Manufacturing Masters Podcast

When you hear all the hype about adding digitalization to your manufacturing business, what thoughts come up for you? - Ugh! Too overwhelming; don’t know where to start. - Sounds expensive and time consuming. - We’re busy right now; we’ll add it some day. Friend, don’t put it off any longer, if you want to grow your manufacturing business in a sustainable way and avoid falling behind. In this epis...

Everybody’s talking about it!!... You know that restaurant in Austin that’s known for their Instagram posts about their fun messaging on their sign out front? ... And that pet-friendly hotel you stayed at that had a goodie bag with your dogs name on it and included emergency numbers for local vets for just in case. ... Or that restaurant that’s not known for their melt-in-your-mouth steaks or 360°...

“Your benefits package is a clear sign of how you take care of your employees.” -Pascale Mapleston Merely having an employee benefits package is no longer enough to attract great employees and top talent! In this episode of the Manufacturing Masters Podcast, expert Pascale Mapleston, founder and CEO of The Benefit Code and Mapleston Benefits Consulting, is giving you the inside track on how to piv...

There’s GOT to be a better way to do ’this’ more effectively! (Said every leader or manager ever) But, where do the best ideas and solutions come from? Today’s guest believes, they come from ‘inside’, from your team! AND, how much time is wasted talking about problems but doing nothing meaningful to fix them? OR, time wasted on meetings about meetings. This episode is coming to you direct, from Al...

Labeling or stereotyping people—we’ve all been guilty of this! It’s probably happened to you as well. Sadly, for all of us, it’s getting in the way and hurting the industry! But, it doesn’t have to be this way. In this episode of the Manufacturing Masters Podcast, Allison sits down with resident Manufacturing Masters expert and Mavens of Manufacturing host Meaghan Ziemba to:  - Bust a Kardashianes...

THIS is a new year! It’s YOUR year! Manufacturing Masters founder, Darrin Mitchell, is on the pod and he’s giving you permission to:  - Step outside your comfort zone - Start creating agreements instead of expectations  - Ask for the help you need…you’ll get it And, stop being too busy to ACT on the advice and insight you get! Life is short. It’s time you stop “surviving another year” and start “t...

Thank YOU!  For your time, attention, support, suggestions, comments, and, frankly, for showing up every day this year doing the hard things. This podcast is made on behalf of and for you. Bringing you the latest best practices, expertise, and courageous conversations to fuel your life and your business truly lights our fire.  We put together a 2023 Mashup of clips from our first 26 episodes so yo...

AGREE or DISAGREE Trying to market to and sell everyone is overwhelming and, frankly, incredibly inefficient! You end up feeling like you’re casting a global net when you should be waving around a butterfly net instead. ;-) Think about it…you're not looking for a thousand new customers. You’re probably looking for 1-5 this year. Right?! This episode of the Manufacturing Masters Podcast with Em...

Wouldn’t it be incredible if someone could give you an easy framework for turning Linkedin connections into paying customers? Zero spam. No gimmicks. Just the simple steps you can take, as a real, authentic human, to stop being a wallflower and start making real connections that lead to business.  As in, YOU become the life of the party instead of that word-vomit guy/gal that everyone runs from wh...

Have you ever felt alone running your business?   Wished that you had a coach or small team in place, of people just like you, that you could bounce ideas off, share your successes and failures with, and who would hold you accountable so you could GROW IN A BIGGER WAY? This is that SUPER episode of the Manufacturing Masters Podcast you’ve been waiting for.  Allison sits down with the two Superfrie...

If you’re using social media to market your products, you’re doing it all wrong! According to Jake Hall, the Manufacturing Millennial (and a resident expert on the Manufacturing Masters platform), today, social media is the marketing tool for your company and your culture, not your products.(At least if you want to attract Millennial and Get Z top talent.) With over 70K followers on Linkedin and m...

How do you know when it’s the right time to rebrand a 50-year old manufacturing business?    - When you no longer make the thing that’s part of your company name   - When prospects are confused right from the get go   - When your name is too long and not memorable   - When your logo and identity look old and outdated  Gary Bales, President of Aurora Boardworks, answers all your questions in this e...

"Linkedin is a waste of time, I’ve got a business to run!” Said the manufacturer who has SOMETHING on their plate they ought to drop like a hot potato and replace with time spent on Linkedin to GROW their business faster. If you feel like you can relate to the opening sentence OR you’ve dipped a toe in the Linkedin pool, but you’re still clinging to the side in fear or doubt instead of swimmi...

