Digitalisation as a Strategy to Attract and Retain Workers

By Willie Kopp

December 04, 2024

undefined mins

Manufacturers can attract and retain workers through digitalisation

Willie Kopp, Head of NAM Enterprise Campus Edge Business for CNS Cloud and Network Services at Nokia, explains how connected workers are happier workers

Manufacturers across industries face significant workforce challenges, from skills shortages and difficulty attracting new workers to slow onboarding and retention issues.

At the same time, industry growth is driving the need to hire additional workers at all levels, from junior associates to skilled production workers and engineers.

Competence requirements are also evolving to encompass increases in manufacturing skills, digital skills and soft skills.₁

Together, these challenges mean workforce issues have been the top concern for manufacturers surveyed by the U.S. National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) for the past seven years. And the challenges show no signs of abating.

In a 2024 U.S. National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) survey, 65% of respondents said attracting and retaining talent is their primary business challenge.₂

The U.S. National Association of Manufacturers highlights challenges through its research

As a crucial part of organisations’ strategy, industrial digitalisation not only drives transformation in operational efficiencies, resilience, safety, quality and ESG commitments, but also fundamentally helps manufacturers overcome such critical workforce issues.

With digital technologies aligning with real-world solutions impacting business, market and social outcomes, the parallel effect is that manufacturing increases the appeal and new opportunities for workers to advance their skills, while making the meaningful wider ethical contributions they increasingly aspire to.

These improvements will help to:

Attract larger numbers of applicants with a wider range of relevant digital skills as they see significant workplace resonance and ability to develop capabilities on the job
Encourage applications from Gen Z, as manufacturing is increasingly perceived as a viable career from a personal development and society perspective
Retention of existing workers through ethos of cultivating experience and new skills with a widening scope for enhancing careers

Start by making communications and data available everywhere

The most effective industrial digitalisation programmes include enhanced worker connectivity, safety, engagement and empowerment – and are built on the same digital foundation supporting essential enterprise-wide transformation.

Plant-wide data availability and intelligence is at the heart of these systems, so an essential step for every manufacturer is to extend pervasive, industrial-grade 4G/5G and Wi-Fi connectivity indoors and outdoors throughout their campuses.

This connectivity, coupled with an on-premises industrial edge incorporating an ecosystem-neutral application platform, seamlessly integrates with incumbent automation networks and becomes a secure, reliable and always-on base for real-time enterprise digital solutions.

This helps enhance real-time contextual awareness, actionable operational insights and provides knowledge wherever workers need it.

Here are just a few examples of scenarios that can become a reality today.

Empower workers to collaborate and work more efficiently

When workers have access to the right information and data at the right time, they can make more informed decisions and take the most effective actions faster.

Picture workers who can push a single button to reach colleagues anywhere on campus using voice, video or text communications to get a status update, a fast answer to a critical question or to start a spontaneous brainstorming session.

Or workers who can simply scan the bar code on an asset or production materials to get instant intelligence on the item’s status.

If workers need to pinpoint the location of the maintenance technician closest to a faulty machine, workforce geo-positioning solutions immediately provide that information.

Manufacturers are obliged to protect their staff

Increase situational awareness so workers can protect themselves and others

The same team communications solutions that enable instant collaboration also allow workers to guide and support one another before, during and after safety incidents.

Workers can notify others of safety risks and incidents, provide real-time updates on hazards and request assistance from the remotest campus locations.

Other digital solutions give workers the timely insights they need to prevent accidents and accelerate response times, whether they’re working in teams or alone:

Proximity sensors detect nearby moving equipment and automatically initiate visual and audible alerts to warn workers of the impending risk of collision
Geofences create virtual boundaries around hazardous areas, sending safety alerts to workers and central systems when these invisible boundaries are crossed
Motion sensors trigger centralised alerts if workers fall, lose their protective gear or become immobile
Industrial drones provide remote visibility into safety hazards and incidents

Surround workers with relevant data and knowledge

In relation to incoming Gen-Z workers that typically grew up gaming, augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) technologies are a natural fit.

But all generations of worker will find these immersive technologies far more engaging, memorable and efficient than traditional methods of learning new skills. And they can be applied at every phase of career evolution, from onboarding and daily task execution to ongoing training and advanced upskilling for career growth.

Picture new recruits using smart glasses to learn about production technologies, maintenance technicians using handheld devices to access interactive repair instructions and team leaders working through life-like simulations so they’re ready to operate new equipment on day one.

Fast-emerging technologies such as generative AI (Gen AI) take worker and corporate knowledge to the next level.

Gen AI solutions can find patterns in data from a wide range of industrial sources to build on corporate data and knowledge.

And they enable natural language-based communications between workers and machines, providing fast and intuitive access to contextual information that further informs decisions related to productivity, efficiency, quality and safety.