7 minute read
Talent: Shyft Group
Shyft Group Inc.
e Shyft Group Inc. rolled out a number of fresh tactics to recruit and onboard 1,000 employees last year.
Shyft produces walk-in vans, truck bodies, and up ts used in e-commerce and grocery delivery, work trucks and service bodies used for infrastructure support and more. It also produces and up ts infrastructure utility vehicles and luxury Class A diesel motor home chassis. e Novi-based company has 3,000 employees and reached nearly $1 billion in revenue in 2020. It operates facilities in 10 states and in Mexico.
Last year, Shyft experienced rapid growth after shifting from emergency vehicles to walk-in vans and truck bodies used for e-commerce delivery. It also scored major contracts with large parcel-delivery eets.
As the COVID-19 pandemic spiked an increase in home deliveries, Shyft’s customer orders increased quickly. e company needed to hire — and fast.
“I think COVID has made all HR professionals sit back and say, the traditional way may not work any longer,” said Colin Hindman, chief Human Resources o cer. “You’ve got to think outside the box.”
To streamline hiring, Shyft hired executive recruiters and sta ng organizations. is included sta ng organizations such as Charlotte-based ManPower and Specialized Sta ng, a minority- and women-owned business enterprise based in South Bend, Ind.
Along with the organizations, Shyft created hiring centers at plants in Bristol, Ind., and Charlotte. e centers o ered a place for candidates to ll out job applications and be interviewed on the spot by the sta ng organization. Candidates also watch videos on job operations so they know what their role would entail.
When the U.S. was in the thick of the COVID-19 pandemic, Shyft held nine outdoor drive-up job fairs to safely recruit candidates. Candidates interested in working at Shyft were
—Colin Hindman, chief Human Resources o cer, Shyft Group
A drive-thru job interview at The Shyft Group. | THE SHYFT GROUP
interviewed car-side at various Shyft plants. O ers were made on the spot.
“Time’s extremely valuable to these folks,” Hindman said. “When they show up, we’ve got to be ready to make some hiring decisions. If not, you’re going to lose folks.”
Shyft has also instituted a number of methods to retain employees. For instance, Shyft created an employee transit service in 2020 at select locations, o ering transportation to and from work in an e ort to reach a better workforce in diverse socioeconomic areas. Shyft also streamlined onboarding and training methods and increased compensation and employee bonuses last year.
In addition to the 1,000 new hires last year, the company plans to bring on another 1,000 across its campuses — a sta increase of more than 30 percent in a time of labor shortage.
“By leveraging our internal team of HR experts, partnering with leading talent acquisition agencies to extend our capabilities, and doing what it takes to reach the talent pool where they are, e Shyft Group continues to bring an increasing number of great employment opportunities to good people across an expanding geographic footprint,” Hindman said.
Rachelle Damico Special to Crain’s Detroit Business
Tivoli Fountain
Director of People and Human Resources, AutoPets
Tivoli Fountain has grown AutoPets’ employee base by more than 300 percent, an effort that has been instrumental in supporting the company’s growth.
Fountain is the director of people and human resources at AutoPets. The Auburn Hills-based company makes the Litter-Robot, an automatic-cleaning cat litter box, as well as a variety of other AutoPets products.
AutoPets has 226 employees and 100 contract-to-hire employees between its Auburn Hills headquarters and warehouse facility in Wisconsin.
For the past 18 months, AutoPets has experienced rapid growth. Company sales increased more than 90 percent year-over-year in 2020. To accommodate the growth, AutoPets is increasing its manufacturing operations from a 60,000-square-foot building in Juneau, Wis. to a 210,000-squarefoot facility in 2021.
“As consumer demand has increased for our products, we have grown our team member population to meet the production demands,” Fountain said.
Since joining the company in 2019, Fountain has grown AutoPets’ team from 80 to 226 full-time team members. Fountain also grew AutoPets’ management team from four to 17 professionals, including the hiring of AutoPets’ VP of manufacturing and CFO.
