By Andrea Masterton, VP Marketing at Poka
Key takeaways:
- Digital connected worker tools streamline onboarding and training for temporary manufacturing workers, reducing reliance on traditional shadowing methods and minimizing productivity losses during seasonal spikes.
- Safety and inclusivity are prioritized through standardized video lessons, real-time digital instructions, and bilingual translation features, ensuring temporary workers receive consistent, OSHA-compliant training in their preferred language.
- Temporary workers become a skilled, agile talent pool when empowered with these tools, allowing manufacturers to cut onboarding costs, reduce errors, and maintain operational efficiency while upskilling contingent staff.
Process manufacturing capabilities, especially during high season, heavily rely on a contingent workforce. The industry mandates that specialized health and safety measures are implemented and followed, so onboarding temp workers from agencies is crucial to follow effective yet thorough protocols. The reality is that hands-on traditional training practices are resource-constraining and typically require attention from full-time workers, which can strain productivity even further. Now, digitally connected workforce tools are here to not only seamlessly onboard temporary workers but also generate expanded skill sets among the industry’s contingent talent pool.
The expensive onboarding phase has a ripple effect from temporary worker to permanent. With workforce turnover rates in manufacturing already soaring, McKinsey reports that turnover in the manufacturing workforce is reaching up to 36.6% yearly. In essence, contingent workers are a vast pool of talent that can support manufacturers in the age of recruitment uncertainty, especially during seasonal demands, with just under 7 million people who act as contingency for recruiters with no set contracts.
Training new and temporary hires needs strategic digital realignment. Food and beverage manufacturers can transform tapping into seasonal workers into a dynamic process that allows contingent workers to shift seamlessly into their new role with limited constraints on resources and overall operational productivity. Connected worker platforms have become the digital bridge between sustaining steady operations and onboarding seasonal staff to tackle demand spikes.
Prioritizing safety on the frontline with enhanced onboarding operations
From a regulatory perspective, temporary worker training is required by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to be identical or equivalent to the training provided to regular employees. The issue is that temporary workers usually join a factory workforce at peak time, so time and resources for training are already stretched.
Traditional shadowing and classroom training methods can differ from one trainer to the next, introducing potential inconsistencies for new seasonal recruits who need to get up to speed quickly and safely. But video lessons delivered through a connected worker application help close the skills gap and enhance training, increasing productivity and reducing human error.
Training guidance at the tip of temporary worker fingertips
Consider a 500-employee factory specializing in the production of medical nutrition. Faced with the need to quickly train a new wave of operators while expanding operations, it adopted a modern training solution with a connected worker platform. It was able to provide new hires with real-time access to training videos, digital work instructions, and troubleshooting tips directly on the factory floor, enabling a more immediate learning process. By incorporating support for real-time training at the point of need, the factory reduced shadowing time and overstaffing costs by 40%, accelerating the onboarding process.
Fast-tracking and reducing the cost of training for temporary workforces in this way allows businesses to meet fluctuating production demands with more agility.
Transform a potential hindrance into a skillful asset
By leveraging a connected worker platform, manufacturers provide recruits with immediate access to clear video lessons and digital work instructions. But the goal isn’t just to get temporary workers on the floor faster, it is to equip them with the knowledge and confidence to work safely and productively from day one, turning a potential liability into a productive part of the factory team.
Bilingual communication on the factory floor
For a high proportion of temporary workers, English is not their first language, so here the connected worker platform’s ability to provide AI-driven bilingual translation of work instructions and continuous training is essential to serve up key information in a way that is best absorbed by individual workers, and in their own language.
Neural machine translation services can deliver fast, high-quality, affordable, customizable language translation to convert spoken language into text in real time. This technology continuously refines its understanding of language nuances, dialects, and industry-specific terminology, making it essential for the manufacturing environment. By providing real-time, accurate transcriptions in multiple languages, these tools ensure that all employees, regardless of their native language, can access and understand critical safety protocols and standard operating procedures (SOPs). This inclusivity not only enhances operational safety but also reduces errors and promotes a higher standard of work.
Upskilling contingent talent with strategic digital realignment
Digital tools that enhance learning and development for temporary workers are the way forward for food and beverage manufacturers. The factory floor digital revolution isn’t just a fancy front; it’s a strategic realignment that directly improves working conditions for temporary workers and full-time staff alike.
Connected worker tools effectively streamline onboarding processes, especially during seasonal demands when contingent workers are needed the most. These tools prioritize temporary workers without stretching permanent staff and their workload. Not only this, but human error is minimized with the support of consistent and accurate digital training. With temporary workers able to take control of their own training with live guidance, safety becomes a top priority, and productivity isn’t hindered.
Temporary workers can swiftly step into a role and gear up in the team, suited and equipped with the right knowledge and real-time support instructions to minimize onboarding skills delays. It’s a win-win for manufacturers and temporary workers’ professional development.
Andrea has been the Vice President of Marketing at Poka for the last 6 years. In this role, she loves championing the power of “Connected Workers” and the transformative impact a digital factory can have on manufacturing operations. Prior to Poka, Andrea has held senior sales and marketing leadership positions at enterprise security and productivity software companies including OneSpan, eSignLive and Silanis. When not at work, Andrea can be found trail running, breathing deeply in Warrior Pose, or on a family adventure.
