MANAGEMENT
INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS JAMES W. I R W I N * Recruiting of professional personnel for laboratories a n d plants is on w i t h a v e n g e a n c e as industry strives to fill the inevitable gaps caused by stretch ing production, w a r conditions, a n d decreasing harvest of science graduates AN OLD advertising slogan—"Something scouts. The congestion was so bad, a -^•^ \(»w Has Been Added"—seems to b e placement officer remarked that it r e minded him of an exchange desk at about t h e best way to open a discussion covering the currently red-hot eflorts to Oimbel's the day after Christinas. T h e Parke, Davis Co., scout who reported t h e recruit professional personnel for our Purdue situation to us said that on bis chemical and chemical process industry tour of a do/en universities, he found laboratories and plants. three or more recruiters at every stop. Old timers in the operating and per At MIT, Case, and some of t h e other sonnel branches of the industry shake leading technical schools the demand for their heads when they tell us they have graduates is so great that some of t h e never before seen anything like the ac youngsters are acquiring a cockiness that tivity and goin's on, a n d a telephone will handicap them in their progress later check around the country with placement on if they can't shake it off. officers in some of the leading technical schools tells the same story. Administration Courses Valuable There seems to be very little doubt that T h e lad coming out of a top school, w h o all industry faces a most serious shortage of youngsters educated in the sciences also has some business administration courses tucked under his belt alongside bis and technical subjects—a shortage so science or engineering majors, can have acute that Manning Tables to provide a pretty much a free choice of where he fresh crop of managerial timber are b e wants to work, because more and more ing restudied to determine what steps can companies are becoming interested in ob be taken to fill in the gaps. taining talent that can be developed into In a survey of the nation's educational executive engineers or engineers with pos plant, David Lawrence's authoritative sibilities for sales managerships and other ('. S. XCILS and World Report discovered general management duties. This is a that the 1951 harvest of technical gradu trend that will grow. Its importance is ates will be about 32,500 in a decidedly highlighted by the establishment a fewmore favorable market for placement, and weeks ago by Alfred P. Sloan. Jr.. chair the 1952, '5-3, and '54 outputs will fall as man of General Motors Corp., of a n e w low as 21,900, 17,000, and 13,600, re graduate school at MIT to give to tech spectively. A minimum of 30,000 is vitally nically trained men additional training in needed each year. economics, human relations, and general T h e now frantic and sometimes amus business administration. Mr. Sloan, being ing efforts of otherwise dignified and con an M I T alumnus and having seen tech servative companies to fill their technical nical men rise to almost every key spot manpower hopper demonstrates how nor in the many companies with which lie is mally alert managements can be caught associated, has been in an excellent posi temporarily asleep as the switch. tion to judge the capabilities of the engi Less than a year ago now, many of us neer versus the ordinary business school who are primarily concerned with over graduate as an administrative executive. all management policies affecting per sonnel relations became concerned b e It may be harsh to say that the scouts cause the usual recruiting activities had are after the crop in much the same slowed down to less than a walk. In this fashion that buyers of nonhuman com C&EX column, w e made a strong plea modities operate, but it appears that some that top management prod subordinate of them surveyed the needs and the state executives to hire in a few extra profes of the market and decided that some sional men and women so that none of where between $260 and S290 a month these creative a n d well grounded indi would be a good starting figure for bache viduals would find themselves without lor's degrees. And that is substantially satisfactory employment in their chosen what they told placement officers w h e n fields, and thus be forced to turn to they were setting up their visits. activities in other areas. However, at one leading school w h e r e the competition became tense, this con Talent Scouts Busy versation was reported to us: " W e would like to have you at our W e don't mind going on record with midwestern laboratory starting June 15," the remark that if top management finds said the scout, "at our starting salary for itself short of up-and-coming youngsters, a bachelor's degree of $290." because of conservatism in hiring in the "That's interesting but—," said the stu past few years, it has only itself to blame. dent, and the scout jumped in with: In mid-January, for example, the cam pus of Purdue University was host on one 0 Industrial and Public Relations Consultant, day to more than 20 technical personnel 19201 South Moreland Blvd., Cleveland 22, Ohio. V O L U M E
29,
NO.
8 » » FEBRUARY
19,
1951
S&®0t $^ί>>~Μ&& (TRADE MARK)
used at PENNSALT for Protection of Workers in TOXIC AREAS
Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Philadelphia makes regular use of Scott Air-Pdk- Safety Breathing Equip ment for emergency or routine main tenance work in toxic areas. Writes the Safety Director of this large, long-established chemical proc essing plant: "Pennsalt uses Scott AirPak in its plants for worker protec tion on emergency jobs where men are exposed to gases such as chlorine, ammonia or acid gases. Much routine work requires the use of protective equipment that will provide an inde pendent atmosphere for entering tank cars before cleaning, cleaning rotary kilns, etc. T h e Scott self-contained equipment assures the operator a source of air en tirely independent of the s u r r o u n d i n g atmosphere." Scott equipment used at Pennsalt in cludes: SCOTT SLING-PAK (upper right) : self-con tained lightweight Scott unit for work of short duration. Weight 191 2 lbs. SCOTT EXTENSION HOSE ASSEMBLY: per mits safe, comfortable breathing for several w o r k e r s over long periods, at any dis tance from air supply. See your safety equip ment dealer, or write us, for full details about how Scotc AirPa k can be used to good a d v a n t a g e in your plant. SAFETY EQUIPMENT
DIVISION
Scott AVIATION CORPORATION
Έ79: Erie Street, Lancaster; N: Y^ ' " Λ
;
C A N A D A - S A F E T Y S U m V C O . M A N C H E S I N " A U PRINCIPAL CITIES. EXPORT: SOUTHERN O X Y G E N CO.. 157 Ç h o m t * » * » . . N . w York 7. N Y ,
691
INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS
CHROMATE FOR CORROSION CONTROL TYPICAL APPLICATIONS ALKALINE CLEANERS FOR TIN PLATE—Include Sodium C h r o m a t e in t h e formulation to provide 500 to 1000 ppm in the cleaning solution. AIR C O N D I T I O N I N G WATER—Start with 500 to 1000 p p m added as either Sodium C h r o m a t e or Bichromate, adjusting to about p H 8. Later decrease concentration to most economical level, usually about 250 ppm. BOILER WATER—Maintain 300 to 100 ppm of Sodium Chromate in t h e blowdown. Use in boilers above 200 psi should be viewed as investigative. For idle boilers, employ 250 to 2500 ppm of Sodium Chromate, depending upon down t i m e and the type of equipment. A U T O M O T I V E C O O L I N G SYSTEMS—After flushing out antifreeze, use 2 «»/. of Sodium C h r o m a t e for 4 to 6 gallons of water capacity.
