Monthly Archives: October 2015

LOLCAT Says – Canada, Do NOT Vote Conservative!

LOLCat, the election is coming up on October 19 (2015) and Harperman, the same individual whose party is effectively holding cancer sufferers, survivors, and their affected kin hostage by not matching up to $35 Million of donations unless the party is re-elected (Source: CBC News), wants to be re-elected.

What do you think, LOLCat. Should Canadians vote Conservative and, by definition, put the Harperman back in office? (Remembering that politics in this country does not work like politics in the United States. Whomever leads the party that gets the most seats gets to be Prime Minister, even if he [or she] is not elected in her riding!)

Before you answer, let me remind you that the Harperman is the same individual who:

  • forced Canada into the TPP negotiations
  • withdrew us from the Kyoto Protocol (making us the first developed country in the world to withdraw from this planet saving protocol)
  • cut funding to Veterans Affairs to the point that a Veterans Group has launched an Anyone But Conservatives campaign, Green Party included! (Source: Huffington Post: “veterans launch anyone but conservatives campaign during harper stop”)
  • … and then spent over $700,000 fighting a class-action lawsuit fighting wounded Afghan veterans who just wanted the benefits and care they were promised (Source: Huffington Post: “veterans lawsuit canada harper government”)
  • runs Billion dollar deficits while cutting social programs (Source: They Tyee)
  • introduced controversial bill C-51, which, according to the OSCE, violates Universal Principles of Human Rights and gives CSIS unprecedented new powers to spy on individual Canadians and revoke terrorist propaganda (Source: National Post)
  • put our safety in jeopardy every time we leave the house by slashing funding across all safety programs at Transport Canada (Source: Global News)
  • pushed First Nations to give up the rights to their land for oil and gas, land that took them decades upon decades to reclaim (Source: The Guardian)
  • spent over 1.3 Million fighting sick moms’ EI disability benefits, wait, what?!? (Source: The Globe and Mail)
  • made a secret arms deal with Saudi Arabia (Source: The Globe and Mail)
  • and who is, in leading Canadian minds, gasp!, pro-war (Source: Globe and Mail)
    and who apparently loves the smell of napalm in the morning
    (how anti-Canadian can you get? There’s a reason we’ve went from being one of the best respected countries in the world to a country that is literally spit on!)

And who has committed more sins than we can document in a single post, but which have been chronicled and made freely available by CUSP (Citizens United for a Sustainable Planet) on The Harper Sin List* page.

What say you, LOLCat?

We agree, LOLCat, we agree. Harper has singlehandedly ignored Canadian ways while destroying our reputation and our cultural heritage.

In the words of Tony Turner:

Harperman, it’s time for you to go!

We’ve had enough of your not-so-benign dictatorship!

There’s a reason the Canadian Christians think “Harper’s clock is in Jesus’ office” (mwpr.ca).

Geopolitical Damnation 32: Political Unrest / Riots

It’s not just unexpected labour strikes that can throw a wrench into your best laid plans, but political unrest as well, both on the public side and the government side.

Political unrest on the public side can lead to widespread walkouts across the public and private sectors, including unauthorized strikes where unions are involved and unauthorized on-the-job walkouts in the private sector where unions are not present, and shut down the better portion of a city, state, or even a country. It’s like a port strike coupled with a driver strike coupled with a warehouse worker strike coupled with a retail sales outlet strike as your entire supply chain inbound and outbound in that city, state, or country is brought to a screeching halt. And this might be the best outcome as a result of widespread unrest.

If the people really get upset, they might not settle for walk-outs and instead decide that they are going to full-scale riot, which will, of course, result in looting, destruction of property, and possibly even terrorist-like actions that result in burning and destruction of entire facilities. So, not only might your supply chain come to a screeching halt literally overnight, but your inventory might be stolen, your production line destroyed, and your building burnt to the ground.

While political unrest on the public side can get quite bad, especially if your facility gets destroyed, political unrest on the government side can be even worse. If, all of a sudden, a government agent takes a strong dislike to your country of origin or your company, every one of your shipments can be held up at the border, any items that appear to be in violation of a directive (such as REACH, WEEE, or a country equivalent) seized until appropriate tests are conducted, each drum or container of a perishable food item at risk of contamination opened for inspection or confirmation (forcing an entire shipment to be destroyed), and each item deemed to be misclassified under the countries HS code held until you pay the maximum fine. And this is again the better outcome.

Your company can be put on a denied parties list and all imports blocked. Your country can be put under embargo for one or more categories of goods that your company produces, also blocking all imports. Your company can be suspected of engaging in, or doing business with companies that engage in, illegal activities and all of your operations in the country effectively shut down when your bank accounts are frozen, all of your files and servers confiscated, and your inventory seized. A government (agent) that has it out for you — possibly even because of the country your HQ is in, the country you are importing from, or the country you are exporting to — can effectively shut your entire operation down seemingly overnight with almost no notice whatsoever.

