Heavy Metal in NW PA

by Bob Zaruta, President/CEO, NWIRC Each year, I try to dedicate at least three of my articles to spotlight manufacturing companies across our 13 counties of northwest PA. I visit so many manufacturers that are doing incredible and interesting work…

CMMC Rollout 2.0

By Scott Dawson, President of Core Business Solutions, Inc. Will CMMC Finally Take Effect in March 2023? If you contract with the Department of Defense (DoD), you’ve probably experienced some confusion over the last few years. In 2019, the DoD…

Checking in on the Lean Together™ Reboot

by Molly Reichard, NWIRC, Culture Development & Training Specialist Last May, a group came together for a reboot of the popular NWIRC program, Lean Together™. These 21 participants, from 6 different companies, had previous success with Lean Together™ and implementing…

What’s in the Sauce?

by Bob Zaruta, President/CEO, NWIRC I want to commend all who attended one of the three Spaghetti & Sales events that NWIRC held in November, and their companies. Surely, these individuals wanted to enjoy a great Italian dinner (bravo Luigi’s…

Improve New Hire Retention

by Lisa Pustelak, NWIRC, Strategic Planning & Culture Development Specialist There is an occurrence so commonplace among manufacturers that there’s a name for it: “runners.” Runners are the new hires for entry-level jobs, often in their 20s, who fail to…

Beeinddrückend! Manufacturing Workforce Mission with Germany

by Bob Zaruta, President/CEO, NWIRC Beeinddrückend! (German for ‘wow’ or ‘impressive’). I had set the bar high for the Stronger Together Manufacturing Workforce Mission and the trip…well, hat alle Erwartungen übertroffen (exceeded all expectations)! As I wrote last month, the…

Do You Have a Strategy for Employee Retention?

Having a strategy for welcoming new hires into your company culture and planning for future development can reduce costly employee turnover. Retention is a challenge for manufacturing companies. Career development opportunities (or lack of) continues to be a top reason…