#operational agility

[earningtrends]

Turo vs. traditional car rentals: Which is more profitable?

Turo vs. Traditional Rentals: Uncovering the Profit Potential In the ever-evolving landscape of the transportation industry, a new player has emerged, disrupting the traditional car rental model. Turo, a peer-to-peer car sharing platform, has gained significant traction, offering a unique and flexible alternative to the conventional rental experience. As entrepreneurs and business owners…

[goodoldbandit]

The Journey to the Intelligent Enterprise.

Sanjay Kumar Mohindroo Sanjay Kumar Mohindroo. skm.stayingalive.in Unlock the future of business innovation with a transformative guide to creating an Intelligent Enterprise. Learn strategies, tools, and benefits to lead the digital revolution. The journey to becoming an Intelligent Enterprise is a transformative expedition that redefines how businesses operate, innovate, and create value in…

[firstoccupier]

Breaking the Blockade: Tactical Innovations in Scarborough Shoal

WPS News Staff Reporter Baybay City, 1/25/2025 In recent months, the strategic waters of Scarborough Shoal have been under intense scrutiny. A determined group of Filipino fishermen, alongside the Philippines Coast Guard (PHCG), have devised innovative surface tactics to challenge a blockade, leveraging civilian craft for military-like maneuvers that have captured international…

[projectchampionz]

STRATEGIES FOR EFFECTIVE PROJECT MANAGEMENT IN COMPLEX HEALTHCARE ENVIRONMENTS

STRATEGIES FOR EFFECTIVE PROJECT MANAGEMENT IN COMPLEX HEALTHCARE ENVIRONMENTS 1.1 Introduction Project management is critical in healthcare environments, where the complexity of operations, regulations, and patient care makes effective oversight essential. Healthcare projects often involve multiple stakeholders, extensive resources, and high-stakes outcomes, necessitating precise coordination…

[ajmishra]

Dominating the Market with Cloud Power

Explore how leveraging cloud technology can help businesses dominate the market. Learn how cloud power boosts scalability, reduces costs, enhances innovation, and provides a competitive edge in today's digital landscape. Visit now to read more: Dominating the Market with Cloud Power

[rubylogan15]

Revolutionize your manufacturing process with generative AI: predictive maintenance, enhanced design, improved quality control, and streamlined supply chains. Embrace the future!

[artisticdivasworld]

Leveraging Outsourcing for Strategic Growth

In the dynamic landscape of small business operations, the strategic decision to outsource Accounts Receivable (A/R) functions can unlock significant growth potential. While the immediate benefits of outsourcing—such as improved cash flow, reduced overhead costs, and enhanced efficiency—are well-documented, there’s a transformative opportunity that often goes underexplored: the re-skilling of…

[geeconglobal]

The Impact of Operational Systems on Organizational Productivity and Growth

The impact of operational systems on organizational productivity and growth cannot be overstated. Businesses are constantly evolving, and their operational systems play a crucial role in determining their success. This article delves into the intricate relationship between operational systems and organizational productivity and growth, shedding light on the key factors that drive success in this dynamic landscape.

Understanding Operational Systems

Operational systems encompass the processes, procedures, and technologies that organizations use to manage their day-to-day activities. These systems are designed to streamline operations, enhance efficiency, and optimize resource utilization. By leveraging operational systems, businesses can achieve greater control over their processes, leading to improved productivity and sustained growth.

The Role of Operational Systems in Productivity

Efficient operational systems are integral to driving productivity within an organization. When operational processes are well-defined and optimized, employees can focus on value-adding tasks, thereby maximizing their output. This, in turn, leads to improved productivity across the entire organization, as resources are utilized effectively to achieve strategic objectives.

Leveraging Operational Systems for Growth

Operational systems not only impact productivity but also serve as a catalyst for organizational growth. By implementing scalable and adaptable operational systems, businesses can streamline their operations, reduce inefficiencies, and create a solid foundation for expansion. This enables organizations to seize new opportunities, scale their operations, and drive sustainable growth in competitive markets.

The Interplay of Operational Systems and Organizational Culture

Organizational productivity and growth are deeply influenced by the culture cultivated within the company. Operational systems play a pivotal role in shaping this culture by fostering efficiency, accountability, and innovation. When operational systems align with the organizational culture, they become a driving force for sustained productivity and growth.

Embracing Technological Advancements

The rapid advancement of technology has revolutionized operational systems, offering innovative tools and solutions that empower organizations to enhance productivity and stimulate growth. From automation and data analytics to cloud-based platforms, businesses can leverage technological advancements to optimize their operational systems and gain a competitive edge in the market.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the impact of operational systems on organizational productivity and growth is undeniable. By embracing efficient operational systems, organizations can elevate their productivity levels, foster a culture of innovation, and lay the groundwork for sustainable growth. The continuous evolution and enhancement of operational systems are essential for businesses to thrive in today's dynamic business landscape.

