Welcome Reception
The FORUM will begin with a Welcome Reception giving attendees the opportunity to meet and socialize with fellow FORUM participants during this casual event.
Tour of Lippert Components, Inc.
We will tour Plant 72, a 240,000 square foot facility that houses multiple finishing operations including one of the largest non-captive zinc phosphate and electrocoat systems in North America. Its 35,000-gallon processing tanks can accommodate parts approximately 4’ wide, 8.5’ deep, 50’ long, and up to 7,000 pounds of weight. We will also see the powder coat line and wet coat line with CARC (chemical agent resistant coating) capabilities that is used exclusively by the US military and other government contracts. In addition, Plant 72 offers both cathodic acrylic and epoxy coatings that meet 45 different OEM and military paint specifications. The facility also has a pickle/ de-rust process, that removes rust and scale from material prior to coating.
World Class Operations Driven by a Culture of Change
Lippert Components stands by their mantra of Everyone Matters. They believe business can and should be a force for good in the world. Learn how their focus on leadership and culture development has made a drastic impact on attrition over the last five years and the positive impact this has had on quality, safety, efficiency, and innovation in their business. This journey has also led them to understand that better leadership and work culture has a powerful influence on people’s mental and physical health. As a result, Lippert Components makes it their business to send people home happier and healthier so they can live more fulfilled lives that positively contribute to their families and local communities.
Creating the Structure for Accountability
Accountability in the workplace is linked to an increase in employee morale and commitment to work. Ownership and initiative are core to accountability and found in many of our employees however, accountability is lacking in many workplaces. While it seems creating an environment driven around accountability would be simple, why is it lacking in many organizations? Together we will discuss how to make accountability a core part of your culture and a core value of your team. In this session we will cover:
- What is accountability?
- Review the main reasons leaders and managers don’t hold others accountable.
- Discuss the important factors that contribute to creating a structure and environment encouraging accountability.
- Share leadership behaviors necessary to increase accountability.
- Action plan for results.
Journey to Leadership Panel
In this moderated panel discussion, women in a variety of leadership roles within the finishing industry share their career journeys. Learn about the challenges they faced, how they overcame them, as well as tips you may be able to apply to your own career pursuits. Our panelists have diverse backgrounds to provide perspective from both technical and non-technical viewpoints. This session will be interactive, allowing ample time for questions and answers.
Managing Conflict: Turn Fight, Flight or Freeze into Calm, Confident and Productive
Have you ever walked away from a difficult conversation feeling completed deflated? Imagine being able to step into the ring and rumble through a difficult conversation feeling calm, confident, and productive.
Unmanaged stress resulting from conflict leads to three biological responses: fight, flight, or freeze. In this session, you will identify your natural biological response and how to use this information to your advantage. Tactics to manage the stress of conflict will be explored including how to prepare for conflict physically, mentally, and emotionally. Learn about the physiological reactions to emotional stress, tips to minimize these reactions, and build an arsenal of tools to implement “real time”. The benefits of leaning into productive difficult conversations and the importance of healthy “storming” among a group to grow as a team will also be covered. Lastly, we will discuss the empathy required to deal with difficult people and steps to take when conversations might not go as planned.
Team Building Exercise
Get to know and connect with your fellow FORUM participants in a different light during our team building exercise on the University of Notre Dame campus. In addition to being fun, team building exercises develop leadership, problem solving and communication skills. Collaborate with your team members and develop a plan to reach the defined goal. Awards will be given as well as coveted bragging rights for the winning team.
Networking Dinner
Thursday evening will feature a Networking Dinner giving attendees the opportunity to continue conversations about the day’s session in a relaxed environment.
Wellness Walk (optional)
Get the blood flowing for Day 2 of the WiF FORUM with a walk through the beautiful Notre Dame campus to the infamous “House that Rockne Built,” Notre Dame Stadium. Opened in 1930, the stadium was designed by Osborn Engineering of Cleveland, selected for their experience designing Yankee Stadium and Fenway Park. Total walk distance is approximately 1.5 miles roundtrip and will take place rain or shine.
Embracing Market and Technology Trends in Industrial Finishing
This is an exciting time in the manufacturing and finishing industries as we enter what is being called the fourth industrial revolution or Industry 4.0. Technology innovation is changing how products are being designed, fabricated, used, and serviced. Whether that is due to advances in machine learning and smart manufacturing, collaborative robots and artificial intelligence, faster access to information and analytics, or additive manufacturing – it all leads to new opportunities to advance our industry.
By understanding and embracing these trends as opportunities, we can create substantial improvements in costs, productivity, quality, and safety for our own companies and for our customers. In parallel, we can use these advanced capabilities to support trends in exciting markets like mobility, where we have the opportunity to use our finishing capabilities to support the global need for more sustainable transportation.
Our role in this fourth industrial revolution is both critical and exciting. The technology trends that we can embrace combined with the market trends in sustainability and mobility give us an opportunity to make a very tangible impact to our global economy and to our own future success.
Starting a Women’s Initiative within Your Organization
As manufacturing continues to struggle with a shortage of skilled employees, the recruitment and retention of women has become a focus for many companies. Monica and Jaclyn will share information about Deere’s successful global Women in Operations employee resource group (ERG) for which Monica and Jaclyn serve as chair and vice chair. Since its launch in 2010, the group has grown to 1100+ members.
They will also share how the Women in Operations group, and Deere’s ERG program in general, have impacted them personally and professionally. From their experience, they will provide tips and ideas of how to start a similar initiative within your own company, whether you work for a small business or a large international OEM.
Roundtables
Events like the WiF FORUM bring together a diverse group of people within our industry, each of whom has their own area of expertise, perspective, challenges – and above all - valuable information and insights to share with fellow attendees. Discussions in this roundtable session will focus on a variety of topics of specific interest to our group and will be facilitated by a subject matter expert.
Closing Lunch Keynote: A Feminine Touch in a Masculine World: Why Manufacturing Needs the Healthiest Version of You
The world of manufacturing, historically dominated by men, is poised to be graced by a feminine touch. In a society where labels like “masculine” and “feminine” are seemingly polar opposites, our world is positioned to be awakened by the nuances of gender differences and how they can be optimized to drive organizational performance. But that requires both men and women to understand the strengths of one another, and individually commit to becoming the very healthiest versions of themselves so they can positively impact their team and the company.
