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22 SMT Magazine • May 2017 rect experience in manufacturing, someone who likes to work with their hands could be a good fit for a mechanical assembly position," said Duffy. During the interview process, Lectronics' HR team isn't solely focused on the applicant's skills and experience. Personality and profes- sional demeanor play a major role as the or- ganization favors team-oriented and workable characteristics. HR typically recommends hir- ing people who are warm and friendly, and pos- itively impact the company's culture and work morale. Surprisingly, Lectronics hasn't had as much difficulty filling openings on the front side of manufacturing—such as customer service, pur- chasing, accounting or quoting roles. It's the positions that require a more technical skill set that remain open and unfilled longer. In fact, most of technical production positions get filled by internal promotions rather than new hires. "We grow our own. It's our goal to identify what an employee wants in their personal ca- reer development; then, we give them an op- portunity to pursue that avenue while provid- ing the support and training to ensure that they stay," said Phelps. Lectronics always posts open positions in- ternally first, so naturally, many openings are filled from within. While internal promotions have a dramatic, positive impact on the work culture, the internal shuffle can sometimes be difficult to manage. Phelps likens it to a double- edged sword, in filling one position with an in- ternal candidate, another one has unexpected- ly opened up from that employee's departure. Managing that transition, and ensuring that it goes smoothly, requires a lot of HR's time and support. Lectronics' "grow your own" strategy has been incredibly successful over the last couple of years. In fact, a few employees that started at Lectronics in temporary positions have made successful transitions to managerial roles and plan to further develop careers within manufac- turing. Here are their stories: Figure 2: Patrick Reardon, selective solder production specialist, oversees a panel of printed circuit board assemblies during the selective soldering process. GROW YOUR OWN TRAINING PROGRAMS