The Manufacturing Executive

Somewhere along the way, we all run into that guy...The customer's procurement guy...The buyer.And with supply chain disruption fresh in all our minds, it's time we talked to that guy.In this episode of the podcast, I spoke with Aaron Brimer, a supply chain leader and founder of the Manufacturing Procurement Guy podcast. We talked about mitigating risk through smart procurement practices.Aaron and I discussed:Second sourcingInventory managementNegotiation...And the role engineers play in the buying decisionTo ensure that you never miss an episode of The Manufacturing Show, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, or Spotify, or here.

I asked listeners what topic they wanted to learn more about on the podcast. You said "expanding into international markets."So I put the word out among my network and discovered today's guest. He founded a gas company in 2002 that now does business in many foreign countries.My guest on this episode is Ashley Madray, executive vice president of Gas Innovations, a producer, purifier, and packager of specialty gases.Ashley and I discussed:Who he is, how his company began, and how it expanded internationallyCommon challenges to international expansionThe impact of doing business globallyTo ensure that you never miss an episode of The Manufacturing Show, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, or Spotify, or here.

The workplace is experiencing a massive transformation.I thought we should start at a high level and talk about that.So we did.In this episode of the podcast, I spoke with Jon Franko (I just call him "Franko"), my co-founder here at Gorilla76, about how to grow a great team rooted in relationships.Franko and I discussed:What employees value most in an employer right nowA little thing we do called “Retention Brainstorming” and how it can help youHow to use Glassdoor to your advantageTo ensure that you never miss an episode of The Manufacturing Show, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, or Spotify, or here.

If we create an environment where people on the production floor can help the company be better, they're more than happy to use their knowledge to do it. Unfortunately, many supervisors and managers have not been given the training, development, and coaching to do the job on their own or to help the company grow. On this episode of the podcast, Gayle Noakes, a 20+ year veteran of the manufacturing industry, joined me to talk about building leaders at all levels to achieve business results. Gayle and I discussed: Giving people the right training for their roles Creating the right balance among activities in complex manufacturing roles Whose voices we should be hearing — but often aren't — on a daily basis To ensure that you never miss an episode of The Manufacturing Show, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, or Spotify, or here.

It's time to face reality about sales channels, technology, and how people buy. E-commerce is going to dominate sales. Business was moving in that direction pre-COVID, but the pandemic dramatically accelerated those trends. You can fight this reality, or you can grow with it. On this episode of the podcast, I talked with Kevin Haar, chief operating officer at Super Bright LEDs, about the transition to e-commerce. Kevin and I discussed: What e-commerce can offer now that it couldn't in the past The impact of online sales in different parts of the organization Roadblocks and challenges in e-commerce adoption To ensure that you never miss an episode of The Manufacturing Show, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, or Spotify, or here.

We'd all love to create content and then sit back and wait for the phones to start ringing. But that doesn't work. You have to be proactive. Learn how and where your prospects and customers go to consume content online and deliver it to them in those channels. The only content that works is the content that's actually consumed. On this episode of the podcast, I invited Matt Sciannella, Senior Strategist at Gorilla76, to talk about content distribution. Matt and I discussed: The reasons we need to be talking about content distribution Why the mindset around the downloadable ebook is starting to change When you should venture onto a channel other than email, Facebook, LinkedIn, and YouTube To ensure that you never miss an episode of The Manufacturing Show, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, or Spotify, or here.

You know the Golden Rule: Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. But do you practice that philosophy as a manufacturing leader? Does it influence who you hire? How you manage your team? The way you interact with your stakeholders?  On this episode of the podcast, I invited Dan Erschen, the owner of Wisconsin Metal Parts, a contract manufacturer of metal parts and assemblies, to talk about servant leadership. Dan and I discussed: Dan's personal battle with MS and how it has shaped who he is today What servant leadership is and the benefits and challenges it brings to manufacturing companies Dan's advice about how to start shifting culture through servant leadership To ensure that you never miss an episode of The Manufacturing Show, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, or Spotify, or here.

When the mandated industry shut down in Michigan happened, one Millennial sought new ways to engage his current customers and share the benefits of automation while working from home. He turned to LinkedIn. Seven months later, his content has reached over 1.5 million views, and he's amassed more than 10,000 followers. On this episode of the podcast, I invited Jacob Hall, the Manufacturing Millennial, to discuss everything from embracing technology and creating video content to engaging young professionals in the workforce and building a personal brand on LinkedIn. Jake and I talked about: The value of video on LinkedIn for personal branding Why face-and-voice communication is your differentiator How to get past vanity metrics when evaluating your content's performance Sponsored by Cadenas Partsolutions To ensure that you never miss an episode of The Manufacturing Show, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, or Spotify, or here.

The term thought leadership has gotten tossed around a lot the last few years. But what exactly does thought leadership mean? Does it simply imply that you write a blog or that you spoke at a local Chamber of Commerce event? Or is thought leadership something more than that? How did you become a thought leader anyway? On this episode of the podcast, I invited Bill Sherman, COO and thought leadership practice lead at Thought Leadership Leverage. Bill helps clients who want to use thought leadership whether it's to fill a sales pipeline or influence how people think and act. Bill and I talked about: The four elements of thought leadership How thought leadership can impact your organizational and personal brands Why people struggle with content insecurity  Sponsored by Cadenas Partsolutions To ensure that you never miss an episode of The Manufacturing Show, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, or Spotify, or here.

Twenty years ago, we barely had enough info to measure our impact. Today, manufacturing marketers are overwhelmed with data, and everyone wants to sell us software to find, store, clean, surface, and use that data. Why is data such a big buzzword in business, especially manufacturing? On this episode of the podcast, I invited Jon Thompson, co-founder and senior partner at Blue Margin Inc, a company of 38 consultants and engineers who help mid-market companies with an emphasis on industrials use their data to create growth. Jon and I talked about: Why data needs to go from the c-suite all the way to the frontline worker The idea of numbers as a motivator The biggest challenges manufacturers face when controlling and using their data Check out this resource we mentioned during the podcast: The Dashboard Effect To ensure that you never miss an episode of The Manufacturing Show, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, or Spotify, or here.