Big 3 talent jumps ship to more profitable Asians, Europeans rivals
04-25-05, 10:27 AM
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Big 3 talent jumps ship to more profitable Asians, Europeans rivals
Auto executives and engineers are tempted by more profitable Asians, Europeans.
By Christine Tierney / The Detroit News
As Detroit's automakers downsize and Asian carmakers come calling, engineers and other professionals are tempted to jump ship. Have you considered leaving the Big 3 for a competitor?
Jim Farley's family was stunned in 1989 when he announced he would go to work for Toyota Motor Corp. after finishing graduate school. "There was a big silence," recalls Farley, now a vice president at Toyota in California. "A big silence."
His family had ties to Detroit's automakers and his grandfather had owned a Lincoln-Mercury dealership in Grosse Pointe. But these days, no one questions Farley's decision. "Everyone wants a job at Toyota now," said Farley, a rising star after launching the automaker's hip Scion brand.
As Detroit's automakers downsize and Asian automakers expand, engineers and other professionals are tempted to jump ship from the Big Three and work for their fast-growing and profitable rivals. Headhunters report a spike in requests for engineers and other specialists.
When Asian automakers come calling, factory and production managers at the Big Three are often receptive because of the Asians' excellent reputation for manufacturing.
"At the Japanese companies, the emphasis is on manufacturing -- it's the focus of the organization," said Ernesto Gonzalez-Beltran, a former Ford Motor Co. plant manager who works for Toyota in California. "That's the big difference."
Now the transplants are on the prowl. "Asians and Europeans are expanding in the South, and they're looking up north, at the automakers and suppliers," said Jeff Ketchum, CEO of Automotive Recruiters International Inc. in Gladstone, Mich.
"They want director-level individuals in operations, quality and materials purchasing. Those are the areas where we're seeing movement, as well as engineers," Ketchum said.
German carmakers BMW AG and DaimlerChrysler AG's Mercedes-Benz are boosting vehicle output in their South Carolina and Alabama plants.
But the Japanese and Koreans are expanding even faster in North America, and they are bolstering their research and engineering facilities in Southeast Michigan to tap local talent.
Nissan Motor Co.'s technical center in Farmington Hills has hired more than 100 professionals in each of the past three years.
"People are aware how well Nissan is doing in the industry, and they talk to people here and get positive feedback," said Robert Sump, vice president of components engineering at Nissan's technical center.
The Nissan center, newly expanded to make room for a large design studio, now receives around 30 resumes a day. Six years ago, before Nissan's turnaround, "we had difficulty finding people," Sump said.
Job-seekers have also stepped up inquiries with Toyota, the world's second-largest automaker. "We have seen a steady increase in unsolicited resumes from Big Three companies over the past four years," said Dennis Cuneo, senior vice president at Toyota Motor North America Inc.
In the cyclical auto industry, General Motors Corp. and Ford are on a downswing. Morale is sagging at the Big Three and some suppliers as they struggle financially and cut jobs. In the past six years, Michigan has lost 230,000 manufacturing jobs, including tens of thousands of salaried jobs.
Detroit's automakers also have scaled back recruitment efforts at local schools for all but the top engineering students, while Asian automakers have grown more active.
"We had a winter job fair, and normally we get 50 or so companies participating," said Jim Turnquist, director of the university career center at Michigan Technological University in Houghton. "This year, we had 88 companies, but none of the Big Three were present."
Choice pickings
For Asian automakers, "it's a good time to recruit. We've had great success recruiting outstanding engineers," said John Krafcik, a high-profile defector from the Big Three.
A year ago, Krafcik left his job as chief truck chassis engineer at Ford to head Hyundai Motor Co.'s U.S. product planning and brand management.
"I loved my time at Ford," said Krafcik, a lean-manufacturing specialist who worked previously at the GM-Toyota joint venture, New United Motor Manufacturing Inc., in Fremont, Calif.
"Hyundai had this wonderful opportunity. Here we were on the verge of one of the most significant product launches -- seven models in 24 months," Krafcik said last week. "Here was a company on a very strong growth trajectory."
Hyundai recently hired longtime GM designer Tom Kearns to be the chief designer for its Kia brand.
In the past five years, the leading Asian automakers -- Toyota, Nissan, Honda and Hyundai -- have boosted their U.S. market share to 29 percent from 20 percent, according to Ward's.
Now Toyota is grappling with a shortage of engineers as it steps up production and local vehicle development in North America. The automaker plans to buy land in York Township to expand the Toyota Technical Center in Ann Arbor and expects to create 400 high-paying jobs over the next five years.
