The Automotive Leaders Podcast Why Automation Fails in Manufacturing and the Leadership Shift Required to Fix It
Re-industrializing America sounds bold. Necessary. Inevitable.
But on factory floors across the country, automation keeps stalling before it ever delivers real value.
Robots sit unused. Projects drag on for years. Leaders know automation is essential, yet decisions stall, risks get avoided, and the same problems repeat. This episode goes straight to the heart of why.
Jan Griffiths is joined by Søren Peters, CEO of HowToRobot, a global marketplace helping manufacturers source and implement robotics more effectively. Søren has spent decades leading digital transformation and operational change, giving him a front-row seat to why automation struggles inside real plants, not PowerPoint decks.
This conversation moves past hype. It tackles the real blockers: fear-based leadership, siloed decision-making, short-term contracts, poor education, and a complete lack of ownership once robots hit the shop floor. Automation doesn’t fail because the technology isn’t ready. It fails because organizations aren’t.
Søren challenges leaders to rethink how they assess risk, train their workforce, and take responsibility for change. Buying a robot isn’t a technology decision. It’s a leadership decision. And without courage, clarity, and accountability, even the smartest automation strategy will collapse.
If the automotive industry is serious about rebuilding manufacturing capacity, closing labor gaps, and preparing for an AI-enabled future, leaders must stop waiting for certainty and start owning the change.
Themes Discussed
- Why automation failures are leadership failures, not technology failures
- The risk-avoidance mindset is slowing manufacturing transformation
- How siloed decision-making kills automation on the shop floor
- Why education matters beyond engineers and integrators
- The hidden impact of short-term supplier contracts on ROI
- What successful automation leaders do differently
- Why ownership and courage matter more than tool
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This episode is sponsored by Lockton, click here to learn more
Featured Guest
Søren Peters is the CEO of HowToRobot, a global industrial robot marketplace that helps manufacturers find, evaluate, and implement automation solutions more effectively. He has spent over two decades leading companies through digital transformation, outsourcing, and large-scale operational change across Europe and the United States. Søren brings a pragmatic, leadership-first perspective to automation, grounded in what actually works inside manufacturing plants.
About Your Host – Jan Griffiths
Jan Griffiths is a champion for culture change and the host of the Automotive Leaders Podcast. A former automotive executive with a rebellious spirit, Jan is known for challenging outdated norms and inspiring leaders to ditch command and control. She is the author of AutoCulture 2.0 and the co-host of the Auto Supply Chain Prophets podcast. Jan brings honesty, energy, and courage to every conversation, proving that authentic, human-centered leadership is the future of the automotive industry.
Mentioned in this Episode
Episode Highlights
[02:55] Re-industrialization sounds great until automation decisions stall for years
[04:12] Why factories don’t need humanoids, they need basics that work
[06:35] The real reason companies delay buying robots for a decade
[09:10] Fear, risk, and leadership paralysis inside manufacturing
[12:58] Why training only engineers guarantees automation failure
[14:41] Robots are workers, and leaders must manage them as such
[18:04] Short-term contracts destroy long-term automation ROI
[19:52] Financing, trust, and the reality of buying unfamiliar technology
[21:21] What the DNA of a successful automation leader really looks like
Top Quotes
[11:20] Soren Peters: “I think it’s leadership. And I think those who want to be the one who takes the torch and says, I will take the risk. I will bear the burden.”
[14:52] Soren Peters: “A robot is a worker in a sense, and it comes with different ROIs, it comes with different behaviors.”
[15:15] Soren Peters: “And a robot also has a sick day. But we are also saying to everybody, a robot never gets sick — and it’s not, well, but it does.”
[25:48] Jan Griffiths: “The tech mindset is let’s get this technology and play with it. Let’s break it. Let’s break it. Let’s iterate it.”
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This podcast episode is also available on YouTube. Check out our YouTube channel at Jangriffithsautomotiveleaders
Send us your feedback or questions — email Jan at Jan@Gravitasdetroit.com.