One giant leap for manufacturing

Fifty years ago last month, an event occurred that hundreds of millions of people watched at a time when television essentially was still in its infancy.

On July 20, 1969, an American spacecraft, appropriately named Eagle, landed on the lunar surface and Neil Armstrong stepped off, delivering his now famous line. It was the culmination of years of work at the highest levels of government, academia, and manufacturing.

The landing was made possible by the creation of the Saturn V rocket by its major contractors, Boeing, Douglas Aircraft Co., IBM, and North American Aviation. It took the co-operation of many to ensure the success of one man’s small step.

It also took guts.

In their 2005 book Guts! Companies that Blow the Doors off Business-as-usual, authors Kevin and Jackie Freiberg examined several unconventional business leaders who took their companies to the top by having a high level of work-passion and, you guessed it, guts.

They found out that although the leaders came from many different industries, they all shared the idea that leadership wasn’t about corporate titles and issuing orders, it was about corporate vision and having influence.

Out-of-date rules put in place by a traditional business hierarchy were out. What replaced these archaic traditions was information-sharing at all levels, with input coming from all employees. These leaders eliminated the top-down-driven nature of their businesses and created workplaces that fostered passion and rewarded innovation.

Although this book was written 14 years ago, the lessons it teaches are perfect for today’s business environment, particularly when it comes to dealing with millennials. Anyone who thinks that millennials don’t want to work is wrong; they just want to work differently than their parents and grandparents did.

An inclusive company culture that treats workers as individuals while nurturing innovation and passion is just what manufacturing companies require. Any manufacturing worker can push buttons, but it’s a true leader that pushes the right buttons.

As the workforce ages and prepares for retirement (and it’s happening rapidly now), millennials will take on increasingly important roles. Only by engaging them early in their careers will the seed of passion grow that will make them good leaders in the future.

Take the first small step in engagement now so you can enjoy the giant leap that comes after.