Sometimes indecision costs more than a wrong decision. Making decisions is a leader’s bread and butter, but during times of uncertainty or crisis, they often become more cautious and hesitant. The danger here is getting left behind while more confident, proactive leaders charge ahead.

Jason T. Ray, Co-Founder and CEO of Paperless Parts, is a regular on Manufacturing Happy Hour, so we compare some of the insights he made when he was last on the show to what he’s seeing in the industry today.

One of the big ones was on the skills gap – or “leadership gap” as Jason calls it. The good news is that this seems to be closing, with more manufacturing leaders taking advantage of the vast amounts of information and industry insights out there in the form of articles and podcasts. We hear Jason’s approach to great leadership in manufacturing and the positive changes he’s seen in the industry lately.

We also chat about scaling effectively, complying with CMMC, and how to avoid getting lost in the AI hype cycle.

In this episode, find out:

• The four pillars that are leading Paperless Parts to greatness and successful expansion
• Why the leadership gap (which Jason said last time was responsible for the skills gap) seems to be closing
• Positive changes Jason’s seeing when it comes to preparing younger professionals for leadership positions
• How to navigate through uncertain times and the important lesson he learned in the Navy that he still uses today
• The power of decisive leadership and what happens when leaders are overly cautious
• The leading indicators in the industry that Jason watches closely to help him make great long-term decisions
• The gap between data and information and why data alone is not enough to make good decisions
• How small to medium manufacturers can win government contracts and become CMMC compliant
• The common mistake shop leaders make about AI and why leaders should start with the low-hanging fruit that we know AI is great for
• The easiest ways to scale in today’s market and how to get your team onboard with a growth mindset
• Jason’s thoughts on the opportunities of reshoring and why we need to meet the right balance between global collaboration without dependence
• Jason talks about the Cutting Through the Noise videos series and why he aims to highlight the truly important insights in the industry for busy manufacturing leaders

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Tweetable Quotes:

• “I think they're putting young people in their organizations in positions of responsibility. I think more and more they're realizing that these young professionals are ready to take on that responsibility and those folks are bringing new ideas in.”
• “I think it is such an important understanding of what the right level of global collaboration is where you have not fallen into dependence.”
• “When you're leading through a period of uncertainty that tends to lead folks to indecision. And that can waste a lot of people's time and shatter your team's confidence in your ability as a leader. The folks that are most successful at leading through a crisis lead with very decisive action.”

Links & mentions:

• Paperless Parts, quoting software for manufacturers to help part manufacturers streamline the quoting process
• Cutting Through the Noise, a new video series run by Jason that gets straight to the point on manufacturing trends
• The Tip Tap Room, Boston pub that serves a wide range of beers and inventive dishes
• NIST 853, Security and Privacy Controls for Information Systems and Organizations, resources for CMMC compliance

Make sure to visit http://manufacturinghappyhour.com for detailed show notes and a full list of resources mentioned in this episode. Stay Innovative, Stay Thirsty.