To find qualified candidates, Fountain used employment websites such as LinkedIn and Indeed. She also found employees through employee referrals and word of mouth.
“I’m a big believer that good people know good people,” Fountain said. “I surround myself with people that are as excited about the company as I am.”
Last year, Fountain assembled an HR team to accommodate AutoPets’ growing workforce. The team of three includes Fountain, a recruiter and a HR generalist who helps oversee HR functions at AutoPets’ Wisconsin facility.
“At AutoPets we believe strongly in the value of collaboration,” Fountain said. “As I have been leading the culture push to encourage this across our organization, it became apparent that we needed this in our people operations as well.”
In addition to recruitment efforts, Fountain introduced and revamped a number of HR processes. For instance, Fountain established a more formal employee performance review process, streamlined employee onboarding and added more flexible and personal time off for employees.
As AutoPets continues to grow, Fountain and her HR team plan to hire an additional 200 people within the next 12 months, a staff increase of more than 100 percent.
“Tivoli transformed the way we were recruiting to find more qualified candidates, helped us staff up 300 percent, and still finds time every day to interface with employees about their HR needs,” said Jacob Zuppke, COO of AutoPets. “She quickly earned my trust and that of the entire organization.”
Rachelle Damico Special to Crain’s Detroit Business
—Tivoli Fountain, director of people and human resources, AutoPets
THOUGHT LEADERSHIP FORUM HUMAN RESOURCES
SPONSORED BY LOCKTON RETURN-TO-OFFICE PLANS: WHAT’S FLEXIBLE AND WHAT’S NOT
Employers nd themselves walking a ne line as they make returnto-o ce (RTO) plans. Surveys show most people do not John Price, J.D. is: want to go back strategic consultant, to the o ce benefits & human full-time. Facing capital, risk talent shortages management, for Lockton Michigan. and employees willing to look elsewhere for exible jobs, employers may nd themselves in a precarious position. As you create your RTO plans, here are important issues to consider.
New MIOSHA health and mask
requirements. When it comes to masks and vaccines, Michigan Occupational Safety and Health Administration (MIOSHA) rules were recently updated:
• Employees who come to the o ce must perform a daily self-screening. • Temperature screening is not required. • MIOSHA is following the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidance on masks, which says vaccinated individuals do not have to wear a mask. • Employers can mandate maskwearing for all employees or follow CDC guidelines. • If you do not mandate mask-wearing, employers are required to track each employee’s vaccination status.
ere may be con ict around maskwearing. Some employees may want to wear a mask even if vaccinated. Communicate a culture of respect for employees who must or choose to wear masks. Di cult employee interactions are likely to be escalated to management. Help prepare your managers to di use potentially sensitive issues.
Requirements for tracking vaccine
status. As noted above, employers can, and in some instances, must ask employees for proof of vaccine. Make it clear that employees should not show you any medical information, and a copy of the vaccine card is su cient. Employers should determine how to track and retain vaccine cards received from employees.
For unvaccinated employees, you can ask if they are planning to get the vaccine in the next 30 to 60 days. If the answer is no, you should not ask why. Unvaccinated employees must wear a face covering in the workplace when they cannot maintain a distance of six feet from others.
If you prefer to avoid the vaccine question altogether, you can require all employees to wear a mask at work.
Where’s my desk? In spring 2020, most employers sent employees home for remote work, taking personal belongings with them. As employees return, they will wonder:
• What does day one look like? • Is my workspace the same as before or di erent? • If employees work a hybrid schedule, are they in shared workspaces? • Are there cleaning requirements for shared spaces?
Be sure to revisit basic policies and processes. Consider changes that have occurred in the past year and design necessary updates. Clearly communicate changes, along with new expectations.
Where to go from here. e returnto-o ce issues faced by employers are challenging, especially as talent retention is considered. To learn more about RTO requirements, please email John Price at jprice@lockton.com.
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