Blog Archives - Page 15 of 17

4 Challenges Manufacturers Face When Adopting A Digital Transformation Strategy

Last Updated: December 14, 2023

There have been countless changes in technology over the past couple of decades: Machine Learning, Cloud Computing, Internet of Things, Artificial intelligence, and Augmented Reality (to name a few). But with all of these advances in technology, the 350 million workers in manufacturing are being asked to perform increasingly complex jobs using technology that has remained relatively unchanged for 20 years, and, according to Deloitte, manufacturing is already looking at a potential skilled labor shortage of 2.4 million workers in the next decade. Whether this is because enterprise software solutions are expensive, technically complex, difficult to implement, or lack continuous improvement opportunities, these users and processes have been underserved and require a well-planned digital transformation strategy to keep them competitive.

Although there has been a recent trend towards a digital transformation that looks at applying new technologies to improve operational processes, the workers who actually perform these processes are not being considered. Because of this, the frontline worker is largely disconnected from the digital thread of the business, and improvement in productivity seems stagnant.

Key Challenges Manufacturers Face Today

As with any transformational change, adopting a digital transformation strategy is no easy undertaking. We currently see 4 key challenges industrial organizations face when adopting a digital transformation strategy:

1.) Tribal Knowledge and the “Skills Gap”
Senior production workers and subject matter experts have accumulated valuable experience and knowledge, which has been typically hard to capture and convert into an asset that is able to be easily shared and used by others. The younger workforce that is entering the manufacturing sector does not have the knowledge that their senior peers have, but are expected to perform the same jobs, at the same level of productivity and quality.

2.) Lack of Insight
Lack of insight into how workers are performing their jobs on a day-to-day basis is also an issue. There is no fine-grained detail regarding worker activity – how are workers performing vs. benchmarks, are they having trouble on certain steps, what are they doing well, do they have feedback on operational procedures that could help the rest of the workforce? This lack of data and insight has made it extremely difficult to improve the performance of frontline workers. As a result, there is little or no basis for making decisions for improvement across the organization.

3.) Lack of Guidance and Accurate Information
Organizations are struggling with the quality of human-centric processes, as they often suffer from inaccurate, outdated paper-based work instructions. In many cases productivity is also an issue because workers are not equipped with the right tools or instrumented with the appropriate guidance that would help them perform their jobs at peak productivity.

4.) Workers are Disconnected
And lastly, frontline workers are not integrated with their work environment. The human-centric and job-specific workflows are not digitally integrated into the overall business environment and enterprise systems (ERP, CRM) that are critical to the business. The reality of today’s frontline workforce in manufacturing is that workers are not connected to the digital fabric of the business.

Bridging the Digital-Reality Gap

The good news is that there are a number of new strategies and technologies that manufacturing organizations are implementing to solve these problems. In particular, the rise of Enterprise Augmented Reality has lead to a major shift in improving the productivity of the frontline workforce of manufacturing organizations.

Although this is a great first step, Enterprise Augmented Reality alone isn’t enough to deliver sustainable value in manufacturing. In order to see true transformational results, it is key to have a combination of the following:

Enterprise AR: Delivers initial improvements in productivity and quality for the frontline workforce.
Consumerization of Software: Enables ease-of-use and ubiquity across the manufacturing landscape.
Artificial Intelligence: Drives continuous improvement throughout the organization.

Only when these three elements are combined will you see continuous improvements in the productivity of your frontline workforce.

To learn how Enterprise Augmented Reality, Artificial Intelligence, and the Consumerization of Software are delivering transformational value in manufacturing download our white paper, “The Rise of the Augmented Worker.”

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Field Service: It’s Deja Vu All Over Again

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“There is an increasing pressure on the sector to make the most out of every field service technician.” “The impact of lost knowledge and customer relationships built over the years and decades by retiring technicians is keeping service leaders up at night.” “Many companies have not been able to capture their ‘tribal knowledge’ in a […]

Last Updated: December 13, 2023

“There is an increasing pressure on the sector to make the most out of every field service technician.”

