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Networking: Biggest Step You’re Missing in Your Manufacturing Job Search

HMG Success on October 7, 2026

Networking is one of the most important aspects of business today. Not every working person is utilizing the network they have the potential to build, which could quite possibly be hurting their career. When this happens, it could become difficult for that person to find a new job when necessary, because of a lack of contacts within the industry. When you work in manufacturing, it is important that you network as much as possible in order to make your job search easier.

Benefits of Building a Network

When you build a network, you will be opening yourself up to a plethora of benefits that will only help in your manufacturing job search. One of the most important benefits of building a network is the fact that you will be collecting hundreds of contacts from within the industry. You might never need to call on one of these contacts to help you with your career, but if you do, you have a group of people to choose from when making that important call.

Another benefit of networking is that you will be building relationships with potential employers. Should you attend career fairs, events or other meetings, collect the names and business cards of all those people you meet. For all you know, someone you meet at a business conference might contact you in the future when a position becomes available at their company. Always leave those you meet with a lasting, positive impression.

Increase Your Confidence

As you continue to network, you will be able to increase your confidence. Networking forces you to interact with others, sometimes people who you never thought you would ever speak to in your life. This will help you build confidence when it comes to speaking to unfamiliar people, which is an important aspect of your manufacturing job search. The more confident you appear, the more attractive you are to a hiring manager.

Raise Your Profile

The more you network, the more you will be able to raise your profile within the manufacturing industry. One of the biggest benefits of networking is getting noticed and being visible. People within the manufacturing industry will begin to recognize you the more often you attend social and business events within the industry. You can also build your reputation as someone who is knowledgeable of the industry by offering your insights, thoughts or tips about the manufacturing field during these events.

Find New Ideas

When you are networking during a job search, you can find new ideas for your industry. This is a major benefit, especially when searching for a new manufacturing job. When you go on a job interview, you can talk about some of the fresh ideas you came across at various networking events. These ideas come from the free exchange of challenges, goals and experiences you have gone through in your career.

As you continue to search for a new manufacturing job, make sure you are networking in an effort to secure that job. And don’t forget to partner with a staffing agency, like Advance Staffing Solutions. We can take all the hassle out of the job search for you. Click here to browse our open positions today.

Why You Need a Career Mentor

HMG Success on October 7, 2026

There are a multitude of things a person can do these days to improve the success they have in their career. One of those things is having a career mentor. Not everyone employs the use of a career mentor, but it is definitely something that should be taken into consideration. We will discuss the most important benefits of having a career mentor in this post so you can see why having one is so vital to the health of your career.

Mentors Can Help With Shortcomings

It can be incredibly easy to see the shortcomings and the weaknesses of other people, but when it comes to your own, they can be very difficult to see. When this happens, it might be in your best interest to use a mentor. A mentor will be able to evaluate you as an employee and take a long look at your career. When he or she does this, they might be able to point out what is holding you back in your search for a new job or for a promotion.

Mentors Can Teach New Things

As with a teacher or an academic adviser, mentors will be able to teach you new things. Your career mentor should be from within your industry or work niche in order to make the relationship as successful as possible. You do not know everything there is to know about your career or the industry in which you work. This is why you need a career mentor. A career mentor has the years of experience needed to show and teach you what you are yearning to know.

Mentors Will Keep Conversations Confidential

Another great thing about having a career mentor is the fact that you will be able to talk with him or her about almost anything related to your work life without fear of repercussions. You might not be able to complain about a boss or co-worker to someone you feel is a best friend in the office. But, you can be open and honest with your career mentor as much as you would like.

Learn How to be a Mentor Yourself

As you continue to gain work experience and develop a relationship with your career mentor, you can learn how to be a mentor yourself at the same time. This means that you will be gaining the same skills and knowledge that your mentor has that you could use someday if you are asked to be a mentor for someone else within your industry.

