Articles

How to Think Like an Entrepreneur—Not a Technician, with Steve Preda-EP 202

Do you ever ask yourself why the majority of businesses out there are struggling to survive while an elite handful are crushing it? On today’s podcast we are discussing that question.

Our guest is Steve Preda, founder of Steve Preda Business Growth. He is also an author of three books and the host of the Management Blueprint Podcast.

Steve coaches business owners to help them reach their ambitions, which often means scaling and maximizing their companies’ profitability or making business ownership a more pleasurable, fulfilling experience.

The Cost of a Great Manager

The Chicago Cubs “requested” their extremely well-liked manager, David Ross, to vacate his job on Monday. His boss, Jed Hoyer, flew to Ross’s home in Tallahassee, Florida, to give him the news in person.

It was a shocking surprise to Cubs fans because Ross had another year to go on his contract, with an option year.

UAW Sweeps Its World Series

The leaders of the Big Three shrunk to midgets as they walked to the mound against the electrician from Kokomo, playing for the first time in the big leagues.

The corporate players had $20 million dollar contracts. Shawn Fain from the UAW team was on a rookie deal after barely making the squad.

How did Fain and the UAW sweep their World Series?

First, he seemed to understand the game better than the well-paid veterans. He asked for much more than he expected to get, including a 4-day workweek and $40 an hour.

A 150-Year-Old Manufacturing Business Reinvented, Adria and Aaron Bagshaw–EP 200

On today’s podcast episode, you’re going to hear the story of a thriving fifth-generation family manufacturing business that is constantly reinventing itself.

I interviewed Adria and Aaron Bagshaw, owners of W.H. Bagshaw, a machining company in Nashua, New Hampshire, that started over 150 years ago!

For 135 years, W.H. Bagshaw produced the same type of metal needles and pins on ancient equipment until the company purchased its first CNC Swiss machine in 2005.

A 67-Year Adventure in Swiss Machining Continues, with Paul Huber-EP 199

Today’s guest on the show is Paul Huber, CEO of COMEX, in Monroe Connecticut. Paul is a machinery dealer specializing in cam Swiss automatics. That’s cam Swiss, not CNC. I’m talking about Bechlers, Stroms and Escomatics, not Citizens.

Paul is 84, but proudly says feels like he is 60 as he raises his 17-year-old son.

He has been working on screw machines for over 67 years, starting as an apprentice in Switzerland.

Business Pin Action: Seeking Serendipity

In college, one of my favorite elective classes was bowling—I took it twice. Maybe you poo poo the idea of taking bowling at an expensive institution like the University of Wisconsin, but that was the class where I learned about the powerful science of “pin action.”

To the bowling novices out there, do you ever wonder why the good bowlers throw those huge curve balls down the lane, rather than just throwing it straight down the middle? Pin action.

What Should I Charge for My Parts?, Jay Jacobs (Part II) EP-197

How do you know what to charge for your product?

How do you negotiate with customers and leave the least money on the table? And not just for one transaction but for the long run?

On today’s episode, Part II of our interview with Jay Jacobs, we discuss strategies that you can use the next time you ask yourself, “What should I charge for my manufactured parts?”

A Shop that Makes Promises Like Domino’s Pizza, Jay Jacobs (Part 1) EP-196

Imagine a sheet metal prototype shop that was so fast and reliable it never turned down a job if it were physically possible to complete and the customers were willing to pay the price.

My guest today, Jay Jacobs, built his former company RAPID from a team of five to over 300. Before being acquired by a publicly traded company for a price he couldn’t refuse, RAPID was manufacturing over 30,000 unique part numbers annually, 24-7-365 days a year.

Let’s Strike Tomorrow!

We will get an auto strike tomorrow.

How do I know? Do I have a plant at the negotiating table? Have I bugged Shawn Fain’s phone (head of UAW)?

No, no, no.

But my gut tells me that the Union is aching to punch their company bosses in the gut. It’s just been too long to live under the guise of harmony as the truckers, pilots, and dockworkers have shown the world their power.

The money differences while, they seem big on paper, will be compromised because labor costs for Union and non-Union auto workers will ultimately be within reach of each other.

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Schutte SF42 Screw Machine I Found in Sweden

Nine years ago, I traveled to Sweden to see some old Wickman multi-spindle screw machines for sale at one of the country’s largest automotive suppliers. The machines were ok, but we decided not to buy them.

Graff-Pinkert - Screw Machines, Hydromats, CNCs