2010 Top 100 MVP Managers

《Managers Magazine》2010 December Issue No.73

MINZ Inc. managing director Mike Chang strived for a change and developed the world’s first remote servicing system for shoe machinery. This system enabled clients to monitor shoe production line from mobile phones and tablets, reduced problem solving time from supplier to clients. This accomplishment won Chang the top 100 MVP managers of Taiwan in 2010.

When being asked about the inspiration of the remote servicing system, Chang replied “just want to make the product easier to sell” with smile. He explained “Taiwanese shoe machinery has been in an awkward position in the market; we have high technology European shoe machinery at the top, and cheap Chinese and Korean shoe machinery at the bottom.” To avoid entering a price war, Chang continuously to think a way to add more value to their product; soon he thought of service added value.

Shoe manufacturing is a labor intensive industry, where operation is mostly done by human hands. Often when a shoe is not well-made, operators put the blame towards machines. In the past, machine supplier sent technicians abroad to client’s factories to provide machine training course, or relied on agents to transmit second hands information. When there is a problem, supplier has to send technicians traveling long way abroad, not only does this generates heavy traveling expenses, but causing a delay in solving client’s problem. Often the problem is just a mere setting error on the machine or caused by operator’s hand gestures.

Knowing this problem, Chang visited and consulted with Nike R&D director and several shoe factories owners. Then he set up a team to develop a remote system that can monitor shoe production machines’ alarm codes with a communication function that allows far site communication with production line operators through camera and speaker phones. This system can find out machine problems before operators do to increase servicing efficiency.

Chang thinks that as a manager in a company, to acquire resources from the board to make a new product is always tough. It’s like conventional water pump, you need to put water into it first to pump out water afterwards. Same as any manager in a company, you need to invest your resource first, and then the company resource shall come.