K-2 and Arizona MEP Turn K-2’s HR Department into a Strategic Asset

K-2 Manufacturing is a contract manufacturer located in Phoenix, Arizona. Since the company started ten years ago, it has steadily expanded its services and capabilities, providing fabricating CNC services, welding, finishing, and assembly to a diverse customer base including aerospace, gas, medical, and commercial businesses.

K-2 was happy with its growth and is preparing for more. Its leadership team recently created a dedicated human resources position. The team identified a current employee who was ready for the next step in her career. She demonstrated the work ethic and professionalism but needed more HR knowledge. To approach this transition professionally from the ground up, K-2 engaged Arizona MEP, part of the MEP National Network™, to audit the company’s HR practices and provide one-on-one HR training.

Arizona MEP’s HR expert audited K-2’s policies and procedures. K-2 used the audit to identify gaps and create a plan to implement more comprehensive employee and company policies. The management team, the new HR manager, and the next level of supervisors participated in the audit and trained on best practices.

After completing the audit, AZ MEP introduced K-2 to a process to improve the company’s strategic planning and turn the HR department into a strategic asset. “What I liked about working with Arizona MEP was that they worked with us to develop the overall plan and didn’t dump all the action items on us all at once,” Wright reflected. “We were able to develop and implement the project in incremental steps with their assistance.”

Before the team could start writing new job descriptions, the expert worked with the new HR manager one-on-one to develop and implement new policies. K-2 needed to provide clear descriptions of acceptable employee and company behavior to ensure all employees would be treated the same way. The new policies incorporated the specific needs of K-2, best practices, and requirements to adhere to state and federal laws. During implementation, the new HR manager gained expert knowledge by learning directly from an AZ MEP expert with decades of HR experience.

AZ MEP recommended that K-2 develop more detailed job descriptions for every position. At face value, detailed job descriptions provide the necessary structure for managers and employees to understand what is expected of them. When these descriptions are also tied to company performance metrics, the company can use them as a planning tool. In addition, these job descriptions have become the foundation for performance reviews.