The next generation challenge

What will your company do when the baby boomers retire?

Doug Bloomfield, vice president, Nordson Corporation.

Kathleen Lesner Hall, director of human resources, Nordson Corporation.

"We have a workforce that is very mature and experienced," says Doug Bloomfield, vice president of Nordson Corp.'s Industrial Coating and Automotive Systems division based in Amherst, Ohio.

In fact, the average age for Nordson employees at the Amherst campus is in the late 40s.

"In the not-too-distant future—just 10 years or so—a significant portion of our talent will be reaching retirement age. I worry about where the replacements are going to come from," says Bloomfield.

Sound familiar? The National Association of Manufacturers estimates that the average age of the manufacturing workforce in the U.S. is approximately 52 years old. The clock is ticking. The time for denial is over.

"That's why it is important for local manufacturers like Nordson to help encourage interest in manufacturing careers," Bloomfield adds.

Here's how two Northeast Ohio manufacturers are facing up to the challenge of a graying work force: Nordson Corporation and Rockwell Automation.

Manufacturing Ambassadors

In 2008, MAGNET's Manufacturing Ambassador Program participated in a series of Manufacturing Career Night events in cooperation with the Cleveland Cavaliers and Majestic Steel.

The bait: free dinner and tickets to a Cavs game for students, parents, teachers and counselors. The pitch: why students and parents should investigate manufacturing careers; and why teachers and counselors should consider giving their students more exposure to advanced manufacturing.

Last February, Bloomfield and Kathleen Lesner Hall, Nordson's director of human resources, became Manufacturing Ambassadors. They came to The Q to meet several dozen students, parents, teachers and career counselors from Cuyahoga and Lorain counties.

"It was a great experience," recalls Bloomfield. "My goal was to communicate why it's interesting to manufacture products and why it's such a rewarding career."

Bloomfield notes that his own son and daughter received virtually no exposure to manufacturing careers at their schools. He knows that's the case for many students, especially those who do not attend career-tech schools.

"It's all about creating a level of awareness regarding manufacturing careers," Bloomfield notes. "Kids don't understand how something goes from a flat piece of metal to the washing machine that washes your clothes, for example. They don't understand how exciting it can be to figure out how to make something faster or cheaper; or the challenge behind figuring out how to satisfy consumers."

Lesner Hall says engaging with the community, and specifically the region's schools, is a long-time Nordson tradition.

During her presentation, Lesner Hall focused on the importance of seeking out internships and learning communication skills. She also talked about the many non-technical jobs available in manufacturing, such as accounting, finance, legal, human resources and marketing.

"I really enjoy the opportunity to get out into the community," says Lesner Hall. "So when I got the call from MAGNET's Judith Crocker—would you be willing to come and talk to students—there was no question."

Bloomfield and Lesner Hall both took questions and chatted with the students and their parents after dinner. They also got to network with teachers and counselors, says Lesner Hall, making a variety of valuable connections with instructors from local schools.

"There can be challenges to getting young adults to come here to Northeastern Ohio from other regions of the country," Lesner Hall notes. "So from a recruitment perspective, we at Nordson in Amherst focus on our local schools. We hope to keep our native Ohio students here at home."

Lesner Hall notes that the up-front time commitment for being a MAGNET Manufacturing Ambassador wasn't enormous, because she regularly presents to many area schools.

"Doug and I both really enjoyed the Ambassador experience because it was so well organized—we clearly knew what we were going to do. And what a great venue! A Cav's game! Who can argue with that!" she says.

Internship Programs

Rockwell Automation's summer internship program was launched four years ago. Its first interns are now in college, and some have already returned to work part time under a co-op program.

Graduating interns present their first-year project to Rockwell engineers at the end of the 8-week summer program. Images courtesy Rockwell Automation.

After a pause in recent years, Bloomfield and Lesner Hall say Nordson is relaunching the company's local internship program this year, in cooperation with local colleges and universities.

"Previous programs sometimes brought interns from around the country. Now the company will focus on developing local talent," says Bloomfield. "We believe this will increase the chance of some of our interns becoming valuable permanent members of our corporate family right here in Northeast Ohio."

Faced with similar concerns about aging engineering employees and future staffing challenges, Rockwell Automation came to the same conclusion three years ago.

