Here’s what’s happening in manufacturing right now. Production demands are higher than ever, but you can’t find enough skilled workers. So you’re promoting your best operators into management positions, hoping they can help develop the people you do have.
The problem? According to industry data, the manufacturing sector could need up to 3.8 million additional workers by 2033. Meanwhile, you’re taking your best individual contributors and asking them to lead teams without giving them any training on how to actually manage people.
The result is predictable. New managers struggle. Teams underperform. Good people leave for companies with better leadership. And you’re back to square one, except now you’re short both a good operator and an effective manager.
Why New Operations Managers are Set Up to Fail
The numbers tell the story. Manufacturing employment has been growing, but productivity gains haven’t kept pace with increasing production demands. Companies are asking fewer people to do more work, which puts enormous pressure on new managers who don’t know how to motivate, develop, or retain their teams.
New managers fail because nobody teaches them that managing people requires completely different skills than operating equipment. Technical problems have clear solutions. People problems require judgment, communication skills, and the ability to adapt your approach to different situations and personalities.
Most new operations managers make the same mistakes. They avoid difficult conversations until small problems become big ones. They either micromanage or disappear completely. They treat everyone the same instead of recognizing that different people need different approaches.
Book a Consult to stop setting new managers up for failure.
Building Internal Capability That Scales
With the manufacturing skills shortage expected to worsen, developing internal leadership capability isn’t optional anymore. You need a systematic way to transition technical experts into effective people managers.
The Train-the-Trainer Certification program allows organizations to build internal training capability. Instead of bringing in outside trainers every time you promote someone, your own people can deliver proven leadership development using complete facilitation materials, PowerPoint decks, and video content.
This approach gives you control over timing and content while ensuring consistency across multiple locations. The 40-hour modular curriculum can be adapted to your specific operational needs and delivered in formats that work around production schedules.
The Real Cost of Untrained Management
Manufacturing faces massive retirements over the next decade as baby boomers leave the workforce. The knowledge and experience walking out the door can’t be easily replaced, especially in today’s tight labor market.
When new managers can’t effectively lead and develop their teams, you lose people you can’t afford to lose. Every departure means recruiting costs, training time, and productivity losses while new hires get up to speed.
One food manufacturing client needed to develop 30 supervisors across multiple shifts without disrupting production. Using internal certified trainers, they delivered leadership development that immediately improved communication and reduced turnover.
In manufacturing, you can’t wait months for new managers to figure it out on their own. The labor shortage won’t wait.
Contact Us to build the internal leadership development capability your operations need.