Manufacturing careers have allowed many people to establish the lives they've always wanted. You might wonder if you will be a good fit for a manufacturing job, though. An employer looks for these four traits when posting a manufacturing career opportunity.
Manual Dexterity
Even with the rapid increase in automation in manufacturing settings, many jobs require at least some degree of manual dexterity. That doesn't mean a person has to be a uniquely gifted athlete, but they should be comfortable working with manufactured pieces, tools, and control systems. Oftentimes, they'll need to keep several of these items close at hand and have to switch from one to the next quickly.
Organizational Skills
Down to the lowest levels, manufacturing careers tend to require organizational skills. A person should be able to read and understand instructions for manufacturing processes. Likewise, they need to be able to translate words and diagrams into actions.
This is especially true as people move into machine operator jobs. Machine operators need to know the steps to a process so they can execute it. However, they also need to know the steps so they can intervene before something goes terribly wrong. If a machine or process shows signs of trouble or poor quality control, the operator needs a strong enough sense of organization to understand the consequences and act.
Critical Thinking
Especially as manufacturing becomes more automation- and process-driven, critical thinking becomes more important. The same goes for operations that produce custom pieces, even if those solutions come from limited menus of options.
Machine operators oftentimes need to do more than just look at plans and implement them. They need to understand what the goal is. If a customer sends in a CAD drawing to create a bespoke component, the operator has to do more than feed the plans into the computer. They need to understand how the component will work and what counts as a quality result. When they pull the manufactured piece out of the system, they need to think critically so they can judge the results and deliver the desired product.
Self-Motivation and Self-Direction
The point of modern manufacturing is often to minimize how many people it takes to do something. One self-directed worker is usually worth more to a company than a worker who requires constant instruction and direction. The ideal candidates for manufacturing jobs typically can punch in on the clock, find their station, and either get things moving or keep them rolling as the situation demands.
