JB Poindexter travels the road to global employee engagement

If you've ever had a package delivered to your home or purchased fresh produce from the grocery store, it's bound to have been delivered by a vehicle from the JB Poindexter portfolio.

Since 1983, JB Poindexter has been driving innovation in the manufacturing and automotive industry, ensuring best-in-class technological solutions for manufacturing and upfitting commercial trucks and specialty vehicles.

As an enterprise founded on partnership, the company has grown to over nine lines of business, building a portfolio of widely recognized names with leading acquisitions like Morgan Truck Body, the largest manufacturer of medium-duty truck bodies in North America.

Today, the company has over 8,500 employees across 68 locations globally. While the majority of the workforce operates the manufacturing side of the business, the HR and Payroll team navigates the challenges of managing talent in a competitive industry.

An uphill drive in a competitive market 

As a leader in the manufacturing industry, JB Poindexter strives to offer best-in-class services and employ the right people to maintain its high-quality standards. But with intense competition and evolving workforce demands, the company faced challenges in recruiting and retaining its talent. 

“It's getting harder and harder to find the right people to fill our jobs, and the competition is fierce. Companies are finding new and different ways to compete for that talent, and so it's really challenged us to stay ahead of the curve,” says Don Stewart, Senior HRIS Analyst.

JB Poindexter realized that in order to remain competitive, it needed streamlined HCM technology to innovate for ever-shifting employee needs.

Dayforce takes the wheel 

JB Poindexter partnered with Dayforce in 2019 to implement HR, Benefits, Global Payroll, Time and Attendance, Recruiting, Onboarding, Learning, Engagement, Performance Management, Compensation, Succession Planning, Experience Hub, Analytics, and Dayforce Wallet​. The initial partnership started with one line of business and has since grown to encompass the company’s entire portfolio. 

When searching for an HCM system, the company needed an experienced partner with robust technology. Dayforce was able to deliver the quantifiable value and strong partnership that JB Poindexter was looking for. 

“There are many reasons we chose Dayforce. The level of customer service that Dayforce is known for was one of the key factors. We also wanted to partner with a company that was stable and that had a footprint in the industry, and Dayforce was definitely one of those companies,” says Stewart.

The JB Poindexter team has found value in Dayforce by consolidating all HCM activities into a single solution and eliminating the need to maintain multiple systems. “The single solution architecture that Dayforce provides is like a Swiss army knife – you don't need to go buy 18 separate tools to get the job done,” says Stewart. 

Steering toward global expansion 

With recent expansions in India and Mexico, JB Poindexter is focused on global growth and is partnering with Dayforce to confidently operate internationally. JB Poindexter has consolidated its global payroll into a single solution with Dayforce, allowing it to seamlessly process pay across 68 locations.

“JB Poindexter currently operates in the United States, Canada, Mexico, and India. Having global pay in one centralized system has helped us both from an efficiency and a service standpoint,” says Stewart. “We now have our payroll operations consolidated with one central team, rather than having a payroll person at each of our 68 locations. We're able to run payroll centrally, which saves us a lot of time and effort – we never miss a commit date.”

A single global partner has also led to more strategic business decisions. With access to all employee data in one system, the payroll team can use real-time reporting to make data-driven decisions. “Dayforce Global Payroll consolidates all our information in one database which helps us make better decisions in terms of compensation,” says Stewart.

Now, with localized pay solutions, the payroll team can stay on top of complex pay and tax requirements and reduce compliance risk. “Dayforce is a true partner for global payroll compliance. We’ve expanded globally and Dayforce has the expertise to help keep us compliant in those areas,” says Stewart.  

Accelerating the employee experience

Amid fierce competition for talent, on-demand pay¹ with Dayforce Wallet has helped JB Poindexter create a modern experience for its workforce, giving the company a competitive edge and improving recruitment and retention.

“Dayforce Wallet and on-demand pay have been essential to us attracting and retaining hourly workers,” says Stewart. 

