A Case Study in Staffing

(Note that this Case Study was included in the First Edition of the text, but was removed from the Second Edition for space considerations).

Metropolitan Motor Company (MMC) decided to open a new assembly plant in southwest Tennessee for their new compact passenger car line. The plant would require a workforce of approximately 1700 production workers, 370 supervisors and managers, 125 engineers and engineering technicians, and 110 administrative and office personnel. The cafeteria and security functions would be outsourced to independent contractors. Below, we describe the sequence that was used to staff the hourly production positions in this new facility.
Before announcing the location of the facility, MMC did some investigation of the educational characteristics of the labor force in Tennessee, as well as a review of the secondary school system in a five county area surrounding the plant site. It decided to give first priority in employment for entry level and skilled positions to residents in the five county area, then to Tennessee residents, and finally to anyone, regardless of place of residence.
The VP of corporate HR took several trips to talk to state and local officials about locating the facility in the area. State Department of Labor officials agreed that the state employment offices would accept and screen applications for entry level positions, using criteria developed by MMC. To ensure an adequate pool of applicants, MMC posted job openings on the internet and developed an advertising campaign for Tennessee to make applicants aware of the web site. The web site, which directed interested individuals to visit their nearest state employment office to apply, included a virtual tour of the new plant with 360-degree photos and a chat line for communications between company representatives and interested applicants.
Job analysis of the positions at other MMC assembly plants had determined that specific physical abilities, specific personality characteristics, and general mental ability were required in all production positions. MMC used the following procedures to screen applicants for these qualifications.
Hourly applicants who passed the screening at the state offices for minimum requirements (education, experience, etc.) were given a phone number to call to schedule a visit to a central placement office in the new plant. There they used computer terminals to take a basic mental ability test and a personality test. MMC had hired an outside consulting company to receive the answers and score these tests via online data transfer. The results were returned within six hours.
Applicants who scored well enough to continue were asked to call and schedule a physical fitness test to determine their stamina and agility, since the basic production job would require the employee to stand continuously, handle boxes of parts, and occasionally assume awkward positions for assembly operations. The physical fitness screening was done at the local YMCA and two health clinics associated with hospitals in the area. Those who passed the fitness test were then asked to schedule an interview with a selection team at the new plant.
The selection team consisted of experienced employees from another MMC assembly plant: a first and second level supervisor and two production workers. Prior to the interview, one of the production workers gave groups of applicants a short walking tour of the new plant, followed by a short video that showed the assembly operations as they were performed at another plant similar to the new facility. The applicants were given an opportunity to ask questions of the experienced production worker, and then were each interviewed by the four-member selection team according to a structured set of questions developed by the MMC HR department.
After the structured interviews, the outside consulting firm that had scored the earlier, on-line tests evaluated each candidate according to the interview dimensions. Those who were considered eligible for hiring were asked to complete an information form indicating preferences for tasks, days of work, and shift assignment. These preference sheets were input for making initial assignments for the successful applicants. In addition to the applicant completed preference sheets, the outside consulting firm also made recommendations regarding initial assignments based on the results of the on-line testing and the interviews.
Applicants who received job offers were told that although some adjustments might be possible, they would be expected to keep their assigned job and work schedule for at least six months. At the end of that time, individuals could apply for shift or job changes. After the initial six-month change request, individuals could bid on new shifts and new positions on a yearly basis. If the employee had no disciplinary actions and had been on time for work on 98% of the scheduled work days, he or she would be eligible for a change in work. Such changes would be determined among eligible employees strictly by seniority. After considering the initial offer of employment and assignment, applicants decided whether to accept or reject the offer. A medical examination was administered to those applicants who acceped an offer of employment and they received an employee handbook that outlined expectations and benefits.
This case study is a realistic description of the steps or phases in a large scale staffing effort. From initial planning to a completely staffed production force, it might have taken eighteen months to complete, and cost in excess of $1.5 million. And that only encompassed the production workers. Other systems would be used to recruit and select professional, administrative, and managerial staff members. Many of the individuals who would fill these non-production slots would be recruited internally from other MMC facilities, thus providing opportunities for upward mobility in those other facilities as well.