Critical Discovery Questions for Engaging Heads of Operations in Manufacturing
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Summary:
Heads of Operations in manufacturing are under constant pressure to balance efficiency, cost control, quality assurance, and scalability. Effective discovery conversations should identify hidden inefficiencies, gaps in workflow visibility, and opportunities for automation, positioning your Productivity/Ops SaaS as a key enabler for operational excellence.
Here’s a set of 30 targeted discovery questions to guide your early and deep-dive conversations:
1. Workflow Efficiency and Bottlenecks
- What are the most significant bottlenecks in your current production workflows?
- How much downtime do you experience on the shop floor each month?
- Are there specific processes where delays frequently occur?
- How do you monitor and optimize line balancing across shifts?
- If you could eliminate one operational inefficiency today, what would it be?
2. Quality Control and Process Consistency
- How do you ensure consistent product quality across all production runs?
- What systems are in place to detect and address defects in real time?
- Are you confident in your current quality assurance processes?
- Where do quality failures typically occur in the production cycle?
- What would it take to reduce scrap and rework by 10%?
3. Resource Allocation and Capacity Planning
- How do you plan for fluctuating demand in your production schedule?
- Are you able to fully utilize your current workforce and machinery?
- What’s your process for reallocating resources during peak periods?
- Where do you see gaps in your capacity planning?
- How are you currently tracking machine utilization and efficiency?
4. Real-Time Visibility and Data Gaps
- Do you have real-time visibility into production metrics across facilities?
- Are there blind spots in your operational data that hinder decision-making?
- How do you share production insights with other stakeholders (e.g., CFO, Supply Chain Director)?
- What challenges do you face in consolidating data from different systems?
- How are you measuring success across plants or production lines?
5. Team Collaboration and Workflow Optimization
- How do teams coordinate during production handoffs or shift changes?
- Are cross-functional teams aligned on operational goals and KPIs?
- How often do communication breakdowns impact production timelines?
- What’s the current process for implementing operational improvements?
- Are you satisfied with how quickly your team adapts to workflow changes?
6. Scaling and Future-Proofing Operations
- How do you plan to scale production without proportionally increasing costs?
- Are legacy systems or manual processes limiting your ability to grow?
- What investments are you considering to modernize your operations?
- How would automation change your approach to managing operations?
- If you could future-proof one aspect of your operations, what would it be?
How Pepsales AI Helps
Pepsales AI helps sales teams ask the right questions, faster. It delivers intelligent, role-specific, and industry-aware discovery questions in real time tailored to the context of each deal.
What it delivers:
- A library of proven questions per industry, persona, and product
- Smart prompts that adapt to buyer role, objections, and stage
- Embedded coaching and insights to guide better conversations
- Automation of discovery prep, no more guesswork
Whether you’re prepping for a demo or coaching new reps, Pepsales AI ensures every conversation starts strong and gets to the real need, fast.
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