​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Business Relations :


Lesson:  Guanxi, experiences and myths.
Background:  Past protocols and ceremonies (i.e. setting expectations, formal introductions).
Requirement:
Action Items:
Results:
Lesson Learned: 

Leadership Styles

Lesson:  Valued advice from seasoned global executive manager on how they handled local corruption.

We are not missionaries attempting to convert local cultures to avoid corrupt temptations.....the important thing is to know how bad "IT" (corrupt) is.
Lesson Learned:  Work closely with each level of your staff to create trust, loyalty and team integrity.


Lesson: Legacy Staff vs. New Hires
Background: Executives hired to "turnaround" a trouble enterprise must be aware to the hidden risk with legacy staff.
Requirement: "Turnaround" weak operation with failing execution into a "high-performance" team that executes precisely as planned.
Action Items:  Before accepting the position, meet and greed every legacy employee involved in the weak operation.  Learn if there are hidden risk with protected employees with special relations and/or conflicts of interest (i.e. special powerful relationships with vendors or company owner.).
Results: Negotiate terms if compromised with ethical or legal standards, you will be treated fairly with options either to fix the issues or move on without threat of retaliations.
Lesson Learned: Conflicts of interest are inherent in global trade and compromised legacy employees can be a major hidden risk factor to high performance executives.


Lesson:  First Party "Boots on the Ground"
Background: 
Requirement:
Action Items:
Results:
Lesson Learned:  "Boots-on-the-Ground" are the Gold Standard to Due Diligence.


Lesson: Second-generation family businesses.
Background: .Overseas factories are experiencing second-generation family management leadership styles.
Requirement:
Action Items:
Results:
Lesson Learned: Risk factors include lack of empathy toward employees.


Efficient Global Mobility

Lesson:Overseas transport and telephony adds-value, saves time and money to help verify if factories are capable and cooperative to meet order processing requirements for product and factory compliance (i.e. factory audits, product quality standards, order delivery, target pricing).
Background: .Positive robust due diligences requires traveling to factories and material suppliers.
Requirement: Business trip from 2-5wks that maximized the number of face-to-face meetings at factories.
Action Items:  Carefully plan trip with daily goals example: 3 -5 factories per day.
Results:  Best results are when all possible transit options are used (i.e. train, bus, plane, taxi, sleeper train vs hotel)
Lesson Learned:  Local taxi drivers can offer local industry intelligence within industrial clusters.  Factories with good reputation, frequent foreign visitors and fully booked capacity who never advertise or attend trade shows can be difficult to find.  Local taxi drivers know local factories when they service  clients (i.e.  QC quality control inspectors, third party auditors, Overseas buyers, etc).  Factory owners who visit their workshops on weekends may have uninterrupted time to spend with new potential clients. 

Lesson: Business travel tips during Lunar New Year holiday peak.
Background: .
Requirement:
Action Items:
Results:
Lesson Learned:  Buy standing room ticket and upgrade to diner car when on train.


Lesson: Business travel to supervise staff responsible for a pre-shipment inspection at remote   Bobai, Yulin, Guangxi industrial cluster (circa 2002). 
Background:  Wireware order needed pre-shipment inspection and our Dongguan City based QC inspector ( hukou from Hubei) was assigned to travel to the factory located in a remote industrial cluster town of Bobai. 
Requirement: Meet QC inspector at factory and conduct pre-shipment inspection.
Action Items: QC inspector traveled via overnight slow train from  Guangzhou,  Supervisor traveled from   Beihai   via local public mini bus (i.e. local livestock as passengers too).
Results: The QC arrive exhausted (standing all night on the train), broke (not enough travel allowance) and fearful (i.e. since his appearances/clothing stood out compared to local persons).   The factory staged products in a dark warehouse.  We were able to move randomly selected master cartons to an area with enough room, lighting and assistances from factory.
Lesson Learned:  Remote travel risks can be higher for mainlander especially when they are considered "foreigners" tp locals and are not given enough travel allowance money to travel safely and/or select a safe hotel.



