Tapping the Hispanic labor pool: creating an effective employment brand is the best way to successfully recruit from the nation's fastest-growing demographic group

HR Magazine, April, 2004 by Robert Rodriguez

By contrast, a longer-term employment brand approach will help raise the return on investment of Hispanic recruitment efforts. As the demographic figures continue to show an increasing Hispanic identity in the United States, those HR professionals who can effectively recruit, develop and retain Hispanic talent will help their organizations gain a competitive advantage in the marketplace.

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Landing talented Hispanic workers can pay dividends over the longer term because many Hispanics tend to find jobs through networks of friends and family. Organizations looking to recruit Hispanic talent, then, can leverage their current Hispanic employees.

That's what happens at St. Paul, Minn.-based Ecolab Inc., the world leader in premium commercial cleaning and sanitizing products. Ecolab aggressively leverages its employee network and referral system to identify and attract more experienced Hispanic talent. Although the company has a multi-faceted recruitment strategy, its employee referral program has been the "most successful" at attracting Hispanics, says Sue Metcalf, vice president of recruitment and selection.

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When Caterpillar Inc., the world's leading manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, wanted to enhance its recruitment of Hispanic talent and image within the Hispanic community, it developed a partnership with the Hispanic Alliance for Career Enhancement (HACE), a nonprofit affinity organization based in Chicago.

First, Peoria, Ill.-based Caterpillar looked to HACE to help strengthen the relationship it had with one of its strategic partner schools, Texas A & M University in College Station, Texas. HACE immediately doubled the firm's exposure on campus by acting as an ambassador for Caterpillar to the various Hispanic and engineering organizations on campus, as well as to faculty and staff. HACE also helped Caterpillar identify top Hispanic leaders on campus and provided workshops to help in their development.

"HACE has been a great help in our partnership with Texas A & M," says Jared Knode, program coordinator at Caterpillar. "HACE's solid reputation within the Hispanic student community at the university helped to elevate our brand on campus because of the partnership."

HACE also coordinated private dinners with Caterpillar executives and members of HACE's network who were community and business leaders in the Hispanic community. These dinners helped forge relationships and bridges of understanding between the two groups.

HACE has also helped to raise Caterpillar's understanding of the Hispanic community by inviting executives to workshops aimed at educating participants on how to build Latino diversity at Caterpillar and how to access the Latino market.

Richard Lavin, vice president of Caterpillar, says HACE helped the organization better understand the Hispanic community and has helped speed up the company's learning curve. "HACE is very helpful in painting a picture of opportunity for minority employees at Caterpillar, and the partnership with HACE has definitely paid off."