Milacron Launches Greater Cincinnati-Region Talent Acquisition Program

Milacron, a leading global supplier of plastics-processing technologies and precision machining and one of Greater Cincinnati’s largest manufacturers, is announcing a comprehensive talent acquisition program that promotes technical education and careers in manufacturing.

Designed to help individuals advance their careers while helping Milacron maintain the skilled workforce the company needs to thrive, the talent acquisition program includes vocational school student co-ops, scholarships, tuition reimbursement, apprenticeships, job shadowing and other initiatives.

The new efforts are a key part of Milacron’s ongoing commitment to growing its Ohio workforce and supporting the economic viability of its home region. The company plans to hire additional employees over the next three years representing a combination of management, engineering and highly-skilled manufacturing positions.

“We’re in an economy where people are looking for jobs and manufacturers are looking for skilled workers,” said Dennis Smith, CEO of Milacron LLC. “It’s our responsibility as an employer of over 780 people locally to apply our resources toward keeping the workforce strong and providing individuals with the skills they need to succeed in the job sectors that are thriving.”

Promoting manufacturing careers
Much of Milacron’s talent acquisition efforts will be focused on assisting high schools, vocational schools and technical colleges in promoting the advantages and opportunities associated with manufacturing careers. The program includes a Twitter feed (link), a Facebook page (link) and a microsite touting the benefits of manufacturing careers at Milacron through testimonial videos.

“We want to demonstrate the benefits, opportunities and long-term satisfaction we know manufacturing-related careers offer and encourage students to pursue the skills and training they’ll need to succeed in this field,” said Dave Lawrence, President of Milacron’s Plastics Machinery Injection, Extrusion and Mold Technologies businesses. “Many manufacturers have been talking about the need for this kind of program, and we took the initiative to get things started in the Cincinnati region. Our hope is others will follow suit.”

Lawrence is featured in one of the employee videos, highlighting a career path that started as a tool maker and progressed to his current position overseeing over 2,500 employees worldwide. Other videos feature young employees who have discovered the benefits of a manufacturing career, showing their peers why it could be a good decision for them as well.

Educational partnerships
At the high school level, Milacron is reinstating a program to provide co-op and apprenticeship opportunities for students in their senior year, opening the company’s doors as a place of hands-on learning that supplements classroom learning.

Milacron is focusing on co-op programs with area vocational schools such as Great Oaks Career Campuses, a system serving 35 school districts in southwest Ohio that helps high school juniors and seniors acquire employable skills while completing their high school education.

Great Oaks places heavy emphasis on recruitment of its students by companies in the region. According to Great Oaks instructors, almost all students who graduate from their machining, welding and engineering technologies programs are placed in local companies, including Milacron.

For college students, Milacron is offering a new scholarship opportunity to support advancing education in manufacturing fields. The company will offer up to ten $1,000 scholarships per year to help new Milacron employees pay for continuing with postsecondary technical education.

“Here in Cincinnati, $1,000 goes a long way in covering expenses such as books and supplies, even covering a semester of tuition at Cincinnati State, a junior college that provides education in engineering technologies of many sorts and has a plastics option within its technologies program,” said Smith. “This could be just the help that dedicated students need to continue down this career path.”

Milacron also offers tuition reimbursement to its employees. This means that students who earn the scholarship can have additional help with related expenses and other fees while having continued education paid for as well.

To visit the new Milacron microsite, and for more information about opportunities at Milacron, please visit www.BeMoreAtMilacron.com.