Regulatory Capture:

Lesson: CPSC regulatory capture fails to enforce CPSIA regulations.
Background: Massive 2007 Toy Recall.   Congress held hearings to attempt to manage expectation from China's ramped-up entry to WTO in 2001.
Requirement:  Congress had a major consumer protection problem that exposed CPSC regulatory capture.
Action Items: Chicagoland Senator and Representative came up with CPSIA which had components that were in toy premium quality and safety protocols for large repeat orders with leverage over large factories  (similar to a large Chicagoland base QSR with toy premium quality and safety protocols) that were time tested for up to 10 years before the 2007 recalls  (i.e.  tracking label, testing protocols etc.).  
Results: CPSIA was quickly passed despite fierce opposition from most legacy toy and children's products manufacturer and importers.   
CPSIA regulatory capture allows small importer to take risk at the expense of consumer's health and safety.




Potential Corrective Action Plan (CAP) to mitigate Regulatory Capture Waste, Fraud and Abuse; Members of Congress  legislation to:
1)  Move Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) into the Department of Justice (DOJ)  and change the name and mission to Consumer Product Safety Enforcement Agency (CPSEA)similar to the jurisdiction of Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA).
2) Move OSHA/WPP under DOJ and change the name to Whistleblower Protection Enforcement Agency. (WPEA).

List of direct benefits:
1) Eliminates current political status quo that benefits companies who short cut safety protocols at the expense of consumers and tax payers.
2) CPSC was established when manufactures were more frequently based in US.   The growth of manufacturing  overseas requires proactive enforcement vs. voluntary compliance.
3)  Under DOJ, a CPSEA can focus on enforcement of legislation. Fear of prosecution and fines would compel manufacturers, importers and retailers to hire trained professional to assure product safety compliance (i.e. Quality Assurance, Quality Control, Compliance, Testing, Inspection etc).
4) This preventative (i.e. not political) approach to Consumer Product Safety can create jobs for economically disadvantaged citizens who only can afford access to trade schools, community college and public schools. 
5) As containerization accelerated globalization, "market places"  became the "battle fields of commercialism" .   Protecting  commercial trade borders from hazardous imports  will continue to be a critical quality of life priority which requires aggressive proactive enforcement techniques.
6) Airline industry would benefit from increased overseas travel demand from buyers responsible for "boots on the ground" on site factory audits, product safety testing and inspections.

7) Politicizing consumer product safety has proven to be a failure for years. Example CPSIA, FCC, CDC, FDA, FTC, EPA.

8) Politicizing OSHA/WPP has proven to be a failure for years.  Example  FAA, 

9) Fine issued for violations can be used to hire more enforcement staff for a flywheel effect of efficiency to benefit citizens and tax payers.

 Cost of Quality benefits Job Gains: 
1) Prevention: Entry level skilled and semi-skilled manufacturing job growth benefit from investing in prevention costs (i.e. creating new jobs in quality assurance engineer, manufacturing engineers, etc.)
2) Appraisal: Entry level skilled and semi-skilled manufacturing jobs benefit from appraisal costs (i.e. quality control inspectors, testing technician, etc.)
3) Internal Failures:  Entry level skilled and semi-skilled manufacturing jobs benefit from internal failure costs (i.e. factory labor rework, inspectors, etc.)
4) External Failures:  Rent seeking Third Parties (3PL, testing, inspection and audit services), Lawyers and Captured Regulators benefit from external failures (i.e. fraudulent document in an attempt to transfer risk (i.e. test reports, factory audits), legislation that increase litigation billable hours, enhanced career path options from government agencies to  C-suites).

​Action Plan Protocol

1) Legislation to mandate all imports to have an "Import Passport".

2) Import Passport components include:

            -Product Specification: with detailed bill of material components and tracking label for traceability to raw material sources.

​            -Milestone Schedule: with detail notes that verify tracking label for traceability to raw material sources.

           -P&L Cost Sheet: with detail bill of material cost components.










