Workforce and Education

Earlier this month, the MI released a new report outlining the top challenges women are facing and what workplace policies have the most impact to recruit and retain female talent.

On December 6, the MI hosted a webinar with industry leaders to explore specific examples of childcare and flexibility solutions. Panelists included Rose Lee, President and CEO of Cornerstone Building Brands, Aneesa Muthana, President, CEO and Co-Owner of Pioneer Services, Denise Rutherford, former Chief Corporate Affairs Officer and Senior Vice President, 3M (retired), C-Suite Executive and Board Director, and Denita Wilhoit, Vice President Corporate Shared Services at Toyota.

Key Takeaways

• Prioritizing a diverse workplace is key to attracting workers, improving productivity and employee retention and growing a company’s bottom line.
• Women represent a sizable talent pool that manufacturers cannot ignore. As it stands, women make up more than 29% of the manufacturing workforce. By raising the percentage of women in the manufacturing sector to 35% of total employment in the sector, there could be 800,000 more female manufacturing employees. This would be enough to fill every open job in the manufacturing sector today.
• Companies that have increased worker flexibility have seen a positive correlation with the ability to attract new employees and retain current staff. New policies have included part-time options, adjusted shift schedules and opportunities for remote work.
• Both men and women cite lack of childcare options/support to be an issue, though evidence suggests this is a larger issue for women. Workplace flexibility can aid in addressing this challenge, though some companies are exploring subsidized or onsite solutions.
• Providing job training/continuing education opportunities, developing employee resource groups and establishing mentorship programs also help with retention and recruitment. Implementing policies that can help advance and train a diversity of leaders shows a commitment to employee growth, making the company a more attractive place to stay—or join.

View the recording here and learn best practices on how to create more inclusive workplace environments.

On December 1, the MI held its third annual D+I Summit in Washington, D.C. Attendees were provided with tools and shared experiences needed to create inclusive and equitable workplaces. Strong leaders in this space helped guide the discussions on implementing change and making an impact.

Key Takeaways

• Employee Resource Groups Session (ERGs) – Attendees heard from leaders at McCormick & Company and Pella Corporation on how to create and support employee resource groups. The conversation covered utilizing ERGs as a business imperative, what leadership’s role within ERGs can look like, the process to establish and maintain ERGs, different logistics of ERG maintenance (budgets, roles, and so forth), and more.
• Executive Panel Discussion – Attendees heard from three leaders from Merck, Honeywell, and Armstrong World Industries on how manufacturers are promoting diversity and leveraging inclusion in the communities they operate in. The conversation included reviewing each company’s D&I initiatives and best practices in creating an inclusive workplace that have been implemented, as well as different D&I trainings and advice to fellow manufacturers looking to get started with D&I.

Want to hear these sessions and learn more? You can view a recording of the Virtual D+I Summit here.

The manufacturing leaders who met in Washington, D.C., this month agreed wholeheartedly: D&I is integral to building and retaining the workforce of tomorrow.

At the third-annual Diversity+Inclusion Summit convened by the Manufacturing Institute, leaders gathered to share data, insights and lessons gleaned from their own D&I efforts. Hailing from many different industry sectors and companies of all sizes, the panelists and attendees laid out concrete actions that can transform companies’ D&I objectives.

Why it matters: With 2.1 million jobs expected to go unfilled in the industry by 2030, manufacturers need to find new populations of potential employees. Recruiting more women, racial and ethnic minorities and neurodiverse workers can expand companies’ talent pools and strengthen their workforces.

• In fact, increasing the current female workforce from 29% to 35% would fill the industry’s 746,000 open jobs all on its own, according to a recent study by the MI and Colonial Life.
• That’s why the MI is working to meet this target through its 35 x 30 Campaign—i.e., increasing the percentage of women in manufacturing to 35% by 2030.

How to do it: The summit offered important tips to help companies boost their D&I efforts, including:

• Get buy-in from company leaders: Research shows that D&I efforts lead to greater productivity, increased innovation and higher revenue—not to mention the recruitment and retention benefits. Once companies set D&I goals, leaders should incorporate D&I objectives into their annual goals to create opportunities for accountability.

• Use employee resource groups in a structured way: Companies should set up organizational structures for their ERGs that will ensure longevity and encourage fresh thinking, as well as align with companies’ overall D&I goals. These groups should have their own budgets and rotating leadership positions. When possible, the contributions of ERG leaders should be included in their incentive programs or annual goals.

