Testing your 'I' quotient

Are you inventory- or information-centric? Here's a short quiz to test yourself and then some thoughts on why it all matters.

By -- Modern Materials Handling, 12/1/2000

Let's end the year 2000 with a quiz, the purpose of which will be explained at the end. What is a word, starting with the letter "I," that can be a company's greatest asset and meets the following criteria:

• The faster we move "I" and the "fresher" it is, the greater its value.

• People tend to store or transport more "I" than is really necessary.

• The managers of our company know the value of "I." But sometimes they don't invest in the systems that could handle "I" with the respect it deserves.

• Using new concepts, we can use "I" stored by others with even greater efficiency than receiving and storing "I" ourselves.

• Many people don't understand that some systems designed to handle large packages of "I" don't work well with small packages of "I" (and vice versa).

• It is generally better to automate the handling of "I" because human handling can affect its quality.

• Because of the dynamics of our business, "I" must be tightly controlled. But we need flexibility when unforeseen circumstances occur, such as when automated systems fail.

• Every now and then we send the wrong "I" to a customer or return the wrong "I" to a supplier. And, although this is a problem today, it could really hurt us in the future.

The answer is __________.

There is another asset that starts with "I" that could meet these criteria. That other asset is ________.

So, did you figure it out? I'll bet that many of you would guess that the first asset was inventory, and the other asset is information. But if you are working on a team to improve company operations, you will want someone that put information first. That is because streamlining today's operations requires creativity in the use of both and a real understanding of the relationship that exists between them. In today's environment, as professionals we have to stay on top of advances in handling both inventory and information because a deficiency in input and processing of either will hurt the company.

But people tend to be inventory or information centric and that's just human nature. It is important, however, to know a person's perspective because when we are approaching a system design issue, we want both to be included. It might be a good idea to give the quiz to the people participating in design teams trying to improve procurement, manufacturing support, or warehouse and distribution systems. If you don't have the blend, then you might want to make some changes to ensure that the team has some of each and that they each understand the importance of the other's contribution.