Career Center tailors no-cost services for employers

Carter Dyson

When automotive supplier Metalsa expanded its workforce last year, company representatives called on Kentucky Career Center – Lincoln Trail in Elizabethtown to find the skilled employees they needed.

Employers of all sizes and industries contact us for a number of reasons. Our business services team along with our job seekers team helps recruit and hire new employees, implement customized training, offer direction on employment issues and much more. And, as many companies in the Lincoln Trail region have found, each of these no-cost services are tailored to meet an employer’s specific needs.

With Metalsa, our staff developed a customized hiring program that included everything from promoting the positions to applicant screenings to scheduling training for hired candidates.

After applications for production technician positions were accepted, applicants visited the career center to participate in a company orientation and screening, performed by our staff. This gave the applicants an opportunity to learn more about Metalsa and what its hiring officials were looking for in new employees. We also spoke to applicants about their skills and the company’s requirements.

Through this process, candidates were able to evaluate their career interests and skills and know if the job was right for them before the interviewing process started, which saved time and effort for both job seekers and the employer.

Additionally, our staff provided soft skills training and helped applicants polish their interviewing skills.

Thanks to our pre-screening process, Metalsa started with a higher-quality pool of candidates. The career center staff arranged and hosted interviews every other week, allowing the Metalsa human resources department to focus on what mattered most – interacting with the job seekers. Company leadership noted how productive the interview sessions were, and they were impressed by the quality and preparedness of the applicants.

When Metalsa representatives met a candidate they approved for the company’s pre-hire welding training, we worked with Elizabethtown Community and Technical College to schedule that, too.

In the end, Kentucky Career Center – Lincoln Trail was able to connect this employer with nearly 40 qualified new employees.

Another example of our customized support is our free company-focused workshops offered at our Lebanon location. These sessions, presented by career center staff, provide job seekers an opportunity to learn about an employer’s mission, products, services and open positions. When possible, we showcase a company’s products, such as the automotive interior trim manufactured by Angell-Demmel in Lebanon, and conduct a company tour.

We are currently hosting these workshops for Angell-Demmel and plastic and rubber injection molding manufacturer TG Kentucky, helping to provide a pool of candidates who understand the employers’ goals and workforce needs.

We’re working with many companies throughout the region to provide the talent they need to improve their business, whether they need to hire a single employee or dozens. In fact, we are now working with several advanced manufacturing companies as we prepare for Kentucky Career Center Get Opportunity (KCCGO), an intensive training program for job seekers interested in manufacturing careers.

When we work with job seekers and employers, our goal is to develop a competitive workforce that enables existing employers to grow right here in the Lincoln Trail region and attract new employers to our area.

We know how critical it is to connect businesses to the right job candidates. And it’s one way we’re helping to develop a stronger workforce, drive our local economy and ensure the quality of life we enjoy in the Lincoln Trail region.

If you’re an employer, from a small business to a large manufacturer, we invite you to explore how we can help you find the talent you need. Get started by calling any of our four locations or visiting www.ltcareercenter.org.

Carter Dyson is One Stop Director for Kentucky Career Center – Lincoln Trail. He can be reached at (270) 766-5115 or carter.dyson@ky.gov. The Kentucky Career Center – Lincoln Trail, overseen by the Lincoln Trail Workforce Investment Board, is a one-stop resource for both job seekers and employers.