32 WESTERN PALLET
Nunzio Presta, Pallet Connect
From Taskmasters to Tech Coaches
Supervisors transition from being taskmasters to coaches who interpret data and guide adoption. But that requires support. Cutcher warns: “The biggest pitfall is assuming culture and technology run on separate tracks. In reality, they either reinforce each other or undermine each other. Tech amplifies whatever culture you already have.”
That’s why engaging managers early is essential. If they feel ownership, they’re more likely to champion the change rather than resist it. Leaders should provide
coaching on data interpretation and change management so supervisors can translate corporate goals into daily action. When supervisors see dashboards not as threats but as storytelling tools, they can motivate teams to improve performance in real time.
Sales and Admin Staff: Leveraging Data as a Differentiator
Beyond the shop floor, sales and service teams need to be empowered with data in
digestible ways. As Cutcher explains: “Data only creates value when people understand what it means and how it connects to their goals. We’ve found that dashboards that tell a clear story beat a 50-page report every time.”
Dashboards designed for clarity can help sales teams turn operational performance into a selling point. But without context, the numbers are meaningless. Training non-technical staff on data literacy ensures they can translate factory metrics into customer value.
Executive Leadership: Vision, Incentives and Follow-Through
No technology initiative will succeed without buy-in from the top. Executives must not only sign off on investments but actively support adoption. Grinwis emphas- izes that it isn’t just about executives: “It’s vitally important to get buy-in from every single person that will be affected by the project. I’ve seen an accounting clerk torpedo a software implementation and I’ve seen a maintenance technician kill an automation project.”
Presta adds that leadership tone is decisive: “At the end of the day, tech adoption is really about culture. When leadership sets a clear tone, ‘this isn’t about adding work, it’s about making work easier,’ morale rises instead of resistance. Executives should model digital fluency themselves, connect technology to employee well-being, and adjust incentives