CHICAGO — During a BREAD Talk at the American Society of Baking’s BakingTECH conference, held in Chicago from Feb. 28-March 2, Xochitl Cruz, VP of operations at Bimbo Bakeries USA (BBU), provided insights into what is driving change within companies.
As the industry continues to face challenges regarding labor and high turnover, Cruz notes that these changes likely stem from generational differences as older workers phase out and millennials and Gen Z fill in the gaps.
“This wave that we see in the workplace has been very interesting and challenging, and we’re learning a lot about how to integrate the generations that are leaving and the generations that are coming in,” Cruz said.
She also noted that in a post-pandemic landscape, companies are still adapting to new situations. One way this comes into play is with company structure.
“Company structure, by definition, is the way that we organize to achieve our mission or vision,” Cruz shared. “With that in mind, we have to consider company culture. You cannot have a company structure without thinking, ‘What is the culture that we are looking to be in?’”
This breaks down into two components: the people side and technical side. On the people side of company culture and structure, Cruz noted that in her conversations with people about job preferences, a large number of them mentioned benefits, quality of life and time off as key aspects.
“In some companies, you can see that they offer one week [of time off] after one year of employment — that doesn’t work anymore,” Cruz said. “They are not going to choose you for that even if you have a competitive salary.”
At the earliest stages of employment, Cruz mentioned that interns seek challenging projects when working at companies rather than data input. Providing these opportunities increases the likelihood that the interns stay with the company.
Cruz also stated that the workforce is increasingly interested in schedule flexibility, which can be a challenge in the baking industry. Rather than shorter shifts across more days, longer shifts on fewer days that allows more time off can be taken into consideration in a company’s structure.
The impact of diversity, equity and inclusion gives employees a sense of belonging at companies and underscores the importance of a succession plan, according to Cruz. Providing employees and interns with a path for growth is important to developing a company’s structure.
On the technical side, digitalization is paving the way for companies. Cruz noted that while more companies are leaning toward automation, they will need to be prepared with the right people.
“You cannot have one without the other one, they all live together,” she said