How To Recruit Top Manufacturing Talent in 2018

Can’t fill those empty shifts? Perhaps you have permanent roles for the right people, but you just can’t recruit the right people?

Manufacturing is one of the longest-standing industries, yet we struggle to recruit top talent to fill our highly specialized jobs. Whether it’s finding casual labor to fill open shifts or hiring talent for permanent roles, the manufacturing and logistics industries are struggling to find the right people for the right jobs.

You’re not alone if you’re struggling to recruit.

So we’ve compiled a list of suggestions from some of the top people in the recruitment industry, to help you find the top manufacturing talent in 2018.

Social Media

Social media is the principal means of communication for millennials, so becoming familiar with Facebook and Twitter is the way to capture their imagination, and find new talent.

The key to a successful social media campaign is engagement – just posting one-way pictures and videos don’t demand a physical response. Run competitions, quizzes, get people to apply for jobs on social media platforms such as Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram and Twitter, and you’ll find that the freshest talent will come to you. Offer your existing employees bonuses or perks if they share your posts with their friends and followers.

Facebook advertising is cheap and can be directly targeted so that the right people will see your post.

Explore Playbuzz for ideas for engaging online quizzes and games.

LinkedIn is a networking platform for professionals, so it’s a rich resource of existing talent. You’ll be able to see people’s CVs and get in touch with them directly. Everyone is flattered by head-hunting, so don’t overlook it as a method of recruiting top talent.

Go to where the talent is

Creating partnerships with local schools is a great way to “go to the talent.” Your local community is the key, so make sure that your business is visible, with a favorable image.

Develop a positive image

One of the significant problems facing recruitment in manufacturing is the perception that the workplace is dangerous, dirty, noisy, poorly lit, and a purgatory of unskilled, repetitive tasks. If you can help to change that perception, people will come to you.

Obviously, the first thing is to make sure that your workplace isn’t dangerous, dirty, noisy and poorly lit. Have open days, where the local community is invited in to see how things are done. Present the workplace as a laboratory for commerce with a skilled, dedicated workforce, and perceptions will change. And so will the empty mailbox.

Offer incentives

Strategic employee referral programs are an excellent way to find new talent. Incentivize your existing workforce to help you find new talent – for every employee that gets taken on, as a result, offer a reward.

Be clear

Nobody’s impressed with business speak, so avoid jargon and keywords when you’re putting your job spec together, especially if it’s a job that you’re offering training for.

Clear language gives the impression of transparency, while overly technical business-speak can trigger suspicion. If the job role is for a cleaner, don’t advertise it as a Habitat Contaminant Removal Executive, because they’re going to be disappointed when you hand them a bucket and a mop on their first day.

Gamification

This is a methodology to employ after you’ve recruited, but if you introduce it onto the floor now, you can use it as an enticement for new talent.

Gamification is a motivational technique that introduces gaming mechanics into existing business processes. It’s a way to engage and incentivize the existing workforce, using machine monitoring technologies to facilitate self-assessment, gameplay, and target setting; by putting the employee in charge of their progress.

Training

The potential for training is enticing for potential new talent – conscientious workers always welcome the development of new skills. If you can present progression opportunities, you’re going to attract top talent, because top talent is ambitious.

Courses, seminars and coaching sessions are great ways for the company to come together to share skills.

Investing in existing employees is a sensible approach to enticing new employees to the fold.

Building a team

A supportive team is a valuable resource for any business, but if you can demonstrate an existing support network to potential employees, then new talent will come.

Developing a positive workplace culture is important – you get more out of your existing employees, who will, in turn, invite new people to the team.

Social events are good team-building activities – team quizzes, sports events, days out. It definitely doesn’t need to be that whole “build-a-bridge-out-of-3-sheets-of-paper” type situation. And social events don’t have to cost a lot of money – it’s just a way of showing some appreciation for hard work, and it will repay you in dedication and drive.

Flexibility

Work/life balance has been shifting over the past decade, in favor of work over life. However, a little appreciation of an employee’s home life goes a long way in creating a culture of goodwill, which will be repaid with flexibility and hard work from your employees.

Develop your workplace culture

Developing a positive workplace culture is one of the most significant ways that you can make the workplace an inviting place for top talent.

The problem with top talent is that they’re sought after – not just by you, but by everyone.

Making changes in your workplace to create a positive culture is your way of ensuring that they choose you – as much as you choose them.

Help recruit the right talent by having a modern, innovative workplace. Bring your shop floor into the 21st century with machine monitoring technology.