• Educate your first-line supervisors about D&I: By training first-line supervisors on the latest in D&I and company-specific objectives, companies can help them both support their teams better and collect feedback to inform the overall effort.

• Offer child care and flexibility: In the post-pandemic environment, companies are still exploring what works best for them, but one thing is clear: to recruit and retain talent in a tight labor market, companies need to provide employees with options. (Check out our recent webinar on the same subject.)

Learn more: Interested in joining the conversation? Check out the MI’s D&I tools and resources, and register for upcoming events, including our upcoming Virtual Diversity+Inclusion Summit on Dec. 16, here. The virtual summit will include some recorded sessions from this event as well.

The Center for Manufacturing Research at the MI recently released a study in partnership with Rockwell Automation and PTC forecasting the skills needs of the manufacturing sector over the next 5 to 10 years.

Here’s what the study found:

• There are 3 major skills needs for the future: data analytics, an agile mindset paired with problem-solving and critical thinking, and interpersonal skills.
• Manufacturers are interested in preparing for upcoming skills needs by connecting with the workforce of the future. (See how the MI is building this workforce with our groundbreaking initiative, Creators Wanted.)
• Manufacturers are intentionally recruiting and promoting segments of the population that have historically been excluded from manufacturing roles or leadership. (Learn how the MI is leading conversations about D&I here.)
• Focusing on corporate culture is a key component of building and maintaining a strong workforce.
• Nearly every company surveyed reported the importance of continuous training for their current worker, i.e. “upskilling”.

Read the full report here. 

The Manufacturing Institute with support from Colonial Life released a new paper that explores what manufacturers are doing to help close the gender gap, incorporating survey responses and interviews with various company executives that identify key insights and practical advice for other manufacturers. To address the workforce shortage, manufacturers need to expand their talent pools, bringing in more diverse and underrepresented candidates.

Women represent a sizable talent pool that manufacturers cannot ignore, especially as the sector becomes more advanced. Earlier this year, the MI launched our 35×30 campaign, which aims to do just that—increase the percentage of women among manufacturers from 29%, where we hover now, to 35% by 2030 by changing perceptions among women and girls about manufacturing as a career, attracting and retaining more female employees.

Read the full report here.

Automation isn’t just changing the manufacturing industry; it’s enabling human-centric progress in tackling the industry’s workforce crisis.

In action: As part of the Automation Fair in Chicago last week, more than 15,000 attendees got to see how manufacturers—and companies like Rockwell Automation—are providing solutions to the shortage, which could reach 2.1 million unfilled jobs by 2030, according to research from the Manufacturing Institute (the workforce development and education partner of the NAM) and Deloitte.

• Rockwell Automation brought the Creators Wanted Tour, a project of the NAM and the MI, to its Automation Fair, giving students, parents, educators and manufacturers the chance to see firsthand how digital transformation and new technologies are supporting careers and opportunities in modern manufacturing.
• The tour’s much-heralded immersive experience, along with displays and programs featuring experts from the MI and the Manufacturing Leadership Council (the digital transformation division of the NAM), gave attendees insight into the pathways and support available in the industry.
• FactoryFix, the official recruiting partner of Creators Wanted, was also on hand to showcase its manufacturing talent platform for job seekers—and manufacturers searching for a one-stop recruiting solution.

Changing perceptions: Creators Wanted aims to shrink the workforce gap by dispelling myths about automation and attracting the next generation to manufacturing jobs. It’s seeing impressive success, MI President Carolyn Lee said during a session at the event.

• “Today 40% of parents have a positive perception of manufacturing,” Lee said, citing a recent joint Deloitte–MI study. “And what we’re finding is that parents see these are durable careers with great possibility and opportunity, and they’re encouraging their children to consider them.”

Digital help: “Digital is going to help manufacturers deal with their workforce issues because it’s going to not only help change the perception of the industry, but create new jobs going forward, particularly in math-intensive areas like data analytics and artificial intelligence,” said MLC Vice President and Executive Director David Brousell.

• Brousell cited the MLC’s “Manufacturing in 2030 Project,” saying, “We have to think about digital transformation as human-centric digital transformation—because we’ve got to bring the technology and the people together simultaneously to have an effective transformation.”

