Unless you are one of the few readers of this blog who are blissfully unaware of the Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC) conflict minerals rule, you probably know that the first-year filing deadline was June 2. The rule, which requires SEC-filing companies that manufacture or contract to manufacture products to investigate whether those products contain tin, tungsten, tantalum, or gold and, if so, to submit a special form to the SEC, has been the subject of numerous articles and analyses, not to mention lawsuits and high drama. Now that close to 1,300 forms have been filed and made available on the SEC's EDGAR website, it is a good time to take a look at what the filings reveal and what lessons can be learned from this first phase of conflict minerals compliance.
With more than two decades of experience in automotive forecasting, strategic analysis, and manufacturing finance, Michael Robinet has been quoted by worldwide print, radio, and TV media on a variety of industry topics. In his March 18, 2014 presentation titled "Global Light Vehicle Production: Shifts, Undercurrents and Global Integration," Robinet told the 200 attendees at the AIAG Supply Chain Summit that the world market is strong, but most of the growth is coming from China.
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The supply chain is truly the heart of the automotive industry. It's what moves products, creates business relationships, and builds products consumers purchase over and over again. Clearly, your business needs to take supply chain management into consideration - but how do you determine where your products fall in the larger picture? What is the supply chain, really, and how can your business become a trusted part of it?
Let's face it - pleasing your customers in the auto industry can be difficult. Regulations, quality standards, and fees stack up, making it hard to focus on your business - and easy to write off the importance of cultivating business relationships. Despite the fact that commerce is becoming more automated and less personal, trust is still a major factor in the success of your business. Your customers need to know they can rely on you - and you need to know how best to prove you deserve that confidence. Here's how:
