Mackle tackles rural recruitment with aplomb

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Employer OTY (Supplier)

Winner: Mackle Petfoods

It’s not easy hiring quality staff as a pet food manufacturer in rural Northern Ireland. It’s a challenge Mackle Petfoods has faced for years. But having spent £15m last year on a new factory extension, Mackle Petfoods knew hiring the right people would be essential to continue its rapid growth trajectory and meet ambitious targets.

So working with staff to develop a multipronged strategy to reposition Mackle Foods as a centre of employee excellence,

Its first step was to hire a new dedicated HR officer whose role was to work with schools, colleges, and universities to raise awareness. Training has been introduced for senior and middle management, with further training for over 200 factory and operational staff. Five new apprentices have joined with a further 18 students signed. Mackle also launched a new ‘PAWS’ app last year to facilitate internal communication (translated into 11 languages).

It’s tackled pay too, becoming the first large food manufacturer in Northern Ireland to introduce the real living wage last December, while at its first ever staff event, 275 employees received over £100k in vouchers and annual leave as a reward for their long-term service.

Job applications, staff engagement, employee retention rates and profits have all increased, in many cases dramatically.