Wayne F. Frost, CMfgE
SME President Member Since 1983
SME SPEAKS PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE My Manufacturing Journey I
have often thought of my life, and career in manufacturing as a journey, one that began shoveling sand in a foundry to being a CEO and now SME president. When I joined SME, I did it for the same reasons that many of our members do— to fi nd out what was in it for me. At that time in my career, it was to leverage SME’s certifi cation and local chapter net- working opportunities, so that ultimately I could get a salaried position at John Deere. Having started as a wage employee in the foundry, and then transitioning into the machining operations, I was looking for something more. Fortunately, my SME membership did not disappoint me—it helped me transition into my fi rst salary position as a manager. Through my 30-plus years as a member, SME has given me the opportunity to develop my leadership and business skills at both the chapter and region levels, and throughout my journey, many people have provided me with support in that development. As my journey continues, I have had the unique chance to serve as SME’s interim CEO for the last six months. This role has given me an even greater appreciation for SME and its talented staff, whose dedication and commitment blends well with the equally dedicated and committed volunteers who have created an organization second to none! As SME’s CEO, I also have a different vantage point; now, when I think of SME, its staff and all of its stakeholders, three words come to mind: engagement, collaboration and innovation. My goal as the 2015 SME president is to continue to develop and implement a shared vision for SME through engagement, collaboration and innovation. Engagement begins at all levels: with our members, events, training and development, media and our education foundation. Through the collaboration of these entities, we are able to bring forth the innovation in manufacturing that is leading the economic recovery of this country.
With all of the added technologies, products and services now available, it is also important to remember that there are still only three true ways of creating wealth: manufacturing, make it; mining, mine it; and agriculture, grow it. In my lifetime, I have had the good fortune to experience two of these fi rsthand—one by having been raised on a farm and actively engaged in agriculture, and two, having a career focused on manufacturing and producing agricultural products at John Deere.
Manufacturing and its importance played a large role in
SME’s rebrand and 2017 Strategic Direction. With SME now in the second year of its brand change and strategic direc- tion, there is still much work to be done to solidify SME as all things manufacturing. The SME Board of Directors spent a lot of time during the development of the new brand and strategic direction talking about relevance and the role SME plays in the “greater good” of manufacturing. When people look at SME and what it stands for, we want them to see and know about the greater good in the programs it offers, whether that is online training to our current and/or future manufacturing workforce through Tooling U-SME, revolu- tionary technologies on display at SME events, in-depth technical information about advanced manufacturing through Advanced Manufacturing Media, the intellectual property our members provide or what the SME Education Foundation is accomplishing with high schools across the country through its PRIME (Partnership Response In Manufacturing Educa- tion) program and/or the more than $8.1 million in scholar- ships it has given out to college-bound students. There’s obviously still much to be done, but as I look ahead to 2015, I am excited about what lies ahead for all of us involved in manufacturing. I thank you for the opportunity to share my visions for the future and look forward to serving as your SME president.
January 2015 |
AdvancedManufacturing.org 17
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