Job satisfaction is as much about growing as a professional as pay (but both are important)

Love what you do.  Do what you Love.

Often employees gather for safety meetings or to prepare for achieving the day’s performance goals.  Typically, these meetings are led by a supervisor or a team lead.

While our supervisors and team leads are seasoned and committed leaders, we often find time to stop and celebrate the positive growth of team members.  Each day, like other manufacturers we gather to start our day in a team huddle.  Unlike most other manufacturers and distribution facilities, it’s our team, not our supervisors who are responsible for completing our S.A.F.E. Team Activity Boards.  Each team has direct control of what it will do for the day.

We call ourselves Food Professionals for a reason.  We take what we do very seriously.  Each week, the products that Harlan Foods creates feeds nearly 33,000,000 people across the U.S.

The reason there are so many happy faces is because our teams are truly teams and this is what makes them as a group and individually successful.

In our team huddles, part of the work we engage in daily is the professional advancement and improvement of each Food Professional as well as recognition of a job well done. Yesterday, some of our team took a moment to do that and we thought we’d share that moment with you.

We are a close-knit group who are proud of what we do and who we work with on a daily basis.

If you like what you see or if our approach sounds like something you would like to be a part of, or even know a little more about, then reach out and set up a time for us to meet and allow us to introduce ourselves to you.

Click here to get started!

What does Job Satisfaction really mean?

Satisfaction.

sat·is·fac·tion

noun

“The fulfillment of wishes, expectations, or needs, or the pleasure derived from this.”

Shouldn’t the time you spend at work make you satisfied?

The rest of the world is stressful enough.  Going to your job should be something you enjoy.  You look forward to.  It should be something you are proud of doing.  Shouldn’t it be doing something worthwhile?  Shouldn’t you go home each day, safe, satisfied and fulfilled?

Mission based work…

There are lots of just jobs.  Plenty of them.  They are promoted on semi trucks, billboards and busses.  Sorting boxes filled with online orders is a job, no matter how it is presented.

Feeding families who rely on what you make, for breakfast time.  For family dinners.  For birthday parties and family celebrations.  That is mission-based work.

All things being equal, wouldn’t you rather get well compensated for doing something that really matters?

If you answered ‘yes’, then you are just a little different from everyone else who is just looking for a job.  You are special and, you matter to us.

Someone who helps to feed families across America is important and should be invested in.  That’s what we do at Harlan Foods.  We find people who matter, we invest in them, and turn them into Certified Food Manufacturing Professionals who each day feed 1 in 10 Americans.

When you become a Certified Food Professional, work is no longer work.  It is fun.  It is fulfilling.  It is rewarding.  These are things that all our Food Manufacturing Professionals deserve-fun, fulfilling and rewarding roles they and their families can be proud of and pay and benefit packages that allow them to live the lives they want.

If mission-based work, solid pay, performance bonuses, free healthcare, free training and professional certifications, upward mobility, a stable and positive work environment, and job to interest and skill matching are important to you, schedule a face to face or a phone interview and see what Harlan Foods has to offer you.

Click here to see what satisfying, mission-based work looks like here with us.

Get started on a more rewarding journey today as part of our team of Food Manufacturing Professionals.

Job Seekers Want More Today. Employers Should ALWAYS Invest in Quality!

Are looking for a new job?  Does your current place of employment no longer excite you?

Maybe it never did.  Or, possibly what was advertised wasn't exactly the reality you go into each day.

There is a big difference between a job where you trade your time for a paycheck, and a place that values you and excites you.  A place where you feel you are making a real difference in your life and the lives of others.

Don't settle for trading your time for a paycheck.  We only have so much time and can never get it back!

As valuable as you are, you should always be investing in yourself and you should look for an employer who does the same.  Hiring bonuses and hype around 'find a new career' isn't about you, it's about a company trying to fill an empty slot.  So look for more.  Look beyond the signing bonus.  What happens next?  What is that employer doing every single day to help you feel fulfilled and to increase your professional value.

Why would they do this?  Simple...

Take a look at the infographic we put together that contains a few more interesting facts about Mentorship programs and also Mentorship here at Harlan Foods.

If you would like to know more about open positions and opportunities for growth here at Harlan Foods, click here.

Did you know Harlan Foods feeds 1 in 10 Americans?  If you are interested in learning about the wide variety of foods we make which make their ways to grocery, club stores and quick serve restaurants around the country every single day, click here.

If you would like to hear from one of our Mentors, you can hear his advice by clicking here.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hope is a word every employer...and employee should know.

Hope.  According to the dictionary, the word 'hope' has three meanings.

  1. A feeling of expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen.
  2. A feeling of trust.
  3. To want something to happen or be the case.

