Topic: Disruption

It's common to believe that implementing a new solution will fix supply chain issues. But new software alone isn't the answer – especially now. While few businesses came through the pandemic unscathed, some fared better. We can learn from their success and use that knowledge to create supply chains that stand up to the harshest economic conditions.

For manufacturers, the COVID-19 pandemic brought unprecedented supply and demand chain upheaval. How successful were “textbook” best practices in mitigating and managing the new normal? Did they provide the required resilience? And now, with the worst of the pandemic behind us, what practices should be put in place to provide the flexibility needed to accommodate shifting manufacturing strategies?

With the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic in the past, distributors still are challenged like never before: Supply chain networks remain exceptionally complex, customer demands continue to escalate and disruptions are near-constant. What can forward-thinking distributors do to optimize operations today and enable success tomorrow?

As the industrial equipment manufacturing (IEM) industry rumbles through the remainder of a challenging 2021, headed for a potentially more successful 2022, we asked one of Ultra’s most experienced manufacturing consultants what smart IEM companies need to know to thrive in today’s fast-changing marketplace.

In the fourth of a four-video series, economist Dr. Christopher Kuehl and Ultra Senior Consultant Dave Lechleitner discuss the potential for a manufacturing jobs recovery, the persistent skilled labor shortage and ongoing job training challenges.

In the third of a four-video series, economist Dr. Christopher Kuehl and Ultra Senior Consultant Dave Lechleitner discuss pandemic-driven marketplace changes, the potential for a mid-summer return to services buying and a possible downturn for consumer products (and more).