​

Public and Enterprise Corruption Prevention:

​


  • NYS Governor (former NYS AG) resigned March 17,2008
  • NYS Attorney General resigned  May 8, 2018
  • NYS Governor (former NYS AG) resigned August 23,2021
  • Hobbs Act   (18 U.S.C. Section 1951) Criminalizes extortion by fear. Interference with commerce by threat or violence.
  • Martin Act    New York anti-fraud law
  • ​Qui Tam        False Claims Act   31 U.S.C. 3729   past or present fraud committed against the federal government.
  • False Claims Act aka "Lincoln Law"    31 U.S.C. 3729   past or present fraud committed against the federal government.
  • SLAPP     Strategic lawsuit against public participation are lawsuits intended to intimidate, censor and silence critics.
  • anti- SLAPP     a law intended to prevent SLAPP.
  • Quid pro Quo      Incentive Zoning versus Construction Fraud
  • Fence (criminal)  "fence act as middlemen between thieves and the eventual buyer                                                                                                                      of stolen goods/property who may not be aware the goods/property are stolen."                                                                                                                    Example: Unlicensed property developer company encroach property then transfers                                                                                                                   deed to middlemen/fence before listing illegal unsafe property development to public.
  • Pay to play     used in Construction Fraud Schemes
  • Menacing "intent of placing another person in fear of imminent physical injury or death."
  • Reckless Endangerment "conduct that creates a substantial risk of serious physical

            ​injury or death to another person."

  • Grifter is a con artist who obtains money by swindling or tricking others.
  • Usurpation: wrongful or illegal encroachment, infringement, or seizure.
  • Wire Fraud: federal crimes involving electronically transmitting fraud associated information.
  • Mail Fraud: federal crimes that involve mailing something associated with fraud.
  • Money Laundering process of changing large amounts of money obtained from crimes.
  • Crime Fraud Exception    communication between attorney and client to further a crime.
  • Process Crimes    "interfere with the procedure and administration of justice".
  • Rockland County, NY Table of Contents (ecode360.com)

​                           ​Rockland County, NY Vehicles, Idling of (ecode360.com)

  • Extortion 18 U.S.C. Section 872

                          -Extortion under color of law

                          -Extortion under color of office

                          -Extortion under color of title

  • Federal Bribery Statue 18 U.S.C. Section 201

                          -giving or promising to give something of value.

                          -to a public official

                          -in order to influence act by that public office.

​                          -Organized Crime — FBI

                          -White-Collar Crime — FBI

                          -Civil Rights — FBI

  • Moreland Act    Allows NYS governor to examine management and affairs of any department, board, bureau or commission in the state.             

​                           -The Moreland Commission on Public Corruption (ny.gov)      2013

                           -The Moreland Commission on Utility Storm Preparation and Response (ny.gov)   2012

                            -Rebuild By Design | Governor’s Office of Storm Recovery (GOSR) (ny.gov)

                           -Doing Business with GOSR | Governor’s Office of Storm Recovery (GOSR) (ny.gov)

                           -News & Resources | Governor’s Office of Storm Recovery (GOSR) (ny.gov)

                           -Funding | Governor’s Office of Storm Recovery (GOSR) (ny.gov)

                            -Freedom of Information Law | Governor’s Office of Storm Recovery (GOSR) (ny.gov)

​                             -About Section 3 | New York State Storm Recovery Opportunities (ny.gov)

                             -About MWBE | New York State Storm Recovery Opportunities (ny.gov)

                             -New York State Storm Recovery Opportunities | (ny.gov)

                             -Contractor/Subrecipient Registration | New York State Storm Recovery Opportunities (ny.gov)

                             -Work Opportunities | New York State Storm Recovery Opportunities (ny.gov)

                             -Training Opportunities | New York State Storm Recovery Opportunities (ny.gov)

                              -Updates & Alerts for Individuals | New York State Storm Recovery Opportunities (ny.gov)

                              -Regional Contracting Opportunities | New York State Storm Recovery Opportunities (ny.gov)

                              -Additional Contracting Opportunities | New York State Storm Recovery Opportunities (ny.gov)

​                              -Procurement Opportunities | Governor’s Office of Storm Recovery (GOSR) (ny.gov)

                              -Contact | New York State Storm Recovery Opportunities (ny.gov)

​                   -Lack of oversight and enforcement of building and safety codes.