In essence, operational systems serve as the backbone of organizational success, driving productivity and fueling growth in an ever-changing global marketplace. Visit more information for your website

[technology-and-beyond]

What is MLOps? - Machine Learning Operations explained

Download our concise whitepaper on the transformative potential of Machine Learning Operations (MLOps) and how businesses can implement it in a seamless manner.

[reasonsforhope]

It’s an open secret in fashion. Unsold inventory goes to the incinerator; excess handbags are slashed so they can’t be resold; perfectly usable products are sent to the landfill to avoid discounts and flash sales. The European Union wants to put an end to these unsustainable practices. On Monday, [December 4, 2023], it banned the destruction of unsold textiles and footwear.

“It is time to end the model of ‘take, make, dispose’ that is so harmful to our planet, our health and our economy,” MEP Alessandra Moretti said in a statement. “Banning the destruction of unsold textiles and footwear will contribute to a shift in the way fast fashion manufacturers produce their goods.”

This comes as part of a broader push to tighten sustainable fashion legislation, with new policies around ecodesign, greenwashing and textile waste phasing in over the next few years. The ban on destroying unsold goods will be among the longer lead times: large businesses have two years to comply, and SMEs have been granted up to six years. It’s not yet clear on whether the ban applies to companies headquartered in the EU, or any that operate there, as well as how this ban might impact regions outside of Europe.

For many, this is a welcome decision that indirectly tackles the controversial topics of overproduction and degrowth. Policymakers may not be directly telling brands to produce less, or placing limits on how many units they can make each year, but they are penalising those overproducing, which is a step in the right direction, says Eco-Age sustainability consultant Philippa Grogan. “This has been a dirty secret of the fashion industry for so long. The ban won’t end overproduction on its own, but hopefully it will compel brands to be better organised, more responsible and less greedy.”

Clarifications to come

There are some kinks to iron out, says Scott Lipinski, CEO of Fashion Council Germany and the European Fashion Alliance (EFA). The EFA is calling on the EU to clarify what it means by both “unsold goods” and “destruction”. Unsold goods, to the EFA, mean they are fit for consumption or sale (excluding counterfeits, samples or prototypes)...

The question of what happens to these unsold goods if they are not destroyed is yet to be answered. “Will they be shipped around the world? Will they be reused as deadstock or shredded and downcycled? Will outlet stores have an abundance of stock to sell?” asks Grogan.

Large companies will also have to disclose how many unsold consumer products they discard each year and why, a rule the EU is hoping will curb overproduction and destruction...

Could this shift supply chains?

For Dio Kurazawa, founder of sustainable fashion consultancy The Bear Scouts, this is an opportunity for brands to increase supply chain agility and wean themselves off the wholesale model so many rely on. “This is the time to get behind innovations like pre-order and on-demand manufacturing,” he says. “It’s a chance for brands to play with AI to understand the future of forecasting. Technology can help brands be more intentional with what they make, so they have less unsold goods in the first place.”

Grogan is equally optimistic about what this could mean for sustainable fashion in general. “It’s great to see that this is more ambitious than the EU’s original proposal and that it specifically calls out textiles. It demonstrates a willingness from policymakers to create a more robust system,” she says. “Banning the destruction of unsold goods might make brands rethink their production models and possibly better forecast their collections.”

One of the outstanding questions is over enforcement. Time and again, brands have used the lack of supply chain transparency in fashion as an excuse for bad behaviour. Part of the challenge with the EU’s new ban will be proving that brands are destroying unsold goods, not to mention how they’re doing it and to what extent, says Kurazawa. “Someone obviously knows what is happening and where, but will the EU?”"

-via British Vogue, December 7, 2023

[lostconsultants]

The Case for Standardising Ways of Working in Software Delivery Teams

What Are Ways of Working? Before diving into standardisation, let’s define “ways of working.” In the context of software development or digital product development, ways of working refers to the methods, practices, and processes teams use to collaborate, communicate, and execute tasks. It encompasses frameworks, communication protocols, workflows, tools, and decision-making approaches that guide…

[garymdm]

The Importance of Data Quality for African Businesses

In the midst of the myriad challenges facing African businesses, it’s crucial to underscore the importance of addressing data quality issues. Poor data quality causes operational efficiencies and inhibits decision-making. While data quality challenges may seem daunting, they also present opportunities for growth, innovation, and competitiveness. Here’s why data quality is of paramount importance…

[kaira-diaries]

Hi! I recently found your blog and i must say I'm in love with your writing. Could you write something about In-ho when they are playing mingle and where he breaks this guy's neck but this time it's the reader who do this and he's impressed and surprised she would do something like that?

