Featured Article: Ship Repair & Human Capital Supply Chain Management

2018 is the beginning of a very exciting time for everyone in the ship repair industry and its affiliated businesses. However, with new opportunities come significant human resources challenges. One that we constantly hear about is our workforce. Whether it be electricians, riggers, welders, laborers, or painters, few industries fluctuate their workloads like the ship repair industry does. For those reasons, it is important for business leaders to be conscious of Human Capital Supply Chain Management and navigating its challenges.

There are many ways for a company to bring in new talent, but with the costs of recruiting, interviewing, onboarding, payroll, benefits, and differing project durations there is not always one clear cut way to solve the “ramping up” problem. Traditionally, a company would grow by placing new hires on their payroll. Today, there are more ways to grow your workforce than simply hiring people.

Options include contingent labor (temporary staffing agencies and contract labor), subcontractors, consultants, and direct hires. Each comes with its own set of risks, costs, and benefits. In large companies there is usually a mix of all of these. The types of human capital used varies from company to company and changes with time and workload, but the goals are usually the same: have the right people at the right time, at the most affordable cost.

These ideas are not new but they set the stage for how VSRA members can best position themselves for success. Once a company has determined its workforce needs (a monumental task of forecasting in itself) the question remains as to how best to find and attract talent. The answer lies in a few steps one can take to increase candidate's ability to find you and their willingness to be a part of your organization.

The basics in your talent pipeline at minimum should include:

1. Traditional Advertising. Internet and print.
2. Recruitment Sites. Premium versions include built in applicant tracking systems and applicant interaction mechanisms. The most popular are ZipRecruiter, Monster, and Indeed.
3. Talent Mining. Going through old applications that may have been forgotten in drawers or old emails.
4. Physical Presence. If you are hiring, and the answer to best bolster your talent pipeline is, “Yes, we are always hiring,” does your front door say so?
5. Traditional and Online Networking. Get the word out via physical events and using any and all of the social media you can take advantage of.
6. Referrals. Do you make it worth a person’s time to send you a good referral? Do your employees know how and who to refer to HR for applications?
7. Apprenticeship Programs and Training Internal Talent. Train who you have. There are many benefits to this even beyond having access to the talent you need including increased morale and loyalty from your employees.  
8. Talent scouts or outside agencies. Leverage a professional's expertise to help your company find talent that may be otherwise hidden from you.     

These eight methods are ways for companies to handle the expected increase in business and have many nuances within themselves that can help make it break your human capital supply chain. By using good forecasting, maintaining your talent pipeline and incorporating the right mix of human capital for your organization one can truly maximize the new business coming our way with the best people, at the right time, for the right price.

About the Author

Valerie Stewart and Kimberly Koehler represent the Human Resources Team at Tidewater Staffing. Together the dynamic duo performs a variety of tasks to fulfill the responsibilities of leading the organization's HR programs and policies, including employee relations, compensation, benefits, safety, performance and staffing levels. Ms. Koehler has been with Tidewater Staffing since 2014 and Mrs. Stewart has been with Tidewater Staffing since 1996.

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