“The impact of lost knowledge and customer relationships built over the years and decades by retiring technicians is keeping service leaders up at night.”

“Many companies have not been able to capture their ‘tribal knowledge’ in a systematic way, risking the loss of valuable insight into service operations.”

These quotes come from “The Future of Field Service”, a February 2018 article in Field Technologies Online. Of course, they also could have been quotes from a 2008 or even earlier version of the article. Why is it that these problems that have been considered significant issues by Field Service executives are not solved and still considered problems year after year? Are they simply intractable problems that have no solution? Perhaps the answer to these questions is hidden in another quote from the article:

“The core of field service, the technician’s visit, is the aspect least addressed by field service management solutions.”

To date, everything before and after a site visit is digitized and chronicled to great extent, but much of what goes on during the visit is still very much a “black box”. Sure, there are now Remote Expert video based collaboration tools that may allow recording of a session, but what if the person on site IS the expert and doesn’t need to make that call? In addition, these solutions don’t capture what went on before or after the the call. What did the tech do that lead up to the call? Without that information we (a) put the expert at a disadvantage because they have no context to help solve the problem and (b) fail to capture the tribal knowledge of what NOT to do, or understand the common mistakes that might lead to difficulties in the field.

From my early days working on Internet based Remote Service, first with Questra and then with ThingWorx, I have seen many companies that have tried to address the Tribal Knowledge issue in many ways. Knowledge Management systems, social networking tools, video chat sessions, etc. have all been moderately successful at best, and usually at very high cost. The reason for this is that they largely relied on “after the fact” documentation. Asking the tech to remember everything that happened while on-site (while they are rushing off to the next job) is often a lesson in futility.

So, what is the answer? How do we break open that black-box? To quote from the article once again:

“It seems so paradoxical that so few field service management solutions focus on these aspects of field service”

Some folks have seen IIoT as a solution, letting the equipment itself collect and send data. While this is certainly helpful, it doesn’t reveal the true story of what the tech is experiencing onsite. Others have said that the aforementioned video collaboration tools are the answer, but again, there is the critical before and after the call information that is missing. And mixing Social Networking and people heading towards retirement is almost never a good idea(!).

So what is the answer? Are we destined to forever be wandering around the darkened room of the customer site visit with a blindfold on? At Augmentir we think perhaps not. But much more on that later…

Will Enterprise AR suffer the same fate as Industrial IoT?

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Recently, I co-founded Augmentir with three key executives from my prior start-up, ThingWorx, and have been exploring Enterprise AR. ThingWorx was the company that created the Industrial IoT application platform category and was arguably the most successful start-up in the IIoT space, getting acquired by PTC in early 2014. The acquisition of ThingWorx was the […]

Last Updated: December 13, 2023

Prior to founding Augmentir, I did a fairly deep dive into the marketecture of Enterprise AR and found that it reminded me of the early IIoT space — fragmented with lots of companies occupying niches:

Custom solution builders around Smart Glasses
Vertical Solution Builders
Smart Glass vendors
Technology providers
And more

Gartner’s recent release of the IIoT “Magic Quadrant” was both reaffirming and disappointing. It was personally reaffirming to see that ThingWorx, under the leadership of Jim Heppelmann, CEO of PTC, occupies the “Most Magic” position in the IIoT space. However, it was disappointing to see that after ten years, the IIoT space has not yet “crossed the chasm” as evidenced by the fact that no vendor is in THE Magic Quadrant.

Why would IIoT, a space that has so many compelling ROI stories, still be stuck between early adopter and mainstream? I have a point of view on this — while IIoT solutions can be extremely valuable and transformative, they have to be easy to own in order to achieve mainstream adoption. IIoT is anything but “easy to own”: this starts with the high friction, traditional enterprise sales process, long pilots, expensive, “Value-based” pricing, long, risky implementation cycles, and vendor lock-in/high switching costs. This makes it hard for even large enterprise businesses to fully adopt, and given these dynamics, it’s easy to understand how Small and Mid-sized businesses have been essentially locked out of the IIoT opportunity.

