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Workforce Challenges in the Manufacturing Sector, with Jim Pursley, Factory Automation Systems

January 8, 2024 by John Ray

North Fulton Studio

Workforce Challenges in the Manufacturing Sector, with Jim Pursley, Factory Automation Systems

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Workforce Challenges in the Manufacturing Sector, with Jim Pursley, Factory Automation Systems

Jim Pursley: It’s still strong. We had some concerns about rising cost of money and economy slowing down.

But we’ve not seen it in a whole slug taking a downward turn just yet, always subject to change. And I think a lot of what’s driving that is still the strong employment numbers. Our business is structured around automation and helping people manufacture things in all types of spaces.

And, traditionally through the years that takes people to do that. And it’s harder and harder these days to find people that you could trust to show up to work every day that have the skills to do that. And especially in the manufacturing space. And so our customers, and the list keeps growing, from beyond the traditional Fortune 500 companies, to Fords and General Motors of the world to smaller organizations that just can’t find the people to do the work.

And so we get calls for “we’ve had this process we’ve done for years. We’re looking for a way to be able to do it. We can’t run the equipment sometimes because we don’t have people to show up to work to do it.” That’s been a big part of our continued success, whether that’s with robotic systems or just any other type of automation system.

And it continues to, to be even as large capital projects, maybe are slowing down. Even a lot of upgrade work with existing customers are taking the opportunities to replace obsolete equipment if they’ve slowed down. And even customers who aren’t seeing growth in their business in manufacturing still need the automation piece to drive costs down and to really backfill where you can’t find the labor.

Listen to Jim’s full ProfitSense with Bill McDermott interview here.

The “One Minute Interview” series is produced by John Ray and the North Fulton studio of Business RadioX® in Alpharetta. You can find the full archive of shows by following this link.

Renasant Bank has humble roots, starting in 1904 as a $100,000 bank in a Lee County, Mississippi, bakery. Since then, Renasant has grown to become one of the Southeast’s strongest financial institutions, with over $13 billion in assets and more than 190 banking, lending, wealth management, and financial services offices in Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee, Georgia, and Florida. All of Renasant’s success stems from each of their banker’s commitment to investing in their communities as a way of better understanding the people they serve. At Renasant Bank, they understand you because they work and live alongside you every day.

Andy Kalajian, Fort Leadership and Sales Consulting, LLC

November 7, 2022 by John Ray

North Fulton Business Radio

Andy Kalajian, Fort Leadership and Sales Consulting, LLC

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Andy Kalajian, Fort Leadership and Sales Consulting, LLC (North Fulton Business Radio, Episode 559)

Andy Kalajian joined North Fulton Business Radio host John Ray to discuss the mix of generations in the workplace and its effect on corporate culture, millennials in the workplace, causes of poor employee engagement, why employees are seeking more meaning and purpose in their work, how he helps teams diagnose and solve nagging performance difficulties, and much more.

North Fulton Business Radio is produced and broadcast by the North Fulton studio of Business RadioX® inside Renasant Bank in Alpharetta.

Fort Leadership and Sales Consulting, LLC

Fort Leadership and Sales Consulting, LLC is a Personal and Professional Leadership Development company.

They believe in Transformational Thought in Action! Transformational thought in action means that your thoughts become your actions. Those actions invested in your life, over time, become your habits.

When you invest your habits in your life over time, those habits produce your Character. And your Character determines the destiny of your life. With this model, you can understand why Character development is so very important! And Character Development is Leadership Development. This is why we believe that at Fort Leadership We Create Healthy Corporate Cultures One Character at a Time! They do this by conducting Executive Leadership Group Training at 1000 Avalon in North Fulton or via Zoom!

The workplace is comprised of 4 working generations. All four of these Generations are working in the United States right now. “The young adults are taking longer to grow up, middle- age adults are taking longer to grow old, and the elderly are taking longer to leave this earth.” Tim Elmore author of A New Kind of Diversity “As a people, we are growing older, more unequal, more diverse, more mixed race, more digitally linked, less married, less fertile, less religious, and less confident” Paul Taylor Pew Research Center.

Further dividing us in the workplace is the music we listen to, the heroes we celebrate, and the villains we denigrate. We are divided by our use of technology, the news outlets we watch, the events that we celebrate, and the politics venerate In the 1960s and 70s, work was a place where the employees made a living. People got their purpose and meaning from churches or houses of worship. We lived within 15 miles from where we were born and raised and so we had family all around us. We had a sense of community from bowling leagues, card parties, and the Rotary or Kiwanis club.

