Alarming Disconnect Between Manufacturing Leadership and Frontline Teams Threatens Quality Outcomes

An Ease.io survey of 1,000 manufacturing professionals found that while 92% of managers have a positive view of their company’s quality culture, one in four frontline workers either disagree or are uncertain about their company’s commitment to quality. 

Key insights from the survey include:

• Nearly half (48%) of frontline workers don’t have a solid understanding of their company’s quality management protocols, compared to 77% of managers who said they understand them “very well.”
• Almost half (49%) of frontline operators have witnessed quality issues being ignored or covered up. Among these workers, only 51% reported the issues to management, while one in four stayed quiet. This communication breakdown creates significant risk in food manufacturing environments, where a single unreported quality issue could lead to contamination, recalls, or consumer harm.
• There are also disparities in technology understanding, with only 28% of operators feeling confident in their AI knowledge, despite 50% of managers believing their teams understand these technologies well. With automation and AI becoming increasingly central to food manufacturing quality control, this knowledge gap could hamper implementation of crucial technological advancements.

With persistent labor shortages and increasing economic pressures in manufacturing, ensuring alignment between leadership and frontline teams on quality management has never been more critical. See the complete “Pulse on Quality” report for more insights and recommendations for manufacturing leaders.