Bankruptcy @ Circuit City

Year	Circuit City Events
1949	Samuel S. Wurtzel opens first Wards Company retail store in Richmond, Va.
1959	Wards operates four television and home appliance stores in Richmond with annual sales volume of about $1 million.
1960	Expands operations via licensed departments in mass merchandising discount stores.
1961	Makes first public offering with Stein Brothers & Boyce Co. of Baltimore. Offers 110,000 shares at $5.375 per share (split adjusted, 2 cents per share).
1966	Sales reach $23 million for the fiscal year.
1968	Moves from the over-the-counter market to the American Stock Exchange. Offers 1,700 shares at $19.75 per share (split adjusted, 55 cents per share).
1969-1982	Company acquires numerous electronics retailers and operates stores from New York to California.
1983	Sales reach $246 million for the fiscal year.
1984	Company name changes to Circuit City Stores Inc.; Stock listed on the New York Stock Exchange.
1987	Sales reach the $1 billion mark for the fiscal year ending Feb. 28, 1987.
1989	First personal computers hit Circuit City store shelves.
1990	Sales reach the $2 billion mark for the fiscal year ending Feb. 28, 1990.
1993	Begins testing CarMax, a retail venture selling used vehicles.
1996	CarMax announces plans for national expansion of the concept.
1999	Circuit City launches Web site to offer online shopping; annual sales for Circuit City store businesses exceed $10 billion and annual sales for the CarMax superstores exceed $2 billion.
2000	Circuit City exits the appliance business.
2002	Circuit City completes the separation of CarMax.
2003	The company rejects takeover bid from Mexican financier Carlos Slim Helu.
2004	Circuit City acquires Ontario-based InterTAN Inc., a consumer electronics retailer of private-label and internationally branded products.
2005	Company rejects unsolicited $3.25 billion cash buyout offer from Boston investment firm Highfields Capital Management LP.
2006	Circuit City launches Firedog, a PC services and home-installation business.
2007	Circuit City announces plans to explore strategic alternatives for InterTAN Inc.; launches new store prototype “The City.”
Apr-08	Dallas-based movie-rental chain Blockbuster Inc. makes public a more than $1 billion takeover bid for Circuit City with dreams of creating a huge chain that would sell electronic gadgets and rent movies and games.
May-08	Circuit City’s board of directors authorizes the exploration of strategic alternatives to enhance shareholder value; Opens books to Blockbuster.
Jun-08	Circuit City reaches agreement with shareholder Wattles Capital Management to nominate three directors, including James A. Marcum to its board to defuse proxy battle.
Jul-08	Blockbuster withdraws takeover bid, citing market conditions.
Aug-08	Marcum named vice chairman.
Sept. 22, 2008	Philip J. Schoonover steps down as Circuit City’s chief executive, chairman and president; Marcum named as interim president and chief executive.
Sept. 29, 2008	Circuit City withdraws its outlook for the full year and posts a wider second-quarter loss as sales fell 10 percent; Shares fall more than 20 percent.
Nov. 3, 2008	Circuit City says it will close 155 stores in 55 U.S. markets by Dec. 31, laying off about 17 percent of its domestic work force. Company says it will further reduce new store openings and plans to work with landlords to renegotiate leases, lower rent or terminate agreements while it deals with tightening credit from its vendors.
Nov. 10, 2008	Circuit City files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection

Is it time for “Diet” Lean Six Sigma ?

Over the past few years, while the usage of Lean and Six Sigma Tools has decreased, the Lean Six Sigma practitioner has seen a quite transformation. The role has evolved from being pre-occupied with standard “Reduce Cycle Time” and “Improve Output Quality” kind of initiatives to taking an End-to-End View of the Business and delivering Business Impact. The manufacturing sector continues to benefit from and lead the way with the depth of Lean and Six Sigma deployment, but the Services Sector ( I can comment specifically on Information Technology ( IT ) and IT Enabled Services ( ITES ) has seen no less impact, thanks to the evolving role of the Lean Six Sigma Professional. A few initiatives that I have seen the Lean Six Sigma Professionals being involved ( In addition to the usual stuff ) include

1. Knowledge Management
2. Best Practise Translation
3. Industry / External Benchmarking
4. Business Intelligence ( BI ), Business Activity Monitoring ( BAM )
5. Program Management of Company wide Big Ticket Initiatives
6. Drive Functional Efficiencies (Training, Hiring, HR, Logistics, Finance etc)
7. Implementing Standards / Frameworks (COPC, ITIL, CMM, Score Card)
8. Re-Engineering Assignments (sponsored by CFO / CIO / CEO)
9. Driving End-to-End Business Impact 

An interesting 14 year on-going study / survey on Management Tools and Trends by consulting firm Bain & Company (http://www.bain.com/management_tools/home.asp) offers additional insights. In conclusion, while Lean and Six Sigma no longer qualify as “The Next Big New Thing” in most of the Organizations, the Lean Six Sigma Professional is certainly in exciting times for some time to come.