3 minute read
BATCH OF IDEAS
Leadership in the New World of Work
By Stephanie Neil
sneil@automationworld.com sneil@automationworld.com
Senior Editor
As we move into 2022, it’s a good time to think about how the industry has changed as a result of the pandemic— and how to work effectively in the future. Obviously, over the past two years we’ve all had to operate very differently. Some people are working remotely, others are wearing masks and social distancing on the factory floor, consumers are buying more things online vs. in the store—which impacts the way things are produced and distributed, and we’re experiencing the “Great Resignation,” a reference to the widespread trend of significant numbers of workers leaving their jobs from spring of 2021 to the present.
For manufacturers already struggling to fill jobs amid a major skills crisis and worker shortage while keeping existing employees happy, these new dynamics require a shift in the way executives lead.
That was the message that came out of a panel discussion at PACK EXPO Las Vegas that included Jan Tharp, president and CEO of Bumble Bee Seafood Company; Yolanda Malone, vice president of R&D for foods and packaging at PepsiCo; Sharron Gilbert, president and CEO of Septimatech Group, an OEM for the food and beverage, CPG, and pharma segments; and Tracey Noonan, CEO of Wicked Good Cupcakes, which was recently acquired by Hickory Farms.
A big question is, how do you hold onto the culture of the business when there is so much ambiguity right now? The answer is the same as what we want from our manufacturing machines: Flexibility.
“If you look at pre-COVID and manufacturing, it was all about customization and finding products that were individualistic,” Bumble Bee’s Tharp said. “Take that thinking and move it over to human resources to become customized in how you go out attracting talent. You look at it and say, ‘Okay, this person has children. They may need a different work environment. They may need different work times.’ You can be flexible with that. I hope that if anything comes out of COVID it is that we realize there is no such thing as one size fits all.”
Bumble Bee has hired several people at the executive level recently and they are now not required to move to the company headquarters in San Diego. This is a good thing, Tharp said. “It’s actually opened up a whole new world of talent for us.”
Similarly, PepsiCo announced a global shift in workplace policy for corporate associates. The company’s “Work that Works” program, launched in June, eliminates a dayto-day workplace for employees in headquarter locations. Associates, along with their managers, choose what work can be done remotely and what needs to be done in their PepsiCo office. Decisions about the best ways of working are based on roles, daily activities, and team dynamics.
Septimatech’s Gilbert noted that reliance on collaborative technology, like Microsoft Teams, has been an important part of keeping lines of communication open internally and externally with customers, and the OEM has been ramping up its online presence. “We did a lot of work and investment in that side of the business.”
But while collaborative technology in the office and robots on the plant floor can help with productivity, when it comes to leading the current and future workforce, there’s a new focus on sensitivity.
“We need to understand and embrace that every single one of us are different,” Tharp said. “We may have the same exact job, but we’re not going to approach it the same way. Our families are different, our values may be different, and I think if we can start dissecting and welcoming that, then you will see people coming back to the workforce. You have to take down the barriers.”
Moving forward, the discussion should really be about how to maneuver the new world of remote work.
