Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1494936
64 PCB007 MAGAZINE I MARCH 2023 What's most pressing on your mind? What's keeping you up at night? I don't think there's anything, really. We're in a better place now than we have been for a long time. I tell everybody I wish I were 20 years younger because there will be some exciting times ahead. I worry about finding new people. How will I find employees who spend two years get- ting trained only to have them resign? And if they do resign, I don't want to find out they're leaving the industry for something totally different. How do you get people who you can build around, who will be the leaders of the future? Who will be the next generation in this company taking us forward? You ask yourself: What could I do differently? What have I learned from this? When you put out job postings and ads, you talk to colleagues, and they all say the same thing: I can't find people. Not only do you need peo- ple who can, in our case, pass background checks because of NIST and CMMC, but you have to find people who can get to work and are willing to come to work every day. Some people are very honest and say, "I'm really looking for flexibility. I want to do some work at home." I get that, but manufac- turing doesn't work that way, unfortunately; you must be at the equipment. With workers in their 30s, I see differences in the way they work. e world's changing, and I absolutely get it. I'm looking for people who want to learn a trade and be here long-term. If they're really good, will a competitor offer them a better job? I may not like it, but I'll be happier knowing there's someone in the industry who's moving forward. It's better for everyone in that case. That's a great answer. Thank you, Peter. ank you, Nolan. PCB007 for a recession because it's been a lot of years and at some point, the economy has to read- just itself. When that happens, money may not be available. But if you're prudent, and you've been making some money for the last few years, you should have some money saved. You should have enough to invest in what you need to keep going and keep being viable, as well as to add onto some capabilities as well. Are you finding customers who are willing to buy into you as a manufacturer? Some- body who's looking for some new technology you can roll out in partnership? How is that dynamic shifting? We're in a niche area. Customers come in say- ing, "e last guy really screwed this up." You can't run everything in the same plant, and we will fire customers who don't fit. You realize there's nothing you can provide them because they're looking for different technology. I end up being the lead sales guy and I don't have the patience for that. I want to know: Do you even buy what I make? Do you have any interest in it? Are you a transactional customer or a relationship customer? If you buy what we make, I'll put the time in to develop a relationship. As far as reshoring, we're heavily into defense, so most of what we make has not le our shores. We have some industrial cus- tomers who are coming back and it's a bit of sticker shock for them. I know it will be more expensive, so they're trying to work their way through. In some cases, I'll tell them, "You're probably not a good fit for us, but I can recom- mend a company that is a good fit because of your volumes, etc." So, yes, we've got custom- ers that we work with very closely and we have good relationships with them. I can't think of a customer who doesn't like us, so I'll take that as a positive. But I'm always looking for new customers. I worry about finding new people.