FRI AM News: WisBusiness: the Podcast with John Burke, Trek Bicycle; Survey of manufacturers explores expectations, challenges and tech

October 4, 2024

— This week’s episode of “WisBusiness: the Podcast” is with John Burke, president of Trek Bicycle.

He discusses his latest book, “A Bold Plan for America: 14 Nonpartisan Solutions Based on the Facts,” which covers topics ranging from the national health care system to immigration, campaign finance, defense spending and more.

Burke, who has led the bicycle company since 1997, has previously published books on the life of his late father and Trek Bicycle founder Richard Burke, as well as two other books focused on American policy challenges and his vision of how to solve them.

“I’m a frustrated citizen, as many of us are, and I thought I could write a book on simple solutions to help save America,” he said.

The podcast highlights some of Burke’s top takeaways for members of Wisconsin’s business community, as well as the experiences he drew on while writing the latest book.

“We have as big a problem with our citizenship as we do with our leadership, and I think as citizens, and especially as business leaders, I think we can take a look at what kind of a difference can we make?” he said. “Instead of just saying, that’s somebody else’s problem, or the government is screwed up, or the political parties are the problem, what can we do?”

He argues “we need to be more demanding as citizens,” adding his views on some of the issues in the book have evolved somewhat over time.

“In the book, I propose a whole host of tax increases and an even bigger list of expense reductions, because there’s no way we can move to financial stability without both tax increases and spending cuts,” he said.

Burke, 62, also weighs in on his potential political aspirations.

“I really love running the bike company, it’s been my life’s work and we have an amazing team and we’ve got plenty of challenges and opportunities ahead of us, so that’s my main focus,” he said. “But you know, if we can’t get somebody who can come out and talk about the damn facts, along with some real solutions, then I might look at doing it at some time. But I’ll do it as a last resort.”

Listen to the podcast and see the full list of WisBusiness.com podcasts.

— A recent survey of Wisconsin manufacturers finds expectations around revenues, profits and capital expenditures have been declining in recent years, even as respondents were generally confident about their financial outlook.

The Wisconsin Center for Manufacturing & Productivity recently released its Wisconsin Manufacturing Report, detailing results of a survey conducted by South Carolina-based polling firm Meeting Street Insights. Between July 28 and Aug. 23, the survey tapped 400 manufacturing executives in the state.

It’s the fourth annual survey conducted on behalf of the WCMP, capturing insights from companies producing machinery, fabricated metal, food and beverage products, paper and wood products and more.

For the first time since 2021, the percentage of respondents who said the state’s business climate is headed in the right direction dropped below 50%, reaching 47% in the latest survey.

And while overall pessimism is down from the 2022 survey, less than a quarter of respondents say Wisconsin’s economy is growing. Still, 85% of executives report being confident about their own company’s financial outlook. This percentage has barely shifted over the four years of surveys.

Buckley Brinkman, executive director and CEO of the WCMP, said this finding is puzzling. He spoke this week during a presentation in Brookfield highlighting the results of the survey.

“On one side, we say we’re really confident in our own company, but yet we’re not comfortable with the environment,” he said Wednesday, adding “it really came down to a sense of control. Manufacturers really felt confident because they had control of the things within their four walls. But when they went outside, and when they were relying on the competence of others, that confidence slipped a lot.”

Meanwhile, the survey found “a longer-term slide” in expectations for gross revenue, profitability and capital expenditures since 2021. The share of those expecting an increase in gross revenues has fallen from 52% to 36%, while expectations for increased profitability have fallen from 38% to 31%. For capital expenditures, those expecting an increase fell from 44% to 29%.

The survey also found the top issue for respondents was finding high-quality skilled workers and retaining employees, especially for larger businesses. This concern exceeded inflation, rising costs and the overall economy, illustrating the importance of workforce issues for manufacturers in the state.

Seventy-nine percent of respondents said it’s very or somewhat difficult to find qualified workers for new or open positions — a slight decline from previous years.

At the same time, Brinkman noted expectations around new hires are shifting as companies adjust to the current job market.

“The stress on the market, in terms of trying to find employees, has caused manufacturers to lower their expectations of how ready to work the workforce will be coming in the front door,” he said, adding employers are now expecting to have to do more on-the-job training for new employees.

More manufacturers are now using AI in their operations, the survey found, as that percentage rose from 10% in 2023 to 18% this year.

“It’s all about this experimenting, and I really like it,” Brinkman said, arguing “there’s not an excuse for anyone not to play with this technology right now.”

See the report.

— Union workers employed by Molson Coors in Milwaukee began striking after rejecting a contract offer from the company and are now calling for “a fair contract.”

About 43 members of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers went on strike, according to a statement from the union. The union, which represents mechanics and machine repair workers at Miller Brewing Co., says the strike is being driven by two main factors: economics and work-life balance.

“The employer insists on an alternate work schedule and other concessions that undermine our members’ flexibility and negatively impact their work/life balance,” a union spokesperson said in an email, adding the offer “fails to keep up with inflation, does not match wages of other trades at Molson Coors, and other area benchmarks.”

When asked for details on the contract being offered, the company didn’t provide specifics.

“We’ve made a competitive offer that exceeds local-market rates for similar unionized roles and we’re hopeful for a resolution that benefits everyone,” Adam Collins, Molson Coors’ chief communications officer, said in an email. “In the meantime, we don’t expect an impact to the availability of our products at retail.”

The union says it will provide “necessary resources” to its members as they “fight for a fair contract that reflects their critical contributions” to the company’s success.

“We call upon Molson Coors to come to the bargaining table to resolve these differences quickly,” the spokesperson said.

See more on the strike in headlines below.

Top headlines from the Health Care Report…

— The latest Marquette University Law School Poll finds registered voters who are Democrats rank health care and abortion policy as more important than Republicans or Independents.

For more of the most relevant health care news, reports on groundbreaking research in Wisconsin, links to top stories and more, sign up today for the free daily Health Care Report from WisPolitics and WisBusiness.com.

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