✨Yes yes yes✨

Exposure

Warnings: Violence || Murder

->Masterlist <-

𖣔𖣔𖣔𖣔𖣔𖣔

The platform was slick, blood pooling in thick, crimson streaks that reflected the dim, artificial light above. The metallic tang of it clung to the air, sharp and oppressive. In-ho spun on his heel, moving with measured precision as the saccharine melody blared on, bright and maddening. The cheerful tune, its rhythm unnervingly upbeat, drilled into his skull—a twisted mockery of the slaughter surrounding him.

Beside him, you stood, silent and coiled like a spring. He didn’t glance at you, didn’t need to. You weren’t here by chance; he had chosen you. Not for trust, not for loyalty—those luxuries had no place here. You were quick, agile, and clever, the kind of player who could keep up when the moment came. Nothing else about you mattered.

The doors loomed ahead, their red-stained wood practically glowing against the cold, sterile backdrop. They were the only way out, temporary salvation for those fast enough to claim them. But this wasn’t a race for him. Not really.

He wouldn’t die here.

That was the unspoken truth, the shield no one else had. His place was secure, his immunity ensured by the hierarchy he operated within. But you? You had no such guarantees. That’s why he’d picked you—someone desperate, someone whose survival depended on their ability to follow orders without hesitation. When the number two was called, he’d pull you forward, drag you toward the nearest door, and let you handle whatever came next. If you fell short, so be it. It was no skin off his back.

The platform shifted beneath his feet, sticky with blood, but he moved with detached efficiency. The screams around him, the cries of the weak and the dying—they didn’t faze him. His hands flexed at his sides as he waited, calm and cold. The music swelled, its grating cheerfulness twisting the tension in the room even tighter.

You were just another piece on the board, and when the time came, he would use you. Nothing personal. Just survival.

The platform screeched to a sudden halt, jerking In-ho forward. His body collided into yours, the brief contact igniting a sharp jolt that shot through him, unexpected and unwelcome.

“TWO.”

The voice boomed overhead, and without hesitation, In-ho’s hand shot out. His fingers wrapped around your hand, his grip firm and commanding. He pulled you forward with a force that left no room for objection, dragging you off the platform. The two of you sprinted, shoes slamming against the slick, blood-soaked surface, the air heavy with the coppery stench of death.

The doors loomed ahead, their wood glowing ominously under the dim lights. But before you could reach them, a massive man crashed into you. The impact sent you sprawling, your body hitting the floor hard, the blood beneath you sticky and warm.

In-ho barely had time to register the scene before the man turned on him. Instinct kicked in, his movements sharp and practiced as he twisted the man’s arm behind his back, forcing him down. His voice cut through the chaos, sharp and commanding.

“Get in! GO!”

You scrambled to your feet, your breaths ragged as you shoved open the heavy door and slipped inside. The sound of struggling behind you was short but brutal—grunts, a sickening thud, then silence.

When the door flew open again, In-ho stepped inside, his chest rising and falling with steady breaths. He adjusted his zip up jacket, his sharp eyes scanning the room with practiced precision. But his gaze stopped abruptly when he saw the man pressed against the far wall, trembling like a cornered animal.

The man was huge, his broad shoulders almost filling the space, but fear had reduced him to something small and pathetic.

“Out,” you ordered, your voice low, cutting through the tense air.

The man shook his head violently, his voice shaking as he stammered, “We were here first!”

In-ho’s jaw tightened, his hand instinctively twitching forward. But before he could act, you moved.

In a flash, you were on him. In-ho’s breath caught as he watched you—a sudden, fluid blur of violence. You slammed the man against the wall, your smaller frame pressing into his bulk with startling dominance. There was nothing hesitant in your movements, nothing uncertain.

His usual composure cracked as he stared, transfixed. The curve of your body against the man’s hulking form, the alluring ferocity in your eyes, the way your lips curled into something almost cruel—it all drew him in, catching him off guard.

Your arms snaked around the man’s neck, locking him in a brutal chokehold. The muscles in your forearms flexed as you tightened your grip, relentless. The man thrashed, clawing at your arms, but you didn’t falter.

“Should’ve listened,” you whispered into his ear, your voice low, almost sultry in its coldness.

With one savage motion, you twisted. The crack of his neck snapped through the room like a gunshot. The man’s body crumpled to the floor, lifeless, as you stepped back, your chest heaving.

In-ho froze, his eyes locked on you. His mind scrambled to process what he’d just seen, but his body reacted first—a sharp heat coiling low in his stomach. There was something devastatingly attractive in your ruthlessness, in the way you moved with such cold precision, in the quiet intensity that radiated from you.

“Shit,” he breathed, barely audible, as his gaze traced the curve of your neck, the way your chest rose and fell with steady control. For a moment, he couldn’t tear his eyes away. He was intrigued.

