Manufacturing Can’t Afford Training Downtime. Or Bad Supervisors.

Manufacturing plants across the country are reporting the same problem. Nearly half cite insufficient labor supply as the main factor affecting their capacity utilization. You can’t find enough skilled workers, and you can’t afford to shut down production to train the supervisors you have. But here’s the brutal reality. Poor supervision is creating more operational […]

The Manufacturing Leadership Crisis is Getting Worse

Manufacturing is facing a perfect storm. The sector needs up to 3.8 million additional workers by 2033, but 1.9 million of those jobs could go unfilled if workforce challenges aren’t addressed. Here’s what’s making it worse. Companies are promoting their best technicians into supervisor roles without any leadership training. 75% of manufacturing supervisors manage people […]

Developing Managers in a Blue Collar Environment

You promoted someone good on the tools. Now they’re in charge of the crew. And things get weird. They don’t want to correct their buddy. They don’t want to report problems. They try to do it all themselves. Or they wait for someone else to handle it. That’s not a bad person. That’s a person […]

How Do You Develop a First Time Manager?

Most first time managers get tossed into the deep end. One day they’re the best on the crew. Next day, they’re in charge. No real training. No real prep. Just, “figure it out.” And it shows. They hesitate to give feedback. They avoid conflict. They either micromanage or disappear. The first time manager isn’t lazy. […]

Group Management Training: Empower Your Leadership Team

You’re in a room filled with your company’s top-performing leaders for team-based leadership training. Before you can raise your hand to ask another question, your colleague poses a question you would have never considered. Later in the session, you find yourself troubleshooting a challenge by bouncing ideas off a team member from another department. They […]

The Power of Accountability: Why It’s the Key to Stronger Teams

Your marketing team has been coordinating the launch of a new campaign for the past month, and the deadline is quickly approaching. Each team member knows exactly what’s expected of them and understands how their contributions are crucial to the team’s overall success. If anyone anticipates a delay, they communicate it early, keeping everyone aligned. […]

Managing Difficult Conversations: A Leader’s Guide to Managing Disrespectful Employees (Part II)

We all know the type. The person in every workplace who turns healthy disagreements into deadlocks, belittles team members, and makes everyone feel like they have to walk on eggshells just to keep the peace. This kind of behavior doesn’t just hurt morale – it derails productivity and undercuts your role as a leader. The […]

The Power of Employee Recognition: Boosting Morale and Motivation Through Meaningful Praise

You arrive at the office an hour early and stay late for three days straight, meticulously preparing for the big presentation to a new client. You’ve analyzed every slide, anticipated every question, and preemptively solved potential issues. Yet, on the presentation day, the client decides to walk away due to financial reasons completely out of […]

Coaching for Growth: Strategies to Empower Your Team

One of your top-performing team members has just come out of a tough meeting with a difficult client, and you can see the frustration on their face. Instead of taking control of the situation, reassigning the task, or offering criticism, you take a coaching approach. You ask a few thoughtful questions: “What strategies have you […]

The Importance of Clear Direction: Setting Expectations for the Year Ahead

The conference room is buzzing with energy. New ideas are being mapped out on the whiteboard, and a refreshed focus is ignited in your team members. You can see the wheels turning in the room and feel a shared optimism for the year ahead. You know that when your team is excited about a goal, […]