What if you decided to create an employee recognition board and hang it front and center on the shop floor? Complete with pencils  and little cards that people can fill out and post to recognize a peer or share an empowering message. Think your people will use it? Pooh pooh it?  Maybe it will take off at first and then flame out just as fast. OR It will surprise you and everyone else that, after t...

Let’s say you have $10-15K to have a new corporate video developed. You’re planning on throwing it up on your website and you figure it has a shelf life of, say, 2-3 years. Your ROI for this marketing spend = trackable VIEWS and possibly a prospect spending longer on your website (MEH!) Sure, you’ve made it a little easier for someone to know, like, and trust you. But there’s SO MUCH MORE you can...

Life’s funny! You go to college thinking you’re going to architect skyscrapers and instead you end up architecting a manufacturing business. Better yet, you start out as an intern and end up becoming the CEO. (Not in ten minutes, of course). Today’s guest on the Manufacturing Masters Podcast, ironically, experienced both! Brent Hardman from Powell is pulling back the curtain to share insights and...

What’s the first thing employee’s think about when you march a new consultant into the shop/plant/factory and let them know, "there’s going to be some changes around here”?  HOW DOES THIS AFFECT ME? MY JOB? WILL I BE FIRED? This doesn’t exactly create, what Manufacturing Masters expert, Paul Vragel, calls an “improvement seeking environment!” Instead, Paul recommends 4 key things you can do t...

How many times have you been in a meeting or at an event and thought, “I’m not good enough to be here, I don’t know enough, I’m not an expert; someone’s gonna recognize that I’m an imposter and call me out!” Imposter syndrome, anyone?  That dreaded paralyzing self doubt that keeps us from showing up, trying, contributing, and recognizing our true potential and worth. In this special episode of the...

According to Brad Robeson, CEO of Clean Machine, we’ve been going about workforce development and education the wrong way…he and the Utah Manufacturing Association and Impact Utah are living proof of how to turn that around and create success, in your business and your state. In this episode of the Manufacturing Masters Podcast, he shares personal experiences about finding the time and resources t...

This episode is brought to you by the Letter E! Eddie Saunders Jr. Expert in Manufacturing Empathy in Marketing Evangelist for Manufacturing All the important E’s today in this episode of the Manufacturing Masters Podcast where Eddie and Allison meet up for the first time. Unsure about empathetic marketing? You’re not alone. In this must-catch episode, you’ll learn why it’s more important than eve...

If you noticed an employee limping or complaining about sore wrists would you feel uncomfortable asking them if they hurt themselves or need to see a doctor? Probably not, it’s physical! How about if they seem a little emotional, depressed, anxious, or they’re suddenly always “short” with co-workers? Probably somewhat uncomfortable…it’s more mental. For so long, the subject of mental health has fe...

What do you do when your CFO tells you, “We’ve got to increase sales by 10%! GO!” Before you stress out (because you know you’ve been busting your bahooky already and you can only spread yourself so thin) wipe that sweat off your brow and listen to this episode of the  Manufacturing Masters  Podcast with expert  Ken Cheo  from  MySalesCoach . And, if you’re the CEO or CFO, have your team listen to...

Are you familiar with a Digital Twin? The concept of mirroring your sales team in digital format. (No 3D printer required) In this episode of the  Manufacturing Masters  Podcast you’ll learn firsthand from expert  Greg Mischio  from  Winbound : 1) What’s the one challenger we’re all facing and how to overcome it 2) Why content isn’t as effective without a strategic approach 3) How your flesh and b...

What’s your go-to reaction when a brand new employee tells you how to run your business better? 🙄 Lisa Ryan, CSP , founder of Grategy, and an expert on the  Manufacturing Masters  platform swears by this: "Always resist the eye-roll and say, “thank you for sharing, that’s a great idea!” Why? Listen to them. It’s an opportunity for you to show up and show you give a rip. And, to show your emp...

Finding talent starts from the inside out! Like, figuring out WHY somebody would want to work with your company/team/culture in the first place. In this episode of the  Manufacturing Masters  Podcast, you’ll learn from expert  Andrew Lavoie, CPBC  what you need to do to become a preferred employee this year. -Hiring a recruiter…essential or not? -Poaching…casting a wide net! -Foster strong employe...