What is Operational Agility?

Operational agility refers to how well a company can adapt its everyday processes, technology, and operational procedures to changing market expectations. Manufacturing firms that are flexible in embracing new modes of thinking to meet consumer demands will stay ahead of the curve in today’s competitive marketplace.

Creating an agile workforce means empowering workers with greater flexibility, and operating with high standards of accountability, expertise, and transparency to gain an advantage over the competition. Essentially, manufacturers must adjust to evolving industry requirements to create and deliver products that meet client needs.

Learn more about operational agility in manufacturing by exploring the following sections:

Why is operational agility important in manufacturing?
What are the benefits of operational agility?
What drives operational agility?
Enable operational agility with a digitally connected workforce

Why is operational agility important in manufacturing?

Operational agility is a crucial factor in the success of a manufacturing organization. How well companies adapt to changes in demand, supply chain disruptions, and other unforeseen events will determine how well they do as a company.

This is because manufacturing companies face constantly changing demand for their products due to factors such as seasonality, market trends, and competition. Supply chain disruptions can also occur due to a variety of factors, such as natural disasters, political instability, or transportation delays.

An agile manufacturing process allows companies to quickly adjust production levels to meet changing demand, respond to disruptions, and adapt to changes in the supply chain.

In a nutshell, a workforce that develops high-quality goods and responds the fastest to customer requests will stay ahead of the game — and reap the benefits to their bottom line.

What are the benefits of operational agility?

Cultivating a consumer-driven workforce sets the groundwork for reaping the benefits of operational agility. Companies that fail to adapt or pivot to changing market expectations will create products that serve no value to the customer.

Some benefits of operational agility include:

Making faster decisions to satisfy customers
Creating a flexible workforce that can adapt to changing job requirements and production needs
Gaining real-time insight into which processes work and don’t
Leveraging existing smart technology to unite teams and develop products faster
Adapting to change to engage more clients
Training opportunities that help close knowledge and skills gaps

What drives operational agility?

There are several factors that drive operational agility in manufacturing, from cultivating agile management to instilling a culture of innovation.

Creating an agile staff begins with leadership. Businesses are defined by how management operates. For instance, leadership sets the tone for which procedures and best practices are needed to successfully create a product. They hold the responsibility of carefully evaluating existing processes and identifying opportunities for agility.

Once management has created an action plan, they must communicate it to their workforce effectively. Managers must have specific protocols in place and a clear set of responsibilities for each worker to carry out to ensure that daily processes are carried out correctly and in a timely manner.

This can be accomplished by creating digital standard operating procedures (SOPs) for employees to follow. SOPs are the perfect way to ensure that workers are following industry best practices. They can also help minimize human error since procedures are constantly being updated and improved.

Enable operational agility with a digitally connected workforce

Connected worker solutions can enable operational agility in manufacturing by providing real-time access to information, improving communication, and enabling data-driven decision making.

This is where Augmentir can help. We offer a connected worker solution that enables management to create, assign, manage, and monitor the work being done. Our software has been shown to decrease training time and product rework by 76%.

Here are some ways connected worker solutions like Augmentir can help enable operational agility:

Real-time Access to Information: Connected worker solutions can provide workers with real-time access to critical information such as work instructions, standard operating procedures, and product specifications. This can help reduce errors and improve quality, while also allowing workers to quickly adapt to changes in production requirements.
Improved Communication: Connected worker solutions can improve communication between workers and between teams. This can help reduce downtime, resolve issues quickly, and enable faster decision making.
Enhanced Visibility: Connected worker solutions can provide real-time visibility into production processes, allowing managers to identify issues and bottlenecks and make data-driven decisions to improve efficiency.
Remote Monitoring and Support: Connected worker solutions can enable remote monitoring and support of production processes, allowing workers to receive guidance and support from experts in real-time. This can help reduce downtime and improve overall productivity.
Predictive Maintenance: Connected worker solutions can enable predictive maintenance, allowing manufacturers to detect potential issues before they occur and take proactive steps to avoid downtime.

Interested in learning how Augmentir’s connected worker solution can help you digitally connect and optimize your manufacturing operations? Get in touch with us for a free demo.