Shift Magazine - Issue 2 2018 - 8

Honda's program with
local college becomes
pipeline for talent
BY HANNAH LUTZ

n Union County, Ohio, home of Honda North America's Marysville
the second-largest employer in the county.
plant, manufacturing is the second-largest employment sector, after
The program would allow second-year students in Columbus State's
professional and business services, and makes
programs for mechanical engineering technology,
up a quarter of the work force. But five years
electrical engineering, mechanical engineering and
ago, just 153 K-12 students considered a career in
electro-mechanical engineering to work for Honda
advanced manufacturing, according to the Union
three days per week at $16 to $18 per hour while
County-Marysville Economic Development office.
taking class twice a week.
As Honda North America redeveloped its train"When we talked to other manufacturers in the
ing curriculum around that time, the company realcommunity, we heard similar needs," said Jeff Spain,
ized that retraining its work force wouldn't fulfill its
supervisor in work-force innovation at Columbus
talent needs over the next decade.
State. Today, 27 companies and more than 100 stu"The talent shortage we realized was more drasdents participate in the work-study program.
tic than what we originally were anticipating," said
"I'm happy to say we've done a great job of eduScot McLemore, manager of talent acquisition at
cating, but there's still a demand. We will continue
Honda North America. "We really had to become
to grow the program," he said.
Scot McLemore
innovative as to how we were going to both attract
Because of this program and others, more than
new talent as well as continue to train and scale up
700 people in Union County now have advanced
our incumbent work force."
manufacturing degrees, said Eric Phillips, Union County-Marysville ecoThat's how Columbus State Community College and Honda started
nomic development director.
working together. And through a mix of marketing and a high rate of job
RECRUITMENT STRATEGIES
placement, the program has grown.
Honda also partnered with Columbus State to market the program. With
representatives from the college, Honda visits local high schools and career
BEGINNINGS
centers to showcase the opportunity to students in science, technology,
In 2013, Honda proposed a work-study program with Columbus
engineering and mathematics programs, also known as STEM.
State, whose campus is near Honda's Marysville plant, a 4 millionBefore Honda linked with Columbus State on recruitment and the
square-foot factory that employs 5,000 people and produces the
work-study partnership, just two to three students per year would comHonda Accord, Acura TLX and Acura ILX. The plant is Union County's
mit to an internship with the automaker, McLemore said.
top employer, according to the Union County-Marysville Economic
In the program's first year, Honda was the only participating company.
Development website. Another 1,300 work for Honda's r&d center,

The talent
shortage was
more drastic
than we were
anticipating.

shift * july 2018

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Shift Magazine - Issue 2 2018