Career mentors are very popular these days, even though not everyone employs this benefit of the workforce. If your career has stalled, you might want to consider finding someone to be your career mentor so you can get back on the right track. Contact Advance Staffing Solutions today to learn more about how to successfully navigate your career mentor relationship, or to find a new career today!

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Gearing Up For Winter Safety Regulations

HMG Success on October 7, 2026

As the seasons move rapidly into the winter months, conditions can become treacherous around Michigan and other Northern Central states. This means that companies across the country, no matter where they are located, should be preparing their employees for winter safety regulations. Your employees need to be put in a safe situation no matter the circumstances, but this is very important when the winter weather delivers its brutal punch on the country.

Review Insurance Coverage

One of the first things your company needs to do is to review its insurance coverage. You can do this by speaking with your company’s insurance agent in order to find out what the policy covers, how the employees are covered and what property you can afford to lose should the winter weather wreak havoc on your business.

Determine Largest Risk Potential

The next step your company must take is determining the largest risk potential that will be present when the winter weather hits hard. This includes the loss of heat at the office, loss of access to the property due to heavy snow or ice and water damage due to broken pipes. Take a look at the property where you do business and determine if any changes can be made prior to the winter season to prevent the risk of losing time or money to storms.

Determine Cost of Business Interruptions

Another important thing you must do prior to the winter months is calculate the cost of a possible interruption to your business. This can last one day, one week, three weeks, one month, six months or even a year or more. As the winter months move closer, your business should be calculating this major possibility, especially if you live in an area prone to major winter weather events. Your company should also consider building a cash reserve that will help it operate following a winter weather event that potentially shuts it down for a prolonged period.

Implement Telework Policies

In order to keep customers or clients satisfied should access be limited to your property, it is a good idea to create a telework policy for your employees. Not all of your employees will live close to the business, so they might have trouble reporting to work. If this is the case, or the business cannot open following a storm, let your employees know that they can work remotely. Make sure this plan is in place months in advance of the winter season so it does not have to be implemented on the fly.

Create a Crisis Communication Plan

A crisis communication plan is something that every business should have in place throughout the year, not just for the winter months. This helps employees, staff members, management, clients, partners and customers know what is happening at the office and what can be expected following a crisis.

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Implement Company Policies Now – Before It’s Too Late!

HMG Success on October 7, 2026

When an incident occurs at the office, it is too late to discuss implementing a policy to govern such a problem. All company policies need to be implemented right now, before it is too late and something happens that can affect the entire workforce and the success of the company. In this post we will discuss the best ways to implement new company policies and how to activate them immediately without confusing or overwhelming your employees.

Policy Must Solve Problem in Best Way Possible

One of the most important things you need to take into consideration when implementing a company policy is that it must solve the problem in the best way possible. This means that whatever the issue is within your office, it must be solved using this one policy. There should never be more than one policy created to solve the same issue. When this happens, the culture of your organization can take a hit because employees will be confused with the overlap of the company policies.

Policy Should be Reviewed by Multiple Teams

When implementing a new company policy, it should be reviewed by upper management, a select group of employees and the company’s legal team. All three of these groups will have different views about the policy and will be able to determine if it follows employment laws in the country. They should also review the policy and offer any changes, should they be deemed necessary.

Implementation Deadlines Must be Met

As you add new company policies to the employee handbook, it is important that implementation deadlines are always met. If you set a deadline for a new policy, do not push it back to a later date multiple times. This will only frustrate your employees and give them the sense that you are not comfortable with the policy that was created. You want to show confidence in the new policy and that you mean business when putting it into action.

Mandatory Meetings for Staff are a Must

Mandatory meetings must be held for your staff when implementing new company policies. If employees are absent from work when these meetings are held, you must provide make-up dates for meetings. Information about the new policy should be presented at the meetings and employees should be allowed to ask questions and express their concerns at the same time.

HR Must be on Same Page as Management

Another important aspect of implementing a new company policy now, before it is too late, is that the human resources department must be operating on the same page as the management team. No matter which department created the policy, everyone needs to work as a cohesive team in order to ensure success in rolling out the new policy.