Political unrest is a very bad thing, and a very deadly damnation when it rises up to consume your supply chain operation whole.

Gettin’ Sigi With It

Those of you joining the doctor at Emirates Stadium today at the Trade Extensions European Practitioners Conference on Managing the Future will know that today is the day we all Get Sigi with it!

Gettin’ Sigi With It!
To the tune of Gettin’ Jiggy With It.

Bring it.
Whoo!
Unh, unh, unh, unh
Hoo cah cah
Hah hah, hah hah

Bicka bicka bow bow bow,
Bicka bow bow bump bump
What, what, what, what
Hah hah hah hah
Unh,

On your mark ready set let’s go
Sourcing pro I know you know
They went psycho when his new book hit
Just can’t sit
Gotta get Sigi wit’ it

Ooh that’s it
Now Procurement pro come nigh
Sourcing Mojo all up in my eye
You gotta new ride with alotta stuff in it
Give it to your friend let’s spin

Everybody lookin’ at him
Glancin’ the kid
Wishin’ they was dancin’ a jig
Here with that handsome kid
Ciga-cigar right from Cuba-Cuba
He just bite it
It’s for the look he don’t light it

IGsay the an-may on the rand-gay and-stay
List’nin’ to Sigi make it feel like foreplay
Yo his cred-dee-o is Infinite
Ha ha
Big Sigi style’s all in it
Gettin’ Sigi Wit It

Na na na na na na na nana
Na na na na nana
Gettin’ Sigi wit it

What you wanna tread with the kid
Watch your step you might fall
Trying to do what he did
Sourcer-unh sourcer-unh sourcer come closer
In the middle of the room with the rub-a-dub, unh

No love for the cynics, the cynics
Mad cause he bled savings from the bankers
See him on the fifty yard line with the traders
Met Stamper, he told him he’s the greatest

We got the fever for the flavor of a crowd pleaser
Blogger spin another
From the Mojo prince
His highness
His mad skillz bring you riches

South to the west to the east to the north
Take his plans and watch ’em go off a go off
Ah yes yes y’all ya don’t stop
In the winter or the (summertime)
He makes it hot
Gettin’ Sigi wit ‘it

Na na na na na na na nana
Na na na na nana
Gettin’ Sigi wit it

Guaranteed savings if you need a lift
Who’s the kid in the mist
Who else Sigi Osagie
Livin’ that life some consider a myth

Save from South A. to the UK
Finance used to tease him
Give it to him now nice and easy
Since he moved up like George and Wheezy

Save to the maximum I be askin’ ’em
Would you like to bounce with the brother that’s platinum
Never see Sig attackin’ ’em
Rather play ball with Locke and um,
Flatten ’em
Psyche
Kiddin’

You thought he skim’d a schill
But he didn’t
Trust the blogger in your life, he hittin’
Hittin’ hard a piledriver with a ribbon
Crib for his bros on the outskirts of Surrey
Savings troupe for you and me
Don’t be waylaid
Go get Sigi wit it

Na na na na na na na nana
Na na na na nana
Gettin’ Sigi wit it

Economic Damnation 3: (Un)Employment Rate

You’re probably asking why this is a Procurement damnation because, on the surface, it doesn’t appear to have anything to do with Procurement. And it’s a good question, because, on the surface, it has to do with the health of the overall economy, and nothing to do with the supply and demand (im)balances that drive day to day Procurement decisions, especially for those organizations still using the Kraljic (Portfolio) Purchasing Methodology.

And from that perspective, you would be right. But here’s the thing. The employment rate is related to the overall health of the economy and the amount of disposable income in the economy. The amount of overall disposable income combined with views on acceptable (consumer) debt levels determines how much consumers have to, and will, spend. The amount of spend determines overall demand for unnecessary and necessary products alike. (Yes, people need to eat and will always spend on food, as long as they can afford to, but if money is tight, “essentials” gets redefined to low-cost basic essentials and high-end food products like prepared meals, imported fruits and vegetables, and lobster are off the menu.) This, of course, determines demand, and demand determines not only your volume leverage in negotiation, but the overall profitability and health of the business, and, thus your overall budget. (Remember, no sale, no store.)

And even if you are in B2B sales, because you supply office supplies, MRO, technology, or equipment, you still depend on consumer spend because if consumers aren’t buying from your customers, your customers aren’t buying from you.

But that’s just one side of the equation. The other side is the talent side. If employment is high, people are buying, but talent, which you so desperately need to take your Procurement organization to the next level, is scarce, and your only option is to hire them away from a rival. This means a big bump in expected salary and lots of perks (and training, so bring that budget back or else) to get them to stay.

In other words, there is no good (un)employment situation for you because either unemployment is rising, which means falling demand and reduced leverage in negotiations and operating funds, or unemployment is falling, which means a lack of available talent and more funds dedicated to talent to keep the talent base you have.

In other words, the eternal damnation of (un)employment rate is not restricted to governments and economists. It affects Procurement quite heavily too.