The Big Picture - June/July 2014 - (Page F24)

FOCUS INTERNATIONAL SIGN ASSOCIATION www.signs.org Finding Our Industry's Next Leaders 21ST-CENTURY WORKFORCE The numbers are stacked against us when it comes to hiring and retaining good employees. Many employees in manufacturing are headed toward retirement. And manufacturers aren't typically the first place a recent graduate sends a resume. Yet our industry offers outstanding career possibilities. It can provide creative jobs and an opportunity for advancement - both of which are qualities highly sought by many job seekers. ISA has taken steps to help the sign and visualcommunications industry share this story. Since it's an issue that affects the entire manufacturing sector, we're not alone. Last fall, eight ISA-member companies participated in Manufacturing Day, offered in conjunction with the National Association of Manufacturers. Participating companies invited students from local colleges and high schools into their plants for tours and discussions. Sign and graphics companies that participated felt it opened a door to reach - and recruit - these students. We hope to see this program grow as we participate again in 2014. Hiring Our Heroes, offered in conjunction with the US Chamber of Commerce, takes the same approach with military veterans. Our work with this program is still in the early stages, but we plan to invite those transitioning to post-military life to ISA International Sign Expo 2014 in Orlando. There, veterans will be able to network with sign companies and see the possibilities within our industry. In addition, ISA-affiliated associations can take part in job fairs and members can use the Hiring Our Heroes résumé finder to recruit veterans in their areas. As mentioned earlier, the demographics are against us and we don't have the luxury of doing nothing. If we tackle this problem head on, we have prime opportunities to bring in the next generation of industry leaders. INFOTRENDS www.infotrends.com Technology Can Boost Your Shop's Profits INTEGRATING NEW TECHNOLOGY We believe that it's crucial for print shops to embrace new technologies that will help their businesses evolve. The shops that we see being successful are often the ones that are trying new things - both from a sales and marketing standpoint as well as a product and service standpoint. Using new technology has enabled companies to improve their sales and marketing: by increasing the number of leads, accelerating the development of quotes, tracking and managing quotes better, and closing more business. It's not just about more business - it's about doing more profitable business. Integration of new technology that helps identify and understand all of their cost elements can help shop owners focus their sales efforts on high-margin customers and projects. On the production side, we see shops integrating new technologies to add value to existing products; 24 FOCUS 2014 these new technologies can also be used to develop new products and new business lines that can help grow their business with existing customers as well as find new customers. These might seem like small additions from a customer's perspective - adding the ability to print white or metallic, for example - but these enable new applications. Alternatively, many shops are adding the ability to digitally print onto large rolls of fabrics, T-shirts, coffee mugs, pens, or hats, or even to make 3D prints. We think there will be more focus on the ability to track and prove the value of signage and graphics, so interactive media elements (such as QR codes), are yet another new technology that shops are integrating that can manifest as new services. http://www.signs.org http://www.signs.org http://www.infotrends.com http://www.infotrends.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of The Big Picture - June/July 2014

The Big Picture - June/July 2014
Contents
InSight
Wide Angle
Up Front
Graphics on the Go
Flavorful Interiors
Step-by-Step: Deer Caught in the Spotlight
Stay Sharp with Cutters and Routers
R+D
Explorer

The Big Picture - June/July 2014

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