From Conexus Indiana: One of the perks of being a statewide, industry-led organization is access. Because our work requires a deep understanding of Indiana’s advanced manufacturing and logistics (AML) landscape, we regularly meet with industry leaders who open their doors to our team and showcase their great work.
Earlier this month, we spent a week in Southwest Indiana doing just that. We toured businesses from Princeton to Evansville to Jasper and discussed technology adoption, supply chain challenges and much more. But one subject that consistently arose was the challenge of attracting, hiring and retaining great talent.
We’ve assembled some key learnings from our visit with Southwest Indiana businesses that are actively improving their talent development practices.
A common theme emerged: an employer’s commitment to community is one of the most valuable talent development tactics.
Neighboring Indiana Furniture in Jasper is focused on increasing the percentage of women who are employed in advanced manufacturing, specifically for roles like plant maintenance where women are historically less involved. Most recently, the company hired two young women as maintenance apprentices so that they could explore a career they may have otherwise missed. Today, both women are completing a college degree and have committed to return to Indiana Furniture post-graduation to work on the maintenance team.
