Hartford Business Journal

www.HartfordBusiness.com • September 10, 2018 • Hartford Business Journal 17 As busy as he is inside and outside work, Williams, who is single, recently found time to purchase his first home, in Glastonbury. He says Pratt tries hard to connect recruits and employees, however, he laments that its social-media engage- ment is "a little behind the eight ball in the social-networking world.'' He also would like to see Pratt implement a more formalized mentor program, particularly for those Millen- nials who, he says, "may not know how to navigate their careers.'' Diversity focus Amid its globe-spanning talent search, the company has put a premium on eth- nic and gender diversity, St-Pierre says. Pratt has aligned with some of the world's leading female peer-profes- sional groups, including Women in Manufacturing (WiM), Women in Aviation International, and the Society of Women Engineers (SWE). Pratt engineer Jonna Gerkin just finished her one-year term as president of the 40,000-member SWE organization. In May, Niasia Williams, a 23-year- old hired at Pratt 18 months ago as a mechanical engineer and who is work- ing toward her second master's degree, was seated as chair of the National As- sociation of Black Engineers. The group aims to recruit more people of African descent into the field. Pratt, along with parent UTC and its sister divisions, employs many members of the National Society of Black Engineers. Both Williamses say men and women of color predominate as their mentors. In January, SWE and Pratt's parent, UTC, Gerken said, introduced their "Re- Empower Program," enabling middle- aged women to resume their careers after being away two years or more, raising children or caring for ailing or aging relatives. Entrants with at least five years of professional work experi- ence undergo 16 weeks of paid coach- ing, mentoring and training to prepare for career re-entry, according to UTC. Both WiM and SWE have Hartford and/or Connecticut chapters. WiM spon- sors each October its annual "Girls in Aviation Day'' program, exposing school- age females to career opportunities in that sector. Pratt is an eager participant in that event, St-Pierre said, as well as a similar one targeted at interesting high- schoolers in aviation careers. Last spring, Pratt and the area Junior Achievement partnered to host high- school girls on its East Hartford campus "to a day in the life at Pratt,'' St-Pierre said. Pratt also signed a pledge with "Paradigm for Parity," a coalition of busi- ness leaders eager to end the gender hir- ing and pay gap in American commerce, to gain parity for females in corporate leadership roles by 2030. "Women are important to us, to en- sure we fill the pipeline,'' St-Pierre said. St-Pierre pointed to herself as an exemplar of Pratt's new generation. She was recruited to Pratt & Whitney Canada four years ago from another U.S. technology conglomerate, Honeywell in New Jersey, which did $40 billion in sales in fiscal 2017. Many of the same attributes other hires cite for join- ing Pratt apply to her, St-Pierre said. "I like travel- ing. I fly a lot,'' the 39-year-old West Hartford resident said about her job. "I'd say it's a pretty great place to work. People are very close to each other. It's a team environment. … We get to work on a lot of innovative products. We're looking for people who are curious, who enjoy collaborating." Angela Boccuzzio Angela Boccuzzio, 22, is a third-gener- ation Pratt worker hired to make engine fan blades two years ago after graduat- ing from Meriden's H.C. Wilcox Technical High School. Her father is a toolmaker for Pratt, from which both his parents — her grandparents — are now retired. Boccuzzio fondly recalls accompa- nying her dad, starting at age 8, to Pratt on "bring-your-child- to-work'' days. When he told her Pratt wanted to hire people with her skills working with metal grind- ers and millers, and programming computer numeri- cally controlled machines, she leapt. "I thought that was pretty cool. It's a big family atmosphere here,'' she said. "Everybody says 'good morning' … . When I come in, I'm always busy. I love being productive.'' Boccuzzio says she earns around $30 an hour working Pratt's first shift, enough time to begin Sept. 3 her online college coursework toward an engi- neering/computer science degree from Southern New Hampshire University. Single, she says she, too, just purchased her first house, in Middletown. Pratt, along with other Connecticut manufacturers and technology com- panies, has forged close partnerships with this state's network of vocational- technical high schools and community colleges, most of which now feature curriculum devoted to advanced manufacturing, welding, computer numerically controlled machine pro- gramming, among others. Asnuntuck Community College in Enfield, Tunxis Community College in Farmington, Manchester Com- munity College and private, for-profit Goodwin College in East Hartford are among two- and four-year secondary schools with manufacturing-technolo- gy curricula and certifications. Once hired, Pratt has crafted a regi- men aimed at developing and retain- ing workers. It has "employee resource groups'' that provide "newbies'' with a sense of "community" inside the company. Pratt also introduced a full-day new- employee orientation each Monday at nearby Rentschler Field, where new hires learn about Pratt's history and culture from some of Pratt's leaders and fellow workers. It also periodically surveys new hires about their progress and established a "buddy program'' to match newbies with Pratt veterans, partly to stay engaged with them and to provide a communica- tions lifeline in case any are struggling. "It helps with their integration,'' St- Pierre said. Ongoing skills training and develop- ment for all Pratt workers is another area of focus, she said. Pratt has partnered with the Con- necticut Center for Advanced Tech- nology (CCAT), housed on its campus, that conducts technology skills train- ing along with leading-edge process, materials and technology research. CCAT earlier this year teamed with East Hartford's Synergy High School to certify a dozen students as manufacturing pre-apprentices. Upon graduation in June, those Synergy graduates were immediately offered apprenticeships paying $15 an hour to start by two local manufacturers. Also, Pratt teamed with Thayer Leadership Development Group, based in West Point, N.Y., home of the U.S. Military Academy, to help shape the next generation of leaders at the aircraft-engine builder. St-Pierre joined other Pratt execu- tives not long ago for a 2½-day program centered around the military concept known as "commander's intent.'' "It's communicating to your team the 'what' and the 'why' but not the 'how' because there are different ways to get to the same result,'' she said. Later this year, Pratt and Thayer will host a leadership-training session for Pratt executives based in its facilities in Singapore and Poland, St-Pierre said. SPECIAL SERIES In-house excitement For Pratt & Whitney workers who are not yet ready to retire and want to explore other job or career options within it, the company has devised several new programs. Every second Tuesday, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., Pratt's career Twitter handle, @PWCareers, offers "Two for Tuesday,'' in which two new Pratt job openings are posted every two hours. Poten- tial candidates can interact with Pratt through LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram or Snapchat. Pratt also reminds employees doors also are open to jobs and careers at its sister UTC divi- sions — Otis Elevator, Carrier, UTC Fire & Secu- rity, all in Farmington; and United Technologies Aerospace Systems (UTAS) in Windsor Locks. There's also the shot at some extra dough for employees who refer people Pratt eventu- ally hires. Pratt won't divulge what it offers in bounties. – Gregory Seay IMAGE | CONTRIBUTED PHOTO | CONTRIBUTED Jonna Gerkin, Engineer, Pratt & Whitney Tara St-Pierre, Executive Director of Global Talent, Pratt & Whitney >> Pratt & Whitney continued Pratt designed its new engineering building with Millennials, future workers in mind.

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