Today, all of this social responsibility has fallen on the workplace. The workplace is where Gen Y and Gen Z expect to get their meaning & purpose, it’s where they get their friend groups and their sense of community. They want everyone to agree with their politics. When you add the emotion of fear exacerbated by Covid and their sense of the fragility of life itself, they want and need the workplace to be their therapist too.

Now with this as a backdrop, it’s easier to understand why there is such a large exodus from the workforce. The Bureau of Labor and Statistics reports that 38 million workers left the workforce in 2021. Furthermore, they indicated that another 4.4 million headed for the exits in February 2022. Clearly, some Boomers took early retirement after Covid or just decided the heck with it, it is not worth it anymore.

Like the aftershocks of an earthquake, Covid is still causing tremors in our workplace. This is why Fort Leadership believes that strong Character driven Leadership is vital to the workplace and to the nation today! It is time for Leaders to stand up and teach the next generation what it looks like to model servant leadership. It’s time for leaders to sharpen their leadership skills. It’s time for leaders to invest in their leadership teams so that they can lead the people safely through turbulent storms. It’s time to gather them one by one, by one, and teach them the necessary skills to help them not to just survive, but to thrive.

So do you have a leadership growth plan for yourself? If not, why not? And do you have a Leadership Development plan for your people? As the leader, it’s incumbent on you to make the right decisions. This is your call to action!

Company website | LinkedIn | Instagram

Andy Kalajian, Founder & President, Fort Leadership and Sales Consulting, LLC

Andy Kalajian has been a highly sought-after public speaker for more than 25 years. He has received public acclaim for his brand, EnTheos, Latin for Spirit Within and predecessor to the word Enthusiasm. Andy enthusiastically delivers powerful talks and lessons steeped in wisdom literature and their practical application to busy lifestyles. His tagline, transformational thought in action, serves as a reminder to the participant that one can, indeed, permanently change the destiny of their life by changing the nature of their thoughts and actions.

Andy was born and raised in Detroit Michigan. As a young boy he discovered his passion for serving others in medicine and his gift for public speaking. At the age of 12, Andy, at the urging of his father, began to earn his own way as a Golf Caddy. His sense of adventure also led him, along with his father, to the Boy Scouts of America where he achieved the Rank of Eagle Scout. In High School, Andy was fed books from his mother, Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill and How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie

While a golf caddy, Andy was awarded the prestigious Evans Scholarship, a full academic and leadership scholarship, to study at Michigan State University, where he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Medical Technology. In 1985, he coupled his lifelong passion for medicine and serving people with his gift of enthusiastic speaking and moved to Atlanta to begin his career in Medical Sales.

As a young professional, Andy’s Mom continued to fuel his desire for wisdom literature from authors/speakers Zig Ziglar, Earl Nightingale, Les Brown, Stephen Covey, and John Maxwell. Andy applied the character traits instilled in him from the Boy Scouts and the leadership skills taught to him by John Maxwell, Stephen Covey, and others to enjoy over 30 years in an award-winning medical sales career. It was during this time that Andy was asked to speak to groups as small as 4 or 5 and as large as 500+ all over the US and Puerto Rico.

Andy is very involved in the lives of his two children, Mallory and Drew. For 12 years they were engaging in monthly adventures with the YMCA Adventure Guides program where Andy volunteered in several leadership positions including Nation Chief. Andy and his wife, Sherrie, have four adult children and are active members of Pastor Andy Stanley’s congregation at North Point Community Church in Alpharetta, Georgia.

Andy enjoys time invested with his wife Sherrie, his family, and friends. He still has a voracious appetite for reading the wisdom literature and the biographies of the American Founders. He enjoys weight lifting, aerobics, golf and hiking the outdoors. Andy continues to have a passion for speaking, coaching, and training others to lead a life of significance.

Connect with Andy Kalajian on LinkedIn.

Questions and Topics in the Interview

Who is Fort Leadership and Sales Consulting, LLC and how are you helping folks out there?
Can you give our listeners some insights as to what you are learning about our nation’s workforce in this post Covid world we are ALL living in?
How are the Millennials impacting the workforce today?
Why are so many workers leaving their employers?
How can employers solve the problems with employee engagement and employee retention?

North Fulton Business Radio is hosted by John Ray and broadcast and produced from the North Fulton studio of Business RadioX® inside Renasant Bank in Alpharetta. You can find the full archive of shows by following this link. The show is available on all the major podcast apps, including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google, Amazon, iHeart Radio, Stitcher, TuneIn, and others.

