In this episode of The Unseen Impact, join me as I sit down with ADARSH D. KARKI, Director of Engineering & Quality at First Source Electronics – a PE-backed contract manufacturer in the DMV-area producing everything from electronic boards and cable harnesses to control panels for data centers and material handling systems.

Adarsh spent 7+ years in design engineering before spending a decade on the manufacturing floor — including formative years with Intralox and Baltimore Aircoil Company — and now leads engineering, quality, and continuous improvement at FSC, where he was brought in to rebuild a culture that had lost its footing after a full management wipe and private equity reset.

What you’ll learn:

➡️ Adarsh’s three-part framework for walking into a broken operation and identifying exactly what’s missing – floor presence, executable process, and a CI mindset.

➡️ Why lean keeps failing in small and mid-sized manufacturers – and the mindset shift that makes it stick for good.

➡️ His “baker” interview process — and what it reveals about whether someone truly understands how to serve a customer.

➡️ Go broad or go deep? The career advice Adarsh gives every early-stage engineer who wants to move into leadership.

➡️ How to develop soft skills in deeply technical people — the specific behaviors Adarsh coaches that separate good engineers from great ones.

If you’re exploring actionable strategies for rebuilding manufacturing culture, developing technical leaders, and scaling operations without just throwing people at the problem, this episode is for you!