On this episode of FM Evolution, host Shawn Black sits down with Jeff Schrantz, VP of Global Sales and Marketing at Avidbots, the inventor and manufacturing company for Neo the autonomous floor-scrubbing robot. With an extensive background in sales, Jeff and Avidbots have made it their goal to double the size of the organization year after year, and they have achieved it repeatedly. Throughout the episode, Shawn and Jeff discuss the factors behind the shift to automation, the change automation has gone through, the future of automation, and how it benefits FMs.
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Show Notes
Show Notes:
(
0:54) Introduction to Jeff
(
4:28) Driving Factor behind Automation
(
6:10) Change in Automation
(
7:33) How Automation Benefits FMs
(
14:02) Automation Alienating the Human Workforce
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19:09) Advice for FMs Implementing Automation
(
22:22) How FMs Are Trained about Automation
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24:45) Best Way for FMs to Roll Out Automation
(
27:08) How Automation Is Being Used
(
32:07) Future of Automation
Links:
Quotes:
“We’re not looking to replace humans. We’re looking to make humans more productive in an environment…We believe that we are actually raising the productivity of the workers…not infringing on their humanness. We think there is an additive effect, not a replacing effect.” - Jeff Schrantz, (
14:43)
“The market is shifting toward automation that allows humans to focus on tasks that require dexterity and decision making…and that’s where humans perform best. Most businesses can identify activities in their organization in their day-to-day operations that can only be done by humans.” - Jeff Schrantz, (
17:05)
“Education is critical. If you’re getting pushback internally, it’s an opportunity to further educate your workforce on the benefits and how they can work alongside this new piece of technology. It’s not enough for the executive team to bring the technology into the facility…there’s got to be buy-in all the way down to the people that actually put their hands on the technology.” - Jeff Schrantz, (
25:00)
“It’s about bringing down the barriers so people are not threatened by technology…It’s about educating from the top to bottom… that’s ultimately how you get to success. When people are committed to the success of this technology, it’ll be successful.” - Jeff Schrantz, (
26:03)
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