The Fairfield location includes the offices of the VP of operations and transportation, controller, human resources, accounting and brokerage departments. The 375,000-square-foot facility has 22 customers.
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Since opening in 1983, LeSaint has expanded to 19 locations across the country, with its company headquarters located just outside of Chicago in Romeoville, Ill. LeSaint now manages 3 million square feet and 140 supply chain customers.
“We’re hiring at many of our locations nationwide, but (an On-The-Job Training program) through the Department of Jobs and Family Services is being used just in Fairfield right now,” said Jaimielynne Gegner, human resources manager at the Fairfield facility. “We are targeted for extreme growth.”
Gegner would not specify how many jobs that would mean in Butler County, but said the company is “actively hiring” at its Fairfield, Trenton, Lima, Cleveland, and Strongsville locations.
All open positions can be viewed and applied for at www.lesaint.com and clicking on careers.
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We spoke with spokeswoman Jodi Cape about how the company plans to handle growth and what its vision is for the future. Here’s what she said:
Q: What are the biggest challenges your company and others in your industry are facing?
“Today some of the biggest factors being staffing of skilled labor and the ever changing and evolving of technology throughout all departments. LeSaint takes those challenges head on and also looks at them as opportunities. From a technology standpoint its critical to continue to advance with new but also looking and understanding as what works today might not work tomorrow. We have selected a state-of-the-art warehouse management system that allows the company and its customers the landscape to evolve within their environment as well as security needs.”
Q: How is your company working to address hiring-related challenges?
“One particular opportunity we are taking advantage of to overcome the challenge in competition for staffing is utilizing the On-The-Job Training Program through the Department of Jobs and Family Services. The program is a win-win for both the candidate and the employer. There’s not as much competition for lesser skilled labor and we can train them to our specs. In turn, the employee is gaining knowledge to elevate themselves. Once the employee completes the On-The-Job Training Program to meet the basics of their position, we have an ongoing internal employee training program where employees have the opportunity to continue to expand their knowledge base throughout their career.”
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Q: How does the LeSaint Logistics meet its staffing needs for now and for the company’s future?
A: “We utilize succession planning and hiring from within as often as possible using targeted employee training to reach those goals which works to address future staffing needs. Many of our hourly employees have graduated into leadership roles. We also partner with local schools in the area, one of those schools is Butler Tech. We additionally do regular studies to ensure a competitive edge in the wages and benefits arena.”
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Every Sunday, we’ll report on new job opportunities in the community, including companies hiring, how to apply, training programs and other economic trends that can affect your job search.
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