Lean Connections

I love my Amazon Kindle!  The technology, the design, the utility – this baby defines value for me, the customer.  And as great as this product is, I’m constantly on the look-out for hints and rumors that might provide some insight into what kind of awesome value I should be expecting from the next generation Kindle.  Hey, it’s in my blood – I’m a continuous improvment kind of guy.

Well, Fast Company’s blog this morning suggests “7 Ways Amazon Could Make the Next Kindle Awesome.”   Check it out.  My most desired feature would be the addition of a WiFi connection.  But of course, I’m still a pretty conventional thinker in terms of product design.  I bet the wizards of Kindle are already way ahead of me in coming up with some innovations that will deliver an even more amazing experience next time around!

And that’s the way I see it.  Adam Zak

PS.  I’m conducting an executive search for the person who will head up quality for the Kindle team.  Position title is Director, Product Quality.  If you know of a passionate Lean quality leader who might have an interest in exploring this role with me, please ask them to connect with me directly.

OK Lean Leaders.  Last year is over and so is that first, often still-slow week of January. If you are actively engaged in a search for a new position, NOW is the time to get aggressively active again.

Our friends at EMC have put together an excellent collection of tips and suggestions  that you’d be well-advised to review and, perhaps, incorporate into your job search strategies and activities.  Below is the introduction to the eBook (PDF format) written by Jack Mollen, EVP Human Resources, for EMC.

PS.  As you might surmise, all of the recruiters are from EMC Corp., but hey, they’re really solid tips and some of the recruiting war stories are funny, and sadly, true.

The rules and norms of job searching and career mobility have changed.

For job seekers, gone are the days of creating a great résumé and actively following job boards as a way to be sure you’ll find—and ultimately land—a job that meets your needs.

The world is just as different for recruiters.

This book contains 100 real-time tips and stories from FORTUNE 500 recruiters that will inspire and motivate you, provide insights, and identify traps. The recruiters come from diverse backgrounds and geographies, and they have experience recruiting at all levels. Don’t miss the last two pages. They are filled with links to the top career and job search resources and social media sites.

Talent search doesn’t have to be a mystery. In fact, it shouldn’t be. Putting people to work faster is good for you, good for families, good for the global economy, and good for business.

If you are looking for your next job, if you take note of just one piece of advice, this is it: Don’t give up. Don’t take it personally. Be persistent and be a master of the new rules of search.

With sincere wishes for your success,

Jack Mollen, Executive Vice President of Human Resources, EMC Corporation

Director, Product Quality in  high-tech consumer electronics, for the creator of one of the hottest consumer electronic devices of the century (yes, this one), based in Silicon Valley, California  

Why You Want this Position

•  You crave the excitement of working with the visionary team which created the hottest consumer electronics gadget of the century. And, there’s more to come! 
• You are obsessed with excellence and quality. This company is already attaining a level of world-class quality metrics that other consumer electronics makers would die for. Your mission: take your passion for quality and make it even better!
• You thrive in a fast-paced, entrepreneurial start-up environment where your daily decisions make a direct, clearly visible impact on the operational and financial performance of the company. You relentlessly pursue your personal and professional expectations for performance and results.
• You hunger for meaningful work with an exceptionally talented team, where it’s all about clear and open communication, genuine collaboration, and exceeding customer expectations  - across the whole business, delivering lasting customer satisfaction.

Introduction  -  Our client creates highly engaging and innovative consumer-centric electronic product solutions. The business has grown rapidly in size, scale and scope but still retains, at heart, the start-up mentality which has fueled its wild success. Because of this outsized growth rate our client needs to scal-up the systems, process and procedures (and their functional leadership) so vital to support the company’s continued advancement into new products and global markets.  Hence this new position, Director, Product Quality. 

The position will be based in the Silicon Valley, California metro area and will report remotely to the company’s Vice President, Global Supply Chain, who is based in Hong Kong.  All product design, development and support functions are performed in California, while manufacturing is currently done on a contract basis in Shenzhen, China. Our client is the wholly-owned subsidiary of highly successful and profitable Fortune 500 parent company, which is also located on the West Coast. 

The Role  -  Define, lead and take ownership of the product quality organization.  Develop world-class quality thinking and the programs, systems, principles and processes through which quality manifests itself throughout the company.  The results of this effort will be threefold:  exceed customer expectations in every way; reduce total warranty costs across all product lines, and; build the culture and supporting structures to ensure continuous improvement in both.

 What Your Bring to the Table

• You have demonstrated both deep-dive, hands-on experience in shop-floor quality problem solving, and 30k-foot strategic-level quality issues perspective and sophistication.
• You have demonstrated the ability to rapidly and scientifically assess and deal with day-to-day quality correction, while simultaneously anticipating, developing and implementing the quality philosophies, infrastructure, and practices critical to the company’s future success.
• You offer a proven track record driving operational excellence and continuous improvement initiatives, focused on product quality, utilizing Lean Manufacturing (Toyota Production System) and Six Sigma methodologies.
• You have outstanding communications skills.  This enables you to interact with senior management executives and influence their decision-making, as well as to effectively partner with other exceptionally talented people broadly across the organization.
• You have recently worked in a high-volume 3C (computer, communication, consumer), fast-moving product lifecycle  electronics organization and have extensive on-the-ground experience in mainland China.
•  Chances are your resume will include the names of other word-class consumer electronics companies such as Apple, Palm, Philips, Sony, Nintendo, Nokia, Cisco and more.

Travel  – Because even the best video communications technology has its limitations, the Director, Product Quality should expect to travel frequently, at times on very short notice, to China.

 Compensation  -  Excellent base salary, sign-on bonus and restricted stock units (RSUs).  Equity awards consist of stock in our client’s parent company and are historically a major, continuing preferred form of executive compensation.

 Connect with Us  -  Please connect with me in whatever way is most convenient for you. We share no information about you with anyone outside our firm until we’ve agreed on this with you.

 Adam Zak, Principal  +1 (847) 304-5301

resume@LeanRecruiter.com      az@LeanRecruiter.com 

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