                   -Building inspector filing false reports.

                   -Falsifying inspection reports filed with the state.

                   -Falsifying business records.

​                  -Scams, Schemes, and Frauds | Department of Financial Services (ny.gov)    Unlicensed Property Developer excavation threatens homeowners.

                  -Title Insurance | Department of Financial Services (ny.gov)                 Delay, Deny, Defend Title Insurance Companies operate in New York State.

                 -Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (consumerfinance.gov)          Agency failure to protect homeowners from Title Insurance claim denials.    

                  -Dig Safely (ny.gov)                                                                                 New York State outsources Dig Safely Law Enforcement to Third Party Services.                    -Digging and Excavation Safety | Dig Safely New York                    Third party services not accountable to  NYS Freedom of Information Laws.

                  -Call 811 - Know what's below. Call before you dig.                                Third party services not accountable to NYS Freedom of Information Laws.

                  -Know what's below–Call or Click NEW YORK 811 Before You Dig! (newyork-811.com)                3rd party service not accountable to  NYS FOIL.

                  -New York State Department of Public Service - Home Page (ny.gov)               New York State Agency responsible for Dig Safely Law Enforcement

​                           *Meet the Commissioners (ny.gov)


​​










​

EPA Best practices for reducing Near-Road pollution handbook 

"The way positive reinforcement is carried out is more important than the amount."     B.F. Skinner

Organizational Behavior (OB)

​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Employment:


Lesson: 30 years of relevant manufacturing employment focused on adding-value enough for healthy ROI on salary expense. 
Background: US manufacturing became challenged by Asia manufacturing sources.
Requirement: Faster, Better, Cheaper.
Action Items: Experience and Education.
Results:  Pivoting focus from cost, to speed, to quality allowed multiple recruiting job offers during these 30 years.

  • 1990-1995 Costing and New Product Development (i.e. Value Engineering).  Developed a Should-Cost Estimation techniques.  
  • 1995-2005  Fast-Cycle and Quality Assurance.   Developed Milestone Schedules and Product Specification Compliance Document dBase.
  • 2005-2014  Sourcing and Regulatory Compliance.  Worked and traveled throughout Asia to train and enforce compliance requirements.

Lesson Learned: Global digital mobility fraud require enhanced quality assurance commitments from government agencies.


Lesson:  Employee Engagement Benefit and Positive ROI from Employee Total Compensation Package Expenses.
Background: .
Requirement:
Action Items:
Results:
Lesson Learned:



Lesson:  Experienced Cost Engineers in high demand during early stage of China opening up to manufacturing (i.e. late 1980's to early 1990's).
Background: .Should-Cost Management became a priority to avoid  excessive profits made by overseas middlemen (i.e. provincial and export agents). 
Requirement:
Action Items:
Results:
Lesson Learned:


Lesson:  Experience Project Engineers in high demand during pre-WTO stage of China opening up to manufacturing (i.e.mid- late 1990's ).
Background: Reliable on-time delivery became a priority.
Requirement:
Action Items:
Results:
Lesson Learned:


Lesson:  Experience Quality Management in high demand during post WTO stage of China opening up to manufacturing (i.e. early 2000's ).
Background: Product safety and quality became a priority.
Requirement:
Action Items:
Results:
Lesson Learned:


Lesson:  Experience Supply Chain Management  high demand during the ramp-up to mature  ( and post 2009 financial crisis) stage of China low cost high volume manufacturing (i.e. 2010's ).
Background: Regulatory Capture has allowed dumping high volumes of off-spec/no spec products, below actual cost at retail sales.
Requirement:
Action Items:
Results:
Lesson Learned:



Lesson:  Hong Kong working visa vs China working visa.
Background: .
Requirement:
Action Items:
Results:
Lesson Learned:

