In October, QPS Employment Group had the pleasure of participating in The Assembly Show in Rosemont, Illinois, where thousands of engineers and manufacturing executives gathered for an interactive 3-day trade show. The event brought together key players in the manufacturing industry—from suppliers and buyers to users of assembly equipment—and provided valuable opportunities to learn and network.
Why Was QPS There as an Employment Agency?
As an employee-owned company, QPS is driven by a deep commitment to learning and improvement. Our philosophy is simple: whether or not we end up working with a particular company, we believe in sharing insights to help manufacturers operate more efficiently, safely, and successfully. By engaging with leaders across the manufacturing sector, we gain firsthand knowledge of the challenges they face, allowing us to offer workforce solutions that directly address these issues.
To maximize our learning and outreach, we invested in a booth and sent a team of 12 to represent QPS. Throughout the event, we connected with a range of professionals and gained insight into current trends and needs within the industry.
Shaping the Future Workforce
During the show I had the opportunity to lead a session in the learning center focused on workforce planning essentials for tomorrow’s manufacturing industry. Here are the six key strategies discussed:
- Build: Develop existing employees through targeted training, education, and promotions, whether it’s reskilling or upskilling
- Buy: Hire new talent from outside the organization to bring in specific skills or experiences
- Borrow: Use external resources like contractors, freelancers, or consultants for short-term projects or initiatives
- Bind: Retain critical employees and high-performing talent
- Bounce: Remove poor performers or reskill redundant roles
- Boost: Accelerate development for successors to ensure a strong leadership pipeline
Looking Ahead
The Assembly Show was a great experience for QPS, and we’re excited to build on the connections and insights gained. If you’d like to explore any of these workforce planning strategies or want to hear more about what we learned, we’d be happy to connect.
Stay tuned as we continue to share insights and updates aimed at strengthening the manufacturing workforce.
