Tag: Marketing

Coupling & Crosstalk: Replacing the Road

virtual meeting canstockphoto2552880 kamaga 300x223Coupling & Crosstalk is my column in the MEPTEC Report. This column appears in the Fall 2020 edition on pages 9-10.

Electronic coupling is the transfer of energy from one circuit or medium to another. Sometimes it is intentional and sometimes not (crosstalk). I hope that this column, by mixing technology and general observations, is thought provoking and “couples” with your thinking. Most of the time I will stick to technology but occasional crosstalk diversions may deliver a message closer to home.

Replacing the Road

Hello, fellow road warriors! Do you feel lost? Unappreciated? Unable to deliver your message or solve customer problems? I too am struggling with the current pandemic situation. And I suspect many of you are too – especially the dyed in the wool corporate marketing, sales, and business development road warriors. Truth be told, I Continue reading “Coupling & Crosstalk: Replacing the Road”

Coupling & Crosstalk: Milking It!

Coupling & Crosstalk is my column in the MEPTEC Report. This column appears in the Fall 2018 edition on pages 8-9.

Electronic coupling is the transfer of energy from one circuit or medium to another. Sometimes it is intentional and sometimes not (crosstalk). I hope that this column, by mixing technology and general observations, is thought provoking and “couples” with your thinking. Most of the time I will stick to technology but occasional crosstalk diversions may deliver a message closer to home.

Milking It!

I observed recently two different companies “milking” their businesses for good and for ill. With the proper perspective, consumers can see how well an organization manages and cares for their products – tangible goods and services. Not just in the headline news which may be indicative outliers (airline mistreatment of passengers, anyone?) but in everyday interactions and purchases.

What does milking a business – be it cows or dishwashers – have to do with high technology? Continue reading “Coupling & Crosstalk: Milking It!”

Coupling & Crosstalk: 1, 2, 3, 4 … 5G – Ready in 2020?

5G canstockphoto22241792_300x200Coupling & Crosstalk is my column in the MEPTEC Report. This column appears in the Winter 2017 edition on pages 8-9.

Electronic coupling is the transfer of energy from one circuit or medium to another. Sometimes it is intentional and sometimes not (crosstalk). I hope that this column, by mixing technology and general observations, is thought provoking and “couples” with your thinking. Most of the time I will stick to technology but occasional crosstalk diversions may deliver a message closer to home.

1, 2, 3, 4 … 5G – Ready in 2020?

Everyone loves a spectacle: the Olympics have become a marketer’s dream, shining a spotlight on new products for a world-wide audience. It is no wonder we have been promised demonstrations of “5G” cellular technology at the 2018 Winter Games (South Korea) and 2020 Summer Games (Japan). While there is going to be an inordinate amount of “hoopla” surrounding 5G, Continue reading “Coupling & Crosstalk: 1, 2, 3, 4 … 5G – Ready in 2020?”

Coupling & Crosstalk: Products or Services?

products-services-canstockphoto10272610-300x300Coupling & Crosstalk is my column in the MEPTEC Report. This column appears in the Spring 2015 edition on pages 10-11.

Electronic coupling is the transfer of energy from one circuit or medium to another. Sometimes it is intentional and sometimes not (crosstalk). I hope that this column, by mixing technology and general observations, is thought provoking and “couples” with your thinking. Most of the time I will stick to technology but occasional crosstalk diversions may deliver a message closer to home.

Products or Services?

“Paper or Plastic?” A simple grocery store inquiry? Think again: this decision has many layers of complexity as does the examination of products versus services. There have been endless discussions as to the benefits and downsides of paper, versus plastic, bags. Everything from environmental concerns, to reusability, to biodegradability, and much more has been deliberated. Just when we thought that the paper bag had Continue reading “Coupling & Crosstalk: Products or Services?”

Coupling & Crosstalk: MVP for Hardware Development?

feature box canstockphoto15992543 300x341Coupling & Crosstalk is my column in the MEPTEC Report. This column appears in the Summer 2014 edition on page 8.

Electronic coupling is the transfer of energy from one circuit or medium to another. Sometimes it is intentional and sometimes not (crosstalk). I hope that this column by mixing technology and general observations is thought provoking and “couples” with your thinking. Most of the time I will stick to technology but occasional crosstalk diversions may deliver a message closer to home.

MVP for Hardware Development?

Just like professional sports leagues, lean product management has MVPs! Sports teams try out players, compete, and then end the season with “Most Valuable Players” and champions. Unlike sports, winning product managers start out with Minimum Viable Products (MVPs) early on to Continue reading “Coupling & Crosstalk: MVP for Hardware Development?”

Feldman Engineering 2012 Wrap Up

2012

As we bid adieu to 2012, I realize that I have been remiss in providing updates on all of the exciting activity since my last one in May. I will rectify this situation below and have added regular updates to my list of New Year’s resolutions.

Challenges

In May, it was great to see the many responses to the Big Hairy Audacious Goal where Janusz Bryzek (Fairchild Semiconductor) challenged the microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) industry at the MEMS Technology Symposium that I described in “Thinking Big: $1 Trillion MEMS Market” (part 1 and part 2). 

In June, I reviewed the test challenges of the transition to 450 mm semiconductor wafers with my presentation “The Road to 450 mm Semiconductor Wafers” at the IEEE Semiconductor Wafer Test Workshop (SWTW). I have posted summaries of this entire excellent workshop: keynote and sessions 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9.

In one very hectic July week, I attended the summer working meeting of the International Technology Roadmap for Semiconductors (ITRS), the SEMICON West trade show, and the Test Vision 2020 conference. The focus of  Continue reading “Feldman Engineering 2012 Wrap Up”

Customer Service – the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

“Le client n’a jamais tort“ – César Ritz (1850-1918)

Fastest Way to Lose Customers - click for full infographic

Regardless of language or adage used, customers are the lifeblood of any business. Without customers, there is no business. How is it that businesses lose sight of this? Sometimes customers are taken for granted and are not part of a company’s core values. Other times, as organizations and processes grow in complexity they loose sight of the customer. And quite often teams don’t take sufficient time to look at themselves from the customer’s perspective.

As shown in the infographic above, it is really about the customer experience if 68% of lost customers leave due to poor treatment. It doesn’t matter whether your product or service is consumer focused (groceries, clothing, electronics, medical, legal advice, etc.) or industrial (semiconductor capital equipment, wafer test probe cards, nuclear power plants, etc.). The only difference may be Continue reading “Customer Service – the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly”

Big Numbers – The Semiconductor Supply Chain

…To make sense of the big picture, one needs to follow the money and then head to China.

Ed Pausa the primary author of PricewaterhouseCooper’s (PwC) recently published report “Continued Growth: China’s Impact on the Semiconductor Industry – 2011 Update” provided an overview at this month’s MEPTEC luncheon. His presentation was a helpful tour to start digesting this impressive report, now it its seventh annual update. The report runs 112 pages in length and is packed with figures, data and most importantly analysis. Building a cohesive picture from many disparate data sources is a major undertaking and PwC should be applauded for making available this excellent work.

After listening to this presentation and reading the report, I find two items that really stand out as primary market forces. Unraveling the convoluted web of the semiconductor supply chain to examine these items will lead to greater understanding of the industry. They are, Continue reading “Big Numbers – The Semiconductor Supply Chain”