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w w w.in s i g h t o n m f g . c o m May 2015 • /INSIGHT ON MANUFACTURING | 15 It's like an adrenaline rush career. PERFORMANCE-MINDED BUSINESS SOLUTIONS TRAIN. INSPIRE. ENERGIZE. for your training@morainepark.edu 920-924-3449 morainepark.edu/training Six Sigma I Leadership & Supervision I Technical Skills I Customized Training Solutions I Strategic Development everything that we eat," Perez says. The double-oven with induction stovetop, touch screens and stainless steel design make the Smart Stove a high-end product, retailing at $18,000. Spencer and Perez and other participating students spent two months "thinking from an entrepreneurial standpoint," Spencer says. Students had to figure out cost, pricing, target markets, packaging, accessories and a marketing plan, then they had to write a product pitch that encompassed all those factors. While it was nerve-wracking, all the work was worth it, Spencer says. It allowed students to consider flaws and look at the product from various angles and standpoints, he says. Perez says the project made them think about factors such as keeping inventory, cost and breaking down the various factors of producing a product. "The sharks gave us a lot of Industrial Automation Systems Integration Engineering, Design, Programming, CAD, Build, Install, Startup Neenah, WI 54956 info@a-mation.com CALL US NOW for machine retrofits and control system upgrades positive feedback, but they also told us some things that we could change and other things to consider when thinking about the product itself and how we could sell it," Spencer says. The Shark Tank project also included help from area mentors. Spencer and Perez worked with Jodi Mueller, regional sales manager at Green Bay Drop Forge. "She was a really big help for us," Spencer says. "She encouraged us a lot and got us thinking about different pricing strategies." Mueller also helped the students research competitors in their market. The other product pitches included a customizable cell phone that allows replacement of cameras and screens, and a combat fitness center that provides a competition- based experience through offerings like laser tag and dodgeball, Stainton says. The judges, or sharks, "did a phenomenal job of giving the kids the right combination of constructive criticism to help them think about how to develop their product more, but really gave them a lot of positive feedback," Stainton says. That helped to reinforce the value of hard work, as well as the value of being able to communicate well, she said. Communication skills are one of the "soft skills" that manufacturing leaders say they have a hard time finding among prospective employees. The program has been implemented in GPS locations near Milwaukee and in Appleton, at the education center at Plexus. The mentors from the program were present the day of the event to help support the kids, Stainton says. "They were almost as nervous as the students because they had invested so much with these kids," she says. "That was really cool, to see professionals from our area have that coaching mentality with students." F