Do large corporations really work?

[Mich the Tester]

I agree with the ideology. Personally, I buy quality goods which stand the test of time - but I've been able to afford them. There is a premium to pay for craftsmanship. But is it sustainable in this society, where the vast majority can't or won't pay that premium?

So, logically, businesses that prioritise the bottom line over quality will make more money, until the products become noticeably sub-standard or unsafe, and reputations are at stake.

Then you milk the cow as much as you can with PR, the power of branding and advertising - and either throw the business away or build the quality proposition back up.

Who knows? I prefer the craftsmanship approach myself.

Maybe a lot of people would buy into craftsmanship if they knew how to recognise it. How to tell the difference between a cheapo flat pack table and a solid piece of handcrafted wood, or how to tell the difference between a bright red supermarket steak and a well hung, perfectly marbled pedigree beef steak.

As for the bit about affording it; my father in law always buys Bosch tools for his carpentry and building work; they're a lot more expensive than the black and decker stuff, but he says 'I can't afford cheap equipment'.

[gingerjedi]

There are obviously huge economies of scale to consider but who does it ultimately benefit? I recently visited a locally owned Mexican restaurant in Bristol that once had a good reputation, they have an early evening special that suited us as we needed to be somewhere early, it was rubbish and all the staff could do was point to the fact that we had ordered from the ‘inferior menu’ so what did we expect? I argued that the whole point of an early menu was to offer the same food at a reduced price as it was out of peak hours, not adjust the quality to suit the price.

Looking on the back of the menu I noticed they had recently opened up restaurants in two other cities.

Not a global corporation I know but the principle is the same.

[Mich the Tester]

There are obviously huge economies of scale to consider but who does it ultimately benefit? I recently visited a locally owned Mexican restaurant in Bristol that once had a good reputation, they have an early evening special that suited us as we needed to be somewhere early, it was rubbish and all the staff could do was point to the fact that we had ordered from the ‘inferior menu’ so what did we expect? I argued that the whole point of an early menu was to offer the same food at a reduced price as it was out of peak hours, not adjust the quality to suit the price.

Looking on the back of the menu I noticed they had recently opened up restaurants in two other cities.

Not a global corporation I know but the principle is the same.

What principle? Scare people off with an inferior early menu so that they don't come later in the evening and spend good money on the better stuff?

Seems like more convoluted corporate nonsense to me.

[realityhack]

Maybe a lot of people would buy into craftsmanship if they knew how to recognise it. How to tell the difference between a cheapo flat pack table and a solid piece of handcrafted wood, or how to tell the difference between a bright red supermarket steak and a well hung, perfectly marbled pedigree beef steak.

As for the bit about affording it; my father in law always buys Bosch tools for his carpentry and building work; they're a lot more expensive than the black and decker stuff, but he says 'I can't afford cheap equipment'.

Life skills are disappearing, a lot of people don't understand nutrition, for instance - so why should they pay extra for what, to them, is an identical product? Same thing with furniture - I doubt most people would understand the diference between veneered chipboard, MDF and solid oak - for them it's just a table, so they'll buy what's cheaper.

I see the same thing in corporations. Software vendors with a product that ticks functional boxes, but is a horror to behold under the hood, I'm sure many of us have battled trying to show management that this is the case. The quality proposition is more expensive, and geared to long-term benefits, that are often hard to write a business case for. PLCs are all about short-term profits.

Know what you mean though. I can either spend £40 on a top quality brush that, if properly maintained, will last 10 years - or buy a £7 Daler Rowney equivalent that will fall apart after less than a year's use.

[minestrone]

You can get away with working in a large corp and not caring, in a small business your day to day work ethic can really make a difference so you get chased to do a days work.

I think the deeper issue is that most people, if given the chance, will put in the total minimum.

[realityhack]

most people, if given the chance, will put in the total minimum.

I hope that's not the case, but you're probably right.

IMO, it's better to know you're trying your hardest, doing your best and creating a quality product. More satisfaction, rewarding, pride, esteem etc.

I think it boils down to 'Do large corporations really work?' For who? The shareholders or the end customers/users? There are few companies that please both.

[Mich the Tester]

I think it boils down to 'Do large corporations really work?' For who? The shareholders or the end customers/users? There are few companies that please both.

Right now they aren't working well for either. 'Shareholder value' has vanished into thin air while customers are fobbed off with shytty outsourced helpdesks. Don't even start on how demotivated employees are.

[BoredBloke]

I’ve ranted about Sodexo before, but now they’ve gone and done something that I find demonstrative of the endemic corporate stupidity that's killing our banks, car manufacturers and in fact our whole economy.

Now then, my family are a bunch of business owners, farmers, building contractors, and a few senior nurses here and there. Most have experience in running businesses reasonably successfully, and adhere to a few golden rules like ‘offer something that people want at a price they are prepared to pay’, and ‘if you don’t offer a product, people won’t buy it’.

But these simple principles don’t seem to apply at Sodexo and other large corporations. This year, Sodexo slapped a 30% price rise on the square meal option in the canteen. Unsurprisingly, people stopped buying the meals (except for rich barstewards like me). The junior assistant trainee manager told me sales went from 150 units per day to 10 per day, and that doesn’t cover costs. So what have they done? They’ve stopped selling square meals altogether. 0 units per day. I suggested to the Young chappy that the collapse in sales was not due to the economic crisis, seeing as most of the people who eat in the canteen are pretty well paid, but due to the huge price increase, whose justification was questionable in an environment where neither raw materials or labour are becoming more expensive. He was stumped by this and said ‘well, I’m just doing as I’m told’.

Are large corporations actually capable of doing the basics of entrepreneurship?

Things get worse for the big company if you consider what the 150 people are now doing. Presumably before they were eating onsite. So lunch takes about 30 mins. Now they will have to go to the local town to eat, meaning a longer lunch break and more down time.

[expat]

Maybe a lot of people would buy into craftsmanship if they knew how to recognise it. How to tell the difference between a cheapo flat pack table and a solid piece of handcrafted wood, or how to tell the difference between a bright red supermarket steak and a well hung, perfectly marbled pedigree beef steak.

As for the bit about affording it; my father in law always buys Bosch tools for his carpentry and building work; they're a lot more expensive than the black and decker stuff, but he says 'I can't afford cheap equipment'.

I'd love to speak up for craftsmanship all the way, but there is more. We have Ercol furniture in the living-room, but IKEA bookshelves in the study. The Ercol should see out a few more generations, whereas the IKEA may not last too many removals; but for its purpose, the IKEA seems to be the better choice. I can afford it if need be, but money is a factor: I've got 8 bookshelves in the study: £75 each from IKEA, or £1800 each from Ercol. Sorry, not for the study.

[minestrone]

I'd love to speak up for craftsmanship all the way, but there is more. We have Ercol furniture in the living-room, but IKEA bookshelves in the study. The Ercol should see out a few more generations, whereas the IKEA may not last too many removals; but for its purpose, the IKEA seems to be the better choice. I can afford it if need be, but money is a factor: I've got 8 bookshelves in the study: £75 each from IKEA, or £1800 each from Ercol. Sorry, not for the study.

That is completely against what you were saying yesterday

http://forums.contractoruk.com/774793-post22.html