Not Just a Magazine Publisher
Strategy gurus have long said that business definition is one of the manager’s most important jobs.
“We are in the sports business, not the shoe business,” Nike chief strategist Mike Parker told Time magazine in 1998.
When asked how the watch business was doing, the story goes, the CEO of Rolex replied, “I don’t know, we are not in the watch business ... we are in the luxury goods business.”
Who can argue with the success that Disney has had by broadening its business definition as “family entertainment?”
This kind of thinking applies to magazine publishing as well.
You’re holding MHM right now. You may think of it as a product of a magazine publisher. But that’s not the business we’re part of.
Our business is continuing professional education. We focus on the growing field of material handling logistics, and our interests lie in producing information and ideas that help you perform better in the important roles that you play at your company. And we do that in a variety of ways:
Print publications. Trade shows. Online newsletters. Online events.
If you have given us your e-mail address, you will be kept up-to-date on the learning opportunities available to you.
As we move through 2002, you will meet new challenges on a daily basis. In a perfect world we would be trained for every initiative, every new task, and every job put before us. But in the real world, we are on our own, and we must constantly update our skills and knowledge — or fall behind.
That’s MHM’s reason for being. We are here to be your resource.
Recently, I spent a good portion of the day with the staff of MHIA (Material Handling Industry of America). I was impressed with the level of professionalism and dedication the organization displayed. You should know that those member companies of MHIA (your equipment, systems and technology providers) are meeting throughout the year to improve themselves, their industry knowledge and their ability to serve you better. In April, you can see a lot of those folks at the 2002 North American Material Handling & Logistics Show and Conference in Detroit.
We’ll be at NA 2002 as well, so stop by to renew your subscription, meet our staff and give us some feedback. As you know, Material Handling Management is delivered free to those in the material handling and logistics field. So by reading MHM, you’re making an investment in your own future.
Please let me know how we can perform better for you. Part of our own continuing professional education is to listen to and understand the needs of our readers.