Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1524164
28 PCB007 MAGAZINE I JULY 2024 ket was long overdue. We knew by directly supporting the market, we would be able to get closer to customers, expand those rela- tionships, and get that direct feedback needed to develop our technology, not to mention it would enhance our direct technical support and aer-sales service. What drove us to make this decision now is the positive momentum we're seeing in the North American PCB market. We must be well-connected to our customer base now more than ever. To this end, in just our first three months, we've added three field technicians with a plan to hire three more in Q3. We have introduced our new series of Schmoll Technology Semi- nars and embarked on our plan to integrate the Schmoll Germany technical team into the market alongside the Schmoll America team. I think the momentum we have internally also speaks to our thriving. Professionally, you have seen a lot of change over the past few decades. How do you feel about where we find ourselves globally and in the Americas? Globally, the PCB market is in a solid position. Demand for PCBs is expected to grow 4–5% per year, resulting in a global market of $100 billion by 2030. In the medium term, the U.S. is expected to receive more than its share of that growth, mainly due to the geopolitical winds blowing our way. In the past 25 years, manu- facturing has migrated to Asia, mainly China, and today, less than 4% of boards are produced in North America. is is the first time in over 25 years that investment in PCB manufactur- ing is coming back in an impactful way. As a result, we are seeing sizable investment in U.S. PCB capacity. I recently spent time in Washington, D.C., working with PCBAA, ask- ing for further government support for our industry. Without exception, every govern- ment contact we met supports legislation to bring more manufacturing back to the U.S. In fact, PCBAA has been able to get co-spon- sorship commitments from several congress- men for H.R. 3249. I'm confident that govern- ment support of the investment into electron- ics manufacturing will continue as well. What is your philosophy on change manage- ment, and has it changed over the years? Earlier in my career, I'd probably describe my philosophy toward change management as non-existent. I was more of a top-down man- ager focused on day-to-day activities, not look- ing at the bigger picture. I put little effort into anticipating changes that, down the road, might affect the business. Today, we spend a good deal more time on continuous improvement and learning. I'd like to think we are an organization that has trained our people to look for change, embrace it, and adapt to it. At the same time, we spend time on contingency planning every year. Workforce challenges are a consideration for most of us right now. Good workers, espe- cially technical people, are hard to find, and you do not want to lose the good ones you have. What are your thoughts on workforce, and do you have a strategy for recruiting and retaining talent? Like most employers, we struggle to find tech- nical people. Since I joined Schmoll in 2019, Kurt Palmer