Manufacturers and industrial companies struggling to find and keep Gen Z frontline workers should consider adopting connected worker solutions. Such cutting-edge technologies can induce these digital natives to apply for open maintenance and warehouse positions and stay after hiring according to a panel of digital transformation leaders during a recent connected worker webinar.
Having a Hard Time Finding Frontline Workers? You’re Not Alone
April 2022 U.S. unemployment figures offered great news for employees and a not-so-good revelation for employers. Thirty-one states had rates under 4%; eight others were within 0.2% of that figure. Economists consider anything under 4.7% as full employment, a region where open jobs outnumber available workers. This overabundance of unfilled jobs forces employers to offer higher wages to attract candidates, which fuels inflation.
U.S. manufacturers and industrial companies are finding it tougher to find workers. While total U.S. job openings fell in April 2022 to 11.4 million (down from a record 11.8 million in March), three key sectors saw job vacancies increase:
- Transportation, warehousing, and utilities (+97,000)
- Non-durable goods manufacturing (+67,000)
- Durable goods manufacturing (+53,000)
What Young Workers Want
If you’ve had to recruit talent or manage it, you’ve probably discovered that the current generation entering the labor force is quite different from those that preceded it. While every person is unique, members of Gen Z, made up of those born after 1997, share common attributes. They:
- Expect to work with technology
- Want to collaborate, engage and innovate
- Embrace change
- Value flexibility
How do these relate to manufacturing plants or industrial organizations? For one, Gen Z has no interest in entering data into a back-office system like SAP or IBM Maximo. You’ll have a tough time competing for talent against an employer offering the latest technology. Connected worker solutions offer operational and recruitment/retention advantages.
What Is a Connected Worker Solution?
Market research giant Gartner defines a connected worker as:
"[An] online employee that has the ability to work from anywhere, anytime, and using any device. As a result, there has been a dramatic change in the way employees perform their jobs."
A connected worker solution integrates mobile applications to provide a single, unified source of accurate, real-time data. The solution delivers end-to-end visibility enterprise-wide, across departments and processes.
With a connected worker platform, maintenance and the warehouse can digitally communicate and collaborate to ensure spare parts are ready in time for an important project. A connected worker platform also delivers valuable information that supports knowledgeable decision-making. Finally, such a platform has dashboards to facilitate better process management, monitoring, tracking and control.
Connected worker platforms offer users:
- Greater operational visibility throughout an enterprise
- Insight into the potential cause of a problem and its effects
- A way to assign resources and check spare part availability
- Improved collaboration to undertake recommended actions in a timely fashion
Connected Worker Solutions and Gen Z
A connected worker solution offers numerous operational and process benefits. It also delivers forward-thinking employers several strong recruitment and retention advantages. Finally, a connected worker solution may be a modern necessity as companies seek to replace retiring Baby Boomers.
Connected worker solutions mesh nicely with many Gen Z wants, as shown in the chart below.
Imagine the edge you'll enjoy when interviewing a promising Gen Z candidate for a maintenance or warehouse opening. When the candidate asks about technology, you’ll have an immediate – and attractive – response that could seal the deal. Those workers may be less inclined to jump to another job because they’ll be satisfied with your organization and its use of cutting-edge technology.
Webinar Gives Insight into the Value of Connected Worker Solutions
Innovapptive, a connected worker solution leader, recently participated in a webinar hosted by Reliability Web. The webinar – Accelerated Asset Efficiency with Connected Frontline Worker Solutions – discussed:
- Why you should consider a connected worker solution
- What to look for in a solution
- The importance of rapid implementation
- How to realize wide adoption
- How to drive continuous improvement
Click here to view a free webinar recording.
Want to Find and Keep Gen Z Workers? We Can Help
Innovapptive’s Connected Worker Platform delivers the cutting-edge solutions Gen Z workers want from an employer. Tell an applicant they’ll be working with technology that’s guided and intuitive, agile and reconfigurable, and they’ll be able to operate and collaborate from anywhere at any time. Schedule a free online demo today, or call 844-464-6668 to speak to one of our experts.
