James Pitak. Interim/Contract and Fractional COO / VP Operations for manufacturers.

SIOP

Sales, inventory, and operations on one cadence. The company sees demand, supply, and cash before the month is already lost. On a recent assignment, on-time-in-full moved from 38% to an average of 87%, and reached 92%. Sales and the floor worked off the same plan, not two forecasts.

PE-backed manufacturers

For the hold period, the work is service, inventory, and the plan the next owner can run. Inventory has come down by half while customer service held. Cash improved. Sales still had product. The cadence stays after the engagement ends.

Family-run plants

The issue is usually not effort. Sales and the floor are not on the same plan. SIOP is the weekly and monthly rhythm, not a software install. The family keeps the decisions. The plan stops living in someone’s head.

James Pitak takes the COO or VP Operations seat and runs this with the team.