​
Lesson:   Winding down oversea operations after  2008 Financial Crisis.
Background:  While returning from a long China sourcing trip, Wall Street Financial Crisis occurred and employer had lay-offs.
Requirement:  Wind-down overseas staffing.
Action Items: Inform 4 overseas staff and assess their future employment opportunities.
Results: Only one of the four depended on the job as sole income.   He was the eldest and would have the most difficulty finding another job.  Eventually found the eldest staff a position with a company based in Hong Kong.
Lesson Learned:  It is critical to handle lay-offs with dignity for unemployed to move on successfully.   Senior staff years later found in a group photo of Chinese expats based in Europe photo with former China Premier  Wen Jiabao.   


​Lesson Legacy employees
Background: .
Requirement:
Action Items:
Results:
Lesson Learned: 

Tailwinds:

Supportive, transparent  top management style and common components:

1) Extensive experience.

2) Client participation and endorsements.

3) No conflicts of interest with US top management and oversea top management.

​Headwinds:

Dysfunctional, corrupt top management style and common components.

1)  Inexperience.

2) Conflicts of interest with US top management and Overseas top management.


Conflicts of Interest
Internally
Externally


Lesson 1  Remuneration
Background: Local factories treatment
Requirement:
Action Items:
Results:
Lesson Learned: 

Lesson 2 Remuneration
Background:  North American firm with mainland China operation execution challenges seeks solutions with experience western management.

Major Western Brand Online Job Board post position based in Shanghai.   Offer given for Country Manager India.  Final position based in Shenzhen EPZ.
Requirement:  Hong Kong working visa.  Safe transportation throughout mainland China (i.e. minivan and driver).
Action Items: Hong Kong working visa.
Results: Based working in Mainland China without a China working visa. 
Lesson Learned: Bait and switch job offers overseas can be dangerous and costly. 

Lesson 3  Remuneration
Background: .Performance-linked incentives
Requirement:
Action Items:
Results:
Lesson Learned: 


Lesson 4 Remuneration.
Background: .Professional online recruitment fraud
Requirement:
Action Items:
Results:
Lesson Learned: 

Organizational Behavior and Ethics featured in film


-1950's Factory conversion to plastics injection molding.

-1900's Chicago Meat-packing organization

Final Investigation Report Code Enforcement in New York State 

This page is under construction

Thomas Doyle  MSc.


"To be neutral in a situation of injustice it to have chosen sides already. It is to support the status quo"                                           "Don't raise your voice, improve your argument"     Desmond Tutu

Public and Enterprise Corruption featured in film


-Community struggles with lawlessness. 



Asia Manufacturing  and Overseas Operations:

Lesson: 1989-1999  Toy Vendor Operations rescale their mainland footprint with massive upgrades to factory labor capacities up to 10,000+ workers.
Background:  Fast-food toys industry grew rapidly with the growth of major movie releases for kids and families during the 1990's  (i.e. Lucas Films, Nickelodeon, Disney Films, etc.).  Traditional toy factories had relied on McDonald Happy Meal toys manufacturing to off-set down-time from their traditional toy peak season production period (after CNY, ramping up April-Aug).  Fast-food toy production peak season period occurs August-April during down-time for traditional toys.  As more QSR's offered toy premiums programs similar to McDonalds, factory owners began major expansion to add factory capacities.
Requirement: Toy premiums factories require up to 10,000 workers to handle fast-cycle orders (i.e. 8 million units, over 8 different designs delivered to US customer within 8 months -ideation to in-market).
Action Items: Factory owners worked closely with local government for approval of the massive enterprise.
Results: Mega-factories built within an industrial city complete with a bank, worker housing and cafeteria able to service thousands of worker at a time. It demonstrated that China could execute complex products with high quality and strictest product safety standards (i.e. microbial testing, etc.), at scale for massive quantities and fastest-cycles.  Failure was never an option because toys must be in-store when movies are in theatres, This was amazing since years earlier, 4 color process printing had to be sent from Hong Kong printers because of technical limitations on the mainland.
Lesson Learned:  These mega-factory industrial cities built to execute massive fast-food toy premiums during the 1990’s were a sign of things to come for executing future consumer products in mass quantities. 