When he finally spoke, his voice was lower than usual, rougher. “Didn’t think you had that in you.” He took a step closer, his sharp gaze flicking between your eyes and the faint glimmer of sweat at your temple.

“Impressive.” The words lingered, carrying an edge of something more—something darker, something undeniably drawn to you.

You didn’t reply, meeting his gaze with an unwavering calm that only deepened the pull he felt.

In-ho’s lips quirked, the faintest smirk forming as he exhaled sharply, almost like a laugh. “Remind me to get on your bad side,” he muttered, his tone laced with something heavier, more magnetic.

For a moment, the air between you was thick. Changed. Then, with a small shake of his head, he turned, forcing himself to focus on the task ahead, though the heat in his chest lingered.

[chocodile]

Worldbuilding time! Let's talk about vehicular travel in modern day Amaranthine, using the snowmobiles from this recent comic as a jumping off point.

"Prowler" - Ironfrost patrol snowmobile - (year of manufacture: 1912)

These half-track all terrain vehicles are used by Ironfrost soldiers to travel long distances over the tundra. Originally adapted from older, four-wheeled automobiles, the half-track Prowler design became increasingly standardized over the years as eternal winter continued to creep southward. They are capable of operating in a wide variety of terrain conditions and are fairly modular. Common mods include removable skis, hardtop and softtop roofs, gun mounts, and towing attachments.

Like all vehicles, Prowlers are steam-powered. The external combustion engine runs on kerosene. In snowy conditions, feedwater can be obtained automatically through a scraper port on the underside of the vehicle, though manual feeding is required in muddy or dry conditions.

Though not as fast, reliable, or efficient as trains, their agile nature have made them an essential part of life in the far north… and, increasingly, in the middle country as well. The Rising Dawn have stolen several Prowlers for their own usage.

"Aspire" - Classic automobile (year of manufacture: 1890)

Four-wheeled vehicles are an unusual sight in the modern day. Ironfrost-made cars were in vogue among the southern rim upper class for many years, but the worsening climate has made them more and more niche as road conditions outside of major cities deteriorate. The majority of higher horsepower automobiles were converted directly into half tracks, while older, lower-end vehicles were generally scrapped for parts.

The Aspire was the last four-wheeled vehicle widely available to the public. Advertised as a stylish, powerful, modern vehicle for the elite on the go, it boasted a sleek, classy aesthetic, a removable softtop roof, and a powerful steam engine with a large kerosene tank suitable for travel between cities. Preorders were advertised to southern rim wealthy in local papers. However, a series of unusually bad winters soon after its debut scared off buyers, shutting down production early and ultimately spelling doom for the entire four-wheeled automobile industry.

One of those Aspire preorders went to Baroness Jocosa North. Though she has since passed away, her son, Theopolis North, still maintains the now wildly impractical car in near mint condition. It is almost never seen outside of its garage.

"'Icebreaker' Class E 250" - Northern cross-country train (year of manufacture: 1903)

The majority of modern-day overland travel is accomplished via train. Massive long-distance rail lines, laid before the world became quite so cold, connect the remaining cities, allowing (relatively) safe travel and trade across vast expanses of tundra.

Southerly locomotives typically operate with only a basic wedge plow attachment. However, trains that run further north must be fitted with gigantic rotary snowplows. These complex machines require significant maintenance. Though they can and will chew up most things that get in the train's way, encounters with particularly large and bony beasts have been known to jam them.

Ironfrost's line terminates in a massive, sprawling rail yard where Icebreakers are fitted and maintained. Those who have visited it tell of a dark, dreary wasteland of twisted scrap metal and ice where coal dust and smoke have turned both the sky and ground black. All northern trains must pass through that place eventually.

"Chariot of the Dawn" - One-of-a-kind luxury automobile (year of manufacture: 1920)

The only place where four-wheeled automobiles still thrive is the City of the Sun. The eternal summers and paved roads are well-suited to cars and trolleys, though they are, of course, still something of a luxury good. Licenses for ownership and operation are ultimately controlled by the church, with His Radiance having the final say. (His most devout followers, of course, tend to get preferential treatment here.)

The City of the Sun manufactures its own vehicles, adapted from Ironfrost designs in a sort of divergent evolution. Freed from the road and weather concerns of the outside world, their automobiles favor sleek, swoopy body shapes, ornamental trim, low-slung bodies with limited ground clearance, and pastel paintjobs. Additionally, the engines are far less powerful and far more finicky, requiring regular maintenance.

His Radiance himself owns several custom automobiles, all of which are egregiously bedazzled to a degree that would look grotesque to anyone who wasn't used to it. Some are open-top, allowing his loyal followers an audience with his beautiful face and glittering halo, while others feature tinted windows. You know, in case he wants subtlety.