As part of this mini-series, Paul Hutchings, Industry Director – Manufacturing at Fusion5, joins AU Manufacturing’s co-founder and editor, Brent Balinski, to share his observations from a long career in operations management, particularly some of the important things manufacturers should consider when they're in a rapid growth phase.
Episode guide
0:44 – Current role and career path, with a focus on operations management in manufacturing.
2:34 – “A lot of people overcomplicate manufacturing. But it’s basically grabbing ahold of ingredients or resources and converting it into something else.”
4:04 – A difference between Australian and New Zealand manufacturers versus those in the United States.
4:34 – Current role.
6:36 – Trends in food and beverage manufacturing during and since Covid.
7:44 – Traditional industries are starting to look a little harder at and invest in technology including robotics at the moment.
8:34 – Trends among small to medium companies who are scaling up, double-shifting, diversifying and the role of ERP in this.
10:07 – What scaleups are doing to address the labour shortage issue, and the importance of culture in this.
12:02 – Continuing with company culture, and the need to bring employees along as technology is introduced and their jobs change.
13:32 – The horror stories I’ve seen are around change management.
14:20 – “What am I, and where do I want to be?”
15:58 – Companies are often happy to help each other and can be an invaluable source of advice for high-growth companies. As long as they’re not commercial rivals.
16:48 – What clients are saying about the National Reconstruction Fund at the moment.
18:04 – Why planning is such an important – and overlooked – issue.