What does the word 'hope' have to do with jobs?  Simple!  For team members to find satisfaction in their tasks and roles, they should have hope that they will have opportunities to grow, explore and try new things.  In other words, employees want to be challenged, find success, feel rewarded by seeing what they do come to life in some way.

Employees should hope that their employers and team members care about their well-being, desire to grow and to perform.  Employers should care about clearly communicating the mission and purpose of what's being done and even the why behind what is being done!

As an employee, understanding this and then having the opportunity to choose how you as a participant can add value to the cause, mission and even improve yourself along the way seems pretty important.  Having that gives hope that what you do has meaning beyond the paycheck.

You can get a paycheck anywhere.

So, ask yourself.  What do you hope for in your work life?

As you think about this, here are a few things about Harlan that might align with what you are hoping for in your work life.

Each day, we feed one in 10 Americans. 

If we were to shut down all of our food production, a number of grocery store shelves and freezer cases across the country would quickly go empty.  Restaurant patrons would be disappointed to learn that many of their favorite items were not available.  Providing families and communities with safe, nutritious, delicious and affordable food is important.  This is our mission and our promise every day.

 

Our team members are professionals in the truest sense of the word.

We invest in training team members, just like every other employer.  However, we go a step further.  We provide all of our employees with a comprehensive continuing education program as part of our SAFE initiative.  SAFE stands for Standards Based, Accountability Driven, Food Excellence.  Under SAFE, each employee can achieve either an AFP or CFP certification.  These industry leading certifications mean Harlan team members are the best of the best in food manufacturing.  We take great pride in doing things well.

We motivate, coach and inspire.

Studies have shown that companies which provide mentorship programs produce happier, more productive team members who advance faster.  As part of SAFE, Harlan has rolled out a comprehensive Mentorship program to assist our Apprentice Food Professionals (new employees) grow and thrive during their first 100 days.  This program not only benefits our Apprentice Food Professionals but also the Mentors who get a great deal of satisfaction and even performance compensation for ensuring the success of the Apprentices they work with.  It is our way of providing certainty that new employees are successful in their roles.

Finding what you love.

As part of SAFE, Harlan has developed workplace simulations which allow prospective employees to explore and understand all of the various departments, teams and tasks found within Harlan.

This gives the job-seeker the opportunity to find what they are interested in or tasks which align with their personal skills.  The job simulation also provides individuals who might not find food manufacturing for them an opportunity to quickly understand this and adjust their job search.  Harlan wants to ensure that every new Apprentice says "I love this" instead of 'This isn't what I expected."

So, what do you hope for in your work life?  A better job?  A promotion?  More pay?  Better benefits?  Sure.  All of those things are important.  You should work to make sure these things are available to you.

However, maybe there is something else.  Having a real purpose in what you do.

Does feeding families across North America every day give your inspiration?  Does achieving professional accreditation which tells others you are at the top of your profession?  How about being mentored by other professionals or perhaps having others look up to you for help and inspiration as a mentor?

How about finding a work environment and role that aligns with your personal sense of purpose?

This is what our team at Harlan can offer.  If you like the sound of it, reach out and say hello.  We'd love to meet you.

On the home page you will find a link to our open positions, or drop us a message in our contact form.  We'll get in touch with you quickly and work to find you a role you can be passionate about as a Harlan Food Manufacturing Professional.

Why we love what we do

Harlan team members are passionate about their mission and purpose.  Regardless of their role, each Harlan Food Professional is critical to ensuring that Harlan delivers on its promise to feed America.  Today, one in ten Americans rely on Harlan Foods for safe, nutritious and delicious food.

See what a member of our Sanitation team members have to say about the role they play in helping to deliver on this promise.

 

Tammi is a former Emergency Room nurse who recently re-located from Florida.  She finds an overlap in her role here at Harlan and her hospital work.  See what Tammy has to say about her role at Harlan by clicking here.

Harlan Foods team is made up of a wide variety of skills supporting an equally wide variety of departments and roles.  Harlan's Food Professionals represent an equally wide variety of backgrounds and cultures.  Vietnam, Burma, Afghanistan, Mexico, Canada, India, China among others are all nationalities which make up our family.

We find our strength in our diversity and also our common bond in the passion we have for making safe, quality food for our friends and neighbors.  Many of our team have found their forever home.

One of our forklift drivers, Austin has found his forever home at Harlan

Over 20% of our team has been with Harlan over a decade and numerous team members have been with Harlan since its inception.

Several of Harlan's team have been with the company since day one-over 30 years.

 

If this resonates with you and you want want to join Sammy, Tammi and the rest of the Harlan team in a career as a certified Harlan Food Professional, click on this link to get started.  We look forward to having you as part of our growing family.