The 2020s have introduced a unique set of challenges in the manufacturing and quality sectors. To start, leaders are being asked to rein in costs and control headcounts in response to uncertain market demands. At the same time, they’re also expected to modernize operations, implement new technologies, maintain compliance, improve quality, and prepare for the last boomer retirement wave.
As if that isn’t enough to juggle, the skill sets required on the shop floor continue to evolve. As Deloitte points out, investment in smart technology and digital transformation has become a priority for many organizations. But that technological change requires a trained workforce that can implement, work with, and maintain it.
As organizations struggle to fill open roles and ensure that their employees have needed skills, forward-thinking leaders are recognizing that they need to ask different questions around recruitment. Instead of thinking in terms of permanent headcount, it’s critical to begin thinking in terms of capabilities.
The question to ask is no longer, “Do we need another quality engineer?” Instead, it has become, “Which capabilities do we need to buy through permanent hiring, which can we build internally, and which can we borrow when needed through contract staffing or project-based expertise?”
This multifaceted approach can help organizations reduce risk, improve productivity, and make more strategic workforce decisions.
Start With Capabilities Instead Of Job Titles
In today’s workplace, it’s becoming increasingly risky to focus on positions instead of capabilities. Before creating a new requisition to hire another permanent employee, identify the capabilities that you would be asking that employee to bring to the table. Without those capabilities, will production slow, quality suffer, customers be affected, compliance requirements go unmet, or modernization efforts stall?
For many organizations in the manufacturing sector, key capabilities to consider may include:
- Quality systems management;
- CAPA and root-cause analysis;
- Supplier quality;
- Validation and compliance;
- Manufacturing engineering;
- Automation and controls;
- Lean and continuous improvement;
- Reliability engineering;
- Data and analytics; and
- Technical leadership.
Regulated industries may have further standards and audit expertise that need to be considered. For example, manufacturers of medical devices have had to adapt to the FDA’s Quality Management System Regulation (QMSR), which became effective in 2026 and incorporates ISO 13485:2016 requirements. When regulatory changes like these are implemented, demand for specialized capabilities can quickly skyrocket.
It’s tempting to think that increasing headcount can ensure growth and success. However, focussing on capabilities instead can help leaders gain a clearer understanding of existing gaps – and develop the best strategic plan to address them.
BUILD: Develop Internal Talent When Knowledge Matters Most
Building talent internally is often the best long-term strategy for filling capability gaps. This is particularly true when the work depends heavily on company-specific process expertise, customer history, product knowledge, or long-term continuity.
Mentorship programs, opportunities to pursue certifications, apprenticeships, and cross-functional training can help your existing team level up to fill capability gaps. A build strategy makes particular sense in situations where:
- Quality technicians are ready to move into engineering roles;
- Engineers can be cross-trained into supplier quality or validation;
- High-potential employees are being prepared for leadership positions; or
- Critical process knowledge needs to be transferred before retirements occur.
Manufacturers have long understood the need to invest heavily in workforce development. According to the National Association of Manufacturers, a 2026 survey by the Manufacturing Institute reports that manufacturers spend an estimated $31.9 billion annually on workforce training, and more than three-quarters of manufacturing organizations offer employer-led training programs.
While building talent internally is a strategic way to meet shifting workforce demands, this process takes time. It’s not the best approach for solving urgent capability gaps. Build strategies are more effective when planning for future needs than responding to immediate problems.
BUY: Hire Permanently When Long-Term Ownership Is Required
Sometimes, it’s clear that certain capabilities will be critical for the long term. When a need is ongoing, strategically important, or requires long-term ownership, the best strategy is usually to buy the capabilities – that is, to make a permanent hire.
Investing in a permanent hire is a particularly sound decision in regard to senior-level and leadership roles. Examples include:
- Quality managers;
- Senior quality engineers;
- Manufacturing engineers;
- Supplier quality leaders;
- Controls and automation engineers; and
- Technical leaders responsible for key systems or initiatives.
Long-term investment in these roles ensures that responsibility for critical decisions, processes, and improvement efforts remains within the organization.
