Resetting the front line

Military experts date the use of the word front in describing an army’s forward-most position to the mid-1500s. Jumping ahead to the First World War, as armed forces dug a series of interconnected trenches across Europe, these static linear positions began to appear on battlefield maps, and the word front line was created.

It is no longer just a military term, however.

Today the word is used in many industries to mean work done at the point of contact or, simply, where the most important work is being performed. During this pandemic the term front line is most commonly used in reference to those serving in the health-care sector in clinics, hospices, nursing homes, and hospitals. It is in these locations that risk of exposure to the coronavirus is highest and the most important work is being done. They definitely are at the front line.

Outside of health-care settings, it’s also been used to describe the entirety of the workforce that continued to work without interruption during the initial days of the pandemic.

Depending on the circumstance, a front-line worker can be a truck driver, grocery store worker, bank teller, and, of course, manufacturer.

Recently Harvard Business Review published a report detailing a survey it conducted of business executives about the role and import of front-line workers. It found that empowered front-line workers are more productive and flexible.

In fact, 87 per cent of the survey’s respondents said that their organization was more successful when its front-line workers can make important decisions “in the moment.”

It’s no surprise, really, especially in a manufacturing environment. Front-line employees such as operators and machinists are the most common workers to witness breakdowns, crashes, and other time- and profitability-sinks. If they are empowered to make the right decisions at the right time, they can rectify these situations quickly and even stop costly mistakes from happening at all.

Technology and the interconnectedness it brings only can help.

The survey also reported that 86 per cent of executives felt that front-line workers needed better technology-enabled insight to be able to make good decisions in the moment. This includes access to databases, online tech support, and even virtual assistants. Only 17 per cent of managers believed that these next-generation technological tools are too complex for front-line workers.

Anyone who has ever witnessed a millennial or Gen Z – the next generation of manufacturing workers – on a cellphone can attest that they are ready for more technology.