Business Strategy

Empowering Timely Retirements Through Active 401(k) Participation

October 7, 2024

By Joseph P. Trybula, CFP®, AIF®

In today’s fast-paced work environment, ensuring employees retire on time isn’t just beneficial—it’s essential for fostering a vibrant, dynamic workforce. One of the most effective ways to achieve this is by encouraging active participation in 401(k) plans. Let’s dive into how 401(k) plans can pave the way for timely retirements and why employers should champion these powerful retirement savings tools.

Understanding the Power of 401(k) Plans

A 401(k) plan isn’t just a savings account; it’s a robust, tax-advantaged vehicle designed to secure financial well-being in retirement. By contributing a portion of their paycheck—either pre-tax or to a Roth 401(k)—employees set themselves up for a financially secure future. Pre-tax contributions reduce taxable income now, while Roth contributions, made with after-tax dollars, offer tax-free withdrawals in retirement. Both options, often bolstered by employer-matched contributions, allow employees to build a substantial financial cushion that can be relied upon during their golden years.

The Unmatched Benefits of 401(k) Participation

Securing Financial Freedom in Retirement

Consistent Savings: Regular contributions to a 401(k) plan allow employees to build a significant nest egg over time, ensuring they are financially prepared for retirement.
Compound Growth: The magic of compounding interest means that the earlier employees start contributing, the more their savings can grow exponentially, resulting in a robust retirement fund.
Employer Matching: Many employers sweeten the deal by matching a portion of employee contributions, amplifying the savings without any extra effort from the employee.

2. Encouraging Timely, Confident Retirements

Adequate Savings: Employees who actively participate in their 401(k) plans are far more likely to have the funds needed to retire comfortably at the traditional retirement age.
Reduced Financial Stress: A well-funded retirement plan alleviates the financial anxiety that often leads employees to delay retirement, allowing them to exit the workforce with confidence.
Workforce Planning: When employees retire on schedule, employers can plan for succession and hiring more effectively, ensuring a smooth transition and maintaining a well-balanced workforce.

3. Maximizing Tax Advantages

Pre-Tax Contributions: By contributing pre-tax dollars, employees lower their taxable income for the year, offering immediate tax savings.
Roth Contributions: Employees who choose Roth 401(k) contributions pay taxes upfront but enjoy tax-free withdrawals in retirement, providing flexibility in managing their future tax obligations.
Tax-Deferred Growth: Investments within the 401(k) plan grow tax-free until withdrawal, allowing for potentially higher returns over the long term.

Proven Strategies to Boost 401(k) Participation

Education and Awareness

Workshops and Seminars: Regular educational sessions help demystify 401(k) plans, highlighting the importance of early and consistent contributions and how these efforts translate to long-term financial security.
Personalized Advice: Providing access to financial advisors allows employees to receive tailored guidance, ensuring they understand their unique retirement needs and how best to meet them.

2. Incentives that Drive Action

Enhanced Matching Contributions: Employers can make their 401(k) plans more attractive by offering competitive matching contributions, making it easier for employees to build their savings.
Automatic Enrollment: By implementing automatic enrollment with an opt-out option, employers can ensure that employees start saving from day one, without the need for them to take the first step.

3. Consistent, Clear Communication

Monthly Newsletters: Keep employees informed and engaged with regular updates on their 401(k) options, plan changes, and actionable tips for maximizing their savings.
Interactive Tools: Provide online calculators and tools that empower employees to visualize their retirement savings goals and track their progress, making the path to financial security clearer and more attainable.

The Win-Win of 401(k) Participation
Promoting active participation in 401(k) plans creates a win-win scenario for both employers and employees. Employees gain the peace of mind that comes with financial security, enabling them to retire on time and with confidence. For employers, this translates to a stable, predictable workforce, enhanced succession planning, and a more productive work environment. By prioritizing 401(k) participation through strategic education, appealing incentives, and consistent communication, employers can cultivate a culture of financial wellness that benefits everyone.

For further assistance or to schedule a consultation, contact me at joe@diversifiedfa.com or 800-307-0376.

Mitigate Risks with a Crisis Plan

September 16, 2024

By Shelly Otenbaker, president, WayPoint Marketing Communications

“An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” Many are aware of this phrase, but few follow it. In manufacturing, taking small, proactive steps to prevent a problem is far more effective and less costly than dealing with the consequences once the problem occurs – especially when managing a crisis.

A business crisis is a situation that negatively impacts customers, employees and/or a company’s reputation. They come in all shapes and sizes, including organizational (e.g., acquisitions, cybersecurity, reorganizations), natural disasters, accidents and work stoppages.

The best way to mitigate the risk and minimize the negative impact of a crisis is to be prepared. Many manufacturers have people in environmental, health and safety roles who have developed a plan for the facility to manage a crisis, but few have established a communication plan.

A crisis communication plan helps ensure clear and consistent messages are conveyed during times of uncertainty or emergency. A well-structured plan helps to manage information flow, minimizing misinformation and reducing panic. It outlines the roles and responsibilities of key personnel, ensuring everyone knows their tasks and can swiftly act. This preparation helps maintain trust and credibility with stakeholders, including employees, customers, investors and the public.

Developing a crisis communication plan does not have to be overly complicated. But it does need to be a living plan that adjusts as the business changes, and it must define processes and action steps. Here are a few steps companies can take when developing an effective crisis communication plan.

Identify the Team

It is important to identify the employees that will support the plan because this will be the team responsible for managing and communicating during a crisis. When developing a team, think about the entire organization and the people who could be impacted by a crisis. It should include facility people – EHS, HR, plant leadership – as well as communications, legal and, potentially, the business owner.

If a company has multiple facilities, the team may need to expand to a head of the region or the corporate team. Having a pre-identified and trained team ensures all members know their roles and will help improve response time and effectiveness.

Create a Response Protocol

The response protocol is a step-by-step guide to guide the organization through a crisis and should contain several key tools.

First, the crisis team should brainstorm the type of crises the organization could face. This should be realistic but include scenarios that are not highly likely – before 2020, it is doubtful an organization had a pandemic in its crisis plan.

Additionally, the team should create crisis levels and the criteria that define each level. For example:

Level 1 – controlled, minimal impact on employees or business, no injuries
Level 2 – temporary, confined to facility, minor injury
Level 3 – significant business impact, multiple or severe injury, community impact
Level 4 – significant business impact (e.g., multiple facilities), death, regional impact

The levels should include general categories, align specifically to the business, cover all facets of the organization and increase in severity.

