From CEOs of large corporations to owners of small manufacturing firms and leaders in continuous improvement, operations and engineering, IndustryWeek’s readership is richly diverse. The challenge is not only to be ahead of and provide perspective on the trends that move the industry, but to also give manufacturing leaders in companies of different sizes and in a cross-section of industry sectors practical advice to do their jobs better and achieve excellence.
In 2024, IndustryWeek met this challenge in our leadership coverage with economic trend articles during an election year, interviews with big-name manufacturing CEOs and tactical advice from leaders that know their jobs well.
Here are some highlights as we wrap up the year in manufacturing leadership:
In early 2024, the leader of Eaton Corp.’s electrical sector delved into details on the company’s blueprint for manufacturing innovation and vertical integration; Bosch USA’s Charleston, South Carolina, plant manager/vice president shared leadership lessons learned; and a manufacturing executive recruiter highlighted the five technology roles that are essential to IT/OT convergence.
As winter turned to spring, a Manufacturing Institute CEO/former Cargill CEO emphasized the need to scale up U.S. biomanufacturing and the struggle to find the specialized equipment to do so; a rising quality manager at a precision machining company stressed the importance of her company recognizing her potential and helping her grow and move into bigger roles; and the continuous improvement director of a large medical device manufacturer argued for more engagement of frontline leaders.
At midyear, readers met a 96-year-old manufacturer that is still family-owned and still innovating, learned how manufacturing leaders in the Midwest are collaborating with black churches to find good workers and heard from a CEO on a semiconductor supplier’s strategy for bringing advanced electronics manufacturing from Asia to the United States.
And as 2024 drew to a close, leaders of three major manufacturing policy organizations weighed in on priorities for the next presidential administration; a manufacturing economist positively prognosticated on the U.S. manufacturing economy; and Intel took a gamble with plans to spin off its semiconductor manufacturing.
Meanwhile, as 2025 rings in, what happens with tariffs, supply chain and regulations is top of mind, and manufacturers are waiting, watching and doing their level best to be flexible and responsive.
