Insights into the forces shaping our industry.
Interwire Trade Exposition
Industry Commentary
Attending the Interwire Trade Exposition always gets me excited about our the Wire & Cable industry and how it impacts lives. Rich Stinson’s (CEO of Southwire) speech was thought-provoking and an interesting look into the future of the wire & cable industry. The re-electrification of the United States will offer us a lot of opportunities to expand our businesses. As many companies reduce their carbon footprint, electrification is the solution. There are several things we need to focus on: renewable energy & climate change, legislature (Infrastructure bill, Inflation Reduction Act, Chips Act) and grid transformation.
Labor Shortages and Automation
Many attendees were talking about labor shortages and finding ways to diversify their product offerings to reflect the changes that are coming. There was a lot of talk about a move to automation and the modernization of facilities to help resolve some of those issues. Staffing was a hot topic as well. Many companies are relaxing their hiring requirements making adaptive skills just as important as direct knowledge. Onboarding employees was another topic which was discussed. Companies that had strong onboarding processes had lower new employee turnover.
When talking to women and younger attendees on the trade floor about how they got into wire & cable, most were brought in by a friend who worked in the industry. That is a strong testament to why offering employee referral bonuses is a good idea. They are staying in the business because they like the company culture and their team and are excited to be part of something that is the building block of so many things. Most new people in the industry don’t understand how much wire & cable impacts lives. We need to do a better job of presenting what we do and how it impacts everything from renewables, aerospace, EV charging, and the grid. To quote Rich Stinson – The future is electrified!
Pati Kelly
Executive Recruiter / Senior Partner
Pati concentrates on working with Wire & Cable manufacturers and distributors including bare copper, control and automation cable, building wire, low voltage, industrial, high voltage, specialty cable (mining, marine, portable, etc.). Her clients range from major manufacturers of industrial and utility products to players in retail and datacom.