Impressive results: Since it began just more than a year ago, the Creators Wanted Tour has seen more than 8,000 students pass through its immersive mobile experience, where more than 75% of attendees leave with a significantly improved view of manufacturing.

• More than 510,000 students and career mentors have also signed up to learn more about modern manufacturing careers.
• Creators Wanted has recruited successfully both mentors and mentees for the mentorship program of Women MAKE America, an MI initiative that aims to close the gender gap in manufacturing.
• The Automation Fair offered more than 150 interactive sessions on the newest industrial solutions and best practices, and more than 200 companies exhibited across 200,000 square feet at Chicago’s McCormick Place.

Media mentions: The fair and Creators Wanted’s presence drew a slew of media coverage, including from “Morning in America” with Adrienne Bankert, “The John Howell Show” on WLS-AM, Univision Chicago and suburban Chicago’s Daily Herald.

• In addition, the Daily Line published an op-ed on the future of manufacturing by NAM President and CEO Jay Timmons and Rockwell Automation Chairman and CEO and NAM Executive Committee member Blake Moret.

The last word: “As the world’s largest company dedicated to industrial automation and digital transformation, Rockwell is always looking toward the future of manufacturing,” Moret said. “Campaigns like Creators Wanted are critical to recruiting the best future talent to create a thriving workforce.” 

Manufacturers continue to face an alarming workforce shortage—which could result in 2.1 million unfilled jobs by 2030, according to a study by The Manufacturing Institute and Deloitte.

The MI—the workforce development and education partner of the NAM—is working hard to fill that gap. MI President Carolyn Lee spoke at the Made in Connecticut: 2022 Manufacturing Summit last week about how manufacturers are taking on this critical issue and what lies ahead.

The challenge: “One of the biggest long-term issues our industry is confronting is the perception problem,” said Lee. “Many Americans—usually parents—cling to the belief that the manufacturing industry is not a place where people can find satisfying, well-paying lifelong careers. … Our industry needs to overcome this perception and grow the supply of young workers.”

Making progress: “That brings me back to good news: perceptions are changing,” said Lee. “Thanks to movements like MFG Day, and campaigns like the National Association of Manufacturers and The Manufacturing Institute’s ‘Creators Wanted’ campaign, which is touring the country right now, we are moving the needle.”

• “We’re showcasing modern manufacturing as we know it to be: exciting, rewarding, clean and high-tech,” said Lee. “Thanks to these efforts, the positive perception of manufacturing among adults in the past few years has grown from 27% to 40%.”

Promoting programs: Lee spoke about a range of programs offered by the MI that are designed to help build an expansive and inclusive manufacturing workforce. These programs include:

• Women MAKE America, formerly known as the STEP Ahead program, which supports women in manufacturing;
• Heroes MAKE America, which eases the transition to civilian careers for veterans and other members of the military community; and
• FAME, which was originally founded by Toyota before transitioning over to the MI in 2019, and which offers an “earn and learn” apprenticeship experience.

Pushing policy: Lee noted the importance of ensuring that government policy is aligned with the needs and realities of the manufacturing industry. She also highlighted elements of “Competing to Win”—the NAM’s policy blueprint for bolstering manufacturers’ competitiveness. Proposed policies include:

• Reorienting the education system and its funding around a skills and employer-involved model;
• Updating federal tax policy to encourage and reward companies that invest in upskilling their employees; and
• More federal investments in apprenticeship models.

The last word: “Our industry’s strength and competitiveness will be determined by the strength of our workforce,” said Lee. “After all, they are the creators who pioneer and produce lifechanging electronics or lifesaving medicines. They are innovating and building the machines that transform human mobility, improve quality of life or bolster our national defense.”

Learn more: Find out more about the MI’s vital work here.

While participants were having fun at this week’s Creators Wanted stop in Decatur, Illinois, the nationwide tour and its mobile experience were doing something, too: moving the needle on people’s perceptions of modern manufacturing.

What went on: Over the course of three days, more than 800 students from 13 area middle schools, high schools and community colleges poured into Richland Community College to learn about manufacturing careers. Also present were many educators and parents.