Want more information on how to implement new company policies, or how to find candidates who fulfill company requirements? Contact the staffing experts at Advance Staffing Solutions today.

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Standing Out at a Manufacturing Interview – 5 Tips You MUST Follow

HMG Success on October 7, 2026

Interviewing for a manufacturing job in Detroit, MI is stressful, especially when you are in dire need of work. Prevent the process from overwhelming you by preparing for the interview ahead of time. Preparation is key to any type of job interview. As you go on various interviews for manufacturing jobs, be sure you follow the five tips in this post to stand out from the rest of the pack.

  1. Learn about the Company
    One of the first things you must absolutely do is learn about the company. The more you know about the company, the better off you will be during the interview process. Your research should include the yearly numbers of the company, the executives at the company, and even the names of some department heads in case you run into them while on a tour of the manufacturing facility. Make sure you also know the company’s goals and mission so you can pull from your background to show how you would fit.
  2. Prepare Questions to Ask
    Prepare questions of your own to ask during the interview session. This will help you impress the interviewer and anyone else you meet along the way. Your questions should be ones that piggyback off questions asked by the interviewer or ones that you think of on your own that discuss things about the company. Ask the interviewer what types of problems the person hired for the job will need to solve, what type of person will be perfect for the job and much more.
  3. Offer a Conversation
    An important tip for standing out at a manufacturing interview is to be conversational during the meeting with the interviewer. When you provide rehearsed answers to interviewers, you are not showing them your complete personality. One way to do this is by offering them a conversation. When you are conversational during a job interview it allows you to show your personal side, something that the interviewer will want to see so they can gauge if you will fit the culture of the company.
  4. Exceed Expectations
    When you are sitting in a job interview for a manufacturing position, it is best to ask the interviewer how you can exceed their expectations. Make it known to the interviewer that you are not looking to do just the bare minimum if hired. Let the company know how far you are willing to go to perform job duties and get the projects done on-time and correctly.
  5. Recap Your Thoughts Upon Leaving
    As you prepare to leave the interview room, have a 30-second speech prepared for the interviewer. This should be a speech that thanks the interviewer for their time, reiterates how interested you are in the job and why you are the best candidate for the job.

As you prepare for a manufacturing job interview, be sure to follow the five tips outlined in this post so you can stand out from the crowd. Connect with Advance Temporary for manufacturing jobs in Detroit and other local areas.

Why Offering Flexible Hours Promotes Productivity, Happiness, and Loyalty among Workers

HMG Success on October 7, 2026

Companies are beginning to offer their employees flexible work hours these days in an effort to promote loyalty, happiness and productivity in their workforce. Employees want to have a strong balance between their work life and their personal life so that they can have time to relax and enjoy their family and friends. Learn more about this trend as we discuss the reasons why employees are productive, happy and loyal when offered flexible working hours at their place of employment.

Boost to Productivity

When employees are offered flexible work hours, their productivity will tend to soar. The reason for this is that they do not have to work the mundane nine-to-five hours. Instead, they will be able to work hours in which they are most productive. For example, if an employee is highly productive from 7am-3pm, the company should let him work during these hours. If the employee is highly productive from 10am-7pm, consider allowing her to work during this time.

More Happiness

Companies that offer flexible working hours for their employees will see happiness within the workforce hit an all-time high. When employees can work the schedule that best fits their lifestyle, then they will be happy when they come to work each day. This allows the employee the chance to live their lives, take care of their children, enjoy time with friends and much more. No one wants to be stuck in an office from 9am-7pm each day. Flexible working hours make this a thing of the past. Companies that offer flexible work hours are telling their employees that they value their time, which will make the employees work harder and show appreciation when on the job.

Greater Loyalty

One of the most important benefits of offering flexible working hours to employees is that they will tend to be more loyal to the company. When you have a happy workforce, you will have a loyal one. You must remember that loyalty is a two-way street. The more loyal you are to employees, the more loyal they will be to your company. Employees become loyal when their work and personal lives are balanced and they have a happy workplace to go to each day.

