How Coining MFG (PrecisionX Group) hires high skilled machinists and technicians on Paraform
Coining MFG (now part of PrecisionX Group) is a leading supplier of high-reliability, precision metal components for the Aerospace, Defense, Electric Vehicle, Medical, Satellite and Semiconductor markets. As part of Coining’s growth strategy they were looking to further expand their CNC manufacturing capabilities.
This means finding candidates that specialize in an intersection between the digital and the physical. Christian Bolcar is the Director of Advanced Manufacturing at PrecisionX and he turned to Paraform in order to find an experienced CNC Programmer for his organization.
We linked up with Christian to chat about hiring through Paraform.
How has Paraform helped you with recruiting?
When Christian started, Coining didn’t have a dedicated recruiting resource in HR. He liked Paraform because it streamlined the whole recruiting process.
“[Using Paraform] is like having a full-fledged team of recruiters working for you… that’s really powerful.”
Despite having a whole team helping him through the platform, things felt easy. Elsewhere, processes with that many moving parts generate a messy environment. But on Paraform, the UI is smooth and easy to learn.
“It’s very intuitive. Not hard to use at all. You don’t have to figure things out.”
This ease-of-use was particularly valuable for Christian. Precision manufacturing is a fast-paced environment and to stay ahead of the competition, you have to react quickly to customer orders and be responsive to challenges in the supply chain. When it comes to recruiting, wasting time on clunky UIs or having to rehire for a position is a serious problem.
“Something easy to use is essential and so is getting that right hire the first time.”
Many companies struggle with hiring and specifically in assessing the difference between headhunted professionals and inbound job applicants. Christian found there was a large uptick in quality when it came to candidates sourced on our platform – which is exactly what his company needs to stay on track strategically.
“Paraform would bring top-tier candidates. Like the cream of the crop.”
Recruiters on the platform were doing a great job applying Christian’s filtering criteria before putting candidates in front of him. Several years of solid, hands-on experience is a necessity for this type of role. Manufacturing is competitive, and the work requires attention to detail and an understanding of both operational and safety best practices.
“[Paraform recruiters] are good at filtering and communicating when they’re confused about something, asking good questions.”
How does Paraform compare to other tools?
Christian has tried other tools, but felt they left you on your own. With Paraform:
“...it’s like having someone working alongside you, versus being completely stranded.”
He pitched the tool to his CEO. “Why constantly look for people,” he said, “when you can just have the best of the best referred to you? You’re trying to run a business and need to put faith in someone to run an entire sector of your business. Wouldn’t you want the best to do that?”
In the business world, it’s often a good tradeoff to pay more to get more. Christian compared using Paraform to spearfishing – it’s more precise. You get great candidates but still don’t have to be too hands-on. Then you can rest easy knowing that you have another trustworthy person working to grow your enterprise.
“It’s really good. It’s clean.”
The pitch worked – PrecisionX signed up and has successfully used the platform. They got better results than with other do-it-yourself platforms that were cheap, but at the end of the day offered a bad return on investment.
What’s your favorite feature?
Christian liked the platform’s user interface, saying that the simplicity of it helped him master it quickly. And he was a particularly big fan of the candidate pipeline.
The marketplace dynamics on Paraform are what really sold Christian. Since the platform was smooth to use, it allowed recruiters’ abilities to shine. And it connected PrecisionX with headhunters who worked in the right niche. Ones who are both responsive and well-connected in the manufacturing domain.
Getting a pipeline full of qualified candidates and then easily being able to track them through the process made Christian’s life a lot easier. As a director, he’s got a plate full of responsibilities – and then some.
Having the chance to take a quick snapshot of hiring progress is powerful. It allows you to reprioritize your workload at opportune moments and stay on top of comms with recruiters.
What are some best practices to make the most out of Paraform?
With several projects on the go at the same time, Christian’s time is a valuable asset . Prioritizing his time on Advanced Manufacturing activities is critical but he knows that responsiveness in recruiting leads to better outcomes. Knowing that recruiters are working hard on the other end is a huge benefit and developing a tight working relationship is key.
“Communication with your recruiters is hugely important.”
For PrecisionX, using Paraform helped them strike a balance between communications responsibilities and candidate quality. They still had to invest time into interviewing and giving feedback to recruiters, but significantly less so than if they used DIY alternatives.
Christian also felt like Paraform was evolving in a way that would continue to reduce the time required by users, while preserving the quality of candidates. New features continue getting added to speed up calibration between recruiters and hiring managers.
“It’s just more firepower.”
As a hiring manager, maintaining tight feedback loops with your recruiters makes magic happen. Combine that with Paraform’s unique incentive structure, which Christian calls “perfect for this type of work”, and you get excellent results, fast.
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