That blueprint was something MAGNET unveiled in 2021 as a plan and list of priorities that needed to be addressed so that area manufacturers could become smarter, more advanced in their methods and able to attract, train and hire as many as 3,000 more employees per year.
In introducing the recent findings, CEO Ethan Karp outlined the challenges his members have faced since the pandemic:
“COVID turned our world upside down. We faced unprecedented shutdowns, lockdowns, and furloughs. Unemployment hit its highest level since the Great Depression,” Karp wrote. “But instead of hunkering down, thousands of manufacturers stepped up to pivot production and make millions of pieces of protective equipment — saving lives, saving jobs, and helping the country reopen.
“And when it did, our industry roared back to life. In March of 2021, factory activity reached its highest level in 37 years. Unfortunately, the rollercoaster continued when the online shopping that helped fuel the recovery also broke the global supply chain. Then in August 2021, more Americans quit their jobs than in any other month in recorded history: 4.3 million. This plunged manufacturing off a talent cliff it had been teetering on for decades.”
After that, Karp noted, the war in Ukraine broke out, further scrambling supply chains.
But manufacturing emerged from the crisis strong. MAGNET’s blueprint for manufacturers to build on that strength includes four key focus areas: talent, with a focus on development; technology, with an emphasis on Industry 4.0; innovation, focused on both new products and services and also ways of working; and leadership development.
To measure how the sector has done on those fronts, and how it's faring generally, MAGNET relied on the 2023 Manufacturing Survey that it completed with its members last year.
Some of the findings are impressive. MAGNET reported that its members created 10,000 new jobs over the past two years, and 70 percent of local manufacturers expect to see continued growth in 2024.
Minorities made significant gains through 2022 and 2023 as well, with 2,000 people of color finding jobs in manufacturing and minorities in leadership positions increasing by 80%.
Investment was up, with 67 percent of companies saying they are investing in new capabilities, including Industry 4.0 technologies, which Magnet found have seen an 80 percent increase in adoption. And 63 percent of companies are investing in new-product innovation.
A majority of companies (58 percent) reported launching a new product in 2022-2023, up from just 10 percent in MAGNETt’s 2021 survey.
On the workforce development front, MAGNET found a 65% increase in the number of companies now offering apprenticeship programs to train up their employees.
But, while Karp said he’s been pleased with the progress MAGNET’s been able to document as of late, he also wrote to his members that challenges still remain.
For example, only 28 percent of companies are using Industry 4.0 technologies so far.
And while the talent gap has closed slightly, staffing is still a challenge and demand for skilled workers remains “sky high.”
Starting salaries are up and that’s making manufacturers more competitive with other employers, but 40% of manufacturers said rising wages were hampering their growth.
And in what was perhaps the survey’s real shocker, a third of manufacturers said they were considering selling when the survey was conducted last year.
But then, neither MAGNET nor anyone else expected the sector to solve all its problems in a short period of time.
Overall, though, Karp said the results show a manufacturing sector that has regained much of its pre-pandemic strength and continues to grow stronger.
“This report tells the story of our collective progress, celebrating the achievements won by sheer determination, smart risk-taking, and bold leadership,” Karp wrote. “It also lays bare the formidable challenges ahead and the once-in-a-generation opportunity before us to transform our industry and make our region better."
The MAGNET report is embedded below for deeper reading.