The Great Paradox of Our Time

As of June, the unemployment rate in America was 9.2%. Meaning MILLIONS of people are out of work. Yet, in my conversations with die / mold and CNC machine shops over the last few months, every one of them is looking for workers to hire, but they can't find people with the skills - or in many cases people even willing to do the high-tech work.

In America, we have spent at least the last several decades portraying skilled manufacturing as something less than honorable to do as a career. And now we live with this sad paradox: Manufacturers looking for workers, and workers with no skills and a false-perception of manufacturing sitting at home.

Someone needs to ask the "leadership" in government how much money this is costing us as a nation.

~Ryan

A List of Articles Showing the Need for Talent in Manufacturing

When we first started CTP, there was plenty of evidence that there was a need for new talent in manufacturing. The articles and research flowed like a steady river, and anyone that noticed reacted and started building systems to address the issue.

That was just a couple years ago, now it's clear that there was a dam up the river a ways, and that dam has broke. It is truly the time for the American public to wake up and realize that the opportunities are many in manufacturing. Check out some of these articles:

Wall Street Journal: Industry Puts Heat On Schools

What the Shortage of Workers Means for Business

The Christian Science Monitor: Manufacturing Needs Workers

Poll Data From the Alliance for American Manufacturing

Human Resource Executive: Filling Manufacturing Skill Gaps

And I could go on and on, but I won't. Everyone is starting to wake up, what are we going to do at schools, at shops and in the HOME that will address this issue?

~Ryan

Manufacturing is Hiring! Who are they looking for?

I have been receiving many phone calls lately from companies that are looking to hire qualified people. There is mounting evidence that skilled manufacturing is in serious need of workers. For the last decade, manufacturing has experienced such a decline, that the companies that survived didn't often hire anyone, and they certainly didn't invest in their local training infrastructures (i.e. tech schools, community colleges, etc.)

Now that there's an abundance of work in certain sectors, there's a bit of a panic regarding how they are going to fill the orders without the talented workers that they need. Fellow blogger Derek Singleton recently did a summary of the types of jobs that are available AND the type of worker needed to do these jobs.

After reading this, are you finding this to be accurate?

More about this later, please read his posting here:

Manufacturers Are Hiring Again; What Skills Are They Looking For?

~Ryan

The give-me-economy versus the make-it-economy

Great post from Bert Maes, HTEC Network manager in Europe.

Check it out:

The give-me-economy versus the make-it-economy

~Ryan

How To Grow Good Workers

After one of the longest and coldest winters in recent memory, yesterday the thermometer touched 64 degrees at my house. In Michigan, at this time of year, that constitutes a heat wave. The snow is still melting, and there is mud everywhere. It’s not the purest definition of a great time to be outside – but the human instinct knows that it is time to reconnect with nature anyway. Obeying this instinct is the foundation that leads a person into the world of creation – the world of work.

When we understand the roots of creation, and we enter into them, we are compelled to contribute. But what does it mean to enter into the roots of creation? It means that from an early age, we must recognize what resources we have been given, and we must work to harness them for the good of mankind. As an example, yesterday my seven year old son asked me when we can start collecting night-crawlers and worms for fishing – and for selling. Nothing gets closer to the roots than worms, right? But seriously, think about this, if I do my job as a parent, and encourage him to collect as many worms as he can, and reap as many benefits from it as he can, he will make an early connection with a very important concept, that is: work equals reward.

This is not an insignificant concept. It is what has driven human innovation since the dawn of time. For most of history, it has been absolutely essential. Either you work or you die. Most of the human experience has been centered around our ability to “subdue the earth” for our survival. Every time we found a new mineral or element – and a new process to handle them – we entered a new age of human advancement. And it all begins when a child discovers that the earth he lives on holds the potential to improve his life. Whether it is worms for fishing, or it is the family garden, or fruit trees, or flowers; they all result in an understanding of where our gifts come from and the work required to gain the benefits from them.

In manufacturing, we have a problem solving method called “Root Cause Analysis”. The idea is that if you understand the origins of a problem, and can solve it at that level, the problem and its symptoms will not reoccur. I am convinced that the root of the problem of “changing the perception” of manufacturing lies in the American home. And it’s not just manufacturing, it’s every industry that requires manual labor that is suffering. It is because of we have become so comfortable in our climate controlled and sterile homes that our children are not making the connection between work and reward. Literally everyday I read about the shortage of people willing to work to earn a living in this country. I talk to business leaders in a panic because they want to grow their businesses, but cannot find people that have been groomed to do the work.

Though public policy and educational systems are important aspects to providing a vibrant workforce capable of doing manual labor – today the biggest reason we are facing these shortages is primarily the failure of American parents. I know that is not going to be a popular statement, but for us to work our way out of this, it is going to require a dose of honesty. I am not claiming to have it all figured out myself by any means. I get sucked into the comforts of this world just like everyone else. But as parents, we are tasked with the job of igniting our child’s imagination and exposing them to the realities of life, and that is something I do take seriously.

But where do we begin? Let’s start by teaching them that food isn’t made at the grocery store. Everything that appears on those shelves has another person’s hard work attached to it. Even if you live in an apartment, you can get a pot and some soil and grow a tomato plant. Take your kids to an orchard for a tour; ask a local farmer to show you where the cows get milked. Let’s ignite the imaginations of our kids so one day they will be captivated by the idea of mining iron and aluminum from the ground and turning it into flying cars. Come on, it’s 2011…50 years ago they thought we would have flying cars by the year 2000! We’re running behind!

So as the weather warms up, I plan to make an extra effort to get out from behind my desk and help my son harvest night-crawlers. I will also plant a vegetable garden with my kids by my side. But I won’t just be planting seeds that grow us good food for later in the summer and fall, I will also be planting the seeds that might just help me get that flying car we’ve always wanted!

~Ryan

Need a Job? Get Some Skills!

Check out this great video from MSNBC. It features the important skills needed in manufacturing today:

Do you need a job? Then get some skills!

~Ryan

Exciting Approach to Teaching Manufacturing at Macomb Community College

Gary Walters, the machining instructor at Macomb Community College shared some information with me about a project they are working on in their program. They are building an electric car with the help of other programs at the college. This is the type of project that will engage countless people, and will demonstrate the true power of manufacturing. My hat goes off to MCC and Mr. Walters for working so hard to engage their students, their local industry and community.

If you know of more projects going on like this one around the country, let me know, and I would be happy to post here on CTP. Check out more information about their project at the link below:

Electric Car

~Ryan