Renasant Bank has humble roots, starting in 1904 as a $100,000 bank in a Lee County, Mississippi, bakery. Since then, Renasant has grown to become one of the Southeast’s strongest financial institutions with over $13 billion in assets and more than 190 banking, lending, wealth management and financial services offices in Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee, Georgia and Florida. All of Renasant’s success stems from each of their banker’s commitment to investing in their communities as a way of better understanding the people they serve. At Renasant Bank, they understand you because they work and live alongside you every day.

Special thanks to A&S Culinary Concepts for their support of this edition of North Fulton Business Radio. A&S Culinary Concepts, based in Johns Creek, is an award-winning culinary studio, celebrated for corporate catering, corporate team building, Big Green Egg Boot Camps, and private group events. They also provide oven-ready, cooked-from-scratch meals to go they call “Let Us Cook for You.” To see their menus and events, go to their website or call 678-336-9196.

The Excitant and The Igniter – aka The 2 Dudes E11

September 6, 2022 by Karen

E11-The-Excitant-and-The-Igniter-aka-The-2-Dudes-feature

Phoenix Business Radio

The Excitant and The Igniter - aka The 2 Dudes E11

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The Excitant and The Igniter – aka The 2 Dudes E11

Kyle McIntosh of the Mac6 co-working space in Tempe faced a major problem. Tenants of the building began to fear for their safety and were moving out due to a growing homeless population in the area. Kyle & community leader Darren Chapman put their heads together to come up with a proactive solution that not only alleviated the problem but also benefited the the displaced individuals taking up residence.

Carla explores the idea of “Conscious Capitalism” in this episode of Smashing Through Walls with her guests Kyle and Darren (aka Dude 1 & Dude 2). Together, the three take listeners on a journey of positive impact & change through relationships. They discuss how commercial real estate can institute concepts that push the community in a positive direction.

The Tiger Mountain Foundation, led by Darren Chapman installs community gardens with native, food producing plants in spaces that you might not expect to find them and uses these gardens to create a sense of community pride and lift up people in need.

What if you could smash down some walls and create an effective solution of social entrepreneurism? Join Carla and her guests Kyle & Darren to find out exactly what that means, how they did it, and and the major positive impact it is having on their community!

TigerMountain Foundation converts space into edible landscaping, workforce development and lifestyle transition and transformation opportunities.

Darren Chapman is a community pro-activist who has committed his life to helping people. He is Founder and CEO of TigerMountain Foundation (a.k.a. TMF), which has implemented Empowerment Initiatives to uplift communities and eliminate blight.

TMF’s initiatives are community garden / landscaping development, audio, visual and performance art, community service and volunteerism. The gardens promote healthy living and active lifestyles by feeding, engaging and enfranchising the community.

MAC6 Builds Better Communities Where People and Businesses Thrive. They do that through programs and spaces for growing businesses. The three things that make MAC6 completely unique from anything else you’ll find are Growth, Flexibility, and Community.

1) Growth: From the perspective of, you will be in a Place filled with other growing and focused companies, surrounded by programs and resources to take you to the next level.

2) Flexibility: From the perspective of, The most flexible work spaces in Arizona, getting you laser focused on what you love to do and building your business with the freedom to not need to know what it may look like tomorrow let alone in three years.

3) Community: From the perspective of, growing your team and your business in a high performing and healthy environment, while being connected with the MAC6 Community of over 100 businesses.

Located in Tempe, 10 minutes from Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport, and 15 minutes from Arizona State University, the MAC6 Entrepreneurial campus offers 150,000 square feet of space including traditional and non-traditional private office suites, a variety of coworking office space solutions, and a unique light co-manufacturing space; all in service to growth-oriented entrepreneurs, startups, and mid-market.

With a background in marketing, in various for profit and not for profit companies, Kyle McIntosh wondered, “How can I pair the passion and commitment to community progress of a non-profit with the sustainability and reach of a for profit company?”

From this question and perspective a mission evolved to tear down the false distinction between the two sectors and to promote companies with Conscious Capitalism® business models through MAC6.

Kyle is the President and Creative Excitant of MAC6. MAC6 Builds Better Communities where People and Businesses Thrive, in commercial office buildings, co-working spaces, and co-manufacturing space. Additionally, he sits on the board of Conscious Capitalism Arizona, telling the stories of good businesses in Arizona.

Kyle loves Arizona and wants to see us all collectively find great success based on the awesome things that are happening here every day.

