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To succeedin business:know your cultureand hire for fitBy Gail RieschiWe’ve all heard it said that success in business is allabout your people. Jim Collins, author of the books“Good to Great” and “Built to Last”, describes it asgetting the right people in the right seats on the bus. Othersrefer to it simply as “hiring right”.Research confirms organizations can dramatically increasetheir productivity and profit, and reduce the number of daysemployees miss due to illness, when the right people are hired.Other benefits include a more engaged workforce and reducedturnover. Conversely, “wrong hiring” negatively affects theorganization at all levels. It reduces revenues, lowers theorganization’s reputation, shrinks growth opportunities andcauses your best workers to leave as job satisfaction, moraleand confidence in the organization spirals downward.Unfortunately, organizations today tend not to give thehiring process the time and attention it deserves. Employeeturnover rates provide a clear indication of Canada’s poor trackrecord: at <strong>22</strong>%, the national average is more than twice therange considered to represent healthy turnover (8% to 10%).The result is an unstable workforce, high employee turnoverand a significant negative impact on the bottom line.Consider the costs related to advertising the job opportunity,screening and interviewing candidates, then training them.There is also production loss during the job vacancy andduring the training and initial learning curve of the newhire, as well as the lessened productivity of co-workers asthey are called upon to help the new hire. When the newhire turns out to be a wrong hire and has to be released, theremay be costs of defending against labour relations, humanrights or wrongful dismissal complaints. Finally, there’s thecost of doing it all over again!The estimated cost of a wrong hire starts in the range of$50,000 to $100,000 (Government of Canada) and goesupward from there with wrong hiring costs at the professionalor managerial level equal to 18 months’ salary.Right hiring is challenging at the best of times, but is madeeven more difficult by prevailing external factors. Job seekinghas evolved into a learned skill, as shown by the abundanceof How-To manuals, training programs and other resources.Job seekers are now well versed in ways to answer or evadetough interview questions and position themselves in thebest light possible. This makes the recruiter’s job even morechallenging.The current, tight job market is a complicating factor aswell. The demand for good manpower currently exceeds supply.As a result, organizations are competing for available—not necessarily the best—candidates, to the point of enteringinto bidding wars. Finally, the pressures of time come intoplay. Most organizations operate with a lean workforce, andjob vacancies need to be filled quickly if the company is tomeet its existing commitments or be capable of respondingto emerging opportunities.Is there something that can be done to improve the hiringexperience? Total Power found the answer and is reapingthe rewards!Finding the right ‘fit’Following the Blackout of 2003, Total Power experiencedsignificant business growth and expanded its workforce tomeet the growing demand. Unfortunately, standard hiringmethods—including both managing the hiring processinternally and outsourcing to traditional head-huntingfirms—didn’t do the job. As Graham Clark, president ofTotal Power indicates, the “one-size-fits-all” approach justwasn’t working. While candidates met all of the technical jobrequirements, the ‘fit’ just wasn’t right.Clark’s assessment of the problem was bang-on. A generic,standard hiring process was not able to address Total Power’sunique staffing needs. What Total Power required—andwhat most organizations need—is a staffing process thatfocuses on a good fit between the individual and the organization.This involves looking beyond technical skills to focuson matching the job candidates’ work traits and personalitiesto the organization’s environment and culture. vpi was ableto help Total Power in this regard.Total Power took into consideration its culture and values,and the unique human factors it required in the various jobroles before beginning the recruitment process or consideringany candidates for the job. This growing organizationneeded individuals with a strong sense of urgency and a willingnessto extend themselves beyond their job description tosupport the organization’s growth objectives.