In the highly-specialized world of automotive manufacturing, an efficient, reliable workforce is among the most valuable resources any company can have. ResourceMFG, the largest staffing provider to the OEM, Tier 1, 2 and 3 supply chain, helps some of the country’s biggest manufacturers meet their daily workforce needs. The company currently has offices in more than 30 states.
A division of EmployBridge, ResourceMFG fills about 23,000 general manufacturing assignments every day, including 8,000 or so workers in the automotive space up and down the supply chain. Yet they don’t just supply a large quantity of workers—they aim to provide a quality workforce, twice winning the Superior Performance in Production recognition from Toyota in recent years, which isthe highest level of recognition awarded by the OEM.
ResourceMFG strives for a win-win-win arrangement with their automotive clients and employees, company leaders say. OEMs and Tier 1, 2 and 3 suppliers need an experienced, skilled and reliable workforce available on a just-in-time basis. When ResourceMFG fills all open assignments with trustworthy workers, those clients get exactly what they hoped for: efficiency in their workforce and along their supply chain, says Alex Vazquez, division vice president, adding that ResourceMFG’s employees, in turn, receive good jobs and the opportunity to advance in their careers.
It Starts With The Hiring Process
A potential new employee is given a battery of proprietary assessments to determine his or her skill level. Each employee receives a designation: Trainable Workforce, Skilled Workforce or Highly-Skilled Workforce. Each level fills certain jobs along the supply chain, from assembly line workers to machinists to engineers.
Employees who set a goal of improving their skill-set and moving up the ladder are encouraged to do so and provided help according to Vazquez, who says the success of their large workforce stems from ResourceMFG’s investment in employees at an individual level.
“Our associates are never treated like a number,” says Vazquez. “Especially in this economy, there are plenty of temp agencies where anyone could walk in and get put to work the same day. We appreciate that our associates choose ResourceMFG, and we help them develop both work and life skills so they can achieve any goals they set for themselves.”
A key piece of the puzzle is EmployBridge’s Better WorkLife academy. In partnership with leading online training and education company Penn Foster, the Better WorkLife Academy helps EmployBridge workers, including those at ResourceMFG, close the skills gap widely seen in manufacturing. The flexible online courses are available for free to ResourceMFG employees, and they teach life skills in addition to industry-specific training and official manufacturing credentials.
Vazquez himself is a ResourceMFG success story. He began work with the company at the entry-level Trainable Workforce designation. His first job was driving a forklift. Now, he’s a VP at EmployBridge overseeing the entire ResourceMFG division.
“Since I started work here,” he says, “I feel like I’ve hardly worked a day.”
ResourceMFG serves the entire United States with 145 operating centers across 27 states. They recruit new talent through these operating centers as well as by partnering with technical and vocational schools, such as Gwinnett Tech just outside of Atlanta. With unemployment at historical lows, finding new workers is a challenge, but ResourceMFG specializes in locally recruiting workers, says Trent Waltz, vice president of Operations for parent company EmployBridge’s Strategic Partnership Group.
“Our top factor for finding new employees is referrals,” Waltz says. “Then, our screening process really helps us retain those employees that we hire. It’s a lot easier to quit a job that you didn’t have to do anything to get.”
Waltz says that the proprietary EmployBridge screening tests used by ResourceMFG allow the company to validate potential employees’ skills, which puts them in the best position for success.
“If you’re a highly-skilled worker with a specialized skill-set, you wouldn’t want to be placed in a low-skill job where you might be bored or not reach any of your goals,” says Waltz, adding that, “At the same time, even if a job pays more, a Trainable Associate with less experience would be in over their heads in some of the higher-skill positions. It’s about finding balance that works for the client and the employee.”
Working with many of the world’s largest automotive manufacturers, including OEMs like Toyota, Volkswagen and Mercedes-Benz, while simultaneously putting thousands of people to work in high-quality, well-paid jobs, ResourceMFG is a company that truly does well by doing good, Vazquez says. “It’s a great feeling helping put so many people to work every day, knowing that you’re helping people achieve their goals,” he says.