"It's a natural flow. You have some companies adding to their work force and some companies that have excess work force," said Jim Press, chief operating officer of Toyota Motor Sales USA.
Toyota's ranks are filled with ex-Big Three executives, such as Press, who leapt at the chance to take on new challenges and responsibilities.
Deborah Meyer, recently promoted to vice president at Lexus, was marketing Ford's Lincoln and Mercury brands when Toyota approached her to head marketing for the 17-vehicle Toyota-brand lineup. "It's one of those opportunities you don't want to pass up," Meyer said.
A two-way street
But Toyota also has lost executives to rivals and to manufacturers in other industries eager to hire experts in the renowned Toyota Production System. "It goes both ways," Press said.
In 1987, Toyota hired Ford veteran Bill Taylor, but six years later he went to work at then-Daimler-Benz AG's new plant in Vance, Ala.
DaimlerChrysler snapped up Donald Dees, Toyota's general manager for green-field quality and manufacturing, and appointed him vice president for quality in 2000. Before going to Toyota, Dees had worked for GM.
Last year, Nissan lured away Toyota quality expert Douglas Betts to oversee quality after the bumpy start-up at its new Canton, Miss., plant.
Many executives who started out with the Big Three adapt well to the Toyota culture -- or at least the amalgam culture of Toyota's U.S. operations.
Gonzalez-Beltran, who works for Toyota running the NUMMI plant, worked for Ford in his native Mexico at a factory patterned on the plants at Ford's Japanese affiliate, Mazda.
After Ford promoted him to run U.S. plants, he was tremendously grateful but realized he preferred the Japanese management style -- particularly the ingrained notion of respect for people.
"I saw both sides, and it was easy for me to pick the one that fit the way I like to work and feel comfortable working," Gonzalez-Beltran said.
But other managers who jump ship have a harder time, particularly senior-level executives, Cuneo said. "The emphasis is on team. We're not a company driven by personalities."
Toyota prefers to hire recent graduates and train them. "The large majority of engineers we hire are right out of college," said Bruce Brownlee, general manager for corporate planning at the Toyota Technical Center.
Honda is even more reluctant to hire professionals molded by other automakers. Because its manufacturing headquarters, research and engineering facilities are in Ohio, its managers have not seen an influx of resumes. "We're far enough away that people aren't really knocking at our door," said Ed Miller, spokesman for Honda of America Manufacturing Inc. in Marysville, Ohio. Miller is an exception to that rule in that he joined Honda after working for Ford for several years in Dearborn.
Rules are rules
"Working for the Japanese isn't for everybody," said Bal Dubey, a chemical engineer who started his career with GM then worked for seven years at the Toyota Technical Center and most recently worked for Ford.
"You have to be highly disciplined," he said. Rules are rules: If employees must be at their desks at 8 a.m., they're at their desks at 8 a.m. "The Japanese are very regimented."
The Japanese also strictly separate their professional and personal lives, he said. "This society is different. We talk to our girlfriends at work, check stocks on the Internet, read newspapers."
At first, Toyota had trouble hanging on to some of its U.S. employees. "The Japanese plan and plan and plan. Americans like to make decisions quickly. A lot of experienced American engineers got frustrated and left," Dubey said.
But the turnover has slowed down. "There's a better understanding here of the Japanese culture, and the Japanese understand the American mentality better."
Before going to Hyundai, Krafcik gained familiarity with the Asian management style because he had worked at the GM-Toyota NUMMI venture. "I really thrive on cross-cultural environments. I love the things that come out of the merging of cultures," he said.
He believes the essential qualities for success are flexibility, a willingness to understand diverse viewpoints and cultures, and "really listening" before rushing to conclusions. "That's important for success in any company, but it's extraordinarily important when you're moving cross-culturally."
When Harold Schock first began teaching mechanical engineering 18 years ago, very few of his students went to work for Asian automakers.
"Now I'd say a third to half, at least, consider that," said Schock, who teaches at Michigan State University.
His best students still want to work for GM, Ford and Chrysler. "It's a culture they're familiar with. Many have parents who worked for these companies. There's some degree of loyalty," Schock said.
Many of his foreign students also want to work for the Detroit automakers because they like the relaxed American lifestyle.
But with the Big Three losing combined market share, they are devoting less money to engineering. Meanwhile, Asian automakers are spending more and recruiting actively.
source : HERE
By Christine Tierney / The Detroit News
As Detroit's automakers downsize and Asian carmakers come calling, engineers and other professionals are tempted to jump ship. Have you considered leaving the Big 3 for a competitor?
