Diversity In Action

Georgia-Pacific takes a special interest in diversity

“Focus number one is recruiting the best talent,” says the senior workforce strategies director. EEs, ChEs, MEs and IT specialists are in demand

Georgia-Pacific (GP), maker of essential wood-based products ranging from bath tissue to plywood and from boxes to gypsum wallboard and chemicals, is looking for EEs, ChEs and MEs as well as IT specialists.

Founded in 1927, the company is one of the world’s leading manufacturers of tissue, pulp, paper, packaging, building products and related chemicals. Today it employs more than 50,000 people at some 300 facilities, mostly in North America and Europe.

In late 2005 Georgia-Pacific was acquired by Koch Industries, one of the world’s largest private companies. Georgia-Pacific remains independently managed.

Stacey Guith, director of recruiting, explains that GP employs engineers at the company’s manufacturing operations around the world. Most IT professionals work either at company headquarters in downtown Atlanta, GA or in GP’s data center in Green Bay, WI.

“Our approach to talent is shifting to proactive,” Guith says. Today GP is not just looking to fill specific positions, but is interested in finding out what skills candidates have to offer. “We are in the market for talent,” she says. “When we see a candidate with a good skill set who’s aligned with our values, we’re interested whether that candidate fills a specific opening or not.”

Diversity recruiting at GP begins wherever likely candidates are located. Charles Jackson, senior director of workforce strategies, explains that the company “includes historically black colleges in our recruiting strategy, and of course we’re tapping into networks of groups of different backgrounds.” These include NSBE, the National Black MBA Association, the National Society of Hispanic MBAs, the National Association of Asian-American Professionals and SHPE, among others.

The company’s diversity initiatives have evolved over the last fifteen years. In 2000, GP developed a corporate strategy with diversity at the core.

“Focus number one is recruiting talent,” Jackson says. “The demographics are changing, the labor market is changing. We have to compete for talent like other companies, but having the best and brightest talent in our organization is key for us.”

The company has an entry-level engineering program that gets new recruits quickly involved in real projects that are “significant and major to our operations. They are getting real-life experience firsthand,” Guith adds.

Another focus is on developing and retaining diverse talent, Jackson says. For example, yearly leadership forums bring together groups of diverse employees for full-day sessions. “We talk with them about our business and where it’s heading, and expose them to our leaders and get them networking,” says Jackson.

On the employee side, resources are available to any GP employee who wants to grow within the company. “We have resources for continuing education and we support it,” Guith says.

The company prefers to develop managerial talent from within. Having quality supervisors who are effective at developing talent within their organization is at the root of a stable and diverse organization, Jackson notes. “The supervisors and managers are our number-one key to retaining talent: how they interact with folks, understand their needs and are able to help them develop.”

At the company’s Atlanta headquarters, Jackson adds, the company offers employees various programs to help them balance work and personal demands. Employees in some jobs may work flexible hours or telecommute. “We have home-based and semi-home-based employees. It’s determined by their roles and by employees and managers sitting down and working out a plan.”

In addition, the company offers subsidies to encourage use of public transportation among its downtown Atlanta employees.

GP provides ample opportunities for employees to give back to their communities. For example, Atlanta-based employees may participate in a program to tutor students in reading one day each week. The company’s “ServiceForce” chapters around the country bring together organized groups of employees to do a variety of volunteer projects in their communities.

D/C