“I’d love to start engaging with other businesses in our industrial park. I believe that a rising tide raises all ships and if we can work together with other manufacturers to reduce the barriers to beginning a career in manufacturing and growing the overall pool of talent, we will have a tremendous impact on trade, industry and our community.”

Alex Grover, CEO 

Focus on Products, Planet, and People

i2M, located in Mountaintop, PA, is a leading United States manufacturer and printer of flexible polymer films. CEO of i2M, Alex Grover says that the company’s philosophy is “purposeful polymers” and they live this purpose each day by staying “laser focused” on their products, the planet, and their people. As a female CEO in a male dominated industry, Grover understands first-hand the unique barriers women face in the workforce, which propelled her to take their philosophy a step further and find solutions specifically to prop up women: “our passion is helping our team have great careers in manufacturing and making a career in manufacturing accessible – for both men and women” says Grover.

The company used call-off data (the metrics on employees calling off work 36 hours before their scheduled shift) to understand how a child care support system could increase productivity and benefit both the staff members and the organization as a whole. When employees can’t make it to work, an entire machine can halt production and cost the company thousands of dollars per hour while the machine is off-line. “Our strong team is the foundation of i2M’s manufacturing operations and success,” shared Grover, “when call-offs started to trend upwards and new-hires declined, we knew we had to make a change.”

A Benefit That’s Truly Beneficial

Grover believes that while child care in the United States is ideal for someone who works 9 to 5, it’s not designed for those who work a 12 hour shift. “We knew we had to find solutions for our team members who work untraditional hours to be able to come to work and feel confident in their childcare solution,” she said. Understanding the importance of surveying their people to know their real needs, the team at i2M did an employee needs assessment.

There was a variety of feedback from the survey, including information about the ages of children that needed care – i2M’s program serves older children getting ready for kindergarten. The dominant request from the survey was access to existing child care centers across town. This provided flexibility in schedules and convenience in locations close to their homes and/or work. i2M partnered with a local child care provider to hold slots for employees from 6am to 6pm covering the majority of the shifts at the business. This solution allows team members to be ready to start work at 7 AM, and have pick-up at the end of the day at a location that’s convenient for them.

Partnering to Achieve Success

A key component of their strategy was identifying a strong partner. i2M was able to partner with a child care provider that operated centers in multiple locations, was willing to work with i2M to build a solution that worked for their team members, and shared similar values: high-quality educators with a strong focus on school preparedness. The child care provider was able to apply for grant funding, and i2M went to work on their employee needs assessment. Grover says “one of the reasons this program was so successful from the start is because we found the right partner. If we had someone who didn’t have multiple locations, a program of extraordinary quality, and the drive to work with us, it would have been much more difficult.”

Grover shared that one of her early concerns was that the child care provider they chose would also reflect on them; that if there was a negative experience, parents would first question i2M. Knowing they did their due diligence and worked with a partner that shared their values and mission, she is confident she can ensure a positive experience for her team members’ families.

Outcomes

Increase in productivity: i2M has seen a 32 percent YOY reduction in call-offs.
Through the needs assessment, i2M identified child care and transportation as the top two reasons for call offs. Focusing on fixing both these critical issues has increased productivity, saved thousands of dollars and, most importantly, highlighted i2M’s commitment to investing in their culture and team.

Thriving children and families: Grover shares one of her favorite stories about the impact on her team members: “We have had several parents who have remarked about the improvement in their child’s grades, behavior, or a combination of the two. We have had situations where both parents could now enter the workforce, because they at last had a low cost childcare solution. These are the wins that make a difference for our team, and reinforce the importance of our vision.”

Challenges

“While I am thrilled with the success of the program thus far, we our consistently identifying ways to improve,” says Grover. The ability to secure care for their staff during nontraditional hours continues to be a hurdle. Regularly surveying staff, i2M heard feedback and were able to adjust the start time of the centers so that their team could be at work and ready for their 7 AM shift; but the dinner hour continues to be a challenge. And, “night shift is a whole other ball game,” said Grover. “We have to have enough kids to make it make sense, but we need extended hours already in place to attract potential staff members that could benefit from evening hours. So it’s not in place yet because there isn’t the demand, but there isn’t the demand because it’s not there yet. How do we balance that and figure out those needs? There is still much work to be done here.”

Advice

Grover’s #1 piece of advice for other business leaders is to find the right partner – one with organizational and cultural alignment. “Early on, we worked together to get very clear about what we were and weren’t going to do,” Grover stated, “that was key, because it allowed each of us to have confidence in our mutual expectations and deliverables. To find such a partner, Grover recommends:

Interviewing partners: ask about their capacity and if they can care for a growing number of children, tour their facilities and understand what their priorities are.

Clarifying what’s really important to you, your business, and team members. Ask questions about whether/how many slots could be held for staff members, what ages the center can serve, the number of students the center will need to justify this work from their end, and whether there would be any additional costs or sign-up fees for employees.