Jim Farley's family was stunned in 1989 when he announced he would go to work for Toyota Motor Corp. after finishing graduate school. "There was a big silence," recalls Farley, now a vice president at Toyota in California. "A big silence."
His family had ties to Detroit's automakers and his grandfather had owned a Lincoln-Mercury dealership in Grosse Pointe. But these days, no one questions Farley's decision. "Everyone wants a job at Toyota now," said Farley, a rising star after launching the automaker's hip Scion brand.
As Detroit's automakers downsize and Asian automakers expand, engineers and other professionals are tempted to jump ship from the Big Three and work for their fast-growing and profitable rivals. Headhunters report a spike in requests for engineers and other specialists.
When Asian automakers come calling, factory and production managers at the Big Three are often receptive because of the Asians' excellent reputation for manufacturing.
"At the Japanese companies, the emphasis is on manufacturing -- it's the focus of the organization," said Ernesto Gonzalez-Beltran, a former Ford Motor Co. plant manager who works for Toyota in California. "That's the big difference."
Now the transplants are on the prowl. "Asians and Europeans are expanding in the South, and they're looking up north, at the automakers and suppliers," said Jeff Ketchum, CEO of Automotive Recruiters International Inc. in Gladstone, Mich.
"They want director-level individuals in operations, quality and materials purchasing. Those are the areas where we're seeing movement, as well as engineers," Ketchum said.
German carmakers BMW AG and DaimlerChrysler AG's Mercedes-Benz are boosting vehicle output in their South Carolina and Alabama plants.
But the Japanese and Koreans are expanding even faster in North America, and they are bolstering their research and engineering facilities in Southeast Michigan to tap local talent.
Nissan Motor Co.'s technical center in Farmington Hills has hired more than 100 professionals in each of the past three years.
"People are aware how well Nissan is doing in the industry, and they talk to people here and get positive feedback," said Robert Sump, vice president of components engineering at Nissan's technical center.
The Nissan center, newly expanded to make room for a large design studio, now receives around 30 resumes a day. Six years ago, before Nissan's turnaround, "we had difficulty finding people," Sump said.
Job-seekers have also stepped up inquiries with Toyota, the world's second-largest automaker. "We have seen a steady increase in unsolicited resumes from Big Three companies over the past four years," said Dennis Cuneo, senior vice president at Toyota Motor North America Inc.
In the cyclical auto industry, General Motors Corp. and Ford are on a downswing. Morale is sagging at the Big Three and some suppliers as they struggle financially and cut jobs. In the past six years, Michigan has lost 230,000 manufacturing jobs, including tens of thousands of salaried jobs.
Detroit's automakers also have scaled back recruitment efforts at local schools for all but the top engineering students, while Asian automakers have grown more active.
"We had a winter job fair, and normally we get 50 or so companies participating," said Jim Turnquist, director of the university career center at Michigan Technological University in Houghton. "This year, we had 88 companies, but none of the Big Three were present."
Choice pickings
For Asian automakers, "it's a good time to recruit. We've had great success recruiting outstanding engineers," said John Krafcik, a high-profile defector from the Big Three.
A year ago, Krafcik left his job as chief truck chassis engineer at Ford to head Hyundai Motor Co.'s U.S. product planning and brand management.
"I loved my time at Ford," said Krafcik, a lean-manufacturing specialist who worked previously at the GM-Toyota joint venture, New United Motor Manufacturing Inc., in Fremont, Calif.
"Hyundai had this wonderful opportunity. Here we were on the verge of one of the most significant product launches -- seven models in 24 months," Krafcik said last week. "Here was a company on a very strong growth trajectory."
Hyundai recently hired longtime GM designer Tom Kearns to be the chief designer for its Kia brand.
In the past five years, the leading Asian automakers -- Toyota, Nissan, Honda and Hyundai -- have boosted their U.S. market share to 29 percent from 20 percent, according to Ward's.
Now Toyota is grappling with a shortage of engineers as it steps up production and local vehicle development in North America. The automaker plans to buy land in York Township to expand the Toyota Technical Center in Ann Arbor and expects to create 400 high-paying jobs over the next five years.
"It's a natural flow. You have some companies adding to their work force and some companies that have excess work force," said Jim Press, chief operating officer of Toyota Motor Sales USA.
Toyota's ranks are filled with ex-Big Three executives, such as Press, who leapt at the chance to take on new challenges and responsibilities.
