Kyle Stoff spent his high school years doing parkour and making butterfly knives by hand. By the end of his Junior Year in high school, he’d decided he wanted to get into manufacturing to perfect his knife-making process. He skipped his Senior Year and dove into a full-time program at Ranken, becoming one of my best—and youngest—students.
Now, Kyle works full-time for Orizon Aerostructures and makes his knives on days and weekends. His knives typically sell starting at $1,800—many are auctioned off even higher. He shares his story and why he’s passionate about manufacturing in this episode of MakingChips. Because if you’re not MakingChips, you’re not making knives, and you’re not making money. BAM!
– Drew Crowe
Do you express gratitude for your team members? Do they know their work is appreciated? Do you help guide them through their career so they can continue to learn and improve? Too many shops overwork good employees because they achieve excellence. That’s a mistake. It’s one of many reasons machine shops struggle with retention.
In part II of our conversation with Drew Crowe and Dan Borders, we talk about the importance of showing appreciation. We also cover why it’s important for account managers to offer value, and how to retain young talent. Because if you’re not appreciating your talent, you won’t retain them. And if you can’t retain them, you’re not MakingChips, and definitely you’re not making money. BAM!
– Nick
How can we attract the next generation to machining? How can small shops attract and retain talent? How can we fuel greatness? In this episode of MakingChips, guest host Drew “The MFG” Crowe—the force behind the American Manufacturing Renaissance—brings on Dan Borders with Edge Technologies to start to tackle these questions. Because if you’re not attracting and retaining top talent, you won’t have a team to make chips. BAM!
– Nick
What separates successful shops from unsuccessful ones? The people. As a leader, taking care of your people is paramount. So how do you manage and lead your people better? By following the Golden Rule. How do you apply the “Golden Rule” in business? Mike Ruge—the Integrator and Experience Director at ZENGERS—shares what that looks like and it can transform your business in this episode of MakingChips. Because if you aren’t taking care of your people, they won’t be MakingChips and if they’re not MakingChips, you’re not making money. BAM!