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Steve, I couldn't agree more with your article on personality being the most critical trait in hiring a machinist that will ultimately be successful. I also believe that this strategy is appropriate for other manufacturing and professional positions as well. The challenge I have found over the years goes deeper than just a personality fit. An organization must 1st determine what the core values and beliefs are of its culture (current or desired) and base their selection criteria on that model of values. While that is a challenge in itself, the challenges go deeper. Then there is a philosophical struggle that needs to be reconciled in that, if an organization continually hires people with the same core values and beliefs, or individuals who can be molded to such, then the power of a diverse work force with broad creativity and ideas can potentially become assimilated to a common thought process. This could lead to some stagnation of a dynamic continuous improvement environment. All this being said, I think an equally critical component to hiring based on personality is having a management team that understands these subtle issues and can ultimately shape a dynamic culture and drive continuous improvement. Ed. R, Monee, IL |
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Steve, Just read your article, Skills vs. Personality, which really hit home. One thing that I found over the years, especially with older machinists, is their arrogance. We are an older company with many long term employees and a number of these "experienced machinist" act as if they are God's gift to machining. Both young and old machinist could do well to ditch the attitude and walk in the door everyday with the idea of what new and exciting concept can I learn today. Best regards, Michael M, Franklin Park, IL |
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Excellent article, I believe your points on personality apply across the board in hiring for any position. The right person for a team is so important in team environments, skills can be learned with the right personality.
Larry K, Solon, OH |
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I agree with your article in T&P. We use similar methods here however, it is still difficult to find the right personality as well.
I typically only spend about an hour during an interview and an he/she can
still appear to have a very workable attitude during that time. Then he/she
shows up and is not the same person you interviewed. Testing sounds fine
but we have to be very careful with that because of the EEOC. The test has
to be so generic, so not to discriminate, that it really doesn't give you a
true reflection of the persons personality. I think that it may be more
important that the people who do the interviews are trained properly.
They should know what questions to ask and what is an appropriate response.
I use body language as well eye contact to determine how a person is
responding to the interview. Finding the right mix of employees is no
different than finding the right mix of baseball players to win a
championship, it can take years.
John C, Cleveland OH |
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To find a good machinist is something that I have battled for years.. I agree with looking for the right personality. I have tried to do this since what seems like the beginning of time!! I like to hire someone with their own toolbox with a lot of tools. This shows me dedication to their job. It also shows me that they want to invest in tools/equipment to better themselves. This is a plus+... I don't hire anyone who seems "cocky". These "cocky" type personalities tend to NOT work well with others, as well as they do not want someone telling them a "better way" of doing things. I don't hire anyone who seems to "kiss butt" during the interview. These people will do great work when you are out in the shop, but if I had to go and run on an errand, then these type of people tend to slack off..This has been a proven history in my shop. Bottom line to all of this, is that When I interview someone I don't necessarily go into great detail about machining, instead I go off on other tangents to try and see what kind of personality that they possess.. I do agree that the personality traits are probably the most important aspects for getting the right machinist to grow with the company.. I have made my fair share of mistakes when hiring. Hopefully I will continue to learn about what a good machinist really is.. thanks for the article, Brent S, Salt Lake City, UT |
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At first the article in T&P was interesting. At least it got me to think. After a few days of letting the ideas kick around in my head I'm ready to respond.
It should be mandatory that each applicant bring their high school yearbook. Those voted "most likely to be a machinist" would automatically get a job. Other less popular would have to demonstrate they have a personality that would fit the bill. Yes. I'm willing to concede there is a difference between popularity and personality. But are these traits only apparent to the highly qualified interviewer? In time, your organization can become the training ground for your competition. You be popular in the quality area by offering a steady job to numerous inspectors hired to inspect the result of the inexperienced trainee. If the organization can survive that we can develop a program similar to IBM in the 1970s where everyone was recruited from the same mold. Unfortunately this stifled creativity but we're only talking about machinists.
PLEASE! A good mix is required: skills,talent, maturity, realistic expectations, the ability to learn AND communicate. But this is only one-half of the story. The employer has to step up also. Any machinist with time on their resume either enjoys their work or enjoys the torture of going work everyday in a job they can't stand. I worked for a company in Strongsville that canvassed the area high schools every year. We screened the best and most likely, the ones looking for a career vs those simply looking for a job. The best candidates spent 400 - 600 hours in Quality where the borderlines and the exceptional candidates were given one-on-one instruction. Weeding out took place at this point in time. Only the best completed the state sponsored apprenticeship program and offered a fantastic opportunity for wages, profit-sharing, and other benefits.
What's my vote? A good machinist has multiple traits as does a good employer. Richard M, West Allis, WI |
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Mr. Rose; I wholeheartedly agree that the key to an organization is personality profiling. I am not just involved in machinists but mixed groups as well. In today's in-lined world of manufacturing, we have machinists and assembly personnel in the same work cell, male and female, and it is a real challenge. I started using a personality profile, not in hiring but in cell training, about 20 years ago. Even after you have hired the group, a little time spent showing each person what their personality is like and how they react to and interact with other personalities has been invaluable. Robert W, Watertown, SD |
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Steve, Read your article and found it hit right at home. I have one CNC operator on Swing Shift that is one of the worst "personality" problems of the plant. As much as I would like to remove him, we baby sit the problem and it seems more than I would like, but the reality is that I can not afford to let him go. We are experiencing a tough market to even find "any" machinists, let alone good ones and usually the ones we do look at (that apply) are at the bottom of the barrel and so we pass. I do look at personality because of the experiences we have had. I have room for 8 machinists and still struggling to find any. We are located in Tacoma, WA. And you know the Boeing deal.... They have all the machinists (or so it seems). If you know of any Machinists (ones with good personality), let me know. Have any ideas? Jay R, Tacoma, WA |
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Steve, Along with "enjoys mechanical challenges" goes supervision's responsibility to allow the machinist empowerment of implementation. Nothing will dampen a good machinist's enthusiasm faster than having his/her ideas ignored. Rare the situation where cost of a trial effort is excessive. If an idea has merit the machinist should be allowed to try it; successful and everybody wins, unsuccessful and everybody learns. Herb E, Middlefield, CT |