August 2022 Volume 4

FORGING RESEARCH

AWar on Talent By Ashleigh Walters

For years now, leadership teams have been trying to find creative ways to fill their employment needs. The talent crisis has resulted from long-term demographic changes such as more Baby Boomers retiring than workers to fill their shoes. Additionally, another factor includes students attending four year universities and not pursuing careers in the skilled trades. What creative ways can forgers use to solve the war on talent? Let’s use diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&I) as a solution to the problem and not a corporate initiative. There is talent not being employed in our factories due to our own “ways we have always done it” attitudes. If you are able to open your mind to new ways of hiring and improved human resources policies, you may just win the war on talent. Women in Industry Did you know 1 in 3 manufacturing professionals and 1 in 4 manufacturing leaders are women? Further diversify the industry by closing the gender gap. While women have generally held more clerical type positions than frontline positions in manufacturing, a recent study by Xometry in partnership with the Women in Manufacturing Association found “STEMprograms are the most effective pathway for women to enter the manufacturing industry.” So, start early by visiting your local elementary and middle schools, encouraging children to pursue STEM careers. Once you have recruited women into your workforce, ensure that you provide leadership/management training and mentorships. Women reported in the study that these opportunities had the most significant impact on their career advancement. As you think about ways to include more women in your workforce, you may have to adjust some of your human resource policies. We have more dual income families working now than generations before. Provide a way to create a more family centric culture with flexible schedules especially around drop off/pick up times from school, less mandatory travel, remote work opportunities and paid leave after the birth or adoption of a child. Uniquely Abled Individuals As I learned in my Case Western Reserve University leadership course, a person with high functioning autism is well suited for jobs that require an individual with a high degree of focused attention to detailed, repetitive processes. The case study in my leadership program was for a law firm who had high turnover due to the repetitive nature of the job. The firm was employing college graduates. When they made the switch to autistic individuals, the turnover stopped. In fact, the autistic employees loved their jobs!

How does this apply to manufacturing? For over two years now, I have employed two gentlemen from the Barber Institute to perform general housekeeping in the plant and package shapes for shipment. Each job is highly repetitive, and each gentleman loves their job.The Uniquely Abled Project is a national collaborative effort dedicated to properly training and placing autistic students with employers in the manufacturing industry. See what local group may be in your area so that you can source people who thrive on highly repetitive tasks. Displaced People The U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants has been working for 110 years on behalf of displaced people. Per the USCRI website, the organization has resettled over 350,000 refugees in 34 communities in 22 states. Currently, Onex is employing two Syrian gentlemen in our precast production. We are overcoming the language barrier by using Google translate. The men are grateful for the employment so they can support their families in their new home. I am grateful for their hard work and dedication making them great team members. Displacement maybe defined their past, but their future is bright with unlimited possibilities. There are a lot of different ways to find, train and retain talent. You just have to be open minded as they are likely different approaches than you have taken in the past. I don’t know about you but posting

jobs online has not resulted in a lot of job applicants. What creative hiring practices are you employing? Ashleigh Walters President Onex, Inc.

Author: Leading with Grit and Grace Chair: FIAWomen’s Scholarship Committee Email: ashleigh.walters@onexinc.com

FIA MAGAZINE | AUGUST 2022 64