Unfortunately, in Enterprise AR I see the same dynamics unfolding. High friction sales and POCs, combined with long implementation cycles and high prices, will keep Enterprise AR mired in the early adopter phase. Already, sales of Smart Glasses for the enterprise are hugely disappointing, signaling that the market is unfolding much more slowly than analysts have projected. This will disappoint many investors and dash the hopes of many startups who believe in market projections, not realizing that they are a key part of the problem.

Certainly, we need a new direction if Enterprise AR has any hope of ever crossing the chasm and achieving mainstream adoption.

How to Create First Time Quality Plans

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Connected frontline operations platforms are helping manufacturers reduce downtime and provide a foundation for a holistic preventive maintenance strategy.

Last Updated: December 13, 2023

First time quality plans, or first time right plans, are a manufacturing approach that ensures all processes on the production floor are performed properly the first time, every time. A FTQ plan is a document that outlines which standards, practices, and resources are needed to execute those procedures to create high-quality products.

A quality plan is a must to guarantee zero-defect goods and prevent the need for any rework or scrapping of parts. If a manufacturer’s goods do not meet internal, industry, or consumer standards, then it’s more than likely that they won’t sell.

Every product development project should have a quality plan in place. Read on to learn how to create a first time quality plan document:

What to include in a first time quality plan

A FTQ plan, when executed correctly, can help you reach 100% FTQ, which means zero defective products. As a result, it boosts consumer trust in your product and your company’s credibility. It’s a good way to cover all bases to ensure nothing is left out, from product goals and objectives to testing requirements and distribution.

A FTQ plan may contain the following:

Goals and objectives, including item specifications, cycle time, materials, cost, etc.
A list of procedures
Worker expectations and responsibilities
What industry standards should be applied
A method for measuring quality
Testing requirements
Updates to procedures

3 steps for creating a FTQ plan

Developing a quality proposal is a great starting point for making sure that products are made right the first time around.

The steps below explain how to successfully create first time quality plans and strategies that give your manufacturing operations a competitive edge.

Step 1: Conduct an initial audit

Creating a FTQ document begins with an initial audit of the suppliers a manufacturer will use. An audit is the perfect way to gauge whether a supplier matches your product expectations and meets your quality standards.

An audit may check:

Materials
Equipment/machinery
Procedures
How well staff is following processes

Step 2: Determine if suppliers meet product specifications

Next, it’s vital to check whether a contractor can produce items that meet your standards and specifications. It’s also important to establish a partnership and a solid communication process with your supplier so that nothing falls through the cracks.

Step 3: Implement quality inspections

Lastly, a well-formulated plan includes quality inspections of each production run and product before distribution. This is usually completed by quality inspectors on the shop floor.

Inspection criteria typically includes:

Order and shipment sizes
Packaging and appearance
Product performance

Once the inspection is done, a report should be created and submitted to the quality manager before any products are shipped. This report also serves to measure quality metrics and places for improvement.

First time quality with Augmentir

Augmentir is a connected worker solution that allows industrial companies to digitize and optimize all frontline processes that are part of their quality management strategy. Augmentir’s complete suite of connected worker functionality is built on top of Augmentir’s patented Smart AI foundation, which helps identify patterns and areas for continuous improvement.

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Like peanut butter and jelly, skills management and work execution are better when served together

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Smart Skills Management software is helping manufacturers bridge the gap between training, skills, and work to build a more resilient and agile workforce.

Last Updated: December 13, 2023

Where are you on your journey with adopting new and emerging technologies? Many manufacturers are jumping on the bandwagon for some of the latest tools that provide digital guidance to workers. Maybe you decided to implement digital work instructions to help workers safely and efficiently perform tasks. Or maybe you’ve bought skills management software to help you catalog and organize the skills and capabilities of different workers. But are either of these enough on their own to achieve all your production goals? Possibly, but unlikely.

Digital work instructions on their own deliver standard work guidelines but fail to consider the unique skills of each worker. Standalone skills management programs may offer a highlight reel of the skills and certifications of your workers but neglect to capture performance in real-time to provide accurate skills evaluations. Nor do they offer personalized training content needed to ensure workers perform their absolute best. Can we agree then these two features should go hand-in-hand?

