Leadership & Workforce Training for Manufacturers
SCMEP’s second-largest archived training area. Frontline supervision, leader development, and structured on-the-job training for the people who run shifts and teams, not just the people who run the plant.
What’s included
- Leader Standard Work
- Training Within Industry (TWI)
- Effective Leadership Development
- Women in Leadership virtual series
Building a broader manufacturing skills program? See our related guides on welding processes (SMAW, GTAW, GMAW) and shop trigonometry for machinists — both part of the fundamentals covered in our Certified Manufacturing Associate (CMfgA) preparation program.
Getting promoted for being the best technician on the floor doesn’t prepare anyone to manage the people who used to be peers. Read our guide to effective leadership development — for new manufacturing supervisors.
A production line with one person who knows how to run a specific machine isn’t fully staffed — it’s one sick day away from a bottleneck. See our guide to cross-training and skills matrix development — for manufacturing teams.
Cutting tool angles are one of the fundamentals covered in that same CMfgA prep. Read our guide to lathe operations and cutting tool angles — and our related comparison of centerless vs. cylindrical grinding.
Moving from operator to supervisor is its own kind of transition. Read our guide to surviving the first 90 days as a new supervisor — what actually changes in the role, and where the friction points are.
Building a skilled workforce pipeline doesn’t have to mean competing for the same experienced hires everyone else wants. Read our guide to Registered Apprenticeships — what makes a program “registered,” and how Apprenticeship Carolina works.
Not to be confused with FEMA’s National Incident Management System. See our guide to NIMS metalworking credentials — how they differ from CMfgA and Registered Apprenticeships.
The CPT credential is a portable, nationally recognized entry point into manufacturing work. Read our guide to the MSSC Certified Production Technician credential — the four modules explained.
World War II pulled skilled workers off American shop floors faster than anyone could replace them. Read our guide to TWI (Training Within Industry) — the three J programs and how TWI shaped the Toyota Production System.
Women make up roughly a third of the manufacturing workforce nationally, but a smaller share of plant management roles. Read our guide to Women in Leadership — where the pipeline actually narrows and why sponsorship matters.
Why this matters
A sustainable leadership routine
Leader Standard Work gives supervisors and managers a real, repeatable cadence for confirming the process — not a one-off workshop that fades in a month.
A proven frontline method
Training Within Industry is a well-established method for turning good operators into people who can actually teach the job to someone else.
Development at every level
From first-time team leads to plant managers, with a dedicated track for women in manufacturing leadership.
Frequently asked questions
Who is Leader Standard Work for?
Team leaders through plant managers — the routine and cadence change by level, but the underlying discipline is the same. Read our related article on how leader standard work keeps daily management from going reactive.
What is Training Within Industry (TWI)?
A structured method, developed originally for wartime industrial training, for teaching a specific job skill consistently and safely — still one of the most effective ways to standardize on-the-job training today.
Is this only for people who are already managers?
No. Several of these courses — including TWI — are aimed at experienced operators who are about to start training others, not just people with a supervisor title.
Related training
Explore related areas: Project Management, Lean & Continuous Improvement, or see the full learning paths and complete training catalog.
How to enrol
Most SCMEP courses can be delivered virtually, at an SCMEP location, or on-site at your facility. Availability and scheduling change through the year, so the training team is the fastest route to current dates.
- Tell us what you need — the area, roughly how many people, and whether you’d prefer on-site or virtual.
- We confirm what’s scheduled — or what it takes to run it for your team.
- Your team trains — with follow-up through the OpExChange peer network where it helps.
SCMEP offices
Greenville
250 Executive Center Drive, Suite 200Greenville, SC 29615
Columbia
250 Berryhill Road, Suite 115Columbia, SC 29210
A NIST Manufacturing Extension Partnership affiliate serving South Carolina manufacturers since 1989.