The Top 3 Considerations and Actions for Manufacturers to Accommodate the Current Generation Shift
The Current Generational Shift is Significantly Reshaping the Manufacturing Landscape
Generational shifts, gradual changes in society’s attitudes, behaviors, and norms as one generation replaces another, are now at a critical juncture. These shifts, driven by technological innovations, economic trends, cultural changes, and geopolitical events, are significantly reshaping the manufacturing landscape. To remain relevant and competitive, manufacturers must take proactive steps to modernize their operations both internally and externally to accommodate the next generations of frontline employees and B2B buyers.
The U.S. Census Bureau determined that approximately 70 million Baby Boomers (born 1946-1964) in the United States are now reaching retirement age. For the last several decades, this generation has been leading the workforce across the labor spectrum from the factory floor through B2B purchase decision-makers. As the Baby Boomer generation exits the workforce, Generation X (born 1965-1980), Millennials (born 1981-1996), and now Generation Z (born 1997-2012) are not just becoming the majority of your frontline workforce but are fundamentally changing the way we work and make decisions.
In contrast to their older counterparts, these younger generations have grown up in a digital world that has heavily influenced their working styles and purchasing preferences. For example, many younger generations are open to frontline factory work, but many manufacturers struggle to attract and retain talent because of outdated processes that fail to meet workers’ expectations and preferences. The same generations taking on more purchasing power are accustomed to the digital-first buying experience. Manufacturers must adapt and provide a B2B process that mimics what they are accustomed to, meet customer expectations, and stay competitive.
In this blog, we explore the top three considerations and actions manufacturers can take to accommodate the current generational shift, be competitive in the labor market, and modernize the buying experience.
The Buying Process Has Evolved to be Digital-First: How Manufacturers Can Take Action to Modernize Their Experience
Younger generations of buyers have evolved to be more informed and digital-first in how they progress through the buying journey in both their personal and business lives. They are armed with so much information in their pockets from conducting extensive research through content consumption, product reviews, comparisons, and visual aids. The informed buyer has shifted the balance of power from traditional sales reps to informed buyers, making it vital for manufacturers to adapt and engage their customers in new ways.
A Salesforce survey found that 87% of B2B buyers expect you to provide a personalized and convenient experience. The new generation of B2B buyers was raised in the age of Amazon and expects a digital-first experience that mirrors consumer shopping habits. They are accustomed to researching products online, comparing prices with ease, and making purchases with a few clicks – all on their own terms. The new behaviors present a challenge for manufacturers who have traditionally focused on product-centric solutions that rely heavily on engineering teams. To stay competitive, manufacturers must adapt to this new reality and prioritize customer-centric digital experiences that support buyers in their purchasing journeys.
Offering robust self-service options is a critical step towards meeting these expectations. Manufacturers looking to be competitive and win the next generation of buyers should deliver an experience that centers around interactive visual experiences that create frictionless processes for configured, standard, and spare parts. A digital-first approach gives buyers a digital thread of visual content that supports their entire buying journey from the information-gathering phase through servicing the products post-sale. Implementing 2D and 3D visual solutions throughout the customer journey ensures you are supporting the next generation of buyers with a digital-first self-service model of doing business. By embracing these digital strategies, you can create a buying experience that is both efficient and engaging, capturing the loyalty of the next generation of B2B customers.
How CDS Visual Helps You Take Action with 2D and 3D Visual Solutions: CDS Visual works with global manufacturers to build dynamic visual solutions that put the customer at the center of the buying process, from configuration through aftermarket part services- and everything in between. Get in touch with us to learn more.
CDS Visual helps manufacturers create digital-first visual content experiences to support the buyer journey.
Labor Challenges Remain the Top Concern for Manufacturing Executives: How Manufacturers Can Attract and Retain Talent.
It is no surprise that attracting and retaining talent is the top concern for manufacturing executives. In fact, an astonishing 75% of industry executives view labor as their top challenge. The industry faces a perfect storm of challenges as the aforementioned aging workforce is heading towards retirement, widening the skills gap with the rise of advanced technologies. While younger generations view manufacturing favorably, they can often perceive manufacturing frontline processes as outdated or misaligned with what they look for in their careers. Ongoing labor shortages pose a significant threat to the industry’s expected growth and ability to innovate.
The new generation of workers seeks purpose, values continuous learning, and expects a modern work environment. Investing in comprehensive training programs is crucial to attract and retain talent in this labor market. Implementing modern training programs should not only equip workers with the necessary technical skills but also foster a culture of growth and development. Capturing tribal knowledge from your current experts and transferring that knowledge into multimedia-rich and interactive digital work instructions can help standardize training and quality and identify skills gaps to improve training and upskilling to keep workers engaged and growing their skills.
Manufacturing is at an exciting point in integrating cutting-edge technologies like robotics, artificial intelligence (AI), and modernization of processes with digital solutions that emphasize the problem-solving nature of the work. Highlighting your modernized training and work environments can help reshape perceptions and attract a new generation of talent. By enabling your new frontline workers to onboard faster and have continuous opportunities to upskill and grow, you will be better equipped to attract and retain talent in the tight labor market.
How CDS Visual Helps You Take Action with Digital Work Instructions: CDS Mentor for AI-enabled digital work instructions helps manufacturers address labor challenges with a multi-faceted approach that enables easy building and delivery of interactive workflows for your frontline. Learn how we have helped Belvac improve onboarding, upskilling, and talent retention with CDS Mentor.
Traditional Websites and Catalogs for Spare Parts are Costly and Ineffective: How Manufacturers Can Gain a Competitive Advantage in the Aftermarket.
Manufacturers often rely on traditional methods like printed catalogs or digital catalogs on their websites for their aftermarket services. Unless the end-user has the specific part number, this process is inefficient and often relies on the end user calling a service rep for support. However, these methods are quickly becoming outdated, costly, and ineffective in the current landscape of how the new generation of buyers prefers to conduct business.
Customers expect instant access to information and a seamless online experience, as we mentioned earlier in this article. The current generational shift presents a significant opportunity for manufacturers to gain a competitive advantage by leveraging technology to revolutionize their aftermarket services to meet the demand.
Implementing robust visual part search capabilities within your e-commerce platforms is a game-changer. When a customer or other end-user needs a specific replacement part – instead of sifting through a dense catalog, navigating a convoluted website catalog, or calling a service rep, they can enter a part number (if they have it), use keywords, explore an uploaded product view, or snap a picture for image search identification. Using a visual search solution enables the user to properly identify the part quickly, add to the card, and purchase the exact part they need. Implementing a self-service approach empowers customers to buy confidently with speed and efficiency while simultaneously reducing the burden on customer service teams and delivering a modernized buying experience.
How CDS Visual Helps You Take Action to Transform Your Aftermarket Spare Part Buying Experience: CDS Partable is an AI-powered visual search solution specifically built to help manufacturers transform their aftermarket parts businesses by enabling customers to easily identify and order spare parts through an intuitive self-service ecommerce experience.
