Blog

Middle market manufacturers in the USA face a distinct challenge when it comes to innovation. Unlike startups with room to experiment or large corporations with hefty R&D budgets, these manufacturers must navigate with limited resources and a lack of tailored guidance. The gap in knowledge on how they innovate and grow is glaring. A recent revival of an archived growth and innovation benchmarking study, originally conducted by the Pennsylvania…

With Veterans Day being today, there’s no better time to celebrate the vital role veterans play in the manufacturing world. Moving from military service into civilian careers, veterans bring a unique mix of skills, discipline, and resilience that fits right into the fast-paced, team-focused environment of manufacturing. Their experience and training make them natural leaders, problem-solvers, and innovators on the shop floor, helping manufacturing companies grow stronger and more…

Exciting news from Catalyst Connection: We've secured a transformative $2 million ARC POWER grant from the Appalachian Regional Commission! This substantial funding fuels our Forging Your Future initiative, crafted to cultivate a dynamic and skilled advanced manufacturing workforce across southwestern Pennsylvania. "With manufacturing driving a $12 billion economy and employing almost 90,000 people in southwestern Pennsylvania, it's a beacon of hope and prosperity for Appalachian communities," says Petra Mitchell,…

In today’s competitive manufacturing landscape, strong leadership isn’t just about managing processes—it’s about leading people. The success of a business increasingly relies on the ability of supervisors to foster engagement, productivity, and employee retention. For manufacturers in southwestern Pennsylvania, this is particularly critical as the need for effective team management becomes more pressing in an evolving industry. The “Supervisory Skills forToday’s Workplace” training series offers a comprehensive approach to…

As a business operating in the U.S., it's essential to stay ahead of new regulations that could impact your compliance requirements. One of the most significant updates on the horizon is the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA), a federal law designed to increase transparency in business ownership and combat financial crimes. The CTA introduces new reporting obligations for many U.S. businesses, and understanding how it applies to your company is…