Lesson:  Northern China factory labor capacities at least 500 workers to handle Big Box Retailer order quantities and standards for quality and compliance.

Background:  Yuan peg to dollar was removed and fob pricing began going up for importers. Northern China factories obtained an export license to avoid the local government provincial trading company to export their product.  Factories were eager for compliance program guidance. Northern China factory product cost (FOB prices) where expected to be as much as 20% less than South China (Guangdong Province) factories.
Requirement: Train factory managers how to meet international standards for labor and product safety compliance.
Action Items: Conduct factory audits.
Results: Onboarded capable and cooperative factories who priced 20% lower than South China factories.
Lesson Learned:  Northern China factory owners are ready to take orders directly from overseas buyers.


Lesson: The 'CHASE" culture of overseas manufacturing execution. Chasing down operational execution requirements to meet or exceed expectations.
Background:  Critical operational milestone instructions can become "lost in translation" with inexperience if management fails to listen carefully.
Non Native English speakers might use the word "Yes" as a "filler word" to quickly acknowledge they "heard a verbal instruction".  However, they might still be attempting to "translate" the verbal instructions in their thoughts, before they can give a complete, accurate reply.
It is important to verify that messages was understood before assuming "Yes" means "Agreement".  Also, "Maybe" can signal a disagreement and avoidance to say "No" in order to save face.  Frequent used of the Putonghua word for understand: "Mingbai?"  can help verify comprehension.
Positive proactive due diligence (i.e. "chasing", "spoon-feed") verification for full comprehension provides win-win execution risk reduction that builds trust and ensure communications are:   *On-Time,  *Accurate,  *Complete.
As a HK based manager, execution risk were reduced by coaching a high-performance team of engineers and merchandisers with positive proactive due diligence (i.e. spoon-feed)  communication techniques with US counterparts to gain timely, accurate, complete client approvals.
Requirement:  Faster, Better, Cheaper, products and services to our clients.
Action Items:  Use technology (dbase) to efficiently execute requirements to targeted metrics.
Results:  Rapid business growth as the team won awards and became a supplier with a reputation for consistently exceeding expectations.
Lesson Learned: Fast-Cycle requires high-performance (chasing) and quality assurance (i.e. spoon-feeding=full comprehension).

​Lesson: Third party services staff from US who lack real world factory experience.
Background:  Overseas factories location lack transparency to execute and enforcement product and factory  safety requirements.
Requirement: US 3rd party staff provide expert advice to US retailers on product safety, testing and factory audits and social compliance.
Action Items:  3rd party lab US staff request access to tour factories of their client's overseas suppliers.
Results: A few hour walking tour of mainland factory.
Lesson Learned:  Third Party Test Services staff based in US have limited access and knowledge of overseas factories operations.


Lesson: High-performance Teams
Background:  QSR toy premiums during the 1990 could be divided into two groups: McDonalds Happy Meals and all the rest.  McDonalds generally partnered with Disney and Mattel and had more time to execute new product development and production since the movie character development took years to complete.  The "rest" of the industry had a significantly shorter lead-time (i.e. less than 10 months) since the client would negotiate licenses on a "as-needed" basis and then request for quote (RFQ) to their  suppliers to present concepts for a competitive selection. Out of the 3 critical NPD metrics, the client gave two, delivery and cost.   For the third metric, suppliers execute the Fuzzy-frontend (FFE)    to present a client approvable design.
Requirement:  Present 20-30 concepts with product costing. for client approvals.
Action Items:  Execute with 1) Milestone Schedule  2) Product Cost Sheet  3) Product Specifications.
Results: Obtain optimum solution for cost, design within the shortest time (i.e. if given unlimited time the same optimum result found fastest).
Lesson Learned: It is not about "working harder" it is  about "learning faster" (i.e. results vs perfection).

