Workforce 4.0 is an industry centric podcast featuring Manufacturing Executives from all industries coming together to emphasize how companies are partnering with technology to give people more meaningful work. As a passion project created by Ann Wyatt, Workforce 4.0 highlights crucial topics such as closing the talent gap, success stories of real people engaged with the latest manufacturing technology and how the manufactur ...
... Read more
It all started when Amy Teal and Mike Franz met up for coffee. That's how the origin of ShopFloor Coffee was born. Now, with names like "Red Shop Towel" and "First Shift," ShopFloor Coffee is leveraging their workforce themed coffee and their passion for workforce development to give a portion of their proceeds back to keep fueling critical training programs to fight the skills gap. In this week's episode, join Ann Wyatt as she sits down with ShopFloor Coffee CoFounders, Amy Teal and Mike Franz to hear more about their passion for workforce development, how technology is already impacting the lives of our younger generations and how we can all make an impact in creating a better manufacturing future. In This Episode: -As an industry veteran of 3D printing, Amy gives us her thoughts on how 3D printing and additive manufacturing are going to continue to be a huge part of the future of manufacturing (~timestamp 9:18) -Amy and Mike talk in depth on the importance of their mission for ShopFloor Coffee and how they are continuing to partner with agencies like SkillsUSA, NCATC and Skill Up Arizona (~timestamp 15:17) -Amy and Mike share their thoughts on how we're innovating the way that we train our manufacturing workforce and how that is very different than years past (~timestamp 25:08) More About ShopFloor Coffee: "Not your regular coffee cult." At ShopFloor Coffee, we're more than just a coffee brand; we're on a mission to make a real impact in the world of manufacturing education. Our passion is to bridge the gap between industry needs and education, empowering the next generation of skilled professionals. Every cup you enjoy with us contributes to this mission. A portion of our proceeds is dedicated to supporting organizations committed to advancing manufacturing education. Together, we're shaping the future of this industry through knowledge, skills, and opportunity. Join us in this journey! Connect with our community of coffee lovers who are equally passionate about education and industry growth. Together, we can brew success, one sip at a time. To learn more visit ShopFloor Coffee. Or, connect with Amy Teal and Mike Franz directly. The Future of Work (and this Episode) Is Brought To You By Secchi: Secchi is a revolutionary workforce engagement tool created for organizations to make data-driven frontline decisions in real-time. By measuring and combining multiple people-related lead indicators, Secchi provides in-the-moment visibility into individual frontline employee performance, team performance, engagement/turnover risks, and positive employee behaviors all while removing the traditional barriers of administrative burden on leaders. To learn more about Secchi, check them out here.
As the former CEO of BILSTEIN ThyssenKrupp, Fabian Schmahl not only understands the value of stakeholders, but the value of people. Today, Fabian acts as a Managing Partner for Bold Promises Delivered, and continues to advocate for Industry 4.0 and people over process. Join Ann Wyatt as she sits down for a one on one conversation with Fabian to learn more on what it means to win big for people through technology and how those win impact an organization's ROI at scale. In This Episode: -Fabian shares what it means to win as a CEO by explaining the key differences between "shareholder" and "stakeholder" and leveraging relationships between your community, partnering agencies and internal workforce to identify and eliminate lower value tasks (~timestamp 6:55) -We learn more on how Fabian successfully implemented culture changes and how manufacturing organizations can begin to initiate culture changes to improve recruiting efforts and retention rates (~timestamp 11:13) -With all of the buzz surrounding Industry 4.0, Fabian drops his best practices for separating good information from the noise and for manufacturing leadership interested in driving innovation through technology (~timestamp 25:20) More About Fabian Schmahl: Fabian is a seasoned executive with over 25 years of growing business excellence experience in the plastics, rubber and automotive industries. He began his career in 1997 as a Management Trainee at Thyssen Henschel Industrietechnik in Germany, where he quickly rose through the ranks to become Production Manager and Vice President in the United States. After later serving as Executive VP at HF Rubber Machinery, Fabian entered