As Published in Greater Reading, PA Chamber Alliance Commerce Quarterly
By Andy Brizek
The first step in attracting talented people who are willing to work is to sell products and/or services that are in demand. Then set up an efficient operation to meet that demand and earn a consistent profit that can be reinvested in the business to drive growth. For companies on the rise, this reinvestment may mean new equipment purchases or a move to a new facility but more often it means there’s finally enough cash flow to create new jobs and allow for the specialization that improves efficiency. This frees machinists to run machines and salespeople to go out and sell instead of being pulled away to handle jobs outside their areas of expertise. Unfortunately, by the time companies recognize they need to hire, management is often too swamped to develop a proper job description or conduct a thorough search for the right people. Grasping for any instant support, this process inevitably attracts people who may not be right for the job or who may take the job in the short term but ultimately realize it was not an ideal fit.
Employee retention correlates directly with the time and effort put into hiring. At TAB Industries, we’ve worked very hard to look at the long term and pay careful attention to finding people who are interested in growing with us as we grow the company together. As a busy small business, we offer the opportunity to develop a variety of skills in several different areas to keep the work fresh and interesting. A machinist might operate a traditional lathe and the latest, high-tech laser cutting machine on the same day. A sales person might work with the owner of a Reading-area small business for a metal fabrication project then with a Fortune 500 vice president on the sale of a dozen of our TAB Wrapper Tornado orbital wrapping machines, then hop on a plane to Las Vegas. Manufacturers can no longer expect people to do the same, repetitive tasks all day.
Since we’re a family-owned and operated company, we understand and appreciate the need for flexibility and can be more accommodating about policies than many large corporations are willing to be. We offer flexible scheduling, for example, so people can make their own hours. This way, people can avoid the rush hour traffic, catch a Little League game, or head up to the Poconos early on a Friday. And everyone gets paid vacation.
We hope addressing these frustrating work and family issues shows our high level of respect and appreciation for our staff. Plus, we still enjoy celebrating formal employee appreciation days with trips to baseball games, mini-golf tournaments, and more.
Keeping talented employees for the long term is a key to our continued growth. Turnover and hiring are more expensive than properly compensating good people and we take great pride in seeing our employees take on greater and greater roles, growing as people as we grow the company together.
To apply for a position with TAB Industries, contact Tom Brizek at tbrizek@tabindustries.com.