Lesson: When Quality Control (QC) becomes Quick Cash (QC).
Background: Honest hardworking factory owners face bribe requests from corrupt local staff hired by third party inspection/test services and/or US retailers local staff inspectors.
Requirement:  Uncompromising Factory and Product compliance.
Action Items:  Report incident and request new staff who is uncompromising.
Results:  Full compliance.
Lesson Learned: Bribe requests may happen less than before, however, on the occasion it does happen it is critical to do the right thing.

Lesson: Factory audit  with two different stories about bribery incident.
Background:  A factory undergoing a typical US retailer factory audit was surprised with the results:  Automatic failure for Bribery.
Requirement:  Factories undergo CSR audits from US retailer before initial orders are placed.  The factory knows the retailer does expect a perfect score because it appears suspicious. If the factory labor and working conditions are so high, the product cost must be too much.  An average score with corrective action plans is acceptable for first time audit because the retailers needs capacity from capable factories willing to make improvement as needed.   So it was odd when the factory receive the news of a automatic failure because the inspector claims bribery. The factory claimed the inspector wasn't bribed, however that could've been the reason for failure (i.e.  refusal to pay bribe means failure ).
Action Items:  I had inspected the factory weeks prior to verify it was willing and capable of passing the audit so I tried to arrange another chance.
Results:  Smooth things out and move forward to add capacity with willing and capable factories.  Willing to follow corrective action plans (caps) to factory audits.  Capable means to meet order process requirements for quality, cost and schedule.
Lesson Learned:  The pressure is high for executing CSR audit requirements which are often unrealistic aspirational goals that only benefit those third party services who profit from repeat audit fees.  If the money went to the workers instead, favorable working conditions could be realistic.  

​Lesson: Results vs. Perfection
Background:  Often passionate stakeholders describe their requirements it terms of meeting a "Perfection Standard".
Requirement:   Meet and exceed customer expectations.
Action Items:  When following Creative Direction that describes requirement to be "Perfect", set expectation with limit sample approvals.
Results:  It is critical to meet and exceed expectation, delight customer and build trust in order to win new orders as an end result.
Lesson Learned: Results to delight customer, build trust and win new orders is the ultimate goal. Perfection is a subjective standard, not measurable goal.

​Lesson: Communication and mobility.
Background: Walking the Canton Fair with new North American employer.
Requirement:
Action Items:
Results:
Lesson Learned:

Lesson:  Conflicts of Interest vs. Quality Assurance
Background:
Requirement:  
Action Items:
Results:
Lesson Learned:

Lesson: Corporate Social Responsibility Non-profit Organization .(CSR-NPO)
Background: 
Requirement:
Action Items: 
Results:
Lesson Learned:

Lesson: Product Safety and Liability Prevention Seminar.
Background:  Sought expert training in the field of product liability prevention.
Requirement: Learn about product defect litigation and regulatory investigations.
Action Items:  Read publications and attend seminar.
Results: Publications and seminar was brilliantly valuable as it was spoken from practical manufacturer's mind-set.
Lesson Learned: Prevention is an investment that pays-off.

​Lesson: Emailed concerns on product safety hazard risk.
Background: .
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​Lesson: Third Party Test Lab Salesperson in the company conference room.
Background:  CPSIA mandate toy testing in US market.
Requirement: Toys importer into US market must meet CPSIA compliance.
Action Items: Top management support staff on CPSIA Compliance Program and training which involves Third Party Test Lab Services.
Results:  Top management approves investing in a CPSIA Compliance Program and spending mandated safety testing.
Lesson Learned:  If top management does NOT approve spending money to maintain up-to-date test reports that fully comply with CPSIA, do  not invite a Third Party Test Service Salesperson into the company conference room for a presentation on their Benefits and Services. ​

Lesson: Office Cultures: Eastern compare to  Western
Background: .
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Results:  Transparency  and Supportive Learning (i.e. No corruption, No office politics).
Lesson Learned:

Lesson: 24/7 Global Enterprises (996 working hours).
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Lesson: Legacy Employees and New Hires.
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Lesson: Putonghua (Chinese Official Language).
Background: .
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Lesson Learned:  English becomes the default language to prevent critical details from being "lost in translation".