In the summer of 2006, the company launched its eight-week Engineering Development Internship Program for minority and female high school students from the Cleveland Public Schools, Regina High School in South Euclid and Euclid High School's STEM program.

"We wanted to meet several goals with this program," says Marcia Hendershot, Rockwell's university relations and public affairs specialist. "Specifically, we want to create a feeder program for college-bound students who have an interest in engineering. The internship exposes them to various functional areas of engineering and provides them with real-world, hands-on experience. We're thrilled to be able to offer this program to kids who most likely would not otherwise have this opportunity."

For Marzell Brown, senior software engineer, and project lead for the internship program, participation is an extension of his core values.

"Whether we want to admit it or not, we've all been helped to get where we are by somebody," Brown says. "So for me it's a no brainer to want to give back—to help give these students an exposure they probably wouldn't get on their own."

For admission, Rockwell's program requires 11th-grade students to have achieved a 3.2 grade-point average. Hendershot says most of the students who apply are highly motivated and have much higher grade point averages.

"When they get here, they're all used to being big fish in their own pond," she says with a laugh. "They're all used to being the brightest kids and the leaders in their class. So a key component in our program is working on team building, team problem solving and decision making as a group."

Having completed its fourth year, Rockwell's program employs 24 students. First-year interns earn $10 an hour and participate in a hands-on project to create an automated car wash using Rockwell products. This project is designed to give the students practical training with the software and hardware tools they would need on the job.

First-year students also complete a program on professionalism in a corporate environment.

"They have to learn that your cell phone can't go off every five minutes, and you can't text your friends all day," says Hendershot. "We show them acceptable dress in a corporate environment and how to communicate to management and peers."

She says there is a marked difference in students at the end of the internship. In only eight weeks they become more confident and are better communicators.

"They come in as high school kids, and they leave as young professionals," says Hendershot. "By the time they come back for the second and third years of the program, they're very comfortable in a corporate environment."

Returning second- and third-year interns earn $12 and $15 an hour respectively. They are assigned to work with Rockwell engineers on actual projects. Hendershot says this gives Rockwell employees an opportunity to mentor their interns. Brown notes the company also benefits from access to young talent and creativity.

"Three of our interns have won Rockwell's 'Capture the Day' award for their above-and-beyond contributions to our bottom line," Brown says proudly.

Some of the interns come back during the school year for part-time jobs. Three former interns who have gone on to college are now working part-time on the co-op model.

In just four years, Rockwell's internship program has graduated students who have gone on to top colleges and universities including Cornell, Northwestern, Case Western Reserve, Ohio State and Miami. Hendershot expects to have hard ROI data in about two years, when the first former interns graduate from college.

"What you don't understand when you start a project like this, is the impact these students have on your life," says Hendershot. "It is a humbling experience to see what these students are willing to go through for this opportunity."

"I'm a product of the Cleveland Public Schools myself," says Brown. "So I have some small appreciation for the challenges these kids face. But when you know that some of them—at 5:00 a.m. they are getting on the first of three buses in order to get here by 8:00 a.m.—it's humbling. They're dedicated to wanting to better themselves."

Hendershot says Brown himself has become a role model to the interns. She says they don't hesitate to come to him when they need guidance. And Brown notes the students also have created deep bonds among themselves, for example, resulting in nearly 100% attendance at the program's annual Christmas party.

"I think the key to getting a successful internship program that is sustainable—one that will keep students interested and wanting to come back—is to find people on your staff who want to do it and enjoy mentoring students," says Brown.

Hendershot admits that the time and monetary investment are significant. But she points out that the potential ROI is great, considering what it costs to hire an unknown new employee who might not work out.

"This program minimizes the ramp-up time for a new employee," says Brown. "After spending several summers here and maybe working part time, they've already got a network of people, they know our company, they know our products. They're immediately productive."

Nordson's Lesner Hall shares the Rockwell team's enthusiasm for internships and is excited about getting Nordson's new program off the ground.

"An internship program gives the employer an opportunity to have first dibs on top talent," she points out. "And it also benefits existing employees who get a chance to play the role of a mentor. If you have a successful internship program that leads to placement in full-time positions, you'll save money. That's a no-brainer."

MAGNET's Lynne Brakeman, Karen Herpel and Judith Crocker contributed to this article.