The next important tool is an incident report or some sort of mechanism to collect important data related to the crisis, such as what happened or is happening, who is involved and impacted, whether it’s an isolated/one-time incident or ongoing and any details related to the situation. Having access to correct information will be critical to an organization’s crisis response team’s ability to make informed decisions.

Next, an organization must define how to respond to different types of crises. An organization should ask: How will communication happen? Who initiates it and when does it start? What are the appropriate action steps based on the crisis levels and timing – immediate, first 12 hours, 24 hours and beyond? What communication tools will be used and what are the expected milestones?

Develop Communication Materials

During a crisis, every second counts so it is helpful to have materials or templates created and easily accessible to be utilized by the crisis team as needed.

Key messages: Predefined messages about what the company does, what makes it unique and its values and priorities.
Facility statistics: Information about all facilities – size, number of employees, products produced, etc.
Scenario-specific messaging: Established messaging targeted at high-priority stakeholders (e.g., employees, customers) for specific scenarios that could occur within the facility.
Contact lists: Create a list of names, emails and phone numbers for key stakeholders – employees (and emergency contacts), customers, emergency services and local media outlets.
Spokespeople: Identify and train a small group of people who are tasked to communicate with employees, customers and media during a crisis.
Communication tools: Identify and prepare tools that will be utilized to communicate during a crisis. Remember crisis teams may not always be able to utilize their facilities or traditional communication tools for all crises (e.g., loss of power, cell service).

Practice Makes Perfect

Although there is no perfect outcome when it comes to a crisis, companies regularly should conduct drills and simulation exercises to test the effectiveness of their crisis communication plan. Creating different scenarios and running through them allows a team to practice roles and refine the plan based on lessons learned.

Finally, a crisis communication plan should be dynamic and responsive to changes in the organization and its environment. Regularly review and update the plan to reflect new employees, risks, stakeholders and communication technologies.

A crisis communication plan can significantly impact the overall outcome of a crisis. Anyone who has endured a crisis without a plan will share that it often can be chaotic and extremely stressful.

By having predetermined strategies and communication channels, organizations can address concerns, provide necessary updates and demonstrate control over the situation. This proactive approach not only protects the organization’s reputation but also reassures stakeholders the organization is competent and prepared to handle adverse situations.

Shelly Otenbaker is the president of WayPoint Marketing Communications, a leading business-to-business marketing communications agency focused on helping manufacturers attract and retain talent and acquire new business. The company specializes in building customized, strategic programs tailored to meet the unique needs of each client.

More information: www.waypointmc.com

Protecting Print Businesses from Digital Disruption

June 11, 2024

By Tom Wojcinski, principal, and Michael J. Devereux II, CPA, CMP, partner, Wipfli

Is there anything a manufacturer can do to ensure its operations are not hacked? Unfortunately, there is no way that’s possible, especially in today’s connected manufacturing environment. Even if a printer or print finisher disconnected everything from the internet, it still could be the victim of a technology hack if physical access is available to any bad actors or those working on their behalf.

Cloud-based ERPs, digital transformation and Industry 4.0 solutions are creating efficiencies, customer engagement and business intelligence that are improving operations and profitability, which cannot be duplicated on analog systems. Consequently, however, this increased digitization creates greater risk to printers’ and print finishers’ data and operations; and the research has shown that no manufacturer is too small or too big to be safe from cyber-attacks. Leadership often assumes that no one will hack their company because the data isn’t valuable to others. The bad actors disagree, however. Data is valuable, and they would like to put the company in a position where it must pay a ransom to get its data back. And data isn’t just limited to financial information, it could include confidential customer information, bills of material, product designs, processing data, sampling results and more.

Wipfli recently conducted a survey of over 200 manufacturers. The survey found that almost half of the respondents experienced three or more network breaches in the past 12 months. That can be overwhelming to leadership, not to mention IT staff or the supporting organization.

Focusing on Manufacturing Resilience

A company’s data isn’t the only thing at risk. Cyberattacks can focus on physical assets, rather than digital assets. Cybercriminals can lock up or seize equipment operations. Not only can this result in a significant amount of unplanned downtime but can also pose a physical risk to employee safety.

For example, consider a printer or print finisher that stores and recalls processing data for each job within an ERP or MES system. What happens if those digital services are disrupted or the underlying operational data is held hostage? Or a worse scenario, what if the technical specifications are changed, and the print finisher continues to make end products that don’t meet internal or external specifications? Similarly, vision and quality systems within the plant could be vulnerable and the target of a potential attack. While some of this seems implausible or unlikely, cyber-attacks are becoming more sophisticated and aggressive, and exposure in these areas can cause very real risks to organizations.

Printers and print finishers can protect their operations by building and implementing resilience strategies to cyber-attacks. In this instance, resilience does not mean “bullet proof.” Rather, it means that a company can resist an attack, respond quickly and thoroughly when the attack occurs, and efficiently recover any data or business operations that are compromised. That starts by identifying weaknesses in the digital perimeter and then building a multilayered strategy to protect and respond to the cyberattack.

Common Blind Spots

There can be multiple physical and digital avenues into operations or data (including financial, operational, technical or front office information). Often, these paths are hidden or are seemingly insignificant. Outdated and unsupported hardware and software on the shop floor are two of the most overlooked sources of vulnerability. While this equipment may not be used like traditional PCs or laptops, it is still connected to the network. If it’s not maintained, it could be a security risk to the organization.

All too often, the IT department is not involved in all IT decisions. With the advancement of software-as-a-service model and cloud computing, it’s easier for employees to purchase new software, download applications or share files using the cloud, without the oversight of skilled IT or cyber professionals. Systems and software that are not vetted against company policies or maintained properly could pose additional, not-so-obvious risks. In addition, they extend the number of vectors a bad actor may use to gain access, often without a company’s knowledge, making it more difficult to protect data and operations.

A lack of real-time cyber monitoring is another common blind spot. Without real-time monitoring, a company has no visibility into attempts to infiltrate its network. Stopping and safeguarding against attacks is harder if a company does not know that they’re happening. For instance, real-time monitoring can protect against the violation of impossible travel rules. In this scenario, a legitimate user logs into the network from his or her home office in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Let’s assume this is the corporate controller of a print finisher, just outside of Milwaukee. Then, just three hours later, the corporate controller logs in from Dublin, Ireland. This is an impossible travel scenario and clearly a sign that the corporate controller’s credentials have been breached. However, it could go unnoticed for some period of time without proper, real-time monitoring in place.

