Any company is only as reliable as its workforce, after all, they form the backbone of your company; as such, it is paramount that every brand proactively starts investing in hiring able and productive employees.
The estimation is that the global talent shortage in the manufacturing sector will reach 2 million by 2020 and 8 million by 2030. A critical number; considering how many job seekers will get added by then. Yet the job slots will stay unclaimed. The manufacturing unemployment rate is at an all-time high.
The total deficit of workers for the first time in the last five years exceeded the availability of jobs. So, the crisis right now is – more jobs than there are workers to fill them.
Plus, the retiring workforce will also cause a severe shortage in the system, which could trigger problems for the industry in the long run. Even though the sector is witnessing high levels of growth, they are unable to cope with the fading demand for some of these vital jobs.
The manufacturing labor shortage could cause a disturbance that can result in a loss in revenue; to the tune of $607.1 billion by 2030. Recruiters are finding it hard to attract more workers. The old timers are retiring & the new generation is not taking to the manufacturing industry.
Employers need to do more for the workers to sweeten the deal and give them a sense of comfort in the working-class world. Which back in the 1930’s was home to 90% of the unemployed class of people. Nowadays working in the assembly/product line doesn’t generate much interest.
The number of vacancies in the past two years has been more than the number of people looking for work. What is resulting in the shortage of skilled workers & why aren’t candidates drawn towards manufacturing jobs anymore?
Let’s explore the different reasons that are responsible for this grim situation. What can you do to address this issue at the earliest; before it starts destabilizing the global economy:
Current Pain Points for Manufacturers
Lack of presence on the internet may be one of the reasons holding you down. Not having an adequate footprint on the web makes you invisible to the audience that is looking for jobs. If job seekers are searching for you on the net, then not finding you, will lead to disappointing results.
The inability to provide labor the latest gears and tools is another reason behind a company's downfall. The modern generation doesn't prefer to work in an environment that won't aid the work that they do.
Even an older version of an OS with low RAM on systems that is dragging & crashing every hour, will make the staff reconsider their jobs. Defective peripherals and resources will prevent your labor from achieving their best productivity.
A company that fails to meet the expectations for high-tech tools & automation systems will see a good number of workers quitting. The workforce faces fatigue due to the outdated practices in place, and they choose to be part of a working culture that provides advanced tools.
As such, retaining manufacturing employees will become a problem in the long run. The companies must thus, equip their staff with modern tools; to prevent a decaying working environment. Overworked employees in the absence of such progressive systems will find it hard to cope and will likely quit.
What can you do?
- Makeover – Use extensive digital marketing tactics to show how rewarding a career it can be in the manufacturing sector, for any millennial. For this to work, use modern digital marketing tools to re-brand your company and bring it on par with their expectations.
Keep your site and online activities trendy and appealing to draw more millennial's to be part of your cause. Once you’ve captured their attention, they’d be more than willing to lay everything on the line and lead your company. Promote your agenda and bring them in.
Run strong campaigns to attract people from all demographics to connect with your values, agenda, and your working ways. Consumers are receptive - their perception of your brand will become a factor in hiring manufacturing employees.
- Tools – More valuable than anything is the need to use modern resources in your organization. Manufacturing Employees shouldn’t have to settle for outdated tools that compromise their work ethic. Instead equip them with cutting-edge support systems that ease & streamline their work.
A work environment that supports its staff will tempt them to stay longer and not make the switch to another firm. Beyond this, advertise the many tools/software/systems that your company uses to do a task.
Automation makes labor-intensive tasks easier & more efficient, which will in-turn reduce work-related injuries. One company at a time, this can improve the safety—and perception—of the industry.
To pull more candidates to contribute to your company’s growth, you will need to showcase the extent to which you are willing to go for modern gears. Simplify your supply chain, stock-keeping, shipping, back-end operation, and other tasks. Embrace tech!!! - Testimonials – Resigned and current employees can vouch the best for any company to bring the highest credibility to the table. Start a process that enables this group to leave feedback and ensure their comments are visible all over the net.
Organic PR from this will assist the next job seeker in getting a better understanding of your firm. Use forums and social-media platforms to showcase the positive experiences of previous employees.
