erosion, the first through branding:

“Kellogg Co’s new advertising push for staple cereals such as Corn Flakes and Rice Krispies, while Campbell Soup Co. is about to launch a mult...Read More

Industries: Manufacturing Issues

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The Danger of Surveys

September 25, 2008 | Link This | Email this | Comments (0)

I was just leaving the Blockbuster Video store when I was approached by a young lady with a clipboard. She looked like she had not been having much luck that morning, so, given I was not in any sort of rush, I stopped to answer her questions.

She asked about my exercise regime, calorie intake and alcohol consumption. As I considered my responses, I experienced a twinge of guilt, as many of the questions centered around a healthy lifestyle. This youngster was clearly fit and healthy herself, I didn’t want to disappoint myself or her.

So, let’s say I was not as truthful as I might have been. I considered the last week, when I had travelled to Chicago and Boston and fine-dined on both occasions; not to mention the wine. I rationalized to myself that this was not a “normal” week, and as such I sho...Read More
Industries: Manufacturing Issues

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