MTI Consulting

MTI's 8S Model, already used by clients in over 20 countries, was presented this week at the Harvard Business School in Boston , to Prof. Stephen Greyser who is the Professor of Business Administration / Marketing Emeritus and the author of over 15 books and 300 HBS case studies.

The presentation was made by MTI's CEO Hilmy Cader , who is currently following an executive education program at the Harvard Business School . "MTI plans to conduct a series of world class programs in Sri Lanka, in association with Prof. Youngme Moon and Prof. Frances Frei of the Harvard Business School" said Hilmy Cader arising from his discussions while in Boston

MTI's 8S Model has applications for Business Strategy and Marketing as a comprehensive auditing and planning tool, with a proven track record. The bottom-line link, it's strategic simplicity and it's link to action are some of the distinguishing characteristics of MTI's 8S model, which is delivered via MTI's ConsulTraining workshops. MTI's approach demands a high level of client involvement, self critiquing and challenges conventional wisdom.

Among the Sri Lankan based companies that have used and / or are using MTI's 8S Model are: Ace Cargo, Bank of Ceylon, Delmege, DIMO, Dipped Products, EDB, Hayleys, John Keells, Lanka Thermo , New Zealand Milk, MAS, Sinwa, SriLankan Airlines and Triumph.

Photo : MTI Chief Executive Officer Hilmy Cader (right) with Harvard's Prof. Stephen Greyser, at the HBS Campus in Boston USA.
 

Sri Lanka 's Export Development Board has launched their Strategic Plan that maps the future strategy for Sri Lanka 's exports, which is based on MTI's 8S Model.

Over the last 4 months the senior management team of EDB(including the Chairman and Directors) has worked on several consulting workshops that have now culminated with MTI's 8S Planscape document - a flip chart size tree diagram that displays the entire strategic plan, showing the strategic links to action.

The Sri Lankan economy is heavily dependent on exports and the EDB has a strategic role to play in this regard. The new mission of EDB is to facilitate Sri Lankan export marketse added productionket opportunities, leading to the country's GDP growth, while EDB's vision is to be the most admired export facilitation organization in the developing world, while making a significant contribution to GDP.

The new strategic plan has formulated 8 core strategies that the EDB team has already started work on. The key strategies are based on Positioning of EDB, Exporters Segmentation, Buyer access, supply chain development, migration towards value added products and brands, capitalizing on PTAs and FT As and development of export support services.

MTI's 8S is a strategic planning model starting with the scope of the business and works its way down to systems and the Lowest Common Actions in a sequential and flexible manner. It is a comprehensive model that also covers Structure, Staff, Systems and Social Responsibility - in addition to the obvious aspects of objectives and Strategies. Above all, MTI's 8S provides a very strong and direct link to the bottom-line at every stage of the model.

MTI is an international consultancy focused on business strategy and marketing, having offered their consulting and training solutions to clients in over 25 countries in the last 5 years.
 

Ace Cargo, the fully owned subsidiary of the blue-chip Aitken Spence has just completed a major re-strategizing exercise based on MTI's 8S, facilitated by the MTI Consulting.

Unveiling the new strategic plan, Mr. Rajan Brito (Deputy Chairman and MD of Aitken Spence) said "Our new Mission focuses on Freight-based Logistics and Express solutions, with the Vision of becoming Sri Lanka 's No. 1 freight based logistics provider"

Explaining the process, Mr. Rohantha Peiris (MD of Ace Cargo) said "Our teams took part in a series of MTI's ConsuLearning TM initiatives, at which our cross-functional management team went through a process of 'forced self realization' which tapped into their insights and innovations. As a result, they took ownership of the solution and responsibility for effective implementation" Mr. Peiris said the focus would be on Sector Specific Products / Brands, B2B Sales Excellence, E-media Interface and Integrated Service Delivery.

Elaborating further, Mr. Peiris "Ace Cargo has been in the forefront of the freight forwarding and express industry since 1979. Today we leap forward into a new era with state-of-the-art solutions to cater to the future demands of the country's Freight, Express and Logistics requirements. The experience of the past 24 years has helped us to understand and chart a new dimension with tailor made solutions that covers the widest range of services available in the industry. Be it an express delivery of a small parcel to the other corner of the island or a highly complex supply chain project encompassing multiple worldwide destinations and multi-modal transportation, Ace Cargo is ready to take on new challenges with a vibrant, innovative and responsive outlook."

Explaining the MTI Way in strategic planning, MTI's Project Consultant Dhanushka Jayakody said "It begins with a Clean Slate and encourages Radical Re-thinking (Vs Incrementalism). Each of the 8Ss starts with a Strategic Audit as the basis of Strategic Planning. Strategic decisions are research-based. Therefore, Hands-on / DIY research is encouraged for appreciation of key issues. It encourages cross-industry / cross-border learnings that come from MTI's global experience"

"Above all, The MTI Way has a very strong bottom-line link and has an impressive track record on this count, locally and globally. Our international consultants passionately strive to earn 'Oscars' from our clients for the bottom-line impact we create" were the comments from Bahrain based CEO of MTI Consulting Hilmy Cader at the grand launch that was attended by over 250 staff. The MTI Way TM has enabled MTI Consulting to successfully manage projects, across 37 product / service categories, in 25 countries, with a high level of bottom-line impact, in just 6 years.

Ace Cargo services covers Air Freight, Sea Freight, Brokerage, Warehousing, Logistics & Supply Chain Management, International Air Express, International Mail and Domestic express delivery and Transportation solutions.

Photo: MTI's 8S PlanScape - a flip chart sized summary of the entire strategic plan, being handed over by Mr. Hilmy Cader , CEO of MTI Consulting to Mr. Rajan Brito, Deputy Chairman & MD of Aitken Spence. Also in the picture are Mr. Dhanushka Jay akody , Project Consultant of MTI Consulting & Mr. Rohantha Peiris , MD of Ace Cargo .
 

Sinwa Holdings Limited, has retain MTI, the international marketing solutions company to carry out a comprehensive strategic marketing exercise using MTI's proprietary 8S model.

With its 51 year history Sinwa is one of Sri Lanka 's leaders in bonding solutions, rubber products and fashion footwear representing brands such as Multibond adhesives and Sinwa shoes.

Commenting on this strategy on this strategic decision Sinwa's Managing Director Mohideen Cader said ' In times as competitive as these it is of paramount importance that we ensure rational, strategic thinking to provide the base of our activities. I am confident that MTI can provide the frame work in which to do this'.

The 8S model is a research based strategic marketing planning model. 'It approaches all aspects of the marketing function in a strategic and sequential manner. It involves a strategic audit of the existing business and culminates with the formulation of a practical and auction-oriented marketing plan document. The model is delivered using MTI's innovative ConsulTraining approach using a series of highly interactive workshops.

MTI Managing Director Lasantha Abeywickrama said; 'We at MTI are pleased to work with Sinwa to develop a strategic marketing plan for its businesses. This is a challenging assignment where we could bring in our extensive international and local experience to chart a new path for Sinwa'.