Summary
Automation Alley is a World Economic Forum Advanced Manufacturing Hub (AMHUB) for North America and a nonprofit Industry 4.0 knowledge center with a global outlook and a regional focus. We facilitate public-private partnerships by connecting industry, education and government to fuel Michigan's economy.
American manufacturing is attracting renewed investment. Companies are reconsidering where products are made, expanding domestic capacity and bringing some production closer to home. However, the reshoring workforce needed to support that growth may prove just as...
Welcome to the Great Hiring Disconnect. On Monday morning, a manufacturing executive shared something we hear almost every day: “We have great jobs. We pay well. We just can’t find qualified people.” Less than twenty-four hours later, an experienced engineer told us...
As technology moves faster, operations get more complex. Customers expect more. Systems change. Automation expands. Leaders are being asked to build new capability without slowing the business down. That is why reskilling gets so much attention. Companies invest in...
As reshoring accelerates U.S. manufacturing investment, workforce capacity is emerging as a critical constraint, making earlier planning for skilled technicians, engineers, machinists, and other specialized talent essential to turning new facilities and technology into production.
The “Great Hiring Disconnect” isn’t simply a talent shortage—it reflects hiring processes that prioritize perfect resumés, lengthy interviews, and automation over transferable skills, candidate potential, timely decisions, and human judgment.
Reskilling only delivers measurable business value when training is directly tied to operational goals, supported by process changes, and reinforced through day-to-day execution.