Creating a Multi-faceted Security Strategy

The most effective means to resist an attack is to establish a multilayer security strategy. At its most basic level, the strategy should include:

Password protocols: Require the use of strong passwords.
Email protections: Technologies that limit spam and spear-phishing attempts will reduce the risk of social engineering.
Multi-factor authentication (MFA): MFA requires users to take additional steps to verify their identity anytime when logging in or accessing a system or company app. MFA should be implemented on all removed access points, as well as internal administrative accounts. This includes email, VPN and all cloud-based applications.
End-point detection and response (EDR): EDR increases the ability to detect suspicious events by providing real-time visibility into potential attacks. EDR often is confused with antivirus software, which should also be used. Antivirus software looks for malicious programs running on the computer or network, while EDR searches for malicious activity in the memory of the computer.
Regular vulnerability scans and penetration testing: If a company is not monitoring its environment, printers and print finishers cannot identify their vulnerabilities or ways to fix them. Monthly or quarterly penetration testing of the external systems and vulnerability scans of the internal systems are critical to identifying weaknesses before they can provide access to bad actors.
Vulnerability management: Cyber criminals are regularly probing for security gaps. A company can make it more difficult for them by deploying security patches and software updates, removing unnecessary software and disabling unused system processes.
Air-gapped backups & segmented networks: If an employee can browse directly to the company’s backup files from its primary network, they are not safe from ransomware or other cyber-attacks. Separated backup files on a stand-along network that requires separate credentials often mitigates this risk.
Recovery testing: What happens if a company is attacked? Have steps been taken to restore the network, files or operations? Are the backups occurring as designed? A network failure or cyber-attack isn’t the best time to find out files haven’t been backed up or do not have the means of restoring them. Businesses need to regularly test the backup process to confirm the protocol is working, as designed, and intended.

The Importance of Employee Engagement in Cybersecurity

It’s critical that employees understand the importance of cyber security. Many hackers don’t hack systems, they hack people, as they’ve found it’s easier to trick someone into sharing their credentials than to break into a network. That is, if someone gives them the keys, why mess with the lock. It’s for that reason that employee engagement on cybersecurity is just as important as the focus on a company’s perimeter.

To start with, print-related businesses must put controls in place to govern how data and information are used, managed and stored. Sensitive data should be limited to those who absolutely require it to perform their job functions.

In addition to understanding where the data is stored and who has access to it, the best practice is to implement a comprehensive training program. Hackers will use a variety of social engineering techniques to steal information, including email (phishing), SMS text messages (smishing) and phone calls/voicemail (vishing). Training employees to be skeptical is key. When employees understand what they need to do and why, company operations will be better protected against cyber criminals.

Regular Cyber Assessments

Finally, manufacturing businesses operating in the print industry should engage in regular cyber assessments, whether that’s done internally by IT staff that keeps up with the cyber security trends or by an outside firm. These assessments provide visibility into potential avenues bad actors can access data. From there, businesses can develop or modify safeguards and policies that can better protect them from cyber fraud.

Tom Wojcinski is a principal in Wipfli’s cybersecurity and technology management practice. He leads a variety of engagements designed to help improve organizations’ cybersecurity posture, including cybersecurity risk assessment, control program development and implementation, incident response planning and simulation, vulnerability and penetration testing, security audit, control verification, and managed security services. Wojcinski is a frequent author and speaker on cybersecurity and information technology risk management topics.

Michael J. Devereux II, CPA, CMP, is a partner and director of Manufacturing, Distribution & Plastics Industry Services for Wipfli. Devereux’s primary focus is on tax incentives and succession planning for the manufacturing sector. He regularly speaks at manufacturing conferences around the country on tax issues facing the manufacturing sector.

For more information, visit www.wipfli.com.

PRINTING United Expo Showcases Finishing and Embellishments

December 11, 2023

Compiled by PostPress staff

The PRINTING United Expo was held October 18-20, 2023, at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta, Georgia, showcasing an array of printing technologies that included a multitude of finishing and embellishment processes.

“PRINTING United Expo has set a new benchmark for the printing industry,” said Mark J. Subers, president, PRINTING United Expo. “With over 28,000 registrants this year, the continued feedback we are receiving directly and across social media platforms confirms that we are delivering what attendees and exhibitors have asked for.”

Photo provided by PRINTING United Alliance

Across one million square feet of show floor space occupied by 811 exhibitors, attendees had the first chance to see product debuts and the very latest versions of the hottest technology in the printing industry. There was a new product unveiling in nearly every market segment across printing: apparel decoration; commercial and publishing; functional/industrial; graphic installers; graphics/wide-format; in-plant; labels and packaging; mailing, shipping, and fulfillment; and promotional.

From the print finishing side, several PostPress advertisers and Foil & Specialty Effects Association (FSEA) supplier members were launching new equipment and showcasing current technology.

“PRINTING United continues to be a pivotal event for the graphic arts community and many of our advertisers and supporters of FSEA and PostPress magazine are involved in the show,” said Jeff Peterson, FSEA executive director and the publisher of PostPress. “We are proud to be a continued partner of PRINTING United, helping to market the event and participating each year.”

Don Dubuque, Standard Finishing Systems’ director of marketing, shared that the 2023 Expo had “exceeded all expectations in terms of visitors to the booth, leads generated and sales. The booth was packed throughout the show with print service providers eager to see the latest automated solutions from Horizon and Hunkeler in action.”

PRINTING United was a tremendous success for KURZ this year. “Over the course of three days, we had the privilege to connect with a diverse array of customers, partners, suppliers, and potential collaborators spanning various verticals within the print and packaging industry. Events of this magnitude, focusing on cutting-edge equipment and innovative processes, not only enhance industry visibility but also provide attendees with invaluable insights to fuel their investments and growth,” said Allan Quimby, head of marketing at KURZ.

Rollem International’s national sales manager, Doug Sherwood commented, “We received positive response to our automated demonstrations which showed attendees first-hand how our ‘all -in-one-pass, flat sheet in – finished products out concept’ is what printers are looking for.”

Ross Hutchison, president of Universal Engraving, Inc. and national sales manager for Infinity Foils, Inc. said the show was very beneficial for Universal Engraving and Infinity Foils. “We met with so many customers and prospective customers who utilize cold, hot and digital foils, as well as embossing and other engraved effects to enhance print,” Hutchison said. “PRINTING United provided an excellent venue and programming for the entire print industry. We look forward to following up with all of our promising leads! We will definitely exhibit again.”