the Tier 1 automotive sector as President & CEO of thyssenkrupp BILSTEIN of America, Inc. where he led the development and manufacture of premium quality, high-performance automotive suspension solutions. During his 15+ year tenure at BILSTEIN, Fabian led the company through 5 major expansions, expanded its workforce by 600+ employees, and facilitated the planning, testing and plant-wide deployment of advanced manufacturing technologies. In 2015, he received the German-American Friendship Award on behalf of the German Ambassador recognizing outstanding service to German-American relations. In 2016, he was named in Cincy Magazine’s 75/71 Business Hall of Fame, and in 2018 he received the Civic Leadership Award honoring Cincinnati leaders for “demonstrated leadership, professional achievement, and continuous, invaluable contributions to their community.” In 2020, he was inducted into the Greater Butler County Business Hall of Fame. Fabian remains committed to the advancement of Industry 4.0/5.0 and firmly believes "you must automate to innovate." Connect and learn more about Fabian here. The Future of Work (and this Episode) Is Brought To You By Secchi: Secchi is a revolutionary workforce engagement tool created for organizations to make data-driven frontline decisions in real-time. By measuring and combining multiple people-related lead indicators, Secchi provides in-the-moment visibility into individual frontline employee performance, team performance, engagement/turnover risks, and positive employee behaviors all while removing the traditional barriers of administrative burden on leaders. To learn more about Secchi, check them out here.
It all started in a cornfield. That is the how Mike White, Founder of Secchi.io, began his mission to create a solution that has been haunting the manufacturing HR world for decades- how do we let great workers do great work? On this Season 4 opener of Workforce 4.0, join your host Ann Wyatt as she talks one on one with Mike about the the day to day challenges that manufacturing HR executives are faced with, why that's important to recruiting and retention in our industry and why manufacturing operations should care. In this up front conversation between two people that love people and HR, we learn more about how utilizing gamification, incentives and easy to follow guidelines for our industry supervisors are shaping the way that we work- for the better! In This Episode: -Mike shares his passion for the frontline leader and offers challenges and solutions that allow HR to finally get out of the way of our frontline leadership and let great leaders lead (~timestamp 7:01) -We learn more about Mike's own career journey from playing sports growing up, to getting an early start in tech through a school web club and finally, how Mike ended up becoming the dynamic HR leader he is today- including leading 60+ manufacturing facilities across the globe (~timestamp 17:06) -Mike shares some of the results that he has had through popular HR strategies such as gamification and incentives and how we can improve retention rates and build stronger manufacturing cultures (~timestamp 23:07) More About Mike White: Mike is a Data-Driven Decision Maker who is passionate for data based decision-making utilizing six sigma methodology. His prior work experience includes results in recruitment, labor efficiency, training, consulting, and turnover reduction. As an HR Leadership and Business Partner with the responsibility of 60+ manufacturing facilities globally (including Fortune 500 brands), Mike has led a human resource team, including managers, supervisors, generalists, recruiters, trainers, coordinators, and operations managers. Mike holds a Master’s Degree of Human Resources and Industrial Relations, and is a graduate of the University of Illinois School of Labor and Employment Relations. All of this has led Mike to become the founder of Secchi.io, where they provide clarity for HR professionals and frontline leaders to make data-driven performance decisions, simplified. By tracking more than just discipline, Secchi is a software that provides visibility of team performance, removes the barriers of administrative tasks, and increases productivity. To learn more about Mike, connect with him here. The Future of Work (and this Episode) Is Brought To You By Secchi: Secchi is a revolutionary workforce engagement tool created for organizations to make data-driven frontline decisions in real-time. By measuring and combining multiple people-related lead indicators, Secchi provides in-the-moment visibility into individual frontline employee performance, team performance, engagement/turnover risks, and positive employee behaviors all while removing the traditional barriers of administrative burden on leaders. To learn more about Secchi, check them out here.
