Fix This To Grow Your Machine Shop

Running a machine shop is not for the faint of heart. Somewhere in all the deadlines and actual work, the ability to grow your machine shop seems to get lost.

You see the machines running and the work happening. You see good parts going out the door and assume everything is “fine.”

What you, and many shop owners, don’t “notice” (usually until it’s too late) is what it’s costing you as the owner to keep those machines running and "good" parts going out the door.

Running a machine shop isn’t just machining parts. It’s constant quoting, heightened customer pressure, hiring challenges, equipment problems, delivery promises, and dozens of decisions a day - all that eventually land on your desk, as the owner.

Most likely, you didn’t start your shop because you wanted to manage all of that. You started it because you love making parts. But somewhere along the way, the job changed.

Over the past year I’ve spent time inside dozens of machine shops, and one pattern shows up again and again.

The owner is the answer to almost everything.

Quotes get checked by you. Schedules get solved by you. Problems land on your desk.

Sometimes that’s because your shop hasn’t developed the right people yet. And sometimes it’s because you simply haven’t been able to find the right people to hire. That’s a real challenge in this industry right now. (Check out our article on the The Skilled Machinist Shortage and our article on Where to Find Skilled Machinists)

But either way, the result is the same: the entire operation depends on one person. This doesn’t just lead to inefficiency. It contributes to BURN OUT. The type that can make you want to go work for someone else again.

When every decision runs through one person, the weight of the entire business ends up there too. The pressure is not sustainable. But it is fixable.

You can start shifting some of that responsibility into the team without disrupting everything that’s already running.

(Take our quick survey to see how much is falling on you and what it's costing you)

The most successful machine shops don't just "hand off" responsibility. They develop the right team of people who can carry it.

They walk supervisors through decisions instead of making them alone. (This teaches your leaders how to make decisions like you.)

They give good machinists room to solve problems. This helps turn good machinists not just into skilled machinists - but experts in the way your shop does things.

They allow people to grow into more responsibility. Over time, decisions start happening closer to where the work actually happens. And you can be confident the decisions are the same that you would make.

You still lead the business. It's still your way of doing things. But you're no longer the only person holding it together. This is where true growth happens. This is where success starts.

Running a machine shop will never be easy.

But when responsibility grows inside your team instead of stopping at your desk, the entire shop starts to run stronger. And you will finally get the room to lead instead of reacting to everything.

You are not alone. A lot of shop owners are carrying more of the business than they should have to. It's a pitfall of the trade.

I can teach you HOW to start this shift. It’s easier than you think, and it starts with a simple call. In under an hour you'll have a solid plan.

Start shifting some of that weight back into your team.

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