DISHER Business Solutions

Employs Proven Techniques to Help Organizations Thrive

For most of you CAD users out there, you probably can’t imagine designing and creating drawings on a drafting board with mechanical pencils, electric erasers(!), and vellum. Back in the early 80’s while a student at the University of Cincinnati, I worked for a small manufacturer in northern Kentucky in their engineering department. It was a very good job for helping me earn enough money to pay for tuition. I can still recall arriving at my drafting table one day and finding a square, cellophane-wrapped item on my table. I unwrapped the item but couldn’t figure out what it was. It was manufactured by 3M and resembled a small 3″ x 3″ tablet of paper. I thought to myself, “What in the world could you do with such a small notebook?” I finally went downstairs to the administrative area and asked one of the Administrative Assistants, “What is this thing?” She replied, “It’s a new 3M product called Post-It Note. You can write a note, peel it off, and stick it on just about anything.”

It didn’t take me and my fellow drafters very long before we were using Post-It Notes for all sorts of things. We put them on drawings to note where revisions were needed. We used them as bookmarks. We posted them on the walls for reminder notes, etc. Post-It Notes quickly became a standard office supply that everyone used.
Fast forward to the 21st century… the ubiquitous Post It Note is still a staple in most offices. However, I bet that Arthur Fry, the father of the Post-It Note, didn’t envision it being used as a tool for change.

Through work we have done for our clients at DISHER in the areas of Product Development Solutions and Talent Solutions, we have found these same customers have requested our assistance to address structural issues in their business. For example, one customer we supported with product engineering work was lamenting how difficult it was for them to launch new products. Another customer we helped with Lean implementation complained about the inaccuracy of product specifications for new orders entered into their system. Yet another customer struggled to maintain their project review process since their business model had changed.

The common theme? Each customer was struggling with a PROCESS issue. They were all experiencing the effects of ineffective processes. What became the tool that was used to address the variety of their PROCESS problems? The humble Post-It Note.
We use a lot of Post-It Notes as we assist customers discover their current state and help them develop an improved future state through Business Process Mapping. As you may have already guessed, even though Post-It Notes are an important material used in the improvement process, the key ingredients to process improvement are experienced and effective facilitators and a 5-step facilitation process that turns pain points into areas of performance.

The DISHER Business Solutions team has organically grown to benefit our clients in solving structural challenges relating to People, Markets, Products, Processes, and ROI. We employ proven tools and techniques so organizations can function effectively and make high-quality decisions. We act as helpers (with the support of hundreds of colorful Post-It Notes) to enable our customers achieve performance, productivity, and profit objectives. Learn more about DISHER Business Solutions.

Written By: Kevin Pinner, Business Lead – Disher Business Solutions | Manufacturing Tech Services
Kevin enjoys improving processes – manufacturing or business processes. When he isn’t doing that, he enjoys playing soccer, running, mountain biking, and driving old sports cars. Kevin has a BS in Industrial Management and MBA in Finance. Kevin leads the Disher Manufacturing Tech Services and Disher Business Solutions Teams.