The reality of small and medium sized manufacturers is that you spend all your available time chasing deliveries and emergencies instead of working proactively to improve your company’s overall performance. This is the reality that most companies find themselves in because they do not have enough staff, time, or training to improve their situation.
In today's world, where environmental concerns are at the forefront of global discussions, organizations are increasingly recognizing the importance of adopting sustainable practices. Among the various frameworks available, ISO 14001:2015 stands out as a comprehensive standard for environmental management systems (EMS). This blog aims to provide an overview of the requirements outlined in ISO 14001:2015 and how organizations can leverage it to enhance their environmental performance.
“THE MOST IMPORTANT OF ALL MEETINGS IS NOT THE ‘BIG MEETINGS’, BUT THE SHORT AND POWERFUL DAILY HUDDLE” (Growth Institute Blog)
Working with numerous small to medium sized, mostly family-owned manufacturing companies, I have found there is an ongoing struggle in their lean transformation away from a traditional approach to manufacturing. Why is that?
You probably have seen this plastered across social media, a strong company culture attracts and retains top talent, keeps employees engaged, and creates a collaborative team environment, yet you find yourself like many manufacturers crunched for time, pressure, and cost. Your time, efforts, and money are spent on requirements to meet legal compliance. Yet according to a recent survey conducted by the National Association of Manufacturers, 74% of executives identified attracting and retaining talent as their primary challenge1.
You have navigated your new employee through socialization, position training, and overall integration into the organization. They are now confidently going through their day and meeting other co-workers. You have noticed they attend your check in conversations with excitement and suggestions for improvement and began answering questions for newer hires joining the organization.
Now, let’s dive into the core of the onboarding process. If you missed the blog about pre-onboarding, I suggest reading that first and then coming back to this one. We went through the first impression, now the new hire has officially arrived for their first day: the first moment of onboarding. This stage is where the new hire becomes an integrated and productive member of your team. Let's explore this critical phase in the employee journey.
Physical safety is a priority for manufacturers, yet we continue to see high incident rates of injury in the industry. In 2020, there were 373,300 total cases of nonfatal injuries and illnesses recorded in the private manufacturing sector according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, of those 36% had days away from work and 29% had days of job transfer or restriction. Injuries can occur due to equipment failure, yet an often-overlooked contributing factor could be our biases and the immediate recipient of our bias is our employees.
In the modern global economy, supply chains are the backbone of almost every industry. They are intricate networks of manufacturers, suppliers, and distributors that ensure products flow seamlessly from conception to the hands of consumers. However, supply chain stability, or rather the lack of it, has been under the spotlight in recent years, and the COVID-19 pandemic only accentuated the fragility of these systems. In this blog post, we will delve into the importance of supply chain stability and explore strategies to achieve it in an ever-changing world.
Onboarding is a free, first opportunity to retain your new hires. It allows the organization to set the tone for the new hire experience, while having an opportunity to instill a new culture or proper training. Many organizations focus on the main course of onboarding, and even more often on orientation. There is a less known (but highly valuable) missed step: pre-onboarding. In this blog, we'll explore what pre-onboarding is, how it can positively impact your employees and your organization, and some best practices to bring back to your new hires.
On September 29, 2023, CHIPS for America unveiled its second funding opportunity, aimed at fortifying the resilience of the semiconductor supply chain, bolstering U.S. technological leadership, and fostering robust domestic semiconductor clusters.
