Over the holidays, I flipped through a book called “21 Lessons from the 21st Century” written by Yuval Noah Harari. The first sentence of the introduction goes like this: “In a world deluged by irrelevant information, clarity is power.”
In an industry such as additive manufacturing, where technologies change the way things are designed and produced, clarity is crucial for success, especially when it comes to building a winning team. You can’t be at the forefront of changing the way things are being manufactured by lacking clarity around the teams you build and the goals you set for them.
In the international chase for the right talent, only a few companies truly understand the power of clarity and know how to use it to their advantage. Alexander Daniels Global is one of them.
“Even though the manufacturing industry advocates automation at all levels, people and teams remain the most valuable assets of companies,” said Nick Pearce, CEO of Alexander Daniels Global.
The question of how to build a winning team in additive manufacturing is becoming the highest priority for AM company leaders who are focused on conquering specific verticals with their AM machines, materials and software.
Clarity in F1
In January 2020, Alexander Daniels Global is spotlighting one of the key adopter sectors for AM: the automotive industry. The industry—one of the sectors powering the additive manufacturing market—requires employees with both experience and talent. To be truly successful, however, it also requires a clear structure within its teams.
We can look to Formula 1 for a tangible example. F1 teams are leading the way in how high performance is achieved in a team setting. For example, when Mercedes became number 1 in Shanghai last year, a commentator asked Christian Danner, a former F1 champion who raced with Senna, if it’s really fair that Mercedes is number 1?
His response was categorically yes and he attributes this to a very clear structure in their organization. He explained that they embrace a form of creative conflict, where the team members are encouraged to point out mistakes and give constructive feedback without having to worry that they hurt each other. In such a high pressure environment, I can only imagine how people shout at each other, yet they developed a way in which they communicate effectively and can rapidly fix mistakes together. And we all know how crucial speed is in F1.
If people in your team feel they can’t point out mistakes or flag issues to each other because they fear conflict or passive aggressive responses from colleagues, that ultimately hurts results and your company goals. Walking on eggshells creates too much pressure that will inevitably explode after a while.
How would communication and productivity improve in your organization if you create a safe environment in which you teach creative conflict to your teams?
Manufacturing on Demand
Automotive recruitment trends
At Alexander Daniels Global we have a clear understanding of the hiring dynamics and needs in the automotive sector—and specifically the German automotive market—as related to additive manufacturing.
The automotive industry is one of the sectors that is powering the German additive manufacturing market. According to LinkedIn data, the companies currently employing the most professionals within AM in Germany are: BMW Group, VW AG, Siemens, EOS, Trumpf, Bosch, Daimler AG and BASF.
In our experience, the most in demand AM positions with a specialization in the automotive industry are Business Development Managers and Application Engineers with good 3D design knowledge.
Another key area of demand is Research and Development, including Design. The available jobs in Germany in these positions are powered by engineering companies that are adopting additive manufacturing and thus demanding professionals for this purpose.
Download your free regional copy of the Talent Market Whitepaper to learn more about:
- AM hiring trends in Germany
- Most in-demand roles in Germany
- Seniority levels in demand
- Job discipline split
- Background of German AM professionals
- Talent Gap in Germany
Building a winning team
The Additive Manufacturing leaders who communicate a clear vision repeatedly to their teams are going to make the most revenue for their businesses, because they will be the ones who bring out the best in people who work with them.
Why should you think about how to build a winning team? The answer is simple: if you are expecting performance from your teams, you must. The key to success lies in understanding human nature and it starts with becoming aware of who we are as people and who we are as leaders.
This article is the first of a series that I will be writing in 2020 and my main focus will be on building winning teams with competent leadership in the additive manufacturing industry.
This article was published in partnership with Alexander Daniels Global.
You might also like:
How major automakers use AM for production today, part 5: BMW additive manufacturing: Since “coming out” officially as a major AM adopter in 2016, BMW Group continued to announce major initiatives in AM for part production. They were consolidated in the Additive Manufacturing Campus, located in Oberschleissheim, just north of Munich. BMW is known to also rely on external AM parts providers for SLS and SLA (Figure 4) parts production, such as 3D Systems’ On Demand Advanced AM Center near Turin, in Northern Italy.
* This article is reprinted from 3D Printing Media Network. If you are involved in infringement, please contact us to delete it.
Author: Iulia Oprea
Leave A Comment