Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/819981
62 The PCB Magazine • May 2017 Goldman: You can't have them do a whole lot be- cause of their age. Brennan: I think that what we're looking for isn't necessarily suitable for the training and the effort that would be required on our part. We're working on staffing to meet our custom- ers' needs. Right now, I would say we're just not set up for that at Compunetics, whereas in Compunetix and the engineering divisions, the groups are larger. They have short-run proj- ects that require a bright, trained engineering mind that's learned a particular thing in a re- cent class, like a new programming language for instance. They could come in for eight or 10 weeks, knock out a mobile app, for exam- ple, and then they've accomplished something complete in their internship. We're done with them and everybody's happy. Maybe we hire them when they graduate. It's not the same en- vironment. I would say that's the reason that we haven't recently done interns in the manu- facturing areas. Goldman: They would require more training, and if they're under 18, you can't put them on any equipment. They could probably work in the in- spection area. Brennan: I'm not sure what they'd be allowed to do. Goldman: Then for your higher-level positions, are you mostly moving people along? Brennan: Yes, we do that a lot. Goldman: That's one way to retain people too. You would hope that they have been growing and of course, they want to keep moving up a lit- tle bit. Brennan: We do have very low turnover, 6–8%. It's low for manufacturing. It's low for the engineering side, the IT side. I think we do well on our retention. We have a rich benefits pack- age. We do promote from within whenever pos- sible. People see that. Goldman: I'm sure that's encouraging to most people, whether or not they aspire to it. Plus, you have that great education benefit. Brennan: We have many employees who have started out in surface mount, for example, with an associate's degree, finished their bachelor's degree, later moved into an engineering role and eventually into a leadership role. Goldman: So, finding and hiring the right people, however long it takes. Then provide an outstand- ing benefits package that includes education ex- penses, and move people up whenever possible. It sounds like a great combination and apparently is proven to work. Thank you both so much for your time here. It has been a real pleasure meeting and getting to know you—and another facet of Compunetics/ Compunetix. My regards to Dr. C. Miller: Thank you. Brennan: Thank you too. PCB HOW TO FIND—AND RETAIN—THE RIGHT PEOPLE FOR THE RIGHT JOBS