FSEA welcomed many members and others in the industry to its booth at the expo where it distributed the latest issue of PostPress magazine, its FSEA Member Sourcebook, and the Foil Cheat Sheet. The booth also displayed many of the winning entries of this past year’s FSEA Gold Leaf Awards.

“Displaying several of our Gold Leaf Award winners always is popular in our booth,” Peterson said. “The incredible embellished work is a showstopper and helps promote our FSEA members and what is possible to the industry.”

FSEA also sponsored a breakfast on the second day of the expo entitled “Improving Profitability Through Digital Embellishments” (read details on the success of the sponsored breakfast in Association News on page 67).

PRINTING United Expo 2024 is scheduled September 10-12, 2024, in Las Vegas, Nevada. For details and information visit www.printingunited.com.

Business is About Results, Not Excuses

September 11, 2023

By Ed Rigsbee, CAE, CSP and president of Rigsbee Research

Why do some people seem to have the desirable ability to get things done – to get results – while others seem to continually spin their wheels?

I believe that the results-getters have three common qualities or traits: great self-talk, great alliances and great ability. The complexity of these three traits is part of the mix.

Great self-talk is driven by a number of factors, including personal experiences, both positive and negative; environment; personal goals; the prices that one is willing to pay for success; personal desire to continually improve; minimal concern for what others say about oneself; and a host of other elements. Together, these factors create in a person something that most of us would identify as passion.

The much talked about issue is if passion can be taught or acquired, or does it have to be innate? Many believe one has to be born with passion. I, on the contrary, do not believe this. There are too many negative examples today of religious fanatics that became passionate about their cause after their conversion or, perhaps better stated, indoctrination. This is proof to me that passion can be taught or learned.

If employers or their employees are not enjoying the results they need or desire, positive self-talk is the first step toward results.

Great alliances appear in many forms: camaraderie, friendship, partnership, networks, collaborative activities, master-minds groups and mentorships, depending on the situation. The relationships employers and their employees enjoy will affect their self-talk and their abilities. Great alliance relationships are the glue between the first and third steps to results.

Building great relationships comes naturally to some people; however, it is a skill that can be taught and learned. Organizations that adopt partnering as a key strategy for growth must learn the skills to develop and implement profitable alliances. The same goes for results-driven individuals.

Great ability is more than the sum of one’s God-given talents. Ability is the collective body of one’s knowledge, skills, experiences and talent synthesized through self-talk. The relationships built greatly affect one’s ability.

One’s abilities come from empirical knowledge and experiences. Few people knew how to drive a car upon leaving the womb. Similarly, few people knew how to effectively run multi-billion dollar companies when they were in third grade. These skills were taught to them. Ability comes from the knowledge and skills gained from relationships with others – paid or reciprocal, or through trial and error. Trial and error is costly and time-consuming.

What does this mean? Want results? Anyone can have results if the person is willing to have great self-talk, build better relationships and learn from the people who currently embody the skills needed. Volumes of books have been written to explain the above, yet it is as simple as 1-2-3.

Ed Rigsbee is the founder and CEO of the 501(c)(3) non-profit public charity, Cigar PEG Philanthropy through Fun, and president at Rigsbee Research, which conducts qualitative member ROI research and consulting for associations and societies. He holds the Certified Association Executive (CAE) and Certified Speaking Professional (CSP) accreditation. Rigsbee is the author of the The ROI of Membership-Today’s Missing Link for Explosive Growth, PartnerShift, Developing Strategic Alliances and The Art of Partnering. Resources are available at www.rigsbee.com.

Top 5 Ways to Turn Failure into Advantage

June 13, 2023

By Liz Stevens, writer, PostPress

“The only real mistake is the one from which we learn nothing” – Henry Ford

Trying, failing and succeeding are part of the business environment. No one succeeds without trying, and no one ever tried without failing at least occasionally. Here are tips for finding value in the inevitable failures experienced by those trying to succeed.

In every new environment and each growth stage

A new business and a growing business must go through trial and error to advance. A new business always is going out on a limb; will the limb hold or fail? A business wading into a new market can get nowhere without taking the first risky step.

In all endeavors, there is potential achievement and the risk of failure. The odds often initially favor defeat, but they trend toward success with repeated enlightened attempts. This advice from the Forbes article, “11 Essential Next Steps for Business Leaders After a Setback,” ¹ applies to established businesses and new businesses alike.

Make adjustments to prevent future mistakes
When starting a business, one is literally walking into the unknown with uncertainties haunting every business move. With that said, expect a lot of mistakes as the business evolves. Continual failure is necessary for learning and future success. Leaders must adapt, take notes, adjust to protect the business and put measures in place to mitigate these mistakes from reoccurring. – Tian Derose, EAMA, Inc.

Failure is valuable

Every experience has value but sometimes it takes effort to identify it, especially when it comes to the value of failure. While not welcoming failure, successful businesspeople know that it will occur; they do not fear it or avoid reflecting on it. They know that failure can be a valuable and necessary aspect of learning, growing and improving.

In his article, “The smart way to learn from failure,” ² author David Robson described the “ostrich effect” that some people employ to avoid facing bad news, disappointment or failure. “Devaluing the source of your disappointment is just one way your mind may avoid coping constructively with failure,” wrote Robson. “Another coping mechanism is to hide your head in the sand, shifting your attention away from the upsetting situation so that you don’t have to process it.” To illustrate this, Robson recounted a study by university researchers to gauge people’s memory of positive and negative experiences.

The people were asked to choose one of two answers to identify objects, and then were told of their hits and misses – a chance to learn from success and failure. In a second round of identifying objects, the participants had learned from their hits but scored no better on their earlier misses. To delve deeper, the researchers conducted another study, asking new participants to review the earlier study participants’ hits and misses, and then to identify the same objects. These people consistently scored higher – they had learned from another person’s hits and from their misses. The takeaway: people often forget their own mistakes but are quite able to learn from someone else’s mistakes.

How, then, to help people recall failures rather than forgetting them? Choosing to view failure as a learning experience rather than as a loss is a good starting point. Approaching failure as an opportunity to learn why the failure occurred and to then apply those lessons moving forward can remove the stigma of defeat. The Forbes article ¹ offers a valuable suggestion:

Approach failure like an experiment
… how we handle failure sets the tone for our culture. We focus on the outcome, do our best to avoid shaming our colleagues and approach it almost empirically like a science experiment. Consider what variables you need to change to achieve a different result.– Brian Shore, elevēo

Own failure and seek feedback

Successful business leaders know that failures will happen and that value can be derived from examining them; they openly own their failures and ask for honest feedback. Two things manifest by owning failures and welcoming reactions: leaders model a valuable trait for others to emulate, and leaders receive helpful input for addressing the cause of the failure.