Aspiring candidates seeking a job in the manufacturing sector will factor all this feedback before picking a company. - Honors – Present all the marvelous projects pulled by the company in the recent years. This will inform the potential millennial employees about your achievements.
Keeping this to yourself will not educate the audience you wish to hire. Put this in the public domain, so that anyone who inquires will find the content and get influenced to join your company. Give them your success story & update them about what’s to come. - Recruiting Manufacturing Employees – Hire people over video calling instead of relying on the age-old method of attending fairs and recruitment drives. Give them the convenience to attend interviews over the net from the comfort of their homes and sit for exams on your official portals.
A process like this holds the ability to penetrate regions that are beyond your reach. Gives people from a variety of places to come over and get shortlisted for a chance to join your firm. - Revenue – The current high manufacturing unemployment rate, may have something to with your low yearly income. As such, you need to pay attention to this in the coming future. You do not want to hurt your chances of grabbing more candidates.
Acknowledge that your sales are weak, and which then leads to shortage of workers. People don’t want to associate with non-performing companies. Identify areas that need improvement; be it shipping issues, discounts, quality stock, internal slowdown, and so on.
Strike the regions that are under-performing and becoming a cause of worry. Work on them to elevate your profits and company; which in turn will tempt more people to apply for jobs. Something that will help to raise the wages of your current employees as well.
Pushing classified ads for hiring is no longer effective. Your networking needs to go beyond the traditional means, show up on other portals to gather as much visibility as possible.
Plus use some severe SEO work to draw traffic to this content. Else, all the recruitment offers will go down the drain, which will leave you with empty seats forever.
To avoid this, invest in ways in which you can improve the internal workings and improve the way you showcase your brand on the net. A dull-boring website will put off the most earnest candidate.
How do you execute this?
In the absence of automation systems at workplace, you’ll need to contact eCommerce experts to install these requirements. QuickBooks, ERP, CRM, 3GP, and other missing tools will need the help of professionals who have a previous experience of using them.
The availability and regular maintenance of such software’s will help the manufacturing employees with their work processes. As such, bringing a more fluid and seamless experience in your office.
Leave the Digital marketing to an outside agency. The experts there will handle the PPC, social-media campaigns, SEO and smart analytics. Which, then allows you to focus on building leads and other important issues.
Not having an eCommerce website; may be the reason why aspirants are not willing to trust and take the risk with your brand. They’d rather go with a company that shows an inclination towards adopting the latest assets.
Bring up a website ASAP, don’t hesitate to invest in tools that will further your goals. May seem a little on the expensive end but in the long run will benefit you and your office staff to get things done.
Conclusion
Keeping manufacturing employees happy is not just about good wages anymore. In a scenario where your company fails to provide the basic tech tools; your workforce will abandon your company for another flagship. - One that has the sense to see the importance of modern tools.
The manufacturing market is also facing trouble in finding suitable workers. Unlike in the ’90s, when a simple ad would’ve been enough to get a qualified applicant through your door.
As such, you need to rework the strategy and align your company with the newest tools to pull more entrants. Else, this unemployment shortage will trigger a collapse that dusts your company forever.
Host campaigns & seminars on your website or elsewhere on the internet and give access to school/college students to access them. They must see the long-term job stability in manufacturing jobs. Reach out to the current generation and educate them on the benefits of opting for a job here.
Simplify heavy back-end work by relying on your systems and leaving less for your workers. Help them to focus on pursuing leads, promoting your work, sales and bringing more revenue. Bring automation tools into the manufacturing industry, to open a whole new world of job opportunities for applicants.
The future of manufacturing is humans and self-serving systems working together to lift the status & profits of your brand. So, next time the question “How to motivate manufacturing employees” pops-up in one of the meetings - you’d already know that the answer to that lies in giving them all the latest tools.
Schedule a consultation with the experts at Virtina. We offer innovative solutions to simplify your back-end processes. Whether it is lack of automation systems, a clumsy website, no site, low rankings or low data on the net.
We handle all mid to large scale problems with ease. Our years of expertise in doing difficult projects on various platforms; make us the top go to developers/designers for any issue. Let us help you to assign all the tedious-boring chores to systems; so, you can invest in growing your business and improve your employee churn.
Have questions? Get in touch with our eCommerce specialist!
