Manufacturing leaders across southeastern Wisconsin are asking the same question: “Where does artificial intelligence fit in our business?”
At First Business Bank, this comes up in nearly every conversation we have about technology and growth, so this fall we’re sponsoring an exclusive AI Navigator workshop for a select group of manufacturers through our partnership with WMEP Manufacturing Solutions.
Where should manufacturers start with AI?
Most manufacturing leaders aren’t short on AI advice. They’re short on a starting point that fits their floor, their team, and their budget. WMEP Manufacturing Solutions knows manufacturers from the inside. The nonprofit has worked with more than 4,000 Wisconsin companies over three decades, and the AI Navigator workshop grew out of that work, not a sales pitch for new software. Instead of starting with the technology, the program starts with the business challenge, things like production bottlenecks, staffing gaps, or quality control, and works backward to find where AI can help and where it doesn’t.
That distinction matters more than most people realize. A lot of manufacturers feel pressure to adopt AI because competitors are talking about it, not because they’ve identified a clear use for it on their own floor. WMEP’s approach removes that pressure and replaces it with a process.
Inside WMEP’s AI Navigator Workshop
Cross-functional teams of three to four employees per company spend the session learning the fundamentals of AI in a manufacturing setting, then move into structured exercises guided by WMEP’s advisors.
By the end, each team leaves with three things:
• Clarity on where AI can help and where it can’t
• Alignment among leadership on the challenges that matter most for productivity
• A written plan built around one priority challenge that leadership can hand to the board or share across the floor.
Chris Baichoo, WMEP’s CEO and executive director, has spent three decades in manufacturing, including hands-on roles on the production floor before moving into leadership. He took over at WMEP in 2023 and now leads an organization that helps Wisconsin companies grow without guessing.
His take is straightforward: companies need a way to separate the AI that solves real problems for them from the AI noise. WMEP pairs their manufacturing know-how with AI strategy expertise through a partnership with the MKE Tech Hub Coalition’s Synapse initiative.
Workshops are limited to a smaller number of companies, so each team gets real attention from WMEP’s advisors. If you lead a manufacturing business in our market, reach out to me directly to learn more.
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