2024 looks to be a turning point in history with the wake of major overhaul from the past three years drifting out of sight. We've almost forgotten what hit us in 2020, and continued to buffet the social psyche for a while afterwards. So now that the ricochet effect has settled down, what of the industrial quarter? We can read a lot about hybrid working and office staff but what about the shop floor and all those hierarchies that have very different systems to the white-collar world?
"Essentially, it’s the relationships workers have -- with their coworkers, managers, leaders and organization -- that are significantly evolving. Many organizations are radically retooling the ways they do business, leaving many employees, including managers, stressed and disconnected," says the author Ben Wigert.
People working in manufacturing facilities are caught up in the same wave as everyone else, and that seems to be making for a greater will to change than perhaps has ever been in place since the Industrial Revolution. We could say in all honesty that this era is a revolution of sorts, for people are thinking differently now as Maslow's Hierarchy creeps towards a summit of human capability, where the way we feel has as much to do with our decision-making process as the way we are expected to perform.
Through programme development and ongoing observation,
WorldLine has experienced 6 key factors evidencing these changes;
1. More Managers Taking Part in Innovation
While traditionally most managers wanted to hold on to the way things were for ease of application, more front-line staff are now showing the will to get involved with new ideas and protocols new to the workplace and even to their own way of thinking. This leads to increased opportunities for the employee base to get involved in contributing to the efficiency and innovation inherent in the company.
2 More Grass-Roots Staff Embrace Learning
Certainly there has been an upturn in the number of people calling for upskilling and wanting to see a range of training provisions in the workplace, including 'soft-skill' applications (better termed 'human skill' applications) that enable them to develop personally as well as professionally.
3 Greater Acceptance of Mentorship
While in the past coaching and mentorship would have found it hard to find a doorway into the industrial world, these days it's embraced wholeheartedly as part of the developmental process not just by managers, but by all concerned with the welfare and progress of the company. Encouraging buddy-workmates and giving new interns the opportunity to shadow people they get on with through the training process are leading trends that help people to grow confidence and knowledge concurrently, instead of the old-school 'survival of the fittest' regime that typified the engineering environment. A switched-on leader will look for signs of engagement that occur naturally in the workplace and not be afraid to foster it in a healthy, progressive context.
4. Less Responsibility Resistance
Fair to say that Responsibility Resistance is a factor that managers expect to encounter and grass-roots workers are expected to hold onto. The resultant empasse (once all too familiar) is breaking down, with Communication found to be the No.1 Priority in almost every group as people take it upon themselves to do something about old protocols that didn't serve the company well (and instead set up standing waves alienating everyone within it). Responsibility develops as its benefits make themselves apparent.
5. More Credit Given to Re-creation
Engagement = a creative characteristic of a healthy workplace that works by forging invisible bonds of loyalty and value people can share, motivating each other in the process. This part of the progression to excellence relies on employees being able to enjoy their place of work, and be recognised beyond the station they hold at whatever part of the factory they are assigned to. The need for anticipated play to break up Groundhog Days is becoming an acceptable priority in strategic continuous improvement.
6. Emotions Are Allowed
Finally, it's okay to feel. The days when big boys didn't cry are over, and baring one's soul in times of difficulty is actively encouraged in a vibrant working environment. While many leaders boasted an open-door policy, now it's become apparent that Trust is won only through empathy, and this requires active recognition of a person's feelings to become part of the protocol in advancing social practices that benefit the whole.
The Future is Bright - whatever colour you make it
Green credentials are spreading across environmental and social responsibilities of governance. These 6 key factors will increasingly become part of the ESG template that many CEOs are being driven to adopt by market forces and the ever-increasing demand for humanitarian and planetary welfare. As companies step up to the plate and trail-blaze with new ideas, lessening their own fear of risk in implementing accordingly, innovation spreads throughout the network and at last it seems that the industrial sector is growing better versions of balls by putting them in other people's courts.
