What Questions Should Our Management Team be Asking to Plan for 2026?

As your management team plans for 2026, it is important you are asking all the key questions to drive your strategies in every area to leave no gaps in your annual plan. Below are the key strategic and operational questions you should consider. At the bottom of this article is a checklist version for you to give your team members.

Strategic Questions (Big-Picture, Future-Positioning)

Market & Customer Strategy

• What markets and customers represent the greatest growth opportunity in 2026–2028 (aerospace, automotive, medical, EV, defense)?
• How will customer expectations for faster turnaround, quality, and data transparency change, and how will we meet them?
• Are we positioned to be the first call for customers with complex or tight-tolerance work?
• What value-added services (pre-processing, testing, machining, logistics, certifications) should we add to deepen customer stickiness?

Economic & Demand Forecasting

• What do the ITR Economics forecasts and MTI sales data tell us about 2026 demand?
• Do we anticipate a downturn around 2030, and what do we need to do in 2026 to be resilient?
• Are we prepared for volatility in energy prices, metals supply, labor supply, and interest rates?

Competitive Positioning

• What makes us meaningfully different from our competitors—and is that difference clear, measurable, and valuable to customers?
• How will reshoring/nearshoring trends impact our geographic market?
• How do we become the most automated, most predictable, and most customer-focused option in our region?

Technology, AI & Automation Strategy

• Which of our processes can be automated or AI-assisted in 2026 to reduce rework, labor hours, and variability?
• Are we capturing and using furnace data effectively to make decisions?
• What AI tools can immediately improve quoting, scheduling, customer communication, training, and quality control?

Workforce & Leadership Strategy

• What will our workforce look like in 2026?
• Where are our biggest skill gaps, and how are we proactively developing talent?
• How are we using MTI’s Online Academy, YES Management Training, and our own internal ladders to build bench strength?
• What is our plan to attract and retain the next generation of operators and supervisors?

Financial Strategy

• What capital investments in furnaces, controls, automation, energy management, and AI deliver 3–5× ROI?
• How do we optimize cash reserves, debt structure, and financing in anticipation of economic changes?
• Are we pricing correctly for rising labor, energy, and compliance costs?

Risk, Compliance & Standards

• Are we fully prepared for 2026 audits: Nadcap, AMEC, ISO, and customer-specific?
• What part of our compliance system poses the biggest risk (training, calibration, documentation)?
• Are we following MTI Technical Standards Committee updates that impact our processes?

Operational Questions (Day-to-Day Execution & Performance)

Production Flow & Throughput

• Where are our biggest constraints or bottlenecks, and what would it take to eliminate them?
• Is our scheduling system optimized for shortest total cycle time?
• Are we using data to predict loads, maintenance needs, and furnace performance.

Quality & Consistency

• What are our top sources of rework or scrap, and how do we eliminate them?
• How consistent is our process control across shifts and operators?
• Are we utilizing pyrometry, controls, and automation to reduce operator-driven variability?

Maintenance & Reliability

• Do we have a predictive maintenance plan tied to actual furnace performance data?
• How reliable are our thermocouples, sensors, and control systems?
• Where are we exposed to single-point failures (equipment, people, knowledge)?

Safety & Environmental

• What safety risks are emerging due to new processes, new employees, or aging equipment?
• Are there environmental compliance risks we need to get ahead of (emissions, quench oils, waste)?
• Are we up to date on training and documentation for OSHA/NFPA requirements?

Workforce Execution

• Do we have the right number of trained operators on every shift?
• Where do supervisors need additional leadership training (communication, coaching, accountability)?
• What tasks can be automated to remove low-value labor?

Customer Experience & Communication

• How fast are we quoting, communicating, responding, and resolving issues?
• Are customers happy with turnaround time and transparency?
• Do our reporting and certifications meet or exceed what competitors provide?

Data, Metrics & Dashboarding

• What KPIs do we need to track daily, weekly, and monthly in 2026?
• Are we measuring furnace uptime, load consistency, energy usage, labor per pound/part, and profit per job?
• Do managers have dashboards that drive better decisions?

Emerging Questions for 2026 That High-Performing Plants Are Asking

• What would it take to run the same workload with 10–30% fewer labor hours using AI + automation?
• What information do customers wish they had in real time, and can we give it to them?
• What should we outsource vs. bring in-house?
• How can we redesign jobs to attract younger talent and reduce turnover?
• Are we prepared for the cyber and digital risks that come with AI and automation?
• What must we do now for our plant to still be competitive five years from today?

CLICK HERE for PDF version to share with your team.

Feel free to reach out to the MTI Team if you have any questions. Good luck in your planning process.