WITH BUCKLEY BRINKMAN
We’ve all seen the videos of those surfers riding waves taller than a building. It’s exciting and terrifying at the same time. Well, we’re about to be hit with a similar wave of economic growth. Are we ready for the ride?
I’m concerned about our future because an important part of our economic and social systems is breaking down. Our relentless focus on efficiency, results, and profitability over the past several decades eliminated important slack in our systems, reducing our resilience and ability to respond to unexpected events.
The stresses created by the pandemic, legacy problems, and accelerating change are creating a new environment where all of us will need to become lifetime learners to thrive. The complications created in this new world will also require a proactive learning approach where we lean into and learn through problems to create breakthrough solutions.
We are experiencing a bifurcated recovery, with large sectors almost fully recovered and others struggling to find any traction at all. The same is true within the manufacturing sector and that worries me. If you are a manufacturer that isn’t recovering, it’s time to panic!
It’s time for Old White Guys (OWG) to take their foot off the brakes on social change and lean into the actions that will move us toward social and economic justice.
Like most of you, I’ve been watching the ongoing energy around diversity and inclusion, forming my own opinions about what’s working and what’s holding us back in our journey to create a more just and inclusive society.
This has been a shattering summer for me. It’s shattered many of my beliefs about what’s right, what’s tolerable, and what’s possible in this country.
Back in early March, the most tumultuous things we all faced were accelerating change and living through a contentious presidential election in a battleground state. Now, the stacked disruptions of pandemic, economic collapse, and pervasive demands for equality turned our whole world upside down.
I don’t know about you but life during the pandemic seems very backward to me.
Wisconsin will reopen in the coming days and weeks. All of us will feel our way forward — not toward the new normal but back to the future.
Buckley Brinkman is executive director and CEO of the Wisconsin Center for Manufacturing & Productivity and writes about the manufacturing sector in Greater Madison and throughout Wisconsin. He has a breadth of experience in helping companies drive growth, world-class competitiveness, and performance excellence, and has led efforts to save dozens of operations in the U.S. by finding new ways for them to compete. A Wisconsin native, Brinkman holds a business degree from the University of Wisconsin and an MBA from the Harvard Business School.
