A retirement party should be a joyous occasion but when it’s the company’s go-to problem-solver retiring, it can be bittersweet. Decades of experience dealing with complex production issues, troubleshooting intricate problems, and understanding the nuances of the manufacturing process… and they’re walking right out the door. All good things must come to an end, even the careers of our most skilled and valued workers, but what if their legacy could live on in the next generation of employees? While it’s unfortunate, the situation presents a unique (and often missed) opportunity to preserve a retiring employee’s vast institutional knowledge so it can be shared with future workers.
Traditionally, manufacturers have relied on apprenticeships and shadowing programs to transfer skills from one employee to another, but these methods are showing their age. Given the rapid pace of technological change, previous mentorship approaches, while valuable, are quickly becoming ill-equipped to meet the demands and challenges of the future. Among the emerging strategies that organizations are exploring is the concept of digital mentorship. With digital mentorship, when the company’s go-to problem-solver says goodbye, all those years of experience can be captured before they walk out the door. This prepares the organization for the future and maximizes the return on investment in that employee. By implementing a digital mentorship strategy, organizations can achieve greater consistency in their people, processes, and products.
What Is Digital Mentorship?
Digital mentorship is a modern approach to knowledge sharing and skill development that leverages technology to connect mentors and mentees. Unlike a traditional apprenticeship that relies on face-to-face interactions, digital mentorship uses software, online platforms, and cutting-edge tools to facilitate collaboration and training. This approach gives employees access to expert guidance whenever they need it, not just when their mentor is available. In this way, it can be a bridge between generations, connecting seasoned experts with eager learners. A retired employee in Florida can continue to share their knowledge and experience with a new hire in Ohio, or two people from the same department can share content in real time so they can complete their independent work more efficiently. The power of this strategy comes from its ability to span time and geography while creating a synergy between experienced and emerging talent.
Digital Mentorship and Onboarding
Today’s younger workers learn differently than previous generations. While older workers may have preferred the tangibility and personal connection of one-on-one mentorships, digital mentorships align better with the self-directed learning styles of younger folks. Often more independent than their counterparts, younger workers tend to rely on online resources like YouTube and discussion forums like Reddit to solve problems. A veteran employee would rightfully question the reliability of a YouTube tutorial or a crowd-sourced recommendation, but younger employees are drawn in by their convenience and accessibility, and learning this way gives them a sense of ownership of their professional development. When an organization provides a digital platform for problem-solving, it begins to cater to these different learning styles, which in turn creates a more engaged and productive workforce.
CIMx Software recognized the need to capture and preserve the knowledge of a company’s most valuable employees in a production operations solution. CIMx CEO Anthony Cuilwik explains, “We developed Quantum with specific tools to distribute the institutional knowledge of the company’s most experienced workers while also catering to the digital learning styles of younger workers. Quantum allows you to take out a smartphone and record a detailed video tutorial or demonstration and add it to a digital library of expertise that can be accessed by employees at any time.” Once uploaded, administrators can assign workers to certain “classes” based on their job function. They can also attach notes, comments, and important content wherever their workers need it, whether they’re looking for a particular technique or troubleshooting a common issue. Cuilwik likens it to a personalized YouTube channel, but with complete control over the content and accessibility. “It’s like having your mentor right at your fingertips,” he says. “Quantum lets new hires learn from the best, even when those experts have retired.”
Digital Mentorship and Passing the Torch
Digital mentorship not only inspires an organization’s newer workers, but it also reinvigorates retiring employees. By sharing their hard-earned knowledge and insights, seasoned professionals can leave a lasting impact on the organization and continue to shape its future. This sense of purpose, coupled with the opportunity to connect with the next generation, can be incredibly rewarding. Moreover, as retiring employees engage with these tools, they often gain new skills and digital literacy, ensuring that they remain relevant and connected in the ever-evolving world of work.
Additionally, by incorporating these tools into the employee experience from Day One, digital mentorship isn’t just a retirement plan or a training strategy for younger workers. It can also boost morale for current employees and create a culture of continuous learning so companies can retain talent who might be thinking of leaving. When organizations are able to develop a clear path for career advancement, the workforce becomes more engaged and motivated, and a pipeline of future leaders begins to form.
Benefits for Businesses and Customers
The positive impact of a digital mentorship strategy extends beyond those who participate in the program, benefiting the overall organization and its customers. In wire harness manufacturing, for example, where tolerances are measured in thousandths of an inch and rework is often not an option, it’s essential for organizations to provide structured training in a centralized platform as a way to ensure that all employees are equipped to meet the exacting standards of the industry and their customers.
From a customer’s perspective, the primary concern is receiving a high-quality product delivered on time. They aren’t worried about internal company struggles like workforce turnover or supply chain disruptions. The competency crisis in manufacturing isn’t keeping your customers up at night. They simply expect consistency in craftsmanship, and they want it delivered on time. To meet these expectations, the priority must be to ensure a consistently skilled and efficient workforce.
Most organizations that implement a digital mentorship program notice a ripple effect of benefits. Consistent training and knowledge sharing lead to fewer errors and defects. Fewer errors mean less rework, and improved quality leads to cost savings. Beyond that, a well-trained workforce is more likely to identify opportunities for improvement and drive innovation. With a well-implemented digital mentorship program, your company’s next great idea can be a collaboration between your best past and current employees.
The Inevitable Change: A Digital Solution
10,000 Baby Boomers exit the workforce every day, according to the latest US Census, and the entire generation will be retired by 2030. Rather than dreading the loss of skilled workers, companies need to embrace strategies to capture and share their valued employees’ expertise. As CIMx CEO Anthony Cuilwik points out, “We work in the small to mid-size manufacturing space, where the loss of a key employee is often catastrophic. Even the most dedicated employees eventually retire. If you’re talking about a giant company, that’s not as big a deal. But for smaller shops with 15 to 200 people, that retirement can be devastating. Digital mentorship has the power to transform the way we develop talent. We’re proud that Quantum provides a platform to capture and preserve institutional knowledge so manufacturers truly can bridge that generation gap.”
As you grapple with this crisis, digital mentorship can be an underestimated and highly impactful tool for ensuring a consistently trained workforce. To learn more about Quantum and the possibilities of digital mentorship, visit www.cimx.com or contact Jack Johnson at [email protected].
About the Author:
Patrick Vaughn is a Digital Journalist at CIMx Software. With a 29-year heritage of solving complex manufacturing challenges, CIMx built Quantum to provide flexible control for modern manufacturers. To learn more about CIMx and Quantum, visit www.cimx.com or call 513-248-7700. Reach out to the author at [email protected].