Other Benefits of Flexible Work Hours

There are additional benefits of offering flexible work hours to employees, and they include a reduction in absenteeism and less stress for employees. Companies that offer flexible work hours tend to see their absenteeism rates decline because employees have time in their day to complete personal tasks outside of the office without needing to take a day off from work. The stress levels of employees will also drop with a flexible work schedule because they do not have to constantly worry about how they are going to get everything done on their to-do list.

For more information on how to create a happy, productive and loyal workforce, or to find a position in a company that adheres to these values, contact the staffing experts at Advance Staffing Solutions today!

Are You a Job Hopper? Here’s how to Optimize Your Job Search

HMG Success on October 7, 2026

There are plenty of workers out there who can be considered “job hoppers”. These are folks who, for whatever reason, do not stay in one job or company for an extended length of time. While this can be detrimental for a job search, it does not have to stand in your way of getting a great job. There are plenty of things you can do to optimize your job search if you have a penchant for job hopping.

Here, we’ll discuss several ways to overcome a history of short-term jobs with some helpful tips.

Explain Temporary Jobs on a Resume

When you prepare to search for a new job and have worked quite a few different jobs over the past handful of years, you need to explain why this has happened. One of the reasons for the job hopping could be that you were working in temporary jobs to gain as much experience as possible or to meet as many different people as possible. When you explain that you have been working temporary jobs, employers will be more likely to hire you since you have been trying to improve your career as much as possible.

Use Time Wisely

The next thing you need to do is use your time wisely when unemployed. If you are between jobs, it is best to perform business-related activities so that you can put these activities on your resume. These activities include attending business events, training sessions, networking events and much more. You will be able to meet various people within your industry, gain new contacts and even pick up some references along the way. This will help potential employers see how well you have used your time and that you stayed dedicated to improving your career.

Remove Older Jobs

An excellent way to optimize your job search if you are a job hopper is to remove older jobs from your resume. For the most part, your resume should only go back 10 years, 15 years at the most. If you have seven years of experience or more in your career, make sure you remove any internships listed on your resume. By removing older jobs from a resume, you can help with the idea that you are a job hopper.

Lump Contract Jobs Together

If you worked a lot of contract jobs during your career, lump them into one job listing on your resume in order to remove the idea of being a job hopper. For example, if you have worked on multiple contracts as a freelance writer, list all of these contracts under one heading and mention the skills you used and the responsibilities of the jobs performed.

If you are in the middle of a job search and are worried you may appear to be a job hopper, then you should follow the tips outlined in this post to optimize your search as much as possible. When you remove the stigma of being a job hopper, then you should have no trouble obtaining an offer of employment. For more help on your job search, contact Advance Staffing Solutions today!

5 Tips for Spotting Your Biggest Time Wasters

HMG Success on October 7, 2026

Some employees love to waste time when at work, and the problem has gotten worse with the explosion of social media and gaming on the internet. With so many different sites to browse, people are taking large chunks of time out of their day to post on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or by simply browsing the web and shopping online. When this happens, your company is losing valuable time and money. So how do you spot employees who waste time?

Follow the five tips outlined here and you should have no problem improving your Employee Time Management efforts.

Holding Too Many Meetings

If a department within your company is constantly having meetings, this could be a major sign that your employees are wasting time. In a survey from salary.com, 19 percent of respondents said that meetings at work are the biggest waste of time. These meetings might be necessary for some departments, but others could be holding them for little to no reason at all. This means that your employees are sitting around shooting the breeze or having discussions that could be easily accomplished through a department-wide email, instead of completing their work.

Inefficient Team Members

The study also found that 17 percent of respondents said that their inefficient team members cause others to waste time at work. When you have several employees who do not complete their work on time or correctly, it can cause other team members to slack off or to struggle with completing their own work. Inefficient team members can have their bad habits rub off on others, which is always bad for your company’s culture.

