Are you creating a good first impression for job applicants in manufacturing?

You spend a lot of time, money, and resources recruiting new employees. If they see a billboard advertising you’re hiring, they may not catch the employment agency or website they should contact. Instead, they’ll stop by your plant hoping to apply on the spot. When they walk into your lobby, what will their first experience of your company be? According to the National Association of Manufacturers, “77% of manufacturers say they will have ongoing difficulties in attracting and retaining workers in 2021 and beyond.” Although the labor shortage in manufacturing can be attributed to many different factors, like the pandemic and skill gaps, now more than ever, it’s crucial to position your company to be attractive to potential candidates while retaining the employees you currently have.

First Impressions Matter

The moral of the story is that first impressions matter. Is your lobby clean? A 2018 survey shows 94% of manufacturing workers linked on-the-job happiness with a clean workspace. Dingy windows, dirty floors, sun-faded flyers with curling edges, full trash cans, and coffee-ring-stained instructions with pen scribbles aren't exactly creating a professional and inviting ambiance. We all understand the confusion that still lingers about pandemic expectations because they differ from one location to another. The presence of hand sanitizers, forehead thermometers, and boxes of masks can be confusing if no specific expectation is identified. Your job applicant might wonder if they’re required to wear a mask when greeting you and then expect you to be wearing one.

Logbooks Expose Private Information

Without a receptionist, it can often be challenging for job applicants to know what to do when they find themselves standing in an empty lobby.  

Traditional logbooks collect confidential information about your visitors, like phone numbers and the company they represent. Any visitor who signs in after them, potentially for months (or even years), has access to this data. Not only are you exposing your business by letting the world know who comes in and out of your facility, but your visitors see that their own information isn’t secure. Job applicants might wonder, “What if someone from my current employer sees I was here?” They may also see the names of others applying for positions at your company.

If you’re using phone lists taped to a wall with extension numbers and expecting your potential applicant to use your internal phone system, can they navigate it? Social media is full of videos showing that most younger folks, the exact demographic you need to recruit, don’t know how to use complex landlines.

If your visitors are instructed to knock on a window or ring a doorbell, your visitor will wonder who will greet them and how long it will take for someone to arrive. Will language barriers challenge the applicant and the staff who answer the door? What if everyone is busy, and no one realizes the applicant is here? They’ll leave them feeling unwelcome.

If you have applications available in the lobby and a basket to collect them, it’s sending the wrong message. Without acknowledging applicants, it shows no sense of urgency or priority to your open positions. Job applications and resumes can contain enough personal information to steal someone's identity. Employees must trust their employers to safeguard their information and respect their privacy. If applicants are instructed to leave information, other visitors probably are too. Unwanted solicitation clutters your lobby, making your business look unprofessional and unorganized. Applicants, customers, and vendors that you did invite to your facility may gather the wrong impression about your regard for them.

How do you prefer to handle job applicants?

If you direct job applicants to apply at a staffing agency or online, do you provide “walkable” information?  For example, are you giving the applicant directions to the staffing agency office, a QR code to scan, or a flier with the website address? If not, the applicant may forget the instructions after leaving your facility and never apply.

In the same 2018 survey, 93% of manufacturing workers linked on-the-job happiness with internal organization, and 87% said it was good technology. According to Trade Press Services, effective internal communications motivate 85% of employees in the workplace. These statistics provide you with a unique opportunity to impress your job applicants immediately or discourage them from applying.

How can Transmission help?

Using a robust, customized visitor management system allows you to set the tone for all non-company personnel arriving. Job applicants will be greeted by the kiosk and instructed to check in using their preferred language. After collecting their name and phone number, you can display a recruiting video reinforcing the benefits of working at your company.

What is the value proposition you can offer to job seekers? When attempting to attract candidates, it’s important to remember that they are interviewing you just as much as you are interviewing them. Potential candidates should be treated almost like customers in the way their needs are catered to, and you care about their impression of you.  Studies have shown that viewers retain 95 percent of a message when watching it in a video compared to only 10 percent when reading it via text.

Because Transmission is fully customizable, you choose the next steps. The kiosk provides clear directions for your application process and details the next action item. If your process is to apply online or through an employment agency, Transmission can text your job applicant the link or map directions. The kiosk can be used to both serve and collect additional information, such as, how they heard about the position, the name of a current employee who referred them, or what shift they’d prefer to work. You determine whether staff inside your facility are notified of that applicant's presence in the lobby. Should you be unable to meet them at that time, Transmission can politely and professionally dismiss them with specific next steps to move the process forward. Transmission offers a robust reporting system that provides detailed information about all job applicants who visit your facility, providing you the opportunity to follow up with anyone who may not have been acknowledged while on-site. When you’re ready to interview that job applicant, utilize Transmission’s pre-registration system to prepare them for safety and compliance during their visit, collect additional information you might need and expedite check-in when they arrive. Once on-site, a name badge is printed. Visitor name badges provide insight to your employees by clearly identifying the visitor's name and why they’re here, offering both an additional layer of security for employees and an opportunity to welcome a potential new one.

Employee Retention

Sometimes, it’s not about acquiring a new employee; it’s about keeping the ones you already have safe. You can reduce the risk of your employees being interrupted or even harmed by people who don’t belong in your facility by identifying why a visitor is here before sending an employee to greet them. Blacklist visitors who are not welcome at your facility. Protect employee privacy by eliminating the phone list. Displaying their full names and phone numbers on a list hanging in the lobby for anyone to see exposes them to unwanted solicitation and potentially ill-intentioned people. During the global pandemic, companies also required mandatory temperature checks and health screenings for visitors entering the facility. Transmission can serve each visitor a quiz to confirm that their presence is not a health risk…before and without coming into contact with your employees.

The manufacturing industry plays a foundational role in our nation’s economy, and while the number of vacant positions continues to climb it’s crucial for companies to prioritize job applicants and employee retention. To learn more about how Transmission can help, schedule a discovery call with a member of our team!