One cannot exist without the other: Blending skills into the flow of work

In the past, standalone skills management systems were sufficient because:

Turnover was infrequent so line supervisors knew everyone on their team and their current skills and endorsements, making it easy for the supervisor to assign work safely and optimally
Investments in training, reskilling, and upskilling were performed either in a one size fits all approach or through a purely subjective or anecdotal approach

Today, however, a different situation exists.

Line supervisors are dealing with team members that they don’t know well, new ones starting every day, and experienced ones leaving. This creates safety issues and makes optimally assigning work difficult as not only are the workers variable, but their skill levels and certifications are a constantly moving target.

An integrated, closed-loop skills management system is the solution for this era of high workforce turnover and absenteeism.

Skills management solutions that combine skills tracking capabilities with connected worker technology and on-the-job digital guidance can deliver significant additional value. Data from actual work performance can inform workforce development initiatives allowing you to target your training, reskilling, and upskilling efforts where they have the largest impact.

It can generate an abundance of valuable data to provide tailored training support and skills endorsements and identify workforce opportunities. What else is possible? Imagine reducing training costs, optimizing job scheduling, increasing safety, and improving productivity. And now consider what will happen when you add smart technology to this all-in-one package.

The power of smart digitization! Skills management and digital work instructions together boost productivity.

According to Deloitte, organizations are shifting to a skills-based approach to meet the demand for agility, agency, and equity. Connected worker solutions that combine skills management with digital work instructions, collaboration, and knowledge management are uniquely suited to optimize today’s variable workforce. AI-generated insights are pulled from patterns identified across all work activity in real-time. These insights identify where new and experienced workers may benefit from either reskilling or upskilling.

This combination of smart digital technology can also leverage your training resources, such as instructional videos, written instructions, or access to remote experts, to deliver personalized guidance for the worker to perform their best. These tools intelligently work together to help you assign workers to procedures based on required skill levels. No second guessing! Augmentir is the only smart connected worker solution to intertwine these management tools with AI making it a powerhouse for optimizing your operations and meeting production targets.

Learn how Smart Skills Management software is helping manufacturers bridge the gap between training, skills, and work to build a more resilient and agile workforce.

Download our latest eBook – The Future of Work: Connecting Skills Management with Standard Work.

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Five Steps to Reskill and Upskill Manufacturing Workers

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Learn the five steps to upskill and reskill manufacturing employees. Find out the benefits such as improving productivity and retention.

Last Updated: December 12, 2023

While the terms ‘upskill’ and ‘reskill’ in reference to manufacturing workers are often used interchangeably, they are not the same.

Upskilling refers to cultivating a worker’s skillset to help them excel in their current role. Meanwhile, reskilling involves teaching an employee new skills in order to transition to a new role.

For example, a programmer can be reskilled to become a systems analyst. Or workers can be upskilled to manage technology as more jobs become automated.

Half of all workers will need to be upskilled by 2025 as more jobs become digitized, according to the World Economic Forum. Workers will take on more critical thinking and problem-solving roles, leaving technical tasks to artificial intelligence and machine learning. Furthermore, the growing skilled labor gap in manufacturing has created a workforce shortage, and upskilling and training are becoming necessary to ensure production capacity is met.

Explore the following topics below to learn more about upskilling and reskilling in manufacturing, including a step by step guides to reskilling and upskilling manufacturing workers.

What does upskill mean?

Upskilling involves evaluating an employee’s existing skills and helping them to advance in their current role. It helps facilitate continuous learning by providing training opportunities to develop employee skills.

It can involve refining either soft skills or technical skills to fill workplace gaps. For instance, emotional intelligence is a soft skill that can be honed in leadership roles. Similarly, technical skills are needed in many manufacturing positions. Working with technology is a must as companies automate more and more of their operations.

An HR representative with data analytics experience, for example, can hone their skills to take on more specialized tasks. This can consist of taking a class to gain more knowledge or attending a virtual conference to learn about industry-specific technology.

