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The energy a company puts into its recruiting effort can speak volumes about its corporate character and its desire to field a truly diverse roster of talent. In that light, the splash that Toyota puts on at national conferences for organizations like NSBE, with a large display that includes its newest vehicle models, aims to show a strong commitment, says Sandra Stratton, assistant manager of talent management.
"We're increasing our presence at SHPE this year on the same scale as NSBE, so we're really trying to promote the company and our great opportunities," she says.
Stratton says Toyota's effort, which also involves a presence at SWE and other minority recruiting associations, goes beyond the flash, however. It also involves the personal touch.
"We have alumni from these organizations at Toyota who come to help on our recruiting trips, so that prospective employees can meet people who work for us," she offers. "We really prefer to have people who have participated in minority programs to represent the face of Toyota."
The company takes part in Urban League and Inroads Scholar mentoring programs as well. Most of its campus recruiting takes place at targeted schools, such as North Carolina A&T, Georgia Tech and the Rochester Institute of Technology.
Toyota expects a lot from its new hires in terms of motivation and talent. That's why it often seeks them from co-op programs, Stratton says.
"What we're trying to do is not only build a very talented, diverse workforce, but also develop a diverse pipeline of new talent coming into our organization," she says. "We look for co-op programs to be that pipeline."
Students in manufacturing-oriented co-op programs may have an edge because of Toyota's corporate focus, Stratton points out. "Those who have had an automotive co-op would probably be our first choice, but we're also interested in students who've worked for an auto industry supplier or have experience in any kind of manufacturing."
Toyota has its own co-ops and internships in engineering, but because of their technical nature, they usually have a longer timeframe than typical co-ops and internships that might last a summer. The company is aggressively working toward hiring 75 percent of internal co-ops for permanent positions, Stratton notes, while continuing to hire graduates from other programs.
The company maintains an active entry-level hiring program, both for bachelors and masters degree graduates, at a time of significant innovation and evolution in the automobile industry. "It's pretty exciting for us, because we have some valuable products that we're bringing to the market like the Prius, which is our hybrid vehicle," Stratton says. "And then we have several other makes that we're going to be introducing. We recently introduced the RX 400h, which is a hybrid SUV."
It's also a time of expected growth at Toyota -- real growth not spurred by retirements, given that the company's workforce has an average age of thirty-six. "We anticipate tremendous growth in the next five to ten years," says Stratton. "New grads are an essential component in making that happen."
What new entry-level hires find, Stratton adds, is immediate opportunity. "I can guarantee you a new college grad will be handling more responsibility and more scope here than some of their peers elsewhere," she says. "We have new engineers in our purchasing office, for example, who hit the ground running by working with suppliers in Mexico. We depend on them being very strong, capable and flexible people."
The commitment to diversity at Toyota also shows in its new Engineer in Training (EIT) program, a two-year rotational program that gives new college hires a chance to explore various company divisions, such as manufacturing, design and corporate. Stratton says the program may be the most exciting new addition to the corporate recruiting and training effort. This is the program's first year, and a third of the twelve trainees came from Toyota co-ops. The group is diverse in its geography, race, gender and ethnicity.
"It's a very competitive program, and it's also very strenuous. We'll ask a lot from EITs, but they'll get challenging assignments and see many different aspects of engineering," she says. "They'll do and see design first hand, they'll work with experienced engineers, and they'll get training on advanced programs like CATIA. They'll also go to affiliates, like vehicle assembly and unit plants, where they'll rotate through production engineering, quality control, and research and design."
EITs will spend time in the corporate office and benefit from the input of mentors and supervisors for the duration of the program. Upon completion they'll get permanent assignments. "We'll help EITs explore their career interests and work with them to plan their futures," Stratton says.
D/C
Toyota Motor Manufacturing North America
www.toyota.com
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Headquarters: |
Erlanger, KY |
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Employees: |
1,055 |
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Revenues: |
$172 billion in 2004 |
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Business: |
Vehicle design and manufacturing |
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