Originally published in April 2019, this advice from Ben Hershey still holds true today. With as many problems as we all face in our work and life, it seems there is never enough time to solve each one without dealing with some adversity. Problems keep mounting so fast that we take shortcuts to alleviate the
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A Renewed Focus for 2021
The importance of making changes for Offsite Manufacturing By Ben HersheySolutions Provider & CEO4Ward Solutions Group For some it seems like this past year, 2020, has been either a waste or was put on pause. There have been numerous challenges in our businesses, politics, the economy, our homes, and many more all disrupted by the
The Battle Within Our Operations
By Ben Hershey, CEO, 4Ward Solutions Group Does this conversation sound familiar? “How fast can we reliably supply that component job to our customer?” asks the sales manager. “And don’t make us look like fools by telling me a date that will never be met or is too far out!” “I will tell you how
Knowing the Ideal Manufacturing Cycle Time
By Ben Hershey, CEO, The 4Ward Group of Companies Building components is really great! It was a lot of fun in the 1970s when several plants had competitions on who could build the fastest run of trusses (for example, see Joe Kannapell’s article on Vertical Presses–The World Record). Back then, it was really easy to
Strategy, Culture, and BCMC
By Ben Hershey, 4Ward Consulting Group, LLC Two manufacturers walk into the BCMC Show. One is a seasoned manufacturer who has been attending the show for many years and will learn something new, but really just goes to shake hands and be seen. The other manufacturer is new and eager, ready to learn and network
What Tools Are You Using
By Ben Hershey, 4Ward Consulting Group, LLC I really enjoy local county fairs and local attractions, because they give us an opportunity to see cool things from the past or something related to the area (and our fair has fresh roasted corn!). Recently at our local fair, the Stanwood Fair, I walked into a building
The Importance of Our Leadership Actions
By Ben Hershey, 4Ward Consulting Group, LLC Recently, a Pastor at our church, Morgan MacPherson, shared a teaching from the Book of James talking about how our Actions Speak Louder. Though there was a lot of “meat on the bone” from what he shared, one of the additional thoughts I brought home was how important
Measure the Tempo of Your Operation
By Ben Hershey, 4Ward Consulting Group, LLC My wife Dianne and I were recently going through some of our old family photos and I came across this photo of Dianne’s Dad, Jack Hendershot, as a teenager on his bike delivering ice in the early ’50s. For those who may not know, before the advent of
Empower Your Team to Success
By Ben Hershey, 4Ward Consulting Group, LLC When I recently started some restructuring work for a client, I saw a sign posted on the wall. As shown in the image here, it took a sad approach to giving 100% at work. How many of the associates on our teams show up to work on Monday
Effective Ways Leaders Solve Problems
With as many problems as we all face in our work and life, it seems as if there is never enough time to solve each one without dealing with some adversity along the way. Problems keep mounting so fast that we find ourselves taking shortcuts to temporarily alleviate the tension points, so we can move