The Not-So-Secret Secret to Success in Times of Hardship

Since Covid first came about, there’s been a spotlight shining on the manufacturing industry. Businesses have had to change, adapt, scale and pivot to thrive throughout the pandemic, ensuring that the products the world needed (and continues to need) made it to shelves across the globe, with more demand than ever in many cases.

No mean feat.

The manufacturing industry’s experience of the pandemic as a whole is a unique one, to say the least. At a time where so many of the world’s functions, industries and businesses were ground to a halt, the manufacturing industry (and all of those related to its smooth running) is finally being recognized as the essential force that it always has been.

And we’re proud to be working with many of these very businesses; businesses who faced the pandemic head on and, almost without breaking a sweat, have managed to do what they needed to in order to not only survive, but to thrive.

So what’s the secret? When we ask our clients, “What do you believe has been your key to getting through the past year?”, their answer is pretty much the same every time:

Trust.

Trust in your supply chain

Any thriving manufacturing business will tell you that they’d be nothing without a solid supply chain. A supply chain that can be depended on, relationships which have been built on mutual values in the way business is done. A supply chain who you can trust to hold up their end of the bargain, always.

Manufacturing business leaders have been strengthening their supply chains since this whole thing began, when gaping holes were exposed around the world. Priorities have changed. But the importance of this aspect of your business has not – and, thankfully for many of our clients, their now-even-more reliable supply chain is a huge bonus to have come out of Covid-19.

Trust in your vision

The practical aspects of running a manufacturing business are all well and good – but it’s your vision which will keep you focused throughout times of hardship.

The vision may have changed for many manufacturers during the pandemic, if even for the short term (for instance, those who began producing new or different products to meet customer demand; those who parked their own vision for the time being to take a more community-led view for the interim and began producing PPE, hand sanitizer etc). Regardless, whatever the vision might be, having the whole team aligned and trusting in the end goal has ensured that some businesses have achieved things nothing short of amazing.

Trust in your people

Finally, the answer we recruiters are always hoping to hear.

Our clients – and manufacturing businesses in Canada across the board – have any number of brilliant individuals working for them, all of whom have contributed to company success throughout these often troubled times. But, further to just having the talent on board, successful manufacturing businesses have used this time to nurture and support their employees. They’ve played to their people’s strengths, and they’ve trusted them to stick around throughout hard, hectic, or simply uncertain times, with their eyes firmly on the light at the end of the tunnel.

Above all else, it’s the people behind the production line who have been driving manufacturing businesses forward. For us in the staffing and recruiting industry, it’s been incredible watching our clients trust their workforce with the tools, support and resources to do their job to its absolute best – and we continue to watch as they ready themselves to take on the world.

So, there you have it, the not-so-secret secret to so many manufacturer’s success since this all began back in 2020: trust. Trust is what fuels company culture, brings your team together and creates the ability to thrive under adversity. In the manufacturing industry and, frankly, many others.

Do you agree?

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *