________________________________________________________________________________________________ Future Outlook

Key areas of focus for manufacturers in 2025 . By Les Brookes

By now all business leaders realize that volatility is a constant and no longer a surprise . Whilst the eventual causes in 2025 might be uncertain , it is time to focus on a business model that delivers truly integrated outcomes and is focused on people , process and technology to achieve growth and profitability .

As we move into 2025 , it gives the opportunity for leaders to reflect on getting their business in the best possible position to identify and respond to changes . To achieve this , key areas of focus for manufacturing businesses need to be :

Flexibility

In recent years people have had to learn a lot about how to deal with volatility . But in many cases the processes that were successfully developed , often through trial and error , will be quickly forgotten ... and with the next crisis people will be back to improvising . Instead , there needs to be a process for such situations so the lessons from the recent past are not only captured and reapplied , but also formalized and improved .

In 2025 make sure you have embedded the lessons from overcoming the recent problems and add systems and processes so that when volatility hits again you don ’ t revert to firefighting and making on-thehoof decisions about tactical planning , and realigning portfolio demand with the supply chain . Not just in operations , but across all support functions too .

Agility

Flexibility and agility both are overused words , and often without much substance given both are organizational capabilities achieved through process .

Flexibility is about dealing with shortterm changes , particularly through flexing people and equipment capacity . It ’ s vital to have this , but it is not the same as having the ability to quickly move the whole organization according to a plan .

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