Connect with Kyle on LinkedIn and follow MAC6 on Facebook and Instagram.

About the Show

Smashing Through Walls is geared toward a guide through complex commercial real estate and finance topics while adding humor and anecdotes along the way. Discover what is going on in the valley and beyond with host Carla Magee, broker at MHG Commercial.

About Our Host

Carla Magee’s background is designed with the investor in mind. After obtaining her finance degree from the University of Washington in Seattle, she worked for large corporations like Boeing and Microsoft. With a critical eye and flair for analytics, she was able to shave millions in lost profits, managing cross-functional teams by utilizing her Green Belt in Six Sigma and Masters Certification in Project Management.

Ultimately she realized that she couldn’t be contained in an office environment working for the corporate world. Being an investor herself, she came into real estate as an investment & multifamily property specialist, effectively applying her education & skillset. Carla excels in helping investors make sound decisions for their financial goals, in real estate negotiations, and takes deep pride in educating homebuyers and sellers.

On a personal note, Carla is a busy wife & mother to two daughters. In addition to an ever growing career and podcast, she also enjoys volunteering and being active in the community. She has a deep love for Arizona and although she travels whenever possible, she always finds her way back to the beautiful Sonoran Desert.

Connect with Carla on LinkedIn.

About Our Sponsor

MHG Commercial emerged from the highly successful and innovative residential brokerage: My Home Group. MHG Commercial’s vetted and experienced advisors have a wide range of complementary professional expertise that span over 100 years of cumulative experience.

Encompassing every aspect of commercial real estate from office to industrial development, raw land to luxury commercial, and multifamily to subdivision development. We excel at out of the box thinking and transactions that require a more hands-on approach and ingenuity.

No matter the property type or service need, our commercial advisors are committed to your objectives. Combined with business finesse and unsurpassed market intelligence, MHG Commercial brokers help you determine and surpass your business goals.

Follow MHG Commercial on Facebook and Instagram.

Take the Opportunity E110

June 23, 2022 by Karen

Phoenix Business Radio

Take the Opportunity E110

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Take the Opportunity E110

The Tycoons welcomed Joe Serrano, CEO and Executive Director of TentMakers Inc, to the show.

Joe was an inspirational guest and is working to make a difference in this world. From humble beginnings to joining the Marines, he learned to take an opportunity if it is presented. He credits his time in the Marines to pushing him to find out what he’s made of, changing his life, and providing the confidence, discipline, and opportunity to be in the position he’s in today.

TentMakers is helping to solve the homelessness and affordable housing crisis in California and its model will hopefully continue to spread nationwide. They are giving the opportunity to people to learn a trade, get a job, build a home, and live in it, all while being sustainable to the environment. By the end of this episode, Joe’s passion and purpose will have you ready to downsize to your very own tiny home!

TentMakers Inc., (TMI), is a nonprofit Community Housing Development Corporation. TMI specializes in workforce housing development and job training opportunities for low-moderate income households. Our focus is on housing rehabilitation, (Jr.) & Accessory Dwelling Units, (ADU’s/JADU’s), tiny houses and job training in the building trades.

Joe Serrano is an entrepreneur and workforce housing specialist providing technical and adminstrative services to low-moderate income households in the planning, design, permit processing and building of workforce housing.

Joe has an academic background in architectural and business administration and has over 30 years of construction, design and business experience related to community development, (redevelopment) in Northern CA.

Joe formed TentMakers in 2007 to continue his work in redevelopment and has produced over 1,000 units of housing improvements with an estimated $75 million in construction cost.

Connect with Joe on LinkedIn and follow TentMakers Inc. on Facebook.

About the Show

Tycoons of Small Biz spotlights the true backbone of the American economy, the true tycoons of business in America… the owners, founders and CEO’s of small businesses. Join hosts, Austin L Peterson, Landon Mance and the featured tycoons LIVE every Tuesday at 1 pm, right here on Business RadioX and your favorite podcast platform.

About Your Hosts

Austin Peterson is a Comprehensive Financial Planner and co-founder of Backbone Planning Partners in Scottsdale, AZ. Austin is a registered rep and investment advisor representative with Lincoln Financial Advisors. Prior to joining Lincoln Financial Advisors, Austin worked in a variety of roles in the financial services industry.

He began his career in financial services in the year 2000 as a personal financial advisor with Independent Capital Management in Santa Ana, CA. Austin then joined Pacific Life Insurance Company as an internal wholesaler for their variable annuity and mutual fund products. After Pacific Life, Austin formed his own financial planning company in Southern California that he built and ran for 6 years and eventually sold when he moved his family to Salt Lake City to pursue his MBA.