Now employees can easily access their earned wages whenever and wherever they need it most. “A lot of our employees really like the ease-of-use Dayforce Wallet provides. The money goes right onto their card, and they can use it right away. It's quick, it's easy, and it's really no hassle,” says Stewart.

Access to on-demand pay has also helped alleviate financial stress for employees who are experiencing financial insecurity. “A lot of our team members, whether they are salaried or hourly, live paycheck to paycheck,” says Stewart. “I believe on-demand pay with Dayforce Wallet has given them more flexibility in terms of pay, and it's really been vital in their lives.”

Since launching, the company has seen a difference in both the employee experience and its position as an employer of choice.  

“I believe Dayforce Wallet helps us stand out from our competitors in the job market. It empowers our team members. It gives them a reason to stay with us,” says Stewart. 

And for the payroll team, the easy implementation has caused no disruptions in payroll operations.  “From a payroll processing perspective, I've been nothing but pleased with our implementation of Dayforce Wallet,” says Stewart.

A modern approach for a modern workforce

With the evolving demands of the workforce, JB Poindexter has shifted gears in its recruitment and onboarding strategies. Innovative technology has been a vital tool in boosting candidate engagement from the get-go and ensuring a streamlined experience for applicants.

“We rely heavily on technology like Dayforce to meet the demands of today’s workforce. Engagement is a big buzzword, and Dayforce is a huge tool in that fight to keep employees engaged,” says Stewart. “Engagement starts from the first time they apply to that job or the first time the recruiter reaches out to them, not when they walk in the door for their first day of work.”

With the support of AI and machine learning, the JB Poindexter team can use Dayforce Recruiting to analyze, rank, and select the right candidate for the role. And intelligent automation features help schedule interviews and kick off background checks, minimizing tedious tasks and giving valuable time back to recruiters.

Looking ahead, the company is also implementing HR Analytics to gain meaningful insights into employee data to make stronger decisions.

“Dayforce Talent Intelligence will bear a lot of fruit for us. We’re really looking forward to using the predictive software and analytics to help us make better choices with our recruiting and limit the amount of administrative work that our recruiters have to do,” says Stewart. 

With these tools, applying for a job at JB Poindexter is a quick and simple process.

“It's vital to have a technology partner that has a mobile offering like Dayforce does. We’ve found that candidates don’t want to spend 45 minutes on a computer to apply for a job, and we’ve been able to make our application process much easier to complete with Dayforce,” says Stewart. 

Fueling success with talent management 

As part of its efforts to improve retention, JB Poindexter is empowering employees with learning and development opportunities. Now, employees can access a large catalog of courses and training programs with Dayforce Learning, to upskill and advance in their careers.

“Working with our employees and developing career pathways has been one of the ways we've tried to strengthen engagement and limit turnover,” says Stewart. “Dayforce Learning is vital to these efforts, as we've been able to curate courses and training directly in the Dayforce mobile app.”

JB Poindexter recognizes that with the right tools, talent can be sourced from within. With Dayforce Succession Planning, the HR team can track, analyze, and support employees’ career development and plan their future within the company.

“We've been able to harness Dayforce Learning, Succession Planning, and Engagement to develop career paths, train our employees for future opportunities, and show them they're part of a bigger picture,” says Stewart. 

Full speed ahead 

With its HCM system running like a well-oiled machine, JB Poindexter has the tools to continue navigating the ever-changing workforce and create a better experience for its employees. Dayforce has helped the company adjust to market demands and create a competitive edge with technology at its core. 

Today, Stewart believes that JB Poindexter’s partnership with Dayforce has proven successful. “In terms of ROI, Dayforce pays for itself,” says Stewart.

As the partnership continues to grow, the company is exploring more innovative ways to engage its workforce. With Dayforce Experience Hub, the team is looking forward to creating a personalized one-stop shop for content and information.

JB Poindexter can continue to expand its diverse portfolio knowing that Dayforce will be there to support it every step of the way. “We have really valued that Dayforce hasn't just come in, implemented, and then left,” says Stewart. “They're still with us to help through the highs and lows after implementation and well into the future.”

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