I was reading an article about how the manufactury industry could fall a whooping 2.1 million jobs short by the end of the decade (because boomers are retiring and many youngers aren't exactly crazy for factory jobs), and how they're planning to band-aid the issue by implementing an AI aparatus across (most?) operations sites with the purpose of "[analyzing data from workers' performace in real-time] to automatically generate personalized upskilling and reskilling content."
Furthermore, they explain that "[personalized] work instructions deliver this bite-sized training directly to tablets and computers at the point of need", which they called "in-line support and continuous microlearning" for "workers [to] perpetually enhance their skills as operations evolve".
It's a great article and I enjoyed reading it; only I couldn't help but to think of a few additional steps to take if, in the words of SBC, "[we] have no choice but to reimagine workforce training for a new era" and, surely, why is all this necessary in the first place.
As we previosuly shared with you, millenials, as a significant percentage of today's workforce, are rather inclined towards home office kind of jobs, and hold work-life balance the highest in their priorities whenever they can. So why should they be interested in a 44.4 hours per week on average— the highest of all barely a month ago, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics —at a factory?
Because we're not talking an 8+ hour shift for a minimum of 5 days of the working week: we're talking meal-prep and commute time to work and then back home (averaging 30 minutes for Washington, for example), and then the fuel, and an occasional take-out when there was no energy left for a home-cooked meal.
If that's our situation (proudly born in 1993 myself), the assitance of AI Tools— particularly when it comes to improving efficiency and maintaining an optimal constant flow of training material —could represent one but not all answers the industry needs.
For instance, even the leading political party in México has had their senators voice the need of 6-hour shifts only, and 15-day paid vacation after the first year of labor; and I say "even" because our neighbouring country is counted amongst those who work the longest per week in the world.
As of now, more than rushing into an investment in a fairly new technology, we could start by revising what is going well and what needs fixing in our companies, so that we can welcome any number of training tools or AI systems in the best environment possible. This is, to make sure every other piece of the puzzle is where it needs to be before attempting a big, new strategy to complete the whole thing.
If you are one of those companies struggling to maintain a healthy amount of proficient workers to rely on— and to keep them commited and healthy just as well —we need to tell you we actually offer a wide array of strategies to help you implement when it comes to talent acquisition, business intelligence, efficiently handling costs, optimizing resources, and even give you a hand with environmental certifications your industry is also wasting oportunities and money (on fines) without.
Schedule your appointment with Lean Consulting Solutions NOW and get your first session at NO COST!
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