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Aug 22
39m 42s

S6E34 John Lembke | Best Practices for H...

Aaron Moncur
About this episode

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Join us for an in-depth conversation with John Lembke, a manufacturing engineering manager with over a decade of experience in factory digitization, lean manufacturing, and ERP integrations. John shares his proven strategies for hiring high-performing engineering teams, scaling production rapidly, and building effective manufacturing processes. From his early days around ice-making machinery to leading 60% capacity increases, John offers practical insights that engineering managers and job seekers alike will find invaluable.

Main Topics:

  • Hiring Best Practices - Creating skill histograms to identify team gaps and writing targeted job descriptions
  • Interview Strategies - Essential questions for assessing both technical skills and cultural fit
  • Common Hiring Mistakes - Why hiring people like yourself and poor job descriptions hurt your team
  • Candidate Advice - How to use the STAR method and present yourself effectively in engineering interviews
  • ERP & MES Systems - Understanding enterprise resource planning and manufacturing execution systems
  • Production Scaling - Real-world strategies for achieving rapid capacity increases
  • Manufacturing KPIs - Key metrics for tracking quality and efficiency in production environments
  • Leadership Philosophy - How endurance sports translate to workplace intensity and mental toughness

About the guest: John Lembke is a manufacturing and operations leader with a track record of scaling production and driving process excellence. At Scythe Robotics, he boosted production capacity by 60% in 16 months and led ERP implementation to streamline operations. Previously, as Director of Manufacturing and Scaling at Phantom Auto, he built prototype production systems and integrated advanced hardware into partner vehicles. His earlier experience at Seagate, Ensign-Bickford, and GE honed his expertise in process engineering, KPI development, and cross-functional leadership. With degrees from CU Boulder and RPI, John is committed to continuous learning, mentoring, and applying innovative approaches—balanced by a passion for backpacking and endurance sports.

Links:

John Le

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