Upskilling staff can help your business stay on top of industry trends and pivot in an ever-changing digital landscape.

What is reskilling?

Reskilling involves learning new skills to move on to a new role within a company. It’s also a cost-effective alternative to hiring new employees.

For example, an electrician may have excellent planning and job estimation skills. The organization could choose to reskill that worker to an estimation position instead of hiring someone from the outside.

Or an employer could reskill a production assembler to work as a maintenance technician. The new role may require taking a series of training courses and completing certain safety classes or certifications.

Reskilling and upskilling are efficient ways to retain a manufacturing workforce. Both provide opportunities to help workers grow and advance skills. Learn how to upskill and reskill staff with the following steps.

How to upskill manufacturing workers

It’s important to have a clear plan to upskill manufacturing workers:

Step 1: Assess current skills.

It’s crucial to map employees’ current skills. This data will serve as the baseline for measuring employee progress.

A great way to outline worker skills is through a skills matrix, which digitizes and helps accurately track skills across your organization. This can help identify any skills gaps that exist in current departments.

Step 2: Access skills needed for the future.

After assessing current employee skills, it’s time to identify any skills needed for the future. Keep in mind that these must align with any changes expected to occur in the manufacturing industry or in your long-term business plan.

Step 3: Create upskilling goals.

Set employee-specific goals. For example, you may want each worker to take training courses to hone job-specific skills.

Step 4: Match workers with new learning opportunities.

Workers can develop skills through new learning opportunities. It’s important to offer training and development opportunities that help workers grow and foster their skills.

Step 5: Monitor progress.

By this stage, you should have mapped employee skills and outlined which ones are needed. It’s important to monitor any progress made. Organizations that digitally track employee skills can map “what the worker has been trained on” to actual job performance (“how the worker is doing”) to create a true representation of proficiency gaps and upskilling opportunities.

How to reskill manufacturing workers

If you’re looking to reskill manufacturing workers, consider the following steps below:

Step 1: Identify what skills need cultivating.

Pinpoint which skills are the most valuable and create training programs to train workers on those skills. Think about which new roles need to be created.

Step 2: Integrate upskilling.

It’s vital to start training employees and offering resources to advance skills. For example, training your workers on how to operate digital tools or a specific piece of equipment can help them take advantage of promotion opportunities down the line.

Step 3: Customize learning plan.

Develop a plan of core learning opportunities for any skillsets that are needed now or in the future. For example, you can customize learning plans to specific roles.

Step 4: Test and adjust.

Developing a perfect reskilling plan on the first try is no small feat. Be willing to acknowledge any mistakes and fix them.

Step 5: Invest in budget.

Allocating enough financial resources for reskilling employees is vital to company growth. Modify your budget to make reskilling a priority.

Benefits of upskilling and reskilling manufacturing employees

Workplace roles are changing and expanding in the age of automation. This change can bring about skill gaps that need to be filled for a business to stay ahead of the curve.

Upskilling and reskilling manufacturing employees has a number of long-term benefits for employers, such as:

Boosts retention. Investing in your employees’ skills development fosters better relationships. Workers who feel valued are less likely to leave. Improving retention can save businesses money on hiring and training new workers.
Improves morale. Businesses that offer training and development opportunities help their workers grow and move forward in the company. This can help employees feel like they’re working toward something and not staying stagnant within the company.
Improves quality and productivity. Beyond retention and morale improvement, upskilling and reskilling can have production benefits. A more skilled and trained workforce can result in improved quality, productivity, and efficiency throughout your organization.

Looking to improve upskilling and reskilling within your organization?

Augmentir’s suite of smart connected worker tools helps manufacturing organizations create a more skilled and productive workforce. Find out how our software can make it easier to reskill and upskill manufacturing workers in your organization. If you’d like a demo, let us know and we’ll be in touch.

How to Find the Best Skills Tracking and Management Software

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Smart Skills Management software is helping manufacturers bridge the gap between training, skills, and work to build a more resilient and agile workforce.