• Attendees “raced to the future” in the Creators Wanted mobile experience, solving various manufacturing-related challenges as they wound through the escape room.
• They heard panel talks from manufacturing leaders and team members and learned about some of the industry’s many perks, including great wages, flexible schedules, upward mobility, chances to earn and learn and more.
• Interactive activities, set up and run by manufacturers and the campaign’s recruiting partner, FactoryFix, were designed to garner interest—and display some of the real work done every day in modern manufacturing.
• This included virtual-reality paint and assembly training from Creators Wanted host sponsor Caterpillar, as well as a hazard-awareness simulator, a drink-making station and a laser-system exhibit from host sponsor ADM. Richland Community College took students on a tour through its state-of-the-art lab.

Generation inspired: Manufacturing leaders at ADM, Caterpillar and the Illinois Manufacturers’ Association, which together brought the tour to Decatur, got the chance to galvanize crowds.

• Said IMA President and CEO Mark Denzler: “Manufacturing makes the world a better place to live every day. Some of you are going to find the next cure for a disease. You’re going to build the next robot.”
• “For anyone who really is looking for a career that you can get into that is good-paying, that will provide you an opportunity to progress, consider manufacturing,” Caterpillar Group President of Resource Industries (and NAM Executive Committee member) Denise Johnson told the crowd.
• Following the event, students were indeed inspired. “It kind of changed my mind on what I want to do in the future,” one student
• “It was amazing,” said another. “I’d think about doing this for a career.”

Shoring up the shortage: The lack of skilled workers has been a pain point for manufacturers for several years now—and it’s a problem Creators Wanted aims to fix.

• “Programs like Creators Wanted are crucial in narrowing the workforce shortage in manufacturing and also showcasing the many opportunities within the manufacturing industry,” said ADM Senior Vice President of Global Operations and NAM board member Veronica Braker. 

The impact: The tour stop made a splash in regional media, garnering overwhelmingly positive broadcast coverage and print mentions and placements (see here and here).

Meeting people where they are: “How do you get more young people interested in the field [of manufacturing]?” 25 News WEEK-TV anchor Erin Brown asked in a segment for the Peoria, Illinois, news station. “The answer could be more hands-on experiences with businesses like Caterpillar and ADM.”

“Fix it now.” If yesterday’s Port of Los Angeles virtual press conference had a single message, that was it.

NAM President and CEO Jay Timmons joined Port of Los Angeles Executive Director Gene Seroka for a question-and-answer session on the manufacturing supply chain and “Competing to Win,” the NAM’s agenda for bolstering manufacturing competitiveness.

Labor uncertainty: Timmons acknowledged the positive steps taken by leadership of the Port of LA over the past 12 months to improve the flow of goods, but he noted that workforce concerns continue to create supply chain uncertainty across shipping modes.

• “One of the biggest issues slowing down our domestic supply chains is the labor uncertainty tied to critical infrastructure,” Timmons said. “For example, there was the real danger of a crippling rail shutdown last month. The NAM supported the administration’s efforts to reach an agreement to avert this, but negotiations are still ongoing, and there’s a deadline next month on Nov. 19.”
• The solution, Timmons said, lies with policymakers and industry, who “have to be vigilant about putting out these sparks before they turn into fires.”

Taxes: Timmons also discussed the need for a more favorable tax code, which plays a major role in the ability of manufacturers in the U.S. to compete, he said.

• “For example, a longstanding deduction for full and immediate expensing of research and development expenses is being phased out,” Timmons said. “Businesses will now have to amortize their R&D expenses over a number of years; that’s a huge disincentive that makes it costlier to conduct R&D within the U.S.—not to mention a potentially huge tax hike for small and medium-sized manufacturers at the end of the year.”
• China, meanwhile, allows manufacturers a 200% deduction for R&D expensing, giving that country a major advantage.

Workforce and immigration: Manufacturing is “in the middle of a workforce crisis,” Timmons said. Enacting new, better immigration policy and investing more in certain workforce programs can help solve it.

• Manufacturing has nearly 800,000 open jobs—and many of them could be filled if legislators would expand work-permit programs, Timmons said. “Clearly, we need border security, but we also need more avenues for people to come legally and to work.”
• There should be more federal investment in apprenticeship models, too, so that students can “earn while they learn” in manufacturing, he added.

All hands on deck: Congress must work to fix these issues “in a very bipartisan way,” Timmons said. “We hear all the time from elected officials, both Democrat and Republican, and even independent, that they want to be supportive of manufacturing.”

