In this tight labor market, many organizations are struggling to find and keep good talent. James Phillips, Director of Talent Acquisition at third-party logistics company Capstone Logistics, is tackling these challenges head on. With a company of 12,000 people and growing, in an industry that naturally experiences high turnover, Phillips is focused on deploying a more data-driven, automated recruitment process, as well as increasing retention through a more transparent company culture and professional growth opportunities.
We recently chatted with Phillips about some of his biggest talent priorities, creative ways he’s recruiting and retaining workers, and how he’s partnered with CareerBuilder to help his team hire talent quickly and efficiently.
CB: What are some of your biggest talent priorities in 2018?
JP: We recently made a lot of acquisitions, and with acquisitions comes growth, which is exciting. With growth comes a more diverse culture. So priority No. 1 is to get everyone on the same page and following the same process that we’ve found to be successful. Priority No. 2 is managing our high turnover – something that is common industry-wide.
CB: What are some interesting ways you recruit and retain talent?
JP: One of our major initiatives revolves around celebrating our company culture and changing perceptions about our industry – showing current and prospective employees there’s a bigger opportunity here than just unloading trucks. We also try to promote from within. In addition to that, we give people the opportunity to expand their careers, both vertically and laterally. We have 400 sites, so workers can move anywhere in the country and still have a job. We also work to build skills; we say that if you can do this job, you can do any job.
CB: What technologies are you using to attract new talent? Are you incorporating any data or reporting?
JP: Our reporting is very manual – we manage it all via spreadsheets. It’s inaccurate, slow and not always up to date. We have a lot of data, but we don’t have a good way to sort it. So one of the things I’m pushing for is if we can get our team to use systems that collect data, then we can compile and use that data to our benefit.
CB: How has your approach to recruiting or retaining talent evolved over time?
JP: We’re not unlike a lot of organizations in that we try a variety of tactics and then follow what’s working. What’s working right now for us includes career events and other types of grassroots efforts. We’re also working on strategic alliances with organizations such as Goodwill, Urban Leaf, Labor Board and Veterans Affairs – when you involve the community, everyone benefits. Beyond that, we’re building up a social media presence – something we don’t really have. We’re working on promoting both the consumer and employer brands through social media.
CB: What CareerBuilder products do you use, and how have they helped your recruitment and retention efforts?
JB: We use Broadbean Job Distribution and Resume Search, CareerBuilder Search and Talent Network. With Broadbean, we have access to analytics such as what has been posted, for how long, what’s effective and what’s the click rate. And then with Talent Network, we get sourcing data.
Learn how you can build and maintain a talent pipeline with CareerBuilder’s Talent Network.
