Clash of the Generations

Appendix DCASE STUDY ‐ HY‐KO PRODUCTS

• Website: www.hy‐ko.com
• Location: Northfield, Ohio
• Founded: 1949
• Total employees: 204; 30 percent are salaried, 70 percent are hourly, 0.02 percent are located outside the United States
• Employee demographics: 41 percent Traditionalists and Boomers, 34 percent Generation Xers, 25 percent Millennials
• What it does: Manufactures consumer goods such as numbers and letters for signs, as well as keys and key accessories
• Interviewee: Alice Bissett—Vice President, Human Resources

BACKGROUND

Hy‐Ko has been a family‐run business since its inception. “The culture is slowly changing from a mom‐and‐pop vibe to more of a corporate feel,” Bissett shares. “We're being more consistent in how we administer policies, which not everyone appreciates. It's been a challenge to keep long‐term employees motivated as they watch the company evolve,” which it has done partly to appeal to younger recruits—and to stay competitive as an employer for all ages.

As an established company, Hy‐Ko has a current employee base consisting mainly of the upper end of the generations, although recent recruiting efforts are beginning to draw in younger cohorts. While the company has a healthy environment that sees little conflict between the generations, Bissett did notice areas that could be improved when she started with the company in 2014.

Issues such as younger employees frequently calling in sick (due to the company's harsh time‐off policy) and difficulty in hiring Millennials ...