In his TIME article, “Why Your Team Needs a Failure Philosophy,” ³ author Roi Ben-Yehuda noted that most organizations “are hyper-focused on end results, have a low tolerance for experimentation, and provide little time for reflection, all of which create an environment incompatible with learning.” One way to make the most out of failure is to have a business culture with a healthy failure philosophy. During interviews, ask about candidates’ attitudes toward failure. During onboarding, describe the company’s positive philosophy toward failure. In team meetings, acknowledge errors, then search for teachable moments.

Ben-Yehuda had another tip. “Creating rituals around your failure philosophy – a practice adopted by some of the world’s most innovative teams – also helps make failure feel less lonely and more instructive.” In a final point about leaders owning their failures, Ben-Yehuda quoted Navy Seal Team 6 Commander Dave Cooper: “The most important words a leader can say are, ‘I screwed that up.’” For leaders with the courage to freely admit screwups, wrote Ben-Yehuda, “the question isn’t ‘Will we fail?’ but rather, ‘How will we learn from our failures?’”

Analyze failure

Before the “do’s,” here’s an important “don’t” from Steven L. Blue’s Industry Week article, “6 Important Business Lessons I Learned from Failure.” ⁴

Don’t analyze success
Don’t ever waste time on why something went right. Of course, you should always analyze how you might have done better, but that should not be your focus. You should always do a deep dive on your failures for the lessons they hold.

To learn from failure, examine it closely with a post-failure audit, including analyzing the variables and their weaknesses as a scientist would do following an experiment. Here is how Christian Busch, director of the global economy program at New York University’s Center for Global Affairs, described deriving value from failure in Suvarchala Narayanan’s Strategy+business article, “Connecting the dots in an uncertain world.” ⁵

Conduct project funerals
When a project – for example, a new technology that was brought to market – doesn’t work out, the respective project manager “lays it to rest” in front of colleagues from other divisions and reflects on why it did not work out and what can be learned from it. This is not about celebrating failure – it’s about celebrating the learning from failure. What often happens is that people in the audience “coincidentally” connect it to a project that they are working on, and elements of the project are then unexpectedly repurposed for another use.

Limit retrospection

Accept the inevitability of failure, own it, acknowledge its value, find its lessons. Then carry on. This Forbes article excerpt ¹ wraps it up and puts a bow on turning failure into advantage:

Reflect but do not wallow
After a failure in business, honest reflection is essential to unlock any valuable lessons that can be learned. Then, quickly move on. Do not wallow; instead, examine the situation with an honest eye, adapt and move forward. Leaders who strive to create an environment that normalizes openly discussing failure gain valuable insights and allow for greater opportunities for success the next time around. – Ronke Komolafe, Integrated Physical & Behavioral Health Alliance

References

Forbes Business Council, “11 Essential Next Steps for Business Leaders After A Setback.” March 27, 2023. Forbes.com. https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbesbusinesscouncil/2023/03/27/11-essential-next-steps-for-business-leaders-after-a-setback/?sh=1708567362cf.
David Robson, “The Smart Way to Learn from Failure.” October 21, 2022. BBC.com. https://www.bbc.com/worklife/article/20221019-the-smart-way-to-learn-from-failure.
Roi Ben-Yehuda, “Why Your Team Needs a Failure Philosophy.” August 8, 2022. TIME.com. https://time.com/charter/6204322/failure-philosophy/.
Steven L. Blue, “6 Important Business Lessons I Learned from Failure.” April 20, 2023. Industry Week. https://www.industryweek.com/leadership/strategic-planning-execution/article/21264377/failure-is-the-gift-that-keeps-on-giving.
Suvarchala Narayanan, “Connecting the Dots in an Uncertain World.” September 16, 2020. Strategy+business. https://www.strategy-business.com/article/Connecting-the-dots-in-an-uncertain-world.

Old Thinking Won’t Lead to New Ideas

December 13, 2022

5 tips to instantly become more innovative

By Susan Robertson, Harvard lecturer and innovation consultant

When you really need new ideas or fresh thinking or a creative solution to a challenge, a typical, day-to-day approach in your thinking is not the optimal process. Using the same old thinking will simply lead you to the same old ideas you’ve already had or tried before. Instead, you need to do something different that will stimulate your brain in diverse ways and shift your perspective on the issues. Here are some ways to ensure you (and your team) shake up your thinking so that you actually come up with the fresh, new ideas you need.

1. Change your environment. Get outside your own conference room or office. Debrief the latest research results or industry report in an art museum. Or take your team to the zoo with the objective of coming back with new ideas. Depending on what part of the country you’re in, you could send your teams to the Mall of America, Walt Disney World or a trendy area of Manhattan to look for inspiration and new ideas.

If you can’t physically get out of the office, then find a way to get out metaphorically. Ask people to imagine how they would solve the problem at hand if they lived in Antarctica, or if viewed from the perspective of a submarine captain.

2. Bring outsiders in. Overtly invite other perspectives into your discovery and idea generation processes. For example, for a project on new packaging and product ideas for a beverage company, invite a boat designer, a rainwater management expert, a sculptor and a water-park designer (among others). Your project team will be amazed at the range and diversity of new ideas that come when they are exposed to new perspectives on their challenge. They’ll think of ideas they’ll agree they never would have arrived at on their own – due to their own embedded assumptions about the topic.

3. Truly engage with your customers. Don’t rely solely on second-hand data to understand your customers’ needs. You need to actually talk to them. Go to their homes or offices to see the problems they need solutions for.

All too often teams looking for an idea generation project will say, “We don’t need to do any discovery in advance because we already have ‘lots of data.’” This should always make you wary, because it usually means they have numerous reports with reams of statistics about customers. Unfortunately, it rarely means they have discovered any real new insight into customer needs.

If you’re expecting your team to understand the customer by reading a deck or attending a Power Point presentation, challenge yourself to find a more engaging and interactive process. It will be far more effective to immerse your team in real customer understanding.

4. Question everything. Do some specific exercises that force people to confront and challenge their subconscious assumptions about the topic. An easy way to do this is to first ask for ideas that the team thinks would solve the problem, but they probably couldn’t implement for some reason.