“One of the key things we were looking for,” says Clark,“were people who could work under pressure. If the powergoes out with one of our clients, there’s going to be a loss.We needed personalities who could work under pressure andthink on their feet, being able to multi-task and clearly communicatewhat was happening.”The biggest mistake most organizations make is to focusalmost exclusively on function, or the technical aspects ofthe job that, while important, are clearly not what makesor breaks an employment relationship. The ‘fit’ between theindividual’s personality and values, and the values, cultureand personality of the organization should be the first considerationand the deciding factor.Giving greater attention to personality- and values-basedissues makes good sense in light of recent research findings.One survey, for example, identified that while 80% of organizationsreported that their hiring decisions were made onthe basis of technical competency alone, the same organizationsreported that 85% of terminations were the result ofa lack of ‘fit’.As an added bonus, organizations that use person-organization‘fit’ as their primary hiring criteria report betteroverall performance—including significantly higher revenueand profit growth and much lower turnover rates—thantheir counterparts who focus more on the candidates’ technicalskills (Gevity/Cornell University). Additional positiveresults include improved employee morale, job satisfactionand organizational commitment.Finding ‘fit’ takes timeThe downside to hiring for organizational fit is that it takesmore time and can be a bit more costly, especially whenobjective assessments are used. Incorporating some type ofobjective assessment as part of the recruitment strategy, inaddition to helping ensure ‘fit’, can also provide great insightinto the successful candidate’s training and personal developmentneeds, as well as the management strategies that wouldwork best. Most assessments can be accessed online and costless than $100. Compared to the cost of a wrong hire, $100is a good investment!Total Power saw the positive return on their investment andClark intends to continue this approach for his staffing needs.“It’s the people who make the company successful,” he says.“Making the investment in job satisfaction and job security ishuge. If you want to succeed, it’s all about the people.”This lesson has been well-learned by excelling organizations.In his research on “great” companies, Jim Collins foundthat among the 18 companies that made the grade, there wasone common denominator: each had a clearly defined cultureand consciously hired individuals whose personality and valueswere aligned. A good lesson for us all.Gail Rieschi is the president and CEO of vpi Inc., a human resourcemanagement firm specializing in facilitating, maintaining and managingemployment relationships. Her education includes a B.A. fromYork University and a Masters of Education from the University ofCalgary. Visit vpi online at www.vpi-inc.com.14 • MARCH 2008 • www. mag.com
By Michael JacksonMethods for making holes andcutouts in non-metallic enclosuresW h e n I t ’ sMetal Halide,Make SureIt’sVentureDrilling composite glass fiber material can be difficultand, for some, a mystery. In fact, the ability toaccurately drill holes in this material has been thesubject of numerous articles and How-To demonstrations.Composites offer the benefits of part integration and minimizationalong with substantial savings in weight. Alongwith this is a reduction in the requirements for machiningoperations that need to be performed to complete anassembly.However, not all drilling and cutting operations can becompletely avoided, but there are several types of machiningoperations that can be performed on composites, suchas turning, drilling, routing, trimming, sanding and milling.Most of these operations are similar to metal removaltechniques but some differences need to be addressed tomake clean, high-quality holes and cutouts in composites.Delamination of the outer surface and glass fibers directlybelow the surface are the main failure modes when holesor cutouts are improperly drilled or cut out. Most timesexcessive edge chipping around the perimeter of the cutoutor hole is due to improper tools used and methods applied.Other times excessive fiber pulls or attached fibers notsheared off during the cutting or turning process can alsocause delamination failure from the tearing action duringmaterial removal. Improper tools used and/or methodsare also a culprit of this failure mode. All these can lead todownstream assembly and functionality problems, and anaesthetically unappealing result when taken to the extreme.The most common source of failure when making holes inan enclosure is a dull cutting tool. Dull tools tend to rip ortear the material rather than cut or shear the material and glassfibers. In fact, it is the glass fibers themselves that are often theculprit, as they are very abrasive and can dull a tool quickly.This is why a little planning and understanding of the propermethods for machining composites upfront can make all thedifference in