The Impact of Recruitment Done Right – A Case Study

The Central Innovation Recruitment Team delivers the right candidate for the job and exceeds client expectations, check out how a company can be impacted when recruitment is done just right!

A recent purchase of multiple CAD software systems from Central Innovation led Queensland medical equipment designer and manufacturer Modsel to reinvent some of their work processes, thereby creating the need for a new role within their team. So it was naturally Central Innovation’s Recruitment Team that Modsel Director Lester Rowland turned to for assistance and advice – and the candidate they found ended up exceeding his expectations.

Based in Maryborough, north of the Sunshine Coast near Hervey Bay, Modsel has been designing and manufacturing equipment under well-known brand names to the health and aged care sector for more than 20 years.

“We decided we need more CAD grunt, so I went to Central Innovation saying I want to find someone who we can drop into a seat here with minimal to zero training, who can pick up the ball and run,” Lester explains. “Given we are in a relatively remote location, it’s always a challenge to pick up people with a high skill level – they tend to end up at the larger businesses in the cities. So we were aware we might have to encourage someone to move into the area, and given it does have an older demographic that’s not always attractive for younger workers.”

Having placed the problem in the hands of Central Innovation’s Recruitment Team, Lester was surprised to find how quickly they were able to come up with a solution.

“I dealt with Emma Tweedie, who was a delight to work with – she was very fast in finding the right person in line with what we were looking for. In only a matter of days, she was able to put forward several candidates and every one of them was a match.

“Emma hadn’t just interviewed them, she’d also put them through Central Innovation’s internal testing to determine their CAD skill levels,” Lester points out. “The knowledge that a CAD specialist had audited these applicants really gave me confidence to move forward with the process – it gives you peace of mind to know that the people you’re considering employing have been vetted by professionals who understand the skillset that’s required.”

The candidate eventually chosen by Modsel was a young Iranian in Australia on a Skilled Regional Visa, which allows for placements outside capital cities when the applicant’s skillset aligns with the job’s requirements. “He had been living in Brisbane and had no issues about relocating up here,” Lester says. “He’s young, very highly qualified, who’s come out to Australia to experience a different culture. He spends his weekends and free time exploring the natural beauty of the coast and soaking up the lifestyle, and  settled in well.”

And as Modsel’s newest recruit was also a qualified mechanical engineer – a complementary skill to the position they were seeking to fill – he has been able to bring a wealth of additional knowledge to the role.

“Iranian engineers tend to be quite sought-after – they have very strong foundational skills which makes them highly desirable candidates,” adds Central Innovation Recruitment Consultant Emma Tweedie. “And given the impact of Covid on international travel, we are seeing a shortage of new skills coming into the country – which means we need to utilise the skilled international workforce we have in Australia to their full potential.”

Even in cases where English is not the candidate’s native tongue, language is not necessarily a barrier to employment over the longer term. “Right from the start he was certainly able to communicate well enough to be proficient in his role,” Lester says, “and once he came into the team he very quickly became accustomed to the way we speak and vice versa, so within two months we were seamless.

“In fact his English spelling is  better than mine – he just had to familiarise himself with the local vernacular and the way we Aussies tend to rib each other while we’re working. That’s part and parcel of learning how people live on the other side of the world, which is what he came here to experience. So he’s learned from us and we’ve learned from him in return – it’s a great opportunity to interact with someone from another culture, and it keeps our minds, eyes and ears open too.”

Having found the perfect addition to their tight-knit team, Lester didn’t hesitate in making the placement permanent about halfway through the three month trial period. “Obviously one of the benefits of going through Central Innovation Recruitment is that it insulates us as a business to a certain extent, because we’re able to trial someone on a contract basis, and if it doesn’t work out it’s no risk to us.

“In this case, I very quickly realised the value our new recruit was going to bring to the team, so we moved him to a fulltime position. The brief to Central Innovation was to find someone who could come in with a high skill level and didn’t require anyone looking over their shoulder, and that’s certainly paid off many times over.”