Over the years, I've contributed about 90 articles to IndustryWeek. One of them " It Takes Two to Tango ," from 2015, dealt with the fact that in supply chain negotiations, there is middle ground if both sides are willing to compromise. The headline, suggested by my then-editor, was a bit of a stretch for me; I didn't understand how it related to the content of the article. But now I know what he was getting at. Tango dancers must coordinate and collaborate to the nth degree to successfully execute the dance.

Recently, a manufacturing executive told me that companies must be more transparent in telling future hires exactly what the job entails. That includes hours, working conditions and expectations. He's lost too many people who didn't realize that putting in a lot of hours was just part of the job. Dan Johnston, co-founder of WorkStep, would whole-heartedly agree. After seeing the struggle, first-hand as a manager of a large third-party logistics company, he set out to make some changes.