# 192: Leading with Productivity to Drive Sustainability Featuring Lauren Dunford, CEO of Guidewheel

- Show: [Manufacturing Happy Hour](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/manufacturing-happy-hour)
- Published: 2024-07-02
- Length: 48m
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/manufacturing-happy-hour/2024-07-02-192-leading-with-productivity-to-drive-sustainability-featuring-lauren-dunford-c
- Listen: http://manufacturinghappyhour.com

## Summary

Lauren Dunford, CEO and co-founder of Guidewheel, explains how her company pivoted from an energy management system to a factory operations platform after discovering that production teams were using its amperage sensors to drive a 20% productivity boost. She discusses the strategic value of integrating data into existing shop floor routines, the role of AI in predictive maintenance, and the importance of empowering 'factory ops champions' to drive adoption. Dunford also shares insights on her background at Stanford and her involvement with the World Economic Forum, highlighting how productivity and sustainability are inextricably linked through operational efficiency.

## Chapters

- [0:00](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/manufacturing-happy-hour/2024-07-02-192-leading-with-productivity-to-drive-sustainability-featuring-lauren-dunford-c#t=0) Introduction and World Economic Forum Involvement
- [7:13](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/manufacturing-happy-hour/2024-07-02-192-leading-with-productivity-to-drive-sustainability-featuring-lauren-dunford-c#t=433) Lauren Dunford’s Career Path and Stanford MBA
- [14:00](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/manufacturing-happy-hour/2024-07-02-192-leading-with-productivity-to-drive-sustainability-featuring-lauren-dunford-c#t=840) The Pivot: From Energy Management to Productivity
- [21:54](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/manufacturing-happy-hour/2024-07-02-192-leading-with-productivity-to-drive-sustainability-featuring-lauren-dunford-c#t=1314) Linking Productivity to Sustainability and Investor Value
- [29:39](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/manufacturing-happy-hour/2024-07-02-192-leading-with-productivity-to-drive-sustainability-featuring-lauren-dunford-c#t=1779) Supply Chain Pressure and Scope 3 Emissions
- [35:23](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/manufacturing-happy-hour/2024-07-02-192-leading-with-productivity-to-drive-sustainability-featuring-lauren-dunford-c#t=2123) Guidewheel’s Evolution: OEE, AI, and Prescriptive Analytics
- [41:16](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/manufacturing-happy-hour/2024-07-02-192-leading-with-productivity-to-drive-sustainability-featuring-lauren-dunford-c#t=2476) Empowering Factory Ops Champions and Community

## Topics

- [Scaling production](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/scaling-production)
- [AI & machine learning](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/ai-and-machine-learning)
- [Validation & product-market fit](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/validation-and-product-market-fit)
- [Sustainability & circular products](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/sustainability-and-circularity)
- [Careers & education](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/engineering-careers-and-education)
- [Connected products & IoT](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/connected-products-and-iot)

## Most relevant to

companies scaling up

## Mentioned

- Guidewheel (company)
- Stanford (other)
- World Economic Forum (company)
- Rockwell Automation (company)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [When Legacy Thinking Gets in the Way of Manufacturing Innovation w/ Annie Lu](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-manufacturing-executive/2026-06-16-when-legacy-thinking-gets-in-the-way-of-manufacturing-innovation-w-annie-lu) (The Manufacturing Executive)
- [Aligning Sustainability and Profitability in Manufacturing](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-manufacturing-executive/2022-10-18-aligning-sustainability-and-profitability-in-manufacturing) (The Manufacturing Executive)
- [Why Connecting Machines And Companies Unlocks Real Factory Value with Koh Young's Michael Zahn and Joel Scutchfield](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/ems-c-level/2025-12-11-why-connecting-machines-and-companies-unlocks-real-factory-value-with-koh-youngs) (EMS@C-LEVEL)
- [Connected Workers and the Evolution of the Industrial Workforce | SensorUp's Steve Liang](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/iot-for-all-podcast/2021-10-18-connected-workers-and-the-evolution-of-the-industrial-workforce-sensorups-steve) (IoT For All Podcast)
- [Human Input in a Data-Driven World w/ Martin Cloake](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-manufacturing-executive/2021-02-09-human-input-in-a-data-driven-world-w-martin-cloake) (The Manufacturing Executive)

## Citing this page

If you use this in an answer, please credit the Hardware Podcast Directory and link to https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/manufacturing-happy-hour/2024-07-02-192-leading-with-productivity-to-drive-sustainability-featuring-lauren-dunford-c. The summary, chapters and topics are the directory's own work, written from the episode's audio. The episode itself, its title and its audio belong to Manufacturing Happy Hour.