Mentoring for the people who deal with factories.
Most of what goes wrong between a brand and a factory is not technical. It is communication, expectation, and nobody willing to say no.
The sample was fine. The conversation was not.
A capable product manager can read a tech pack, run a costing, and still lose a season because a factory said yes when it meant maybe, or because a piece of feedback that was obvious in English arrived as an insult in translation.
Thirty-five years of sitting on both sides of that table, first as the brand and then as the manufacturer with fourteen factories to run, is what this mentoring is drawn from. It is practical, and it is aimed at the person who has to make the call on a Thursday afternoon.
What the mentoring covers
Cross-cultural communication.
Preparing people to communicate and collaborate across cultures before they are in the room. What reads as decisive in one country reads as rude in another, and what sounds like agreement is often politeness. The difference costs programmes.
Leadership and communication skills.
How to run a supplier relationship as a leader rather than a buyer. Setting expectations that survive translation, giving feedback that changes the sample, and holding a line without losing the factory.
Supplier collaboration strategy.
Which suppliers to invest in, how to earn priority when capacity is tight, and how to build a relationship that answers the phone in a crisis. Most of the value in a factory relationship is banked long before you need it.
When and how to say no.
The hardest to teach and the most valuable. Turning down a programme, a factory, a price or a timeline without burning the relationship, and recognising the moment when saying yes is the expensive answer.
Alongside the work, not in a classroom.
The useful version of this is not a workshop. It is being available while a real programme is running: before a factory visit, before a hard email goes out, after a sample review that did not go the way it should have. One person or a small team, on a retainer or a defined engagement.
Richard has taught in more formal settings too, as a guest lecturer at MIT and The Explorers Club, a NOLS graduate and a certified ski touring instructor, and as an outdoor guide for the Helen Keller Institute and the New York State Department of Corrections. The instinct to teach is not new.
- NOLS graduate
- Center for Creative Leadership (CCL)
- Eastern Professional Ski Touring Instructor (EPSTI)
- Guest lecturer, MIT and The Explorers Club
- Outdoor guide, Helen Keller Institute and NY State Department of Corrections
“Rich has been my most valued partner and counsellor. No other firm operating in Asia offers more experience, insight, and leadership for Western companies.”
“I have been a friend, customer and colleague of Rich Amodio and CenterEdge Consulting for most of ten years in my various sourcing and supply chain roles. Rich has been my most valued partner and counsellor and I know of no other firm operating in Asia supporting western companies that offers more experience, insight and leadership. My recommendation could not be more unequivocal.”
“With their help, we were able to navigate the complex areas of manufacturing and design in Asia for many years. A successful team to have on your side.”
“A heartfelt thank you to Richard Amodio and his team for their vast knowledge of all resources in Asia and the world. With their help we were able to navigate the somewhat difficult areas of manufacturing and design, and its transition into the vast Asian zone for many years. A friend and successful team to have on your side.”