310: The Automation Skills Gap: Why Manufacturers Need to Train the Workforce They Already Have

Christelle Keefer

If you're working around automation and you don't know the system you have, you don't represent your company very well.

Christelle Keefer

The fundamentals carry over, but training tied to one brand doesn't always transfer when someone changes jobs or if their company brings in different equipment.

Christelle Keefer

And so my mind shift, my mindset shifted from how do I train someone on this robot to what does a competent automation professional need to know and how do we prove it in a way that employers trust?

Christelle Keefer

there are systems on the floor, so having a well-rounded individual that has training in all of automation.

Christelle Keefer

I believe employers now see the value of certifications in hiring and promotions.

Christelle Keefer

And now more of them are writing certification into job descriptions and career pathways, which gives workers a reason to pursue them. Second, the move toward stackable, modular credential pathways, so instead of one big program, people can earn a foundational credential, use it on the job and build toward advanced levels.

Christelle Keefer

And the first is when companies are transparent and they involve their existing employees from the beginning of the plan of this is the direction we're heading in, this is why we will be bringing in an automation system to do these things talking to the operators and the technicians and the programmers on the on the floor about the change from the beginning is extremely important and it builds trust within the organization.

Christelle Keefer

Instead of competing for scarce automation talent, they take the operators and maintenance techs who already know the process on the floor and put them through a structured pathway with some foundational training first and then a certification after that after some time.

Christelle Keefer

And the ones that do best tie it to something real, so like a pay increase or a job promotion or a new role.

Christelle Keefer

And when local employers sit on advisory boards and they help shape that curriculum, then those graduates are ready to contribute from day one, and I've seen a lot of schools reach out for industry professionals to be on their advisory boards to help them develop curriculum and review their syllabus and review what they plan on offering in future semesters.

Christelle Keefer

It depends on how much the company, how much time, money, and value they invest and put into this.

Christelle Keefer

So, I mean, ideally a very smart long-term a company that thinks in the long-term rather than the short-term would invest in all three.

Christelle Keefer

But I would say plug into A3 just because we have over 1,500 members, a huge network of industry professionals that other industry professionals can network with, educators, a lot of student events, so sometimes it's like, where do I start, what do I do, where do I go, who do I talk to?

Christelle Keefer

in productivity, in safety, in efficiency, optimization, just having everything in house rather than outsource different things, having the automation and manufacturing all in the United States would be amazing.

Christelle Keefer

And then having students visit industry as well, so bringing the factory to the classroom and the classroom to the factory is a great way.