Deborah Meyer, recently promoted to vice president at Lexus, was marketing Ford's Lincoln and Mercury brands when Toyota approached her to head marketing for the 17-vehicle Toyota-brand lineup. "It's one of those opportunities you don't want to pass up," Meyer said.
A two-way street
But Toyota also has lost executives to rivals and to manufacturers in other industries eager to hire experts in the renowned Toyota Production System. "It goes both ways," Press said.
In 1987, Toyota hired Ford veteran Bill Taylor, but six years later he went to work at then-Daimler-Benz AG's new plant in Vance, Ala.
DaimlerChrysler snapped up Donald Dees, Toyota's general manager for green-field quality and manufacturing, and appointed him vice president for quality in 2000. Before going to Toyota, Dees had worked for GM.
Last year, Nissan lured away Toyota quality expert Douglas Betts to oversee quality after the bumpy start-up at its new Canton, Miss., plant.
Many executives who started out with the Big Three adapt well to the Toyota culture -- or at least the amalgam culture of Toyota's U.S. operations.
Gonzalez-Beltran, who works for Toyota running the NUMMI plant, worked for Ford in his native Mexico at a factory patterned on the plants at Ford's Japanese affiliate, Mazda.
After Ford promoted him to run U.S. plants, he was tremendously grateful but realized he preferred the Japanese management style -- particularly the ingrained notion of respect for people.
"I saw both sides, and it was easy for me to pick the one that fit the way I like to work and feel comfortable working," Gonzalez-Beltran said.
But other managers who jump ship have a harder time, particularly senior-level executives, Cuneo said. "The emphasis is on team. We're not a company driven by personalities."
Toyota prefers to hire recent graduates and train them. "The large majority of engineers we hire are right out of college," said Bruce Brownlee, general manager for corporate planning at the Toyota Technical Center.
Honda is even more reluctant to hire professionals molded by other automakers. Because its manufacturing headquarters, research and engineering facilities are in Ohio, its managers have not seen an influx of resumes. "We're far enough away that people aren't really knocking at our door," said Ed Miller, spokesman for Honda of America Manufacturing Inc. in Marysville, Ohio. Miller is an exception to that rule in that he joined Honda after working for Ford for several years in Dearborn.
Rules are rules
"Working for the Japanese isn't for everybody," said Bal Dubey, a chemical engineer who started his career with GM then worked for seven years at the Toyota Technical Center and most recently worked for Ford.
"You have to be highly disciplined," he said. Rules are rules: If employees must be at their desks at 8 a.m., they're at their desks at 8 a.m. "The Japanese are very regimented."
The Japanese also strictly separate their professional and personal lives, he said. "This society is different. We talk to our girlfriends at work, check stocks on the Internet, read newspapers."
At first, Toyota had trouble hanging on to some of its U.S. employees. "The Japanese plan and plan and plan. Americans like to make decisions quickly. A lot of experienced American engineers got frustrated and left," Dubey said.
But the turnover has slowed down. "There's a better understanding here of the Japanese culture, and the Japanese understand the American mentality better."
Before going to Hyundai, Krafcik gained familiarity with the Asian management style because he had worked at the GM-Toyota NUMMI venture. "I really thrive on cross-cultural environments. I love the things that come out of the merging of cultures," he said.
He believes the essential qualities for success are flexibility, a willingness to understand diverse viewpoints and cultures, and "really listening" before rushing to conclusions. "That's important for success in any company, but it's extraordinarily important when you're moving cross-culturally."
When Harold Schock first began teaching mechanical engineering 18 years ago, very few of his students went to work for Asian automakers.
"Now I'd say a third to half, at least, consider that," said Schock, who teaches at Michigan State University.
His best students still want to work for GM, Ford and Chrysler. "It's a culture they're familiar with. Many have parents who worked for these companies. There's some degree of loyalty," Schock said.
Many of his foreign students also want to work for the Detroit automakers because they like the relaxed American lifestyle.
But with the Big Three losing combined market share, they are devoting less money to engineering. Meanwhile, Asian automakers are spending more and recruiting actively.
source : HERE
04-25-05, 12:10 PM
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Well, I hope they don't hire the knuckleheads that have some of the other automakers in dire straights........
I do think that GM and others could offer a huge opporuntty to fix, aka Ghosen fixing Nissan. But Nissan was bought by Renault, so that is different.
I do think that GM and others could offer a huge opporuntty to fix, aka Ghosen fixing Nissan. But Nissan was bought by Renault, so that is different.
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