The Implementation of Global Best Practices, Coursework Example

The implementation of global best practices, methodologies, processes, and tools would have assisted Spin Master Toys’ ability to identify a contract manufacturer that is able to quickly create a usable product. Their problem stems from the fact that while Wai Lung and Wah Shing have been beneficial to them in the past, both companies are able to provide the complete set of services that are needed. The toy company requires that there be 20,000 toy airplanes available for December 1999, indicating that these products will need to be produced in a timely fashion, preferably in a time window of fourth months. Ronnen Harary believes that the weight of the toy airplane will ideally be 17 grams, although it currently weights 18 grams. He believes that neither Wai Lung nor Wah Shing is qualified to generate an airplane design that will be functional. Furthermore, he states that other companies in Hong Kong are likely to be unqualified for this job as well. Factors that he will consider include price, raw materials and prefabricated components, quality of machinery, capability of engineering, etc. While Harary believes that partnering with Chinese manufacturing companies may be a solution, he is worried that their engineering quality will be diminished. Therefore, he is faced with the difficult decision of choosing to work with manufacturing companies that each has their own inadequacies; unfortunately, a perfect partner is not available. If global best practices were implemented, Spin Master Toys would not be having this problem. Each manufacturing company would be held to superior quality standards, which would allow competition in a manner that promotes improvement across the board. For Spin Master Toys, this would result in a product that is built well, weights the proper amount, and is produced in a timely manner. Global best practices could be used to facilitate problem-solving across borders and culture by implementing a standard that all similar companies will employ.

Although the fact that Spin Master Toys is unable to find a capable manufacturing partner is problematic, this problem would have been avoided if they had spent an adequate amount of time studying various manufacturing agencies around the world to determine those that uphold adequate best practices. While Spin Mater Toys is considering companies in Asian nations, it is possible that there are ideal candidates locally in Canada. Although this partnership may be more costly, it will be less time consuming due to the reduced amount of time it will take them to retrieve their finished products after completion. A second technique that Spin Master Toys can adopt at this point is a manufacturing partnership with the two companies. It may be useful for Spin Master Toys to develop a project process that involves the cooperation of both Wai Lung and Wah Shing or the other Chinese companies. Before this can occur, Spin Master Toys must complete a detailed study of all candidate companies to determine which specific parts of the manufacturing process they are most eligible to complete. For example, one company may be best at developing the small components of the toy airplane while the second may be best at assembling these parts. Therefore, a half-finished product could be transferred between the two manufacturing agencies to build a project that is built in a timely manner, weighs the appropriate amount, is well built, and is cost effective. While it would be simpler for Spin Master Toys to find a manufacturing partner in Canada, they must weigh both of these options to determine which is the most ideal.

The aforementioned tools and techniques are not just relevant once a crisis exists or only during normal planning execution and closing. Rather, they should constantly be considered throughout the course of the project. In fact, these solutions to the problem would have been more effective if they were considered at the start of the project. Ultimately, it is beneficial to consider alternative options at all stages of the project. However, it is necessary to define reliable and effective manufacturing partners before the start of the project. Spin Master Toys was fully aware that it would be necessary to partner with a manufacturing company at some point during the project in order to complete production of their toy. Since they had worked with both Wai Lung and Wah Shing in the past, they were already aware of the advantages and disadvantages of partnerships with both companies. Therefore, the attempt to determine an ideal manufacturing partner should have occurred before the production of the toy airplanes were a concern. However, since this did not occur, the toy company would benefit by thinking more about their manufacturing process before beginning. This is an important lesson to learn that will hopefully benefit them in future projects.