Company Overview
Palmetto Gourmet Foods, located in Saluda, South Carolina, is one of the fastest-growing food companies in the U.S. and is the first American producer of innovative sustainable, plant-based ramen noodles. Their expandable 165,500 square foot food grade facility is one of the largest noodle production plants in North America.
Situation
The company needed a functional HR Department and HR Manager. There were many issues with inconsistent training and language barriers so there needed to be a standardization of OJT training.
Solution
SCMEP was able to provide on-site and remote HR administration and consultation. Objectives throughout the project included:
- An emphasis on recruiting and identifying qualified HR Manager candidates immediately
- Identifying an EEOC compliant skills assessment to assist recruiting processes in better identifying individuals capable of available jobs
- Identifying vendors of automated options for the application and onboarding processes and present to management for implementation
- Identifying workforce partners, programs, and financial incentives available through SCMEP and the State of South Carolina to recruit and retain the company’s future workforce
- Set up PGF jobs on the SC State Jobs Database as another free mechanism to post jobs to a wider audience
- Locate potential funding for workforce expansion through ReadySC and new equipment lines through Enterprise Zone and negotiate and implement those programs/incentives
- Supervisory Training and Soft Skills Training identified as needed for existing employees
- Standardization of OJT training
Results
- New investment (plant or equipment) – $6,000,000
- New investment (information systems or software) – $100,000
- New investment (new products/processes) – $100,000
- Increased jobs – 73
- Retained jobs – 25
“The professional approach provided by SCMEP was timely. We did not have a functional HR Department and they provided the framework and assisted in recruiting for our HR Department.”
John Fox, EVP, Operations, Palmetto Gourmet Foods