Russell Bacon
BTech, Industrial Engineering (Hons)
Business Advisor
Operational excellence is Russell Bacon’s passion. Some people have a knack for how they do things that makes you want to deal with their company again. Russell can help you bottle ‘the knack’ – that best practice – and share it throughout your company.
Do you want to keep trying harder to improve or are you ready to work smarter? Russell can share easy to use common sense tools distilled for Lean, Agile and other management practices. He can help identify the root causes of issues and the things you can do to improve. Big change takes lots of planning and compassion. But small step changes are not so scary and much easier to implement. Russell can guide you on an easier route to excellence.
Staff are your greatest asset. Russell can assist you to:
- Find the right people
- Integrate them into your business
- Keep them pointed in the direction your business is headed in
- Have meaningful and productive performance improvement discussions
- Have the right processes to help poor performers (who can’t or won’t improve) exit the business, with a firm but sensitive hand.
Russell believes that improving staff welfare through Health and Safety excellence and reducing your environmental impact, can both be achieved whilst saving money in the long term. He has a solid background in both areas.
If you want to make practical changes to improve your business and its culture, contact Russell today.
Personal Profile
35 years end to end experience in fast-moving manufacturing industries. Adept at managing short lead times and high delivery performance environments. Russell has broad experience from customer services through all manufacturing and support departments to final delivery.
A versatile and innovative professional, Russell sees the big picture but can also zoom in on the detail. He’s a highly effective management professional, an innovative and creative complex problem solver. Energetic and results-focused, he’s successfully developed and led diverse teams to achieve outstanding results.
Examples of experience
- Successful implementation of Lean Manufacturing work practices and thinking (Green Belt), 5 Whys, Root cause analysis, DMAIC small step improvement.
- Sales and operations planning: managing capacity output to meet highly seasonal demand with high levels of DIFOT on short and fixed lead times. 30% reduction in late deliveries.
- Mindset change for health & safety work practices from something we talk about to something we live and breathe. Safety first does not necessarily mean slower. 750,000 man-hrs without a serious harm accident. (ICAM accident investigator).
- Introducing more sustainable work practices, large and small. Saving money and reducing carbon footprint in the process. 50% reduction in water consumption and a 30% reduction in CO2 emissions. Smaller reductions in power and solid waste streams.
- North Cape to Bluff logistics/warehouse experience.
- Import/export experience (transitional facility operator certificate).
- Radiation safety officer certificate.
- All aspects of human resources.
Industry experience
- FMCG: toilet tissue & hand towels
- Kitchen and wet wall linings
- Corrugated cardboard packaging
- Graphics design and plate manufacture
- Flexographic printing
- Food industry plastic packaging
Interests
Russell is an avid sportsman, coach and volunteer: squash, touch, cricket, canoe polo, football & sailing.
Russell Bacon
Articles & Blogs
A Few Words From Russell's Clients
Over a period of years, Russell has provided lots of helpful advice for my business. On things like handling staff performance issues, Health and Safety and generally as a sounding board for business decisions and new ventures I had been considering. His advice has been grounded and common sense. He has helped me take the emotion out and see past today's issues to take a wider view of my business. He seemed to “get me” and where I was coming from.Grahame Bennie - Able Whiteware Services
From reporting directly to Russell many years ago, he has remained an invaluable resource over the years. I often consult Russell about our own business opportunities and strategy as I regard his input as both prudent and insightful. I value his approach to problems and working through potential options to choose the best path. He's able to interact with shop floor through to senior management with ease. Russell speaks the languages of production, operations, strategy and marketing equally well, which is a gifted trait as often those can be in conflict with each other. Sally Sterritt, Director - NZ Dairy Distribution