Then, ask them to reframe each idea by saying “We might be able to implement this idea IF … ” What comes behind the “ifs” will help surface a lot of assumptions people have that may or may not actually be barriers. Of course, some of the barriers will turn out to be real, in which case, don’t spend more time on those ideas. But in every case that I’ve ever done this with client teams, they also discover many supposed barriers that they could actually solve for.

5. Let some crazy in the room. The academic definition of creative thinking is “the process of coming up with new and useful ideas.” The only way to get new ideas is to start with seemingly crazy ideas. Every truly innovative idea seems a little crazy at first. If you only start with ideas that are comfortable or clearly easy to implement, they’re probably not very new.

So, encourage people to throw in extremely wild ideas. Then, play a game called “If We Could.” Instruct the team to temporarily let go of the problems in the idea and ask, “If we could implement this idea, what would be the benefit(s)?” Once you have identified the benefits of each crazy idea, narrow down to the most promising few and ask the team to look for possible solutions to the barriers.

A team was on the verge of killing a truly original idea for a new kids’ cereal, because they didn’t know how to create the critical component. However, after “If We Could,” they agreed the idea was so interesting and unique that they needed to explore it. The R&D team made a few calls to other experts, and within a few weeks, they had solved it. This idea resulted in the most successful new product launch in the brand’s history!

It is unfortunately all too easy to simply approach every new challenge using our typical day-to-day thinking. It feels familiar, it’s easy to access that type of thinking, and it works on most daily challenges. So, you subconsciously assume it will work on any challenge. But it’s incredibly helpful to do some meta-analysis on your thinking. I.e., think about how you’re thinking. Not every problem will benefit from the same type of thinking. Once you recognize that this new situation needs new thinking, it’s fairly easy to do some things to shift to a more productive mode for this particular challenge. Then shift back to the more familiar day to day thinking for your daily tasks.

Susan Robertson empowers individuals, teams and organizations to more nimbly adapt to change, by transforming thinking from “why we can’t” to “how might we?” She is a creative thinking expert with over 20 years of experience speaking and coaching in Fortune 500 companies. As an instructor on applied creativity at Harvard, Robertson brings a scientific foundation to enhancing human creativity. To learn more, go to https://susanrobertson.co/.

Managed Service Providers are Critical to Securing Smart Factory

December 13, 2022

By Lauren Middleton, content writer and web designer, River Valley Digital

Industry 4.0 has significantly transformed the manufacturing industry. Manufacturing companies that integrate Industry 4.0 or “Smart Factory” experience better efficiency, improved data insights, better quality control, reduced labor and reductions in cost. However, the associated interconnectedness comes with a cost.

Smart Factory environments have experienced a significant increase in cyberattacks. According to Statista, manufacturing accounted for 23% of cyberattacks in 2021 alone. In fact, manufacturing knocked down the financial services industry from being the most attacked industry by ransomware in 2021. The average loss from a major cyber breach was $1.7 million.

Additional costs also arise related to customer service disruptions, productivity losses and compliance fines. Surprisingly, despite the existential risk to the business, many manufacturers still believe that “this will never happen to my company.” Recovery from a cyber-crime event may not be possible, so what are some of the solutions to the problem? A proven solution is cooperation with a managed service provider.

A managed service provider (MSP) is a third-party company that in cooperation with a company’s internal IT staff remotely co-manages all facets of the corporate information technology infrastructure, OT and IT, including data networks of all devices, office and plant. These services include 24/7 systems management, monitoring and comprehensive security.

Cyberattack risks

The biggest cyber threats to manufacturers originate from ransomware via phishing attacks or other security impairments. Such attacks are malicious and can cause loss of revenue, business downtime and money extortion. Ransomware is the most common type of malware. It allows a hacker to access and cripple computer systems, and keeps systems inoperable and data inaccessible until the affected company pays a ransom.

Chris Scallan, converting superintendent at Delmarva Corrugated Packaging (Dover, Delaware) said cyberattacks are a significant concern in its Delaware facility, and the company has partnered with an IT-managed services provider. “It is a very large concern to make sure attacks do not happen and that the provider makes sure it does not happen,” he said. “And knock-on-wood, since being at the new manufacturing facility in Delaware, there have been no issues.”

The main reasons manufacturers are targeted for cyberattacks frequently are related to their high-value data and significant revenue basis. Hackers know that they have great leverage because the attack can cause extensive damage and the manufacturer has the revenue to pay for the ransom.

Phishing

Chris Scallan, converting superintendent at Delmarva, said cyberattacks are a significant concern in its Delaware facility.

Phishing often is the means of the cyberattack: The attacker disguises themselves as a legitimate source to convince the target. In most cases, a malware or ransomware attack needs the victim to click a link or download an email attachment. So, attackers often embed malware or ransomware code into a phishing email. An unsuspecting, unfamiliar and not sufficiently trained workforce is the most common reason manufacturing facilities fall victim to phishing attacks.

Roughly 26% of manufacturers report that employee errors and omissions are one of the biggest cyber threats faced. Common threats that stem from employee error are falling for phishing attacks, incorrect use of company data on mobile devices, direct abuse of IT systems and machine errors. Manufacturers need to create organization-wide cybersecurity policies and protocols. Managed services providers are ideally positioned to provide guidance in creating these security systems, helping to implement and monitor them.

Remote work

The increase of a remote workforce has led to a significant rise of cybercrime incidences in the manufacturing sector. The main threat to OT systems (plant operational technology) occurred through employees who have had direct access to OT networks while working remotely. The need for remote direct online access to production automation equipment increased suddenly with the arrival of the pandemic.

Not only employees have required this access, but vendors of automation machinery also needed to remote in as travel was restricted or outright not possible. Digital transformation on the factory floor has allowed once isolated operational technology networks to be connected with the rest of the devices of the company’s IT infrastructure. Scallan explained the advantages of having interconnected machines: “Anytime there’s an issue with one of the machines, an employee is able to call the vendor and the vendor can dial into the machine and troubleshoot directly with the employee and that makes it a lot easier than trying to speak over the phone.” Yet this infrastructure requires a whole new network and security configurations with around-the-clock monitoring as threats can surface indiscriminately at any time.

ERP systems

Environmental resource planning systems (ERP systems) are one of the top targets for cyberattacks. ERP systems contain company financial data and other sensitive information that is valuable to hackers. When this data becomes compromised, the factory’s critical infrastructure is in danger of shutting down. It is crucial for manufacturers to have cybersecurity measures in place for all ERP systems.

