Experts Share Secrets to Successful Manufacturing Hiring in 2025

Growth in manufacturing demand is driving the need for more workers to fill nearly every kind of position. More than 65% of manufacturing leaders named talent as their top business challenge in a 2024 National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) survey.

Filling critical manufacturing roles—from entry-level machine operators to skilled engineers—isn’t easy. And the stakes are only getting higher: As older manufacturing workers retire, new generations of workers expect new technology and automations to facilitate a streamlined and responsive hiring experience.

To help manufacturers improve their hiring processes, HR experts from Checkr, Paylocity, and Polywood shared their insights in our recent webinar, “How to Unblock Efficiency for a Better Quality of Hire in Manufacturing.”

Watch the full webinar now, or keep reading for webinar panelists’ top recommendations for modernizing and automating manufacturing recruiting and hiring processes to unlock new levels of efficiency.

Traditional hiring processes are too cumbersome for today’s candidates, said Tyler Whalen, Principal Solutions Engineer at Checkr. Candidates expect the application and onboarding process to be as easy as ordering from Amazon or calling an Uber.

“Younger candidates, especially, want user-friendly, fast experiences at every step of the process,” explained Whalen. For example, he noted that 80% to 90% of candidates using Checkr engage with the product on a mobile device.

One experience that’s often cumbersome for both manufacturing employers and candidates: drug testing. “We used to send someone for a drug screen, hope it came back, and hope it came back timely,” recalled Aris Relias, Director of Talent Acquisition at PolyWood, a manufacturer of sustainable outdoor furniture made from recycled materials.

To eliminate the drug testing bottleneck, PolyWood began onsite oral swabbing. “As soon as the hiring manager says they want to hire that person, we immediately oral swab them, and while they have that swab in their mouth, we’re onboarding them,” Relais explains.

Candidates appreciate not having to schedule a drug test appointment, drive to a lab, and wait hours to be tested. This more efficient approach to drug testing is one reason PolyWood’s three-person HR team was recently able to hire 1,600 employees in just a few months. 

A personalized approach to candidate communications can help your manufacturing organization stand apart in an increasingly competitive labor market. “Nobody wants to feel like a number,” Relias pointed out.

“Candidates expect transparent and frequent communication throughout the hiring process,” said Shari Simpson, Senior Manager of Thought Leadership for Paylocity, an online payroll and HR solution. Automation can facilitate ongoing engagement with candidates at various points in the recruiting process, and can also personalize that outreach for you.

“Use digital practices to augment and elevate the candidate experience,” Simpson suggested. For example, she said, you can automatically text candidates to let them know the status of their application or background check. Along with the text message, include extra information such as a link to a video highlighting your company culture or describing employee benefits.

It's also possible to have your onboarding modules customized by role or function from within your HCM tool, Simpson added. Imagine the impact of a candidate logging into onboarding and having somebody from your C-suite give them a personalized welcome.

Automating regular communications throughout the hiring process helps keep candidates in the loop and sustains excitement about the job opportunity. Artificial intelligence can be a powerful tool allowing HR teams to “work smarter, not harder,” Relais said. Her team uses AI to craft email or text message templates and customize them for different candidates and situations. For instance, her team canimmediately alert a candidate that the hiring process is delayed because key players are on vacation and assure them that they are still in consideration for the job.

Manufacturing hiring is especially challenging because multiple locations and teams often play a role in the candidate evaluation and onboarding process. Whalen noted that centralizing processes into a single system—for example, using one vendor for background checks, drug testing, and post-accident screening—reduces workloads and helps you hire faster.

All panelists also emphasized the importance of selecting solutions that support the many types of workers in the typical manufacturing organization. For example, Whalen explained that choosing a background check provider with the capability to complete background screenings for contingent labor, skilled labor, and professional employees can greatly streamline your process.

How do you know what processes need tweaking? Asking your talent acquisition team what roadblocks delay hiring can be revealing. For instance, Relais was surprised to learn how much time her team spent following up with candidates to see if they’d completed their drug screening.

Once you’ve identified your biggest hiring bottlenecks, you can set goals for improvement. Knowing what you hope to achieve will help you evaluate new providers you’re considering incorporating into your tech stack.

Introducing automation into your recruiting and hiring workflows can make your organization more appealing to candidates, eliminate common inefficiencies, and ease burdens on your TA team. Choosing partners who offer the solutions you need can help. With powerful automations, rapid turnaround times, and 100+ seamless ATS/HRIS integrations, Checkr helps manufacturers conduct faster, more accurate background checks.

Our integration with Paylocity makes things even easier. You can order screenings, track progress, review reports, and manage the entire background check process from within the Paylocity platform, saving time and effort. Checkr’s custom adjudication filters help reduce bias, while easy-to-read reports give you the leg up you need to you evaluate records quickly and with confidence. Thanks to Checkr and Paylocity, you can hire top manufacturing talent at speed without sacrificing safety or quality.

The resources and information provided here are for educational and informational purposes only and do not constitute legal advice. Always consult your own counsel for up-to-date legal advice and guidance related to your practices, needs, and compliance with applicable laws.

About the author

​​As a member of Checkr's Partnerships team, Brian is responsible for the success of Checkr's strategic partners and our community of shared customers who rely on our joint solutions to drive efficiency and growth in their business. With Checkr's vast ecosystem of integrations, companies are able to manage the end-to-end background check process from within their HR tools.