Last Updated: December 12, 2023

Skills management and tracking software helps manufacturers identify and track employee expertise. You can map skills from a centralized library to individual workers, analyze the performance of your teams, and fill any skill gaps that exist.

These smart insights can help businesses improve their talent management strategy, including training and development programs and recruiting opportunities.

If you’re interested in learning how to find the best skills tracking software, explore this article as we cover:

Benefits of skill management and tracking software
What to look for in tracking software
FAQs about skills tracking and management tools
Why Augmentir

Benefits of skills tracking and management software

Skills management involves identifying workers’ expertise and experience to determine whether they’re a right fit for a role, which areas need improvement, and how to best facilitate learning opportunities. A reliable skills tracking and management software solution lets you keep track of what your employees can and can’t do, and integrates that information with the actual work being done.

Here are a few reasons why you should invest in a tracking tool:

Enhanced training and development programs: Improve employee engagement by making sure courses and training opportunities are relevant to the jobs they perform. Management software makes it easier to assign employee courses that are appropriate and timely, and then track each individual’s training progress.

A more productive workforce: Employees who have access to training resources can further develop their skills to better perform assigned job duties and maximize output. This will empower workers to strive for continuous improvement and grow in their roles.

Improved retention: Offering continuous development and training programs can help your employees feel appreciated and taken care of. In return, they are more likely to stay and do a good job. Considering that turnover rates cost manufacturing firms an overwhelming amount, it’s critical to invest in programs that will improve retention rates.

What to look for in tracking software

Knowing how to effectively track employee skills can be challenging, but the right software can ease the burden. It makes it easier to identify who is lacking which skills and how to best close the gap.

Unfortunately, standalone skills management software solutions that attempt to automate skills tracking fall short of meeting the needs of today’s manufacturers because they do not connect the “skills that workers know” with the “work being done”. These standalone skills management solutions may have been ideal for the stable, unchanging workforce of the past, but they are not suited for today’s era of high workforce variability.

Skills management solutions that combine skills tracking capabilities with connected worker technology and on-the-job digital guidance can deliver significant additional value. Data from actual work performance can inform workforce development investments allowing you to target your training, reskilling, and upskilling efforts where they have the largest impact.

When looking for the best skill management and tracking software, its critical to make sure it can:

Keep a centralized database of competencies
Pinpoint worker skill gaps
Let management look for employees with specific expertise
Track the skills of individual employees in a centralized database
Intelligently assign work based on true worker skills and competencies
Personalize on-the-job guidance based on worker skills and experience
Create reports or dashboards to study competencies and skill gaps across departments

AI-powered software enables managers to filter through employee databases by skill to assemble teams best suited for a project.

Skill management solutions should also integrate with core human resources software to offer seamless sharing of employee data. Some tools may even work in tandem with corporate learning management systems to provide access to educational content that could help workers develop new abilities.

Lastly, HR can use skill management software to make it easier to follow compliance regulations that require evidence of employee capabilities or certifications. For example, a health manufacturing facility may need workers to upload certain certifications to show proof of compliance.

FAQs about skills tracking and management tools

How do you keep track of employee skills?

You can track employee skills using software that manages worker competencies. These programs should allow you to build customized job profiles, create reports to study competencies, and fill skill gaps.

What is skills software?

Skills software is a tool that helps manage and keep track of worker expertise and experience. It’s used by businesses to optimize job performance and boost worker productivity.

Should I invest in skills tracking software?

Manufacturing facilities can benefit from investing in software that provides an easy-to-use centralized database of worker profiles, training resources, and much more.

Why Augmentir

Augmentir can help manage the skills of your workforce with its AI-powered connected worker solution. Our skills management tools create visibility at all times to optimize training programs, track individual and team progress, and initiate more targeted training. Check out our live demo.

Learn how Smart Skills Management software is helping manufacturers bridge the gap between training, skills, and work to build a more resilient and agile workforce.

Download our latest eBook – The Future of Work: Connecting Skills Management with Standard Work.

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Manufacturers are onshoring at a rapid pace. Here’s how to get ready for this growing trend.