Assigning Busywork

Supervisors or managers who tend to assign too much busywork can create an environment of procrastinators or employees who waste too much time. This reason received 13 percent of the vote from the survey respondents. Busywork is never fun to complete, especially for employees who have been with a company for quite some time or who have levels of experience that put them past this stage of their career. While it is sometimes a necessity, try to limit the amount of busywork you assign.

Quick Reduction of the Browser

Another tip for spotting the biggest time wasters at work is those who quickly close the browser on their desktop when anyone walks by their office or cubicle. This could be a sign that they are wasting time browsing the internet, sending emails from a personal account or simply playing games on the computer when they should be working. When this becomes a common practice, especially when supervisors walk by, it is a major sign that employees are wasting time at work.

Constant Chatter Amongst Employees

When employees are constantly talking to each other either on the phone, at the water cooler, in the hallways or at each other’s desks,  it is another big sign of time wasters at work. Constant chatter can be detrimental to the culture of the company and it will hurt the chances of workers completing their work on time. It is alright for employees to become friends or acquaintances, but when they are always speaking with each other, especially about non-work related topics, then this is a sign of time being wasted at work.

For more on how to stop time wasting in the workplace, or to find employees with strong time management skills, contact the staffing experts at Advance Staffing Solutions today.

Lead Through Learning – Promote New Skills In the Workplace

HMG Success on October 7, 2026

Promoting new skills in the workplace is very important for companies around the world. Why? Leading through learning is an excellent way to promote and develop new skills, especially when there are a lot of new hires in the building. Transferring existing skills from experienced employees to new employees is a critical component of workplace operations, but so is bringing in fresh, new skills to take the company into the future.

To accomplish this, you will want to develop a process for promoting new skills amongst your workers. Here’s how.

Provide Information and Training

One of the best things you can do for employees when promoting new skills is to provide information and training to all of them, no matter how long they have been employed. When employees have access to information and training they are more likely to acquire new skills and succeed while on the job. You need to identify what skills must be developed the most within your office and then provide training programs related to those skills for your employees.

Assess the Skills of Employees

Companies must also assess the current skills of all the employees on the payroll right now. This includes new hires, veteran workers and even temporary employees. Anyone who walks through the door of your company and earns a paycheck should have their skills evaluated. In a work environment, companies can assess the skills of their employees by administering computer tests or simply watching employees to see what they can and cannot do with specific tasks assigned to them. Workplace Learning Detroit IL takes place by carefully tracking all skills and adding new ones to the mix.

Encouragement is Key to Promoting New Skills

If you are trying to promote new skills at the workplace, it is imperative that the company encourage employees as much as possible. Praise should be showered upon employees when they achieve a new skill, especially since they worked hard to obtain that skill. This can be done with the creation of an incentive program, a recognition ceremony or offering promotions to higher positions due to continued improvement by employees.

Stay Consistent

If your company has created an incentive program for employees who learn new skills, make sure you stay consistent with it. Employees want to know that the program will be available one year from now. They will not want something that is here for just a couple of months because their motivation to learn new skills will disappear once the incentive program ends.

Prepare for Mistakes

No one is perfect. This mantra should be kept in mind when promoting new skills at the workplace. Your employees will make mistakes, and even struggle at times, when trying to learn new skills. Be prepared for this and let the employees know that you are here to make their training and education as easy as possible when learning new skills.

How to Attract, Retain and Develop Star Supervisors

HMG Success on October 7, 2026

Attracting, retaining and developing star supervisors is paramount to thriving in an ultra-competitive market. It’s not impossible to do, but it takes an investment in time, training and money on the part of the company, as well as an investment of commitment from the candidate being chosen for the supervisor position.

Let’s talk about how to recruit and keep the best management team engaged in your company’s success.

The Workplace Must be a Positive One
In order to recruit – and ultimately retain – star supervisors, you must provide them with as much of a positive workplace as possible. Management teams will not want to stay with their current company if the workplace is not enjoyable due to negative attitudes or poor culture. At the same time, supervisors must also be able to stay positive while at work if they want to keep their employees happy and at the company for prolonged periods.