the final outcome of the operation.Now, let’s take a look at some of the following methodsfor making holes or cutouts in non-metallic enclosures.Hole Saw. The easiest and least complex method providingan opening in a composite enclosure is to use a fine-toothedhole saw. You must first layout the size and location of thecutout, pre-drill a small hole in the centre within the cutoutarea for the hole saw to start, then carefully cut out thearea to be removed. This is more time consuming and theleast accurate method of the ones we’ll discuss, but can beaccomplished in almost any environment.Keeping the saw perpendicular to the cutting surface,maintaining a consistent sawing acting and using a diamondimpregnatedhole saw or fine-toothed saw will provide thehighest-quality cutout with minimal edge chipping.Drilling, Boring. Putting round holes in enclosure wallsor through the enclosure door is the most common type ofcutout used to provide entry into an enclosure and accessto the components housed within. The most common toolused is the standard twist drill. A recommended tool wouldbe a carbide-tipped or PCD diamond-tipped tool that willmaintain a sharp cutting edge. (HSS tools will also workbut they become dull very quickly, resulting in excessiveedge chipping and a poor-looking hole.) Use high RPMsand low feed rates with your drill, as this reduces the chippingaround the cutout. The single-most important factor,though, is keeping your tool very sharp.Drill geometry and feed rates are the largest contributingfactors when drilling composites. Using a drill with a positiverake angle and thin/split points can help reduce cutting pressureand, thus, delamination at both entrance and exit. Feedrates must also be constant and may even be reduced uponexiting from a hole to reduce flexing of the part when the drillexits. Using a solid back surface to support the part when drillingcan also aid in reducing delamination and chipping.Routing. A third method is to use a carbide router bit androuter. This method produces very clean holes and cutoutsbut also requires the holes and cutouts to be manually laidout beforehand, as well as a steady hand to stay within thelayout lines. The use of a jig or fixture to help guide therouter is helpful for keeping straight edges and clean cutouts.The use of diamond-impregnated router bits is preferredfor longevity, but carbide bits will work just as well.Similar to routing, jigsaws can also be used. Again, diamond-impregnatedcutters are preferred, but fine-toothedcutters can also be used.Punching. A fourth method is to use a standard hole punchsimilar to what you would use with metal boxes. This producesa good clean hole but can leave chipped edges whenthe punch is dull. Again, maintaining sharp tools is essentialto producing clean cutouts. A pilot hole is required beforeusing a standard hole punch. Manual or hydraulic punchactuators can both be used with composite materials. Punchpress-type manufacturing equipment can be employedwhen production volumes warrant. Proper support andsharp tools are necessary to produce chip-free, clean holes.Alternative methods. Some additional methods sometimesused to machine composites are waterjet and laser cutting.Both methods produce very accurate, clean holes orcutouts, but also require a high capital investment in bothequipment and employee training.In waterjet cutting, a high velocity stream of waterand abrasive material is forced through a small diameter(0.010-in.) jet. The stream of water quickly erodes the materialwith water pressures up to 60,000 psi and 2600 ft/s.Laser cutting uses a concentrated raw light beam focusedonto the part being cut. The cutting operation takes placeby local melting as in thermoplastics, and vaporization andchemical degradation as in composites and thermosets.That’s the hole storyWhile there are several suitable ways of producing holesand cutouts in non-metallic enclosures, not every one maybe right for you or the application at hand. Ultimately, letthe work—and your own comfort level—dictate the mostappropriate cutting method.ReferencesMazumdar, Sanjay K., Ph.D., (2002). CompositesManufacturing, CRC Press, Boca Raton, Fla.Michael Jackson has been actively involved in product developmentfor electrical applications at Stahlin Enclosures over the last eightyears. He possesses a Bachelors degree in Industrial & ManufacturingEngineering Technology and an Associates Degree in MechanicalEngineering. He currently serves on NEMA’s 5EN Enclosures Sectiontechnical committee (NEMA 250), as well as ANSI/IEC 60529 TC70(U.S.) International Committee for Industrial <strong>Electrical</strong> Enclosures.The World Leaderin Metal Halide Technology VentureLighting.comVenture_1_EB_Jan08.indd 1www. mag.com • MARCH 2008 • 1512/21/07 9:51:19 AM
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