“The company has two ERP systems, two of them working in conjunction. One is further along than the other – it is a special system for the industry – and it is cloud-based,” explained Scallan. “Nothing is local here in Delaware. Instead, the provider takes care of it offsite. If anything happens within the building, the cloud-based disaster recovery kicks in, and the system can be run from anywhere.”

Mergers and acquisitions

Manufacturing experienced a revival after the pandemic slowed down and with it came several mergers and acquisitions. With more mergers and acquisitions occurring, comes the need for M&A cybersecurity strategy and due diligence. Cybersecurity due diligence is especially important in the context of M&A because all parties involved in it must have strong security protocols in place.

Following an acquisition, plant machinery will likely become interconnected at different plant sites. Before an acquisition takes place M&A due diligence assessments should include all its network systems and digital assets. Overlooking and underestimating cyber risks leaves a facility open to potential cyber incidents. There were cases where these risks had gone unnoticed for several years after the merger and acquisition had been completed. These incidents are reported to have cost organizations millions of dollars.

Cyber due diligence

Cyber due diligence involves the following:

Leadership support for cybersecurity due diligence;
data mapping;
quick assessment of cybersecurity practices; and
a risk scoring tool that identifies and prioritizes risks.

By understanding all of the sources of data in an organization, how the data is collected and where the risks of unauthorized access may be, an organization has taken the first step in understanding how to protect itself from cyberattacks.

Organizational leadership must not rely on an IT individual or small team who may be preoccupied with ensuring daily operational technology works properly. Instead, identify the risk, prioritize the needs of the organization and then develop a plan to address those needs … before ransomware halts activity on the production floor.

Tekscape, Inc. is an industry leader in advanced and tailored IT technology solutions. Its mission is to provide a result-driven and business-minded approach to technology services with ease and agility. Tekscape specializes in designing, implementing and managing solutions to help companies in their digital transformation path, enabling effective infrastructure solutions, workforce productivity and implementing a comprehensive cybersecurity strategy.

Lauren Middleton’s firm, River Valley Digital, specializes in working with managed service providers and manufacturers all over the United States.

More information: www.tekscape.com/manufacturing

The Easiest Way to Increase Sales May Be Right Under Your Nose

December 13, 2022

By Mark Porter, Dienamic MIS Software, Inc.

Successful businesses continually are looking for ways to increase sales and profits. Looking for new products, new processes and new markets are common approaches to meeting these objectives. These methods often are costly and time intensive. There are significant increases in sales and profits that can be obtained much more easily, and they are right under your nose.

There are significant increases in sales and profits to be had by simply taking control of the business in the following ways:

Determine the true costs of running the business
Increase revenue from existing clients
Maximize efficiency and reduce waste
Eliminate mistakes that turn good jobs into bad jobs

Determine the true costs of running the business

It is vital to know what the true costs are to know what profits will be on each job. This allows the finisher to determine which jobs to aggressively seek and which jobs to refuse. Budgeted hourly rate software is available that will help determine the true cost to operate each machine, and productivity analysis software can determine the true speeds and times achieved by the equipment. These true costs and standards can then be used in an estimating system that will determine the true cost of each quote produced.

We all know: Sales – Costs = Profits. If we don’t know our costs, how do we know our profits?

Increase revenue from existing clients

Of total sales, how much is created by changes to the original job specifications received from the client? Every print finisher/bindery experiences these changes. The estimate was to ship bulk in cartons and now the client wants to shrink wrap in 50s. The management of these changes can have a significant effect on the bottom line by collecting the charges from the customer or not incurring an additional cost the business ends up paying.

The nature of today’s business is to focus on quality and delivery time, causing companies often to miss many legitimate extra charges. These charges add up quickly. Let’s say a finisher has $2,000,000 in sales and that 15% of the work is for changes to the original order. That represents $300,000 in sales, if they tracked and rebilled them. By only capturing 50% of these charges, $150,000 is being left on the table.

Finishers must take an approach to their business, much like the housing industry. These changes are happening, and someone has to pay for them – the business or the client. The estimate represents the original blueprint, and a changes management system allows the business to capture these legitimate chargeable changes that happen during the production process.

The most effective way to accomplish this is through an order entry system. By computerizing the order entry process, finishers can lock in the original job specifications for the order – those that match the estimate. As the job is produced and changes are requested or needed, the order entry system date, time, employee and reason stamps the changes. The system will generate a change form that is sent to the customer with the price and the approval. The chargeable changes are automatically added to the invoice and documented to a report that management can review at the billing stage. The business is now tracking all extra charges and providing the backup to the customer to substantiate the charges and increase the likelihood of collecting them. This will either increase sales or reduce costs – every change made to a job is costing money to either the customer or the business.

Maximize efficiency and reduce waste

The easiest way to maximize efficiency and reduce waste is to make people accountable for the time and materials they use. If an employee knows that he/she can be questioned on the length of time that it took to perform a task or the amount of material used to produce a job, be assured they will be productive. Employee performance can be compared to identify employees who need more training or supervision. This can only make employees more efficient and have a positive effect on the bottom line.

The benefits of accountability are tremendous. Even a small 5% increase in productivity and decrease in waste can mean a significant increase in profits. If we use the same $2,000,000 finisher that has $1,800,000 in costs – a 5% change is $90,000.
By placing computers on the plant floor, employees are required to be accountable for every minute of their day and every piece of material they use on every job. This also tracks the time and utilization of the equipment. It’ll tell how much time was spent on running, makereadying, cleaning, repairing, maintaining or waiting in any time period. With computers on the plant floor, not only are employees sending information to the office, but the office is sending information to them in real time. This means changes made to orders, changes in scheduling can be communicated to the plant immediately in real time to ensure costly mistakes are not made.

Empower employees with technology that will benefit them and the business.

Eliminate mistakes that turn good jobs into bad jobs

Nothing is more frustrating than receiving a nice job and then losing money on it due to preventable mistakes: last-minute changes that don’t make it onto the job jacket in time, changes that are not well documented and missed or past mistakes that are repeated. Technology today can help prevent costly mistakes with applications in the following areas:

Electronic order entry
Customer profiling
Job notes
Problem history

Electronic order entry

Although there seems to be a reluctance to get rid of a physical job bag completely, as it is required to hold certain items, the reliance for it to provide information to plant employees should be questioned. The plant should be using an electronic version of the order. This ensures all employees always will have access to the most current job information. The information on the electronic order is always updated in real time – the minute a change is made in the office, it is immediately reflected on the electronic order. Employees eliminate wasted time looking for or inquiring about the correct job specifications. The electronic order will be linked to job notes, customer profile and problem history for that specific job.