Lesson:Zhan Pianyi, refers to profit at another person's expense.
Background: .
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Lesson: Surprise local management style in Shenzhen.
Background: North American Brand had serious delays with new product category promised to big box retailer.  

Owner hire a friend's son to head major expansion of new product category, unfortunately this person didn't

have the experience necessary to succeed and execution without "trial and error ".                                                                                                                                   Minimal local supervision allowed for the NPD process to drag on in the wrong directions.                                                                                                                   Complex designs (i.e. pinwheel/waffle shapes = tool vent risks) had serious material selection limitations                                                                                             and vendors were burden with costly waste from strap, machine cycle times and tooling expenses. 

Example: Product shapes and wall section thicknesses could only be commercially successful with injection molding, 

Lack of responsible local experienced management enabled the inexperienced designer to specify die cast aluminum. 

Local management focused on administrative, entertainment and travel (i.e. legacy top management special needs).                                                                        End results were slow machine cycles, damaged tooling, short shot parts and products that were too heavy for intended functional use (i.e. hang on wall).  
Lo Wu Station  expansion travel delays and Harbour Fest  concerts didn't help during this critical ramp-up, debug period as staff responsible for design and development execution were in Hong Kong.

Requirement: High-performance management team to execute NPD on new product category that exceeds customer expectation's
Action Items:  Debug production. 
Results:  Costly production delays.
Lesson Learned:    Verify with owner/top management who runs remote offices and who pays local staff in cash.    

Be cautious if local management team dress and style hair as Canto Pop stars. 

Generally local staff loyalty goes to anyone with access to cash that is used to pay salaries (i.e. local Big Bosses). 

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Lesson:Brand-It strategy for importers.
Background:  
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Lesson: 1980's Japanese capture of US television market.
Background:  First job hired from College job service center was Manufacturing Engineer for subcontractor to Matsushita Industrial Company (MIC).
Requirement:  Ship Panasonic and Quasar Brand TV housings to Matsushita Industrial Company  final assembly plant in Chicago suburb where the decorated TV housings are assemble with internal electronics shipped from Japan.
Action Items:  Complete RFQ costing based on tool design blue prints, design line-tooling, prepare product specification (including material specifications, injection molding machine size, hotstamp/pad printing/paint mask fixture/tool design and procurement) and pilot initial production start.
Results: Negotiate Design for Manufacturing (DfM)  on new TV models with team of Japanese managers and engineers.
Lesson Learned: Awarded lucrative model styles on 19" Panasonic TV sets.


Lesson: Scalable Asia Manufacturing Resources
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Lesson: Power of Relational Database Management software for capturing and allocating legacy budget (i.e. Design and Development Hours by SKU)
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Lesson: Trade Shows and tenacity get results ( sourcing capable and cooperative suppliers for high-end designs).
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Lesson: Unregulated Database Management Systems and Data-warehousing has created an existential threat to personal data security and privacy.
Background:  Began using database technology with mail merge database on an Osborne PC to send resumes for jobs during senior year in college 1983.
Database management systems have been critical internal systems used to capture data owned by companies processing their own data.

Database management security became compromised as smart phones became required supporting computing power with off premise cloud computers. 

The "sharing economy" began to appear during the Great Recession and conflated "sharing" with "stealing" personal private data.

Third party services and apps offered for free with little or no cybersecurity protect and sell consumers data to other datamining businesses.

Off premise cloud based "SaaS" business models monetize personal private data at the risk of personal security and privacy (i.e. cost cutting for profits).

Digital cyber currencies used for ransomware data retrieval.  Third party fraud grows with digital, mobile, global products & services (i.e. internet).

Lesson Learned: Unregulated database technology (i.e. SaaS, Cloud computing) has become a tool to monetize personal data that creates excessive risks.