How is a self described "serial entrepreneur" bringing her passion for business and creative design to the forefront of the robotics industry? This question and more is revealed on this week's episode of Workforce 4.0 as Kim Losey, Chief Growth Officer of Rapid Robotics sits down with Ann Wyatt to discuss the importance of creative design in business and how creativity is shaping the future of the way that we work. Joined by special guest co-host Ryan Treece, we uncover more about Kim's own career journey and more key insights that you don't want to miss! In This Episode: -Kim shares what her favorite use cases for implementing technology like robotics and advice for driving real business value by being genuine in creating solutions (~timestamp 13:34) -Kim talks in depth about her role as a being a creative entrepreneur and how her creative skills have led to her own successful career growth by learning to share the stories of others (~timestamp 25:51) -Kim shares her insights on the future of work and how remote monitoring will one day lead to more flexible work and the greater impact that will have on women in manufacturing and diversity recruiting (~timestamp 37:08) More About Kim Losey: Kim is a catalyst for business growth and impact with a deep appreciation for the power of a brand, She's passionate about leading diverse global teams and demonstrating exponential business growth through creative vision, strong strategic leadership, and insight-based global marketing programs. She's an innovative problem solver, a trusted business partner, and a champion for cross-functional collaboration with proven versatility across teams that span high creative to in-depth technical. With experience leading businesses large and small, across industries and consumer targets, she brings a persistent pursuit of awesome and inspiration to everything she does. Kim currently serves as the CGO for Rapid Robotics. To learn more about Kim, connect with her here. To learn more about Rapid Robotics, visit them here. The Future of Work (and this Episode) Is Brought To You By Secchi: Secchi is a revolutionary workforce engagement tool created for organizations to make data-driven frontline decisions in real-time. By measuring and combining multiple people-related lead indicators, Secchi provides in-the-moment visibility into individual frontline employee performance, team performance, engagement/turnover risks, and positive employee behaviors all while removing the traditional barriers of administrative burden on leaders. To learn more about Secchi, check them out here.
When it comes to the transformative power of technology and how tech is shaping the way that we work, Jack Nehlig, President of Phoenix Contact is far from a stranger. Conversely, Jack is quite the innovator in this space just as much as Phoenix Contact is continuing to innovate industrial automation. In this episode, join our host, Ann Wyatt as she sits down with Jack to talk more about how Jack is not only keeping his company's products at the center of solutions driven tech, but also how Jack is keeping his workforce centric to adopting technology day to day. Joined by guest co-host, Ryan Treece, this episode of Workforce 4.0 is one that you certainly don't want to miss! In This Episode: -Listen to how Jack shares how the impact of digitalization has only fueled his own determination in creating internal workforce development programs to up skill employees (~timestamp 22:27) - Jack shares what his inspiration and motivation is behind being one of manufacturing's most well known leaders and a "champion of the people" (~timestamp 30:47) -Learn what skills Jack is always recruiting for and how Phoenix Contact adopts transferrable skills (~timestamp 34:35) More About Jack Nehlig: Jack Nehlig was named President of Phoenix Contact USA in November of 2001. He is responsible for Phoenix Contact’s operations in the United States, comprising the U.S. sales subsidiary and the Group Center of Competence for the Americas. In addition to his U.S. responsibilities, he became a member of the Phoenix Contact Group Executive Committee in 2016. ack serves on the Board of Governors of the National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA). He holds a B.S. in Industrial Distribution from Clarkson University in Potsdam, N.Y., and an M.B.A. from the University of Phoenix in Arizona. To learn more about Jack, connect with him here. See solutions provided by Phoenix Contact here. The Future of Work (and this Episode) Is Brought To You By Secchi: Secchi is a revolutionary workforce engagement tool created for organizations to make data-driven frontline decisions in real-time. By measuring and combining multiple people-related lead indicators, Secchi provides in-the-moment visibility into individual frontline employee performance, team performance, engagement/turnover risks, and positive employee behaviors all while removing the traditional barriers of administrative burden on leaders. To learn more about Secchi, check them out here.