• “They understand that manufacturing is the lifeblood of any competitive economy … and we appreciate that. But we also need to make sure that in addition to saying good things about manufacturing, that elected officials are actually doing the things they need to do. That’s what [‘Competing to Win’] is all about.”

Last week was a milestone for the Creators Wanted Tour—it marked the first time the nationwide initiative returned to a community and got to see how perceptions of manufacturing had changed since its first visit.

Welcome back: The Creators Wanted Tour, a joint venture of the NAM and its workforce development and education partner, The Manufacturing Institute, returned to host and champion sponsor Nephron Pharmaceuticals Corporation in West Columbia, South Carolina, in the 11th stop of the roadshow, which took place Oct. 4–7.

Happy MFG Day! On MFG Day, Oct. 7, Creators Wanted campaign co-chair Lou Kennedy, president, CEO and owner of Nephron Pharmaceuticals Corporation, and her team hosted the tour stop’s premier event at its new Nephron Nitrile Glove Factory. The 426,000-square-foot facility is scheduled to open next month and will produce nitrile gloves used in hospitals and sterile rooms globally.

• The protective-glove shortage in the U.S. during the pandemic inspired Kennedy to build the factory, which is set to produce 2 million gloves a year at full capacity.
• South Carolina legislators from both sides of the political aisle were on hand for a tour of the site. House Democratic Majority Whip James Clyburn and Republican Reps. Joe Wilson and Jeff Duncan joined hundreds of local students, educators, community leaders and manufacturers to view and learn more about the campaign and its resources.

Ready for the “boom”: “There is a manufacturing boom taking place all over the country,” Majority Whip Clyburn said. “We’ve got to focus on getting these young people prepared” for manufacturing careers.

• As Rep. Wilson said, “The opportunities for manufacturing just can’t be better.”
• “401(k), great salary—average wage of 75 to 80K—clean and beautiful working conditions and hard work with a lot of fun,” Kennedy said of jobs at Nephron, while extolling opportunities at modern manufacturers across the state and in nearby communities.
• Major Creators Wanted supporters Honda and Trane Technologies also have operations in the Palmetto State, and several other campaign sponsors, including Chroma Color Corporation, are within a short distance of West Columbia.

More career guidance: Students seeking tailored advice about their professional futures got it from representatives of FactoryFix, official recruiting partner of Creators Wanted, who were on hand to meet and coach job seekers.

• South Carolina Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Bob Morgan, whose organization is a tour partner, was on site with his team to give students information on manufacturing opportunities in South Carolina.
• On Friday, Creators Wanted sponsor Autos Drive America had an exhibit showing attendees the types of vehicles being manufactured in South Carolina.

Women in manufacturing: During a “fireside chat” panel on the tour stop, Kennedy was joined by Autos Drive America President and CEO Jennifer Safavian and MI President Carolyn Lee to discuss the importance of advancing more women in manufacturing.

• “Growing up here in the deep south 20, 30 years ago, we were supposed to be teachers or … nurses; we weren’t supposed to be pharma CEOs,” Kennedy said. “And so, my goal is to help every young lady be what she wants to be, even if it’s the nontraditional career path. … If you want to be a super-genius chemist, you can do that. If you want to be a super-genius engineer, you can do that.”
• Echoed Safavian, “I think the message [of Creators Wanted] is, ‘Don’t be afraid to ask questions. Don’t be afraid to try something. For women especially, this is a terrific opportunity. … A lot of people think manufacturing is dark, dirty, dangerous. It is not. … it is the complete opposite.”

Calling all veterans: Modern manufacturing is also a natural fit for those who have been in the military, speakers told the audience during another panel discussion.

• “I started at Nephron as a senior system analyst, and throughout my career everything that I was faced with at Nephron I’d already seen in the military,” said Air Force veteran Eric Jackson, now a senior IT security analyst at Nephron. “So, I think the [military] training … is what prepared me for this job.”

The reach: The South Columbia 2022 tour stop, made possible by additional support from Dow, Honda and Nephron Pharmaceuticals, was a record breaker.

• More than 700 students from 13 schools—most located in traditionally underrepresented communities—participated in the tour stop’s events. Last year, those numbers were 500 and seven, respectively.
• This year’s West Columbia email signups—people wishing to learn more about manufacturing careers—brought Creators Wanted’s total signups to more than 520,000.

The last word: The tour stop may have been best summarized by one young student who attended the events. “Creators Wanted,” she said, “is a helping hand.”