Preparing for the Customer of Tomorrow... Means Hiring Right Today

by Michelle Dreier
Member Engagement/Gov't Affairs Manager

Jeff Keljik, Tony Enger and I recently manned a table at the Mini Maker’s Faire at the Minnesota State Fairgrounds.

Our participants? Seventh-graders from schools around the Metro Area. Columbia Heights in particular was well represented.

Are we looking to hire these children for summer help? No, we simply want to introduce them to the electrical industry as a possibility before they make the decision to go to college.

Diversity! As the population of the U.S. changes, the makeup of our customers changes.

• 40% of Millennials (ages 18 to 34) are people of color
• 50% of the workforce will consist of Millennials by 2020
• 48% of the workforce will be ethnically diverse by 2050
• 5 generations are in the workforce – Gen Z is just entering the workforce at 18 while the last of the Greatest Generation may still be working and healthy at 70

Customers! Look at your customer base to see why hiring people from various backgrounds is powerful. Whether it is race, nationality, gender, age or religion—people from the same background as our customers can provide services and communicate in ways that are tailored to the preferences and needs of customers. When our employees educate each other about those differences, we can serve our customers better—and that is a competitive advantage that is harder for competitors to replicate.

Volunteer! Please consider volunteering at one of our career events as we continue to partner with community-based organizations to bring our membership diverse talent to add to their workforces.

We have several events happening in October and would welcome membership involvement. Call me at 612-827-6117 to find out more.