Manufacturing Talent Rules Summit

With upwards of 60% of local manufacturers reporting difficulty recruiting for entry level, skilled, managerial and specialist roles, the Manufacturing Talent Rules! summit convened by the Centre of Competitiveness in June 2019, and attended by over 150 industry delegates, agreed on how best to tackle the sector’s on-going skills shortages.

The over-whelming consensus amongst delegates was that the sector needs to consciously dispel the myth that it offers dirty, dangerous, dull and poorly paid jobs and instead highlight the dynamic, digitally focused reality. Information on the breadth of roles, career paths, personal development opportunities and salaries on offer should be more readily available and more resources should be devoted to authentically telling the story of manufacturing.

Collaboration is key to changing perceptions or as one presenter phrased it “none of us are as smart as all of us.” The importance of speaking as one and developing a charter which embodies the values and commitment of the sector drew strong support. Prioritising engagement with schools also emerged as a key theme, as was ensuring that the interactions with schools were interesting and captured the exciting nature of making and production.

Making parents aware of and contextualising the scale of future opportunities in the manufacturing sector is an essential next step. A 2018 report by the World Economic Forum estimated that robots could eliminate 75 million jobs globally by 2022 and create another 133 million jobs. In this context making the case for giving students a foundation in industrial technology seems a smart move.

The summit also explored how to attract and retain more women into the sector. In 2018 only 20% of those employed in the U.K manufacturing sector were women and just 12% of U.K engineers were women. Delegates agreed that ambassador programmes, male allies and mentors, and female networking groups worked well. They also felt that more opportunities for flexible working as well as programmes aimed at returners would further attract and retain more women into the sector.

The importance of culture was emphasised time and again as was prioritising the mental health and well-being of those working in the sector. Presenters and panellists spoke of the need to initiate the “How are you?” conversation and regularly ‘pulse check’ employees satisfaction levels.

The Manufacturing Talent Rules! summit was at its heart a gathering of committed people focused on the creation and implementation of real-world solutions to a particularly thorny problem.

Bob Barbour

Chief Executive

Manufacturing Talent Rules! Summit at a Glance

• 150+ Delegates
• 5 Keynote Presentations
• 6 Lightning Talks
• 3 Panel Discussions
• 2 Workshops