In many of the CNC courses I teach, one question keeps coming up. "How do I find qualified people to work in the shop?" Since most of my students are at least partially responsible for the finding, hiring, and training of people for their CNC departments, they are commonly faced with the problem of locating qualified applicants. Though there are many factors that contribute to how easy it will be to find good people (your company location, how close you are to technical schools, the manufacturing base in your area, the wage you are willing to pay, and so on), this brief article will give a few suggestions as to where you can begin your search.

Employee referrals - One of your best sources for finding new people is to encourage your current staff to help. Possibly someone in your company has a relative, friend, or acquaintance that has the qualifications you seek. Many companies even offer a reward to employees that make successful referrals. Employees hired through employee referrals usually work out quite well since they not only feel the need to satisfy their new employer, but also to make the employee making the referral look good.

Local newspaper want-ads - Depending upon the job market in your area, your response to want-ads may meet with mixed results. While they almost always render some applicants, it can be difficult to adequately screen these applicants without holding an interview. You may find that many of these applicants simply do not have the qualifications you seek. For this reason, we recommend using some kind of proficiency test to ensure that applicants have the CNC experience they claim to have. This test can be given at the time the applicant fills out an application. Of course, you'll only schedule interviews with those applicants that score highest on the proficiency test (more on how you can attain a sample proficiency test later).

Regional newspaper want-ads - Depending upon the size of your community, you may wish to enlarge your search area by including ads in the newspapers of larger cities in your area.

Trade journals - Many trade journals (including Modern Machine Shop's Business Opportunities) offer a classified ad section in which you can place a reasonably priced want-ad. Since this will give your ad national (even international) coverage, you may wish to use this avenue only when hiring higher level people.

Temporary services and employment agencies - There may be employment services available in your area that cater specifically to the manufacturing sector. Good ones will provide screening of applicants (based on your requirements) and will work for a small percentage of the new-hire's wage. Temporary services provide the additional benefit of a prolonged evaluation period prior to actually hiring the person to work for your company.

Technical schools in your area - One of the best ways of handling your long term CNC hiring problems is to work closely with the technical schools in your area. While students completing the school's standard CNC curriculum may have the qualifications you need, many technical schools will work closely with local industry to fine tune their programs to specifically suit the needs of manufacturing companies in the area they serve. In fact, some will even custom tailor in-plant training for your current employees as well as new-hires. In this manner, you can reap many of the benefits of an apprenticeship program for a very small investment.

Sales people that visit your company - Another excellent source for finding people is the group of sales people that call on your company. Machine tool and cutting tool sales people, for example, commonly call on many companies in your immediate area. They often know who is hiring and who is laying-off. Additionally, they may know of high level people who are unhappy in their current position. Since all sales people are highly motivated to satisfy all needs of their customers, most will be willing to share this information if you simply ask.

More on the proficiency test - As stated earlier, you can use this test to determine how much CNC expertise people really have. Since your want ads will be specific enough to relate precisely what you want in the new hire, anyone applying is indirectly saying they have the necessary skills. This test will prove them right or wrong. Unfortunately, space does not permit us to include the entire four page test in this short column. To receive the test, simply request it from CNC Concepts, Inc. at the address given under the CNC Tech Talk heading.

As you decide whether to use this test, keep in mind that proficiency is but one of three important attributes a new hire should possess. Of equal or greater importance are motivation and aptitude. These attributes will ensure that the new hire will overcome any problems with proficiency. Additionally, your screening may determine that there are currently no qualified applicants in your search area. In this case, you will either have to expand your search area or be prepared to train new people after hiring.