M U T U A L C H E M I C A L CO >SINCEE
3F
312
OF AMERICA
270 MADISON AVENUE
now..
NEW YORK 16, Ν. Υ.
a new saiegu ard for y o u r p r o d u c t s
t h e super-refined qualities of PENN-DRAKE W H I T E OILS are "locked-in" I n t h e m a n u f a c t u r e of P e n n - D r a k e W h i t e Oils, t h e finest possible c r u d e oil s t o c k is refined t o a p o i n t well b e y o n d U S P Specifications. A t t h i s , t h e h i g h e s t p o i n t of p u r i t y , t h e q u a l i t y is " l o c k e d - i n " b y t h e a d d i t i o n of a USP-approved stabilizer, which keeps P e n n - D r a k e W h i t e Oils from d e t e r i orating with age. W i t h t h e a d d i t i o n of t h i s p r e s e r v a
t i v e , t h e life-time s t a b i l i t y of P e n n D r a k e W h i t e Oils is a s s u r e d . I n y o u r processing, s h i p m e n t a n d s t o r a g e — y o u c a n b e p o s i t i v e t h a t y o u r finished p r o d u c t s will not suffer b e c a u s e o f b a s e deterioration. T o s a f e g u a r d t h e q u a l i t y of y o u r p r o d u c t s , specify P e n n - D r a k e , t h e super-refined W h i t e Oils with t h e "locked-in'' stability.
PENNSYLVANIA REFINING COMPANY
%m iEPTQ^ie^li
692
BUTLER, PENNSYLVANIA Branches: Cleveland, Ohio and Edgewafer, N. J. Representatives in all Principal Cities
CHEMICAL
"Now since you worked t w o summers you have experience for w h i c h I c a n a d d S50 a month, making you start at $340 or better t h a n $4,000 a year." Apparently t h e prospect didn't register too m u c h enthusiasm a t that, so t h e scout countered with: "Now, of course, you h a d a couple of years in the Coast G u a r d as a radioman, so that gives you additional seasoning which is worth money to us, so we'll a d d $50 a month for that, or a total of $390 à month starting." H e got his man. W e u n d e r s t a n d this incident is not just a remote one b u t is typical of similar dealings in m a n y schools famous for the caliber of their engineering and science graduates. A middle-of-the-road a p p r o a c h t o t h e situation by o n e large company w h i c h is in t h e market for 125 fresh-out-of-school men and women a n d 150 engineers a n d chemists with a year or more experience indicates a sounder approach. This company, one of t h e fastest growing in t h e industry, has set $ 3 1 0 to $330 for bachelor's d e g r e e personnel, $ 3 5 0 to $400 for masters, a n d $400 t o $ 5 0 0 for doctors. Exceptional doctorate holders may get an offer of $575, a n d still more promising prospects will b e offered more after running through a sifting committee at t h e company's headquarters. What the Recruit Should L o o k F o r If w e were being scouted right now and had acquired some of the experience and judgment that w e didn't h a v e back in t h e early twenties at Wisconsin, w e would interview t h e scouts almost as t h o r oughly as they t r y to interview u s . W e would not regard t h e $ 3 4 0 or t h e $390 as t h e most compelling reason w h y we should join a given c o m p a n y . W e would b e much m o r e interested i n t h e growth curve of the company, its funded dehtr whether o r not t h e c o m p a n y h a d a definite policy o n promotions, a n d just how many members of t h e b o a r d of d i r e c tors and the very t o p , second-line, a n d third-line management groups possessed technical degrees. A n d , very i m p o r t a n t , their age brackets. If the company's executive staff seemed reasonably free of dominance b y a n y o n e faction, if its finances w e r e in good s h a p e , and if it was growing soundly a n d consistently, w e think w e might d e c i d e t h a t money isn't everything a n d sign o n for $310 or $330—provided t h e scout and o n e or more of his associates a t h e a d q u a r t e r s laid it right on t h e line in explaining to us t h e company's policies governing a s signment of recruits a n d steps taken to ensure continued interest in u s so t h a t our talents could b e recognized a n d p r o motions come quickly w h e n w a r r a n t e d . W e would also b e intrigued w i t h w h a t special, nonemployment factors t h e c o m pany might offer, such as a p l a n t or l a b o ratory location in an area w h e r e o n e or more forms of outdoor life could b e e n joyed at minimum expense.
AND
ENGINEERING
NEWS