Offer Quality Programs for Supervisors
Star supervisors will be more inclined to stay with your company if you have quality programs in place for everyone to enjoy. This means that aside from increases in salary, you could also offer supervisors programs that add extra benefits. These benefits include flexible work schedules, extra paid time off, child care, memberships to a gym, and much more.

Create a Managers’ Mentoring Program
Another excellent way to attract and retain top supervisors is to create a mentoring program. This can be company-wide, but it should have a strong focus on employees who want to be promoted to supervisory positions. The program should pair either regular employees with supervisors or rookie supervisors with veteran ones so everyone can learn how to work in such a role.

Focus on What is Right in a Supervisor’s Job
You must also focus on what the supervisor is doing right while on the job and not too much on what they are doing wrong. When you put more of an emphasis on the positives instead of the negatives, the supervisors will be more inclined to remain at their current company. This can be done by having individual meetings with supervisors and by recognizing their accomplishments in front of the entire workforce.

Increase Morale at the Office
Morale at the company must be very high in order to retain star supervisors. This can be done by showing your supervisors how they can work smarter and not harder while on the job. Have your supervisors create a list of their daily activities and show them how they can get it done smarter instead of spending more time on each task. They should work faster, show a stronger commitment, and take on as much work as possible to work smarter.

Recruiting, retaining and developing star supervisors can be a difficult task for companies to complete, but when it is done properly, the reward will be immense. Partner with a staffing firm like Advance Staffing Solutions to learn how to implement and reap all the benefits of a star supervisor program.

Are your References Actually a Hindrance to Your Job Search?

HMG Success on October 7, 2026

Believe it or not, a person’s job references could end up being a hindrance in the search for a new job. When this happens, the candidate could struggle to land the new job they’re applying for. Candidates should consider examining their current references and making some changes in order to impress potential employers. Any negative items influencing your job search, including poor references, could automatically disqualify you from your dream job.

Read on to learn how to avoid making your references work against your job search efforts.

Common problems:

  • References Cannot be Reached
    One of the first signs that a reference is hindering your job search is that the person cannot be reached. This is a very bad sign on your part. Before you list someone as a reference on your resume, make sure they will return a phone call or an email within 24 to 48 hours to the potential employer. If they do not wish to be named as a reference, do not put them on your resume. Avoid the issue altogether – right up front.
  • References Are Not Credible
    Another way references could negatively impact your job search is if they are not credible themselves. This could mean that she is a peer in the workplace, friend, or mere acquaintance. You really should limit your references to managers and supervisors for whom you have worked. References should never be co-workers or other office peers. This will hinder your job search immensely.
  • References Cannot Speak About Your Work
    The next potential way your references could hinder your job search is by being unable to speak about your work. It is understandable that it looks very strong to have a director or vice president listed as a reference on your resume, but these people might not be able to speak to the strength of your work if you come from a large company. When references cannot speak to your work, they can hinder your job search more than you might think.
  • Failure to Notify References in Advance
    When you list someone on a resume as a reference, be sure you let them know that they will be contacted soon, and tell them the name of the company and the person who will be contacting them. If you fail to notify the references that they will be contacted, this can lead to them being surprised by the reference-checking phone call. Do not let this happen because it will reflect poorly on your part.Avoid having these things happen when a hiring manager tries to reach one of your work references. Have a list of people as a backup and routinely check your own references as you search for a job.
  • References Don’t Remember You
    One of the biggest hindrances with references is when they do not remember you. If this happens, it means that you have not spoken to the reference in quite some time or they are from a job you held years ago. Stay in touch with the people who are your references – even when you are not actively looking for a job – because you want them to remember you.

For more information on how to choose and utilize the best references for your job search, contact the staffing experts at Advance Staffing Solutions. We know everything it takes to prepare for an interview, and can help you find a perfect placement!

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