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Augmentir’s take on the trending Workforce Institute’s staggering survey numbers.

Last Updated: December 12, 2023

Do you remember when offshoring–the outsourcing of production internationally–was once considered the “gold standard” for manufacturers because of reduced costs? Funny how things change. We can partly thank the global pandemic for this. Reshoring, also referred to as ‘onshoring’, in manufacturing is now the way to go–the apparent panacea to supply chain disruptions and a healthier economy. This should have manufacturers cheering and dancing in the streets, right? Not so fast. We’ve also got a massive labor shortage to deal with. But don’t fret. There are solutions to be found, and they happen to exist in software tools already being embraced by organizations on their journey to digital transformation.

The perks and pressures of onshoring in manufacturing

If your organization isn’t already thinking about onshoring its operations, maybe you should be. Onshoring in manufacturing means greater resiliency, agility, and sustainability by shortening the distances between process and delivery. Less travel means reduced emissions and adherence to ESG standards. Reshoring addresses issues associated with shipping costs, lead times, and new regulations. Working in familiar markets can help identify supply and demand trends more accurately. National employment rates are likely to increase when hiring residents and working with other domestic business partners.

But labor shortages and the variability of today’s workforce have not made reshoring an easy shift. So while there is tremendous opportunity to bring production home, the lack of affordable and skilled labor is having a tremendous impact on our domestic production capacity.

Here’s how you make onshoring work for you. First, stop thinking the old way of recruiting, training, and retaining workers will still work today.

Work with what you’ve got

What’s wrong with training today? Yes, training programs can help improve worker knowledge and skills development. But only if they are meeting the unique needs of individual workers with content-rich, high-impact learning and hands-on training programs. Forget those standard training programs–they are useless in the face of the variable workforce we have available today. The workers you can find are showing up with a mixed bag of experience and skills. That doesn’t have to be a disadvantage anymore. Because there is a smarter way to train and optimize the skills of each of those workers to meet productivity goals individually and fulfill the potential for your organization’s production capacity.

Smart digitization is the ticket to effective onboarding, training, and more–from hire to retire

“The secret of change is to focus all your energy not on fighting the old, but on building the new.” – Socrates

This new era of workforce instability is forcing manufacturers to change. It’s forcing them to turn to digital technology and look at smarter ways to hire, onboard, train, and retain their workers. At Augmentir, we call this Smart Digitization.

What do we mean by ‘smart’ digitization? Smart digitization involves adopting modern, digital tools, mobile technology, and supporting workers throughout their entire lifecycle.

Modern connected worker tools are at the core of the solution that supports workers throughout their employment, from training to troubleshooting in real-time to ongoing learning and development. If you look at the entire employee lifecycle, this means:

Using software tools to digitize and automate onboarding and skills tracking to help get workers operational faster, regardless of their skill and experience.
Once on the job, digitizing and personalizing work instructions based on the individual needs of the worker – whether they are a novice worker or an expert.
Proving instant access to support, within the flow of work.
And finally, using an AI-based system to analyze how workers are performing on the job, and intelligently targeting upskilling and reskilling based on actual work performance.

Workers have access to a suite of digital tools and knowledge resources at their fingertips – digital work instructions, collaboration, and support tools to guide them on the job and quickly problem-solve complex tasks, allowing them to do their personal best.

For employers, this means not only more engaged and collaborative workers, it also means deeper insights into work performance that can help drive continuous improvement efforts.

AI-based smart insights intelligently optimize workers’ performance by identifying and tracking their skills in real-time. Smart insights pull from these performance metrics and learn to prompt workers who need new training programs or work opportunities, continuously upskilling and reskilling.

It’s the advanced medicine needed to maximize productivity and operational health.

So as you plan to bring more of your production back home, make sure you’re ready to seize the opportunity and address the challenges of a restricted labor market at the same time.

Find out how and why so many manufacturers are turning to Augmentir to turn their workers into efficient, productive, and long-term assets for their businesses.

Check out our latest webinar – Smart Digitization of Frontline Workers to learn more.

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