Partnering with QTI to create a bilingual workforce

Organization Overview

• Size: 1,000-5,000 employees
• Industry: Manufacturing
• Location: Global 

Challenge 

A global manufacturer of drives and gears faced unsustainable turnover on the second shift at its Wisconsin manufacturing location. Due to a tight labor market and reduced candidate pool, the Wisconsin branch could no longer attract and retain quality talent. With a smaller talent pool to choose from, the HR team could not hire selectively and find organizational culture fits. As a result, second-shift morale was low, conflicts between employees were frequent, and turnover was unsustainable.

Solution

The organization decided it was time to expand its talent pool. Previously, they had difficulty successfully recruiting Spanish-speaking candidates who had limited or no English ability. The organization turned to its partnership with QTI to learn more about integrating a bilingual workforce. With deep experience and a pool of prequalified Spanish-speaking talent available, QTI succesfully assisted the organization through the necessary processes to integrate a bilingual workforce. 

• Partnering with QTI to hire a bilingual shift lead, ensuring communication needs were met on each shift. 
• Promoting existing bilingual Spanish-English employees to team lead and supervisor positions and partnering with QTI to write job postings and conduct screenings in English and Spanish. 
• Conducting weekly check-ins with QTI to ensure the transition to a bilingual workforce was running smoothly. 
• Professionally translating internal communications materials, including job instructions, onboarding, and HR-related paperwork, and signage around the warehouse floor. Partnering with an outside translation agency ensured the process was smooth, timely, and accurate. 
• Partnering with the Latino Academy of Workforce Development, a Madison-based nonprofit organization, to offer free ESL lessons during and around shift times. 
• Utilizing free and existing translation applications such as Google Translate for conversations between HR and leadership team members. 
• Educating both non-Spanish and Spanish-speaking employees on cultural differences to minimize conflict and unify the team. 

Results

The introduction of Spanish-speaking employees yielded fantastic results for the organization. Though a few challenges arose throughout the transition, the organization's ability to be flexible and utilize creative problem solving created a significant return on investment. Since expanding the talent pool to include Spanish-speaking candidates, turnover on the second shift has reduced. At the end of 2023, the manufacturer's HR department calculated that turnover had decreased on the second shift by 50%. An increase in available candidates has led to higher-skilled candidates and a stronger sense of community among employees. 

Impact 

Through their partnership with QTI, the organization vastly expanded its talent pool. The influx of new candidates led to a second-shift team that was more cohesive, skilled, and suited to the organizational culture. The partnership with the Latino Academy of Workforce Development has allowed Spanish-speaking employees to develop English skills and transfer to other shifts and leadership positions throughout the organization, creating a new internal hiring pipeline. Since the transition, the organization has been stronger, has reduced turnover on the second shift, and has better morale overall.