After he completed his MBA, Austin joined Crump Life Insurance where he filled a couple of different sales roles and eventually a management role throughout the five years he was with Crump. Most recently before joining Lincoln Financial Advisors in February 2015, Austin spent 2 years as a life insurance field wholesaler with Symetra Life Insurance Company. Austin is a Certified Financial Planner Professional and Chartered Life Underwriter. In 2021, Austin became a Certified Business Exit Consultant® (CBEC®) to help entrepreneurs plan to exit their businesses.

Austin and his wife of 23 years, Robin, have two children, AJ (21) and Ella (18) and they reside in Gilbert, Arizona. He is a graduate of California State University, Fullerton with a Bachelor of Arts in French and of Brigham Young University’s Marriott School of Management with a Master of Business Administration with an emphasis in sales and entrepreneurship.

Connect with Austin on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Landon Mance is a Financial Planner and co-founder of Backbone Planning Partners out of Las Vegas, Nevada. He rebranded his practice in 2020 to focus on serving small business owners after operating as Mance Wealth Management since 2015 when Landon broke off from a major bank and started his own “shop.”

Landon comes from a family of successful entrepreneurs and has a passion and excitement for serving the business community. This passion is what brought about the growth of Backbone Planning Partners to help business owners and their families. At Backbone Planning, we believe small business owners’ personal and business goals are intertwined, so we work with our clients to design a financial plan to support all aspects of their lives.

In 2019, Landon obtained the Certified Exit Planning Advisor (CEPA) designation through the Exit Planning Institute. With this certification, Backbone Planning Partners assists business owners through an ownership transition while focusing on a positive outcome for their employees and meeting the business owner’s goals. Landon is also a member of the Business Intelligence Institute (BII) which is a collaborative group that shares tools, resources and personnel, and offers advanced level training and technical support to specifically serve business owners. In 2021, Landon became a Certified Business Exit Consultant® (CBEC®) to help entrepreneurs plan to exit their businesses by counseling owners about exit options, estimating the value of the business, preparing the business for exit and tax considerations.

Landon enjoys spending time with his beautiful wife, stepson, and new baby twins. He grew up in sunny San Diego and loves visiting his family, playing a round of golf with friends, and many other outdoor activities. Landon tries to make a difference in the lives of children in Las Vegas as a part of the leadership team for a local non-profit. He regularly visits the children that we work with to remind himself of why it’s so important to, “be the change that you wish to see in the world.”

Landon received his B.S. from California State University Long Beach in business marketing and gets the rest of his education through the school of hard knocks via his business owner clients.

Connect with Landon on LinkedIn.

Gary Braun is a Founder and co-owner of Pivotal Advisors. In his role at Pivotal, Gary is primarily responsible for business development but, he’ll gladly take on few clients in a consulting role. Gary speaks with and partners with other firms that help drive top-line growth.

Gary, helps organizations define where growth is coming from, helps them hire and/or develop the sales team, identify ideal clients and markets, and leverage true differentiators (even in commodity markets). He also implements sales processes, targets specific KPIs, increases activity, creates and applies sales compensation plans, and develops sales leadership skills.

Pivotal Advisors LLC is dedicated to creating a community of people who strive for excellence in sales and leadership. A Sales Operating System is the model for how to achieve excellence. Leadership is the First Factor of success in any sales organization. Therefore, building and developing leaders responsible for generating revenue is critical for growth.

Follow Pivotal Advisors on LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter.

Austin Peterson and Landon Mance are registered representatives of Lincoln Financial Advisors Corp. Gary Braun and Pivotal Advisors are separate from and not affiliated with Backbone Planning Partners/Lincoln Financial Advisors.

Securities and investment advisory services offered through Lincoln Financial Advisors Corp., a broker/dealer (member SIPC) and registered investment advisor. Insurance offered through Lincoln affiliates and other fine companies. Backbone Planning Partners is a marketing name for registered representatives of Lincoln Financial Advisors.

Lincoln Financial Advisors Corp. and its representatives do not provide legal or tax advice. You may want to consult a legal or tax advisor regarding any legal or tax information as it relates to your personal circumstances.

The content presented is for informational and educational purposes. The information covered and posted are views and opinions of the guests and not necessarily those of Lincoln Financial Advisors Corp.

Business RadioX® is a separate entity not affiliated with Lincoln Financial Advisors Corp.