Additionally, permanent hires are key to succession planning. When organizations wait until a critical senior-level employee or leader resigns or retires to begin a talent search, they may lose opportunities for knowledge transfer.
While permanent hires make good strategic sense in many situations, the low unemployment rate in the engineering and manufacturing sectors poses a significant challenge for organizations. Competition for top talent is already high. To further complicate the issue, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects 12% growth in industrial engineering employment between 2025 and 2035, with approximately 23,100 openings each year.
As the American Society for Quality (ASQ) has advised, a multi-year strategic plan for developing and hiring quality talent is critical. There are several factors to consider when developing the plan, including projected retirements, evolving technologies, changing regulatory requirements, and future workforce needs.
Creating a strategic long-term talent plan won’t necessarily be easy. However, proactively building multi-year talent pipelines often creates more options than depending on last-minute hires.
BORROW: Access Expertise When Speed And Flexibility Matter
Not every capability gap requires a permanent solution. Sometimes building or buying capability just isn’t practical. For example, a permanent hire doesn’t make sense if you need highly specialized talent to fill a capability gap on a temporary basis. On the flip side, you may not have time to build or buy talent when you urgently need to address a capability gap.
Situations like these call for a borrowing strategy. Borrowing capability – by temporarily bringing in contract professionals, project consultants, subject matter experts, or specialized staffing solutions – can be especially helpful for:
- Launch support;
- Supplier recovery initiatives;
- Validation projects;
- CAPA remediation efforts;
- Manufacturing ramp-ups;
- QMS modernization;
- Audit remediation;
- System implementation;
- Temporary backfills during leave or turnover; and
- Specialized quality or engineering projects.
Borrowing provides flexibility. Instead of turning every business need into a headcount issue, organizations can access expertise for a specific timeframe and scale support as priorities change.
Borrowing capability can provide an effective interim or stopgap solution. In some situations, it’s necessary to maintain momentum and productivity while leaders determine if a long-term solution would be more effective.
While borrowing can quickly address capability gaps, it’s not necessarily better – or cheaper – than building or buying talent for the long-term. But it is a very effective strategy when speed, specialized knowledge, flexibility, or project-specific outcomes are more important than long-term ownership.
A Simple Five-Question Decision Framework
Five simple questions can help leaders determine the best strategy to address a specific capability gap. Those questions are:
- Is this capability core to our long-term operating model?
- Does the work require deep institutional or customer knowledge?
- Is the need permanent, temporary, or still unclear?
- How quickly will the gap affect production, quality, compliance, or growth?
- Is the capability available internally, or would development take too long?
The answers will often point to a logical choice between BUILD, BUY, and BORROW strategies – or some combination thereof.
If the capability is strategically important and knowledge-based, BUILD may be the best option.
If the capability requires long-term ownership and accountability, BUY is often the better choice.
If urgency, specialization, or flexibility are the primary concerns, BORROW is likely the most effective solution.
In reality, many organizations take a hybrid approach to addressing capability gaps. For example, a manufacturer might engage a contractor with specialized knowledge to support an ongoing project while simultaneously developing internal talent to lead the project at a later date. This kind of approach can provide a good balance between speed and sustainability.
The Strongest Workforce Strategies Use All Three
In today’s markets, organizations can’t rely on a single strategy to effectively fill capability gaps and resolve talent issues. Combining build, buy, and borrow strategies can help position your organization for long-term success.
This approach is becoming especially important as technology becomes more pervasive on the factory floor. Investments in automation, smart manufacturing, analytics, and overall digital transformation only have value if the workforce understands how to implement, use, improve, and maintain these tools. In light of this, merging your organization’s technology and talent strategies makes good business sense.
Leaders who understand the importance of strategically addressing capability gaps will have more options, lower risk, and greater flexibility in times of disruption. By understanding when to build, buy, or borrow capability, leaders in the manufacturing and quality sectors will be able to effectively address today’s issues while preparing for tomorrow’s challenges.
If your organization is evaluating a critical capability gap, 180 Engineering can help you determine whether your needs are best addressed through direct hiring, contract staffing, or specialized consulting support.