Customer profiling

Customer profiling allows details specific to a customer, including production and shipping details, and even how the president takes his/her coffee, to be entered. Any piece of information that will ensure the customer’s work is produced exactly as expected, or procedures, should be entered. This will eliminate errors, improve quality and provide the greatest customer satisfaction.

This information is available to all employees at all stages of administration and production. A specific employee no longer has to be relied upon to know the finer details of a customer’s requirements. A great example is if the shipper is looking at a skid with 11,000 pieces on it and the job bag that states the quantity is 10,000. If the shipper looks at the profile and sees the customer accepts 5% overs, they can ship 10,500 which maximizes revenue and holds the other 500 back, which could be sold to the customer at a later date.

Job notes

A description that shows cryptic notes or shortforms that no one understands will only lead to costly mistakes. Software allows electronic notes to be attached and automatically warns anyone looking at that job that there are notes. With plenty of space to enter detailed notes and warnings that tell employees the notes exist, there is no way employees can miss vital information that will determine the success on a job.

Problem history

As the old saying goes, “You are not a fool for making a mistake – only when you make the same mistake twice.” Making preventable mistakes is the most frustrating way to lose money. If problems are not recorded and attached while producing a job, the same mistakes likely will be repeated. These problems can be seen at the estimating stage. Estimates can be adjusted. Issues can be reviewed when the job comes in, and issues that caused problems last time before the job was accepted can be reviewed at the end of a job to help analyze what went wrong and what can be learned. The system also is good at documenting issues on jobs that are going wrong to try to limit liability. The system allows photos and video of the problems to be attached as proof. It can be used as a relationship building tool to explain to customers how they can provide their jobs for the best most economical results.

The system also is a database of problems and solutions that can be used generically for common situations that may occur in the plant – finding previous solutions to those problems.

Automating the company in the office and plant with the proper software and hardware can save tens, if not hundreds of thousands of dollars each year by helping finishers know their true costs, maximizing their productivity, minimizing waste and preventing mistakes with real-time data to help them make more profitable decisions.

Mark Porter is president of Dienamic Software MIS Inc. Porter can be reached at mark@dienamicmis.com. Learn more at www.dienamicmis.com.

RRD Survey: Nearly Seven in 10 Packaging Decision Makers Forced to Reprioritize Amid Supply Chain Disruption, Inflation

September 16, 2022

Submitted by R.R. Donnelley & Sons Company

A study released in June by R.R. Donnelley & Sons Company (RRD) found the market’s most pressing challenges forced packaging decision makers to shift priorities and rethink operations, with 90% changing how their packaging is sourced. The Unpackaging Reality Report explores how converging disruptive issues like supply chain volatility, inflation, labor shortages and increasing sustainability pressures have impacted the industry.

Diversifying suppliers (62%) has been the most common response to these disruptions.

Surveying 300 packaging decision makers in the US, RRD’s study found that material price hikes and supply shortages presented the biggest hurdles for the industry over the past year, with over half of respondents reporting they have been strongly impacted. These challenges, among others, forced organizations to reprioritize packaging materials (68%), budget (52%), packaging design and aesthetics (49%) and sustainability goals (45%). Despite the many challenges brought on by the pandemic and downstream issues, the report found that overall, the packaging industry proved resilient and continued to track toward a more sustainable and innovative future.

“There’s no disputing that rising costs, supply chain snares, and talent pinches have posed major challenges to the packaging industry, but that doesn’t mean this reality is all doom and gloom,” said Lisa Pruett, president, packaging, labels and forms, retail solutions at RRD. “These challenges actually transformed the industry into a more innovative, agile and environmentally conscious sector. Organizations responded with diverse strategies as there is not a one-size-fits-all approach to tempering disruptions.”

There was a broad willingness to pivot to different packaging materials in light of recent industry challenges – over one third says extremely willing (36%).

As a leading global provider of marketing, packaging, print and supply chain solutions, RRD conducted a comprehensive survey to offer insight into this complex landscape of both immense opportunity and challenges for decision makers. The study’s key findings underscore the packaging industry’s willingness to evolve operations in the face of challenges without losing sight of sustainability goals:

Key Finding 1: Supply chain challenges lead to innovation

To navigate the market challenges, organizations have been willing to explore a wide range of solutions to their supply chain issues. Specifically, 62% diversified suppliers, 42% outsourced manufacturing and fulfillment, 39% consolidated suppliers, 30% substituted specs and 26% reshored their manufacturing to the U.S. There is broad willingness to pivot to different packaging materials in light of supply chain sourcing challenges, with over one-third (36%) saying they were extremely willing to use alternative materials. As for guidance and information, 78% of respondents looked to suppliers, vendors or direct manufacturers.

E-commerce has increased over the past 1-2 years for over half (57%).

Key Finding 2: E-commerce ignites packaging demand

Packaging needs have skyrocketed in recent years, in part due to the acceleration of online shopping amid the pandemic, and this has created both strain and opportunity for the packaging industry. The majority of respondents (57%) experienced an increase in e-commerce orders in the past 1-2 years and, for nearly all of them (92%), this resulted in an increase in packaging needs.

Packaging professionals responded to the growth in ecommerce orders by increasing inventory (55%), expanding warehousing (53%), changing materials (52%) and increasing staff (51%).

Interestingly, recent supply chain disruptions moved more companies closer to their carbon emissions goals compared to further away.

Key Finding 3: Surprising strides in sustainability despite cost pressures

Survey findings contradict the sentiment that sustainability initiatives fell to the back burner as companies grappled with other pressing priorities, with almost all respondents (94%) agreeing that sustainability is a key consideration in packaging and label decisions. Further, two-thirds of packaging professionals shifted to more sustainable packaging than what they used previously. When considering sustainability, budget is the top influencing factor – more so than external regulations or consumer preferences – suggesting that cost-effective eco-friendly materials are in high demand.

Of note, the majority of packaging decision makers (55%) believe recent supply chain disruptions moved their companies closer to their carbon emissions goals, suggesting sustainability initiatives may prove versatile and resilient.

As a leading global packaging provider, RRD commissioned an online survey of 300 procurement, brand marketing and packaging engineering decision makers to provide insights that inform strategy, priorities, and investments. Survey participants are located in the US across a variety of industry sectors. The survey, conducted by FINN Partners in Spring 2022, is weighted to be nationally representative. To read the full report, visit: www.rrd.com/Reality-Report.