_________________________________________________________________________________________________ Main interview
I moved to the States in the 90s from Puerto Rico where I was born and raised ,” opens Alex Vazquez , Vice President of ResourceMFG , Employbridge . “ When I graduated high school , I wasn ’ t dead set on college , and essentially stumbled across supply chain manufacturing . So , I started my career in Florida , where I live , working as a machine operator , material handler , and assembler : in essence , in a variety of lowerlevel manufacturing jobs in 2001 . After two years of doing hourly , temporary gigs , I had the opportunity to recruit for Employbridge within the manufacturing division . I started recruiting back in 2003 and became enamored with the industry ; with the idea of putting a paycheck on the table for people to feed their families and grow their careers .
“ I have such a passion for it as I was one of those employees . There ’ s a negative stereotype associated with manufacturing , but that couldn ’ t be further from the truth . You never know which way the industry ’ s going to take you and , in my case , I never thought that it would be here .
“ Fast forward to maybe 11 years ago and I was tapped on the shoulder and asked to lead the manufacturing division . At that point , we had roughly 700 million dollars in revenue , which blew my mind . Here I am , this guy who doesn ’ t have a college degree , and I had an opportunity to really grow and flourish with Employbridge , focusing on career development and learning paths for our associates . I also work with our customers to design solutions based on their needs and the issues they have in terms of production , quality , training or attracting and retaining the workforce ,” he explains .
Alex has been fortunate to work with thousands of manufacturers throughout his career , as well as hundreds of thousands of associates . “ I ’ m fascinated by the industry itself ,” he continues , “ and by the various verticals in the manufacturing space . Where I live , there is a heavy concentration of aerospace , medical equipment , electronics , and defense , whereas in other parts of the country , you ’ re talking pharmaceuticals , automotive , food production or textiles , so , completely different facets of manufacturing .
“ I feel like I haven ’ t worked a day in my life ,” he enthuses , “ because I love what I do . Every facility and every process are different , and the intricacies that are woven into those different verticals completely blow my mind ; they ’ re fascinating . So , it ’ s like I ’ m learning every day , and no two days are the same . While that ’ s my career in a nutshell , my passion really lies in changing the negative mindsets and stereotypes about manufacturing and presenting the industry in a more positive light for the future .”
Investing in people
In recent years , manufacturing has undergone significant change and not least in terms of technological advancement . Alex elaborates : “ The rapid changes in technology that we ’ ve seen over the last 20 years are just staggering . While we find ourselves in Industry 4.0 with access to highly sophisticated , connected systems , we just don ’ t have the people with the necessary skills to operate them . We ’ re currently struggling to train people to really understand how these technologies work .
“ I think we ’ re also experiencing a demographic shift . If we launch a talent acquisition campaign to drive applicants to our operations , it ’ s crucial to tailor our approach to the target market . What ’ s important to one generation may no longer be relevant to another . We must adopt a multifaceted approach to attracting individuals based on their needs and on what makes them tick . We ’ re never going to move the needle if we do things the way we ’ ve always done them . Today , a strong digital social presence is essential to be able to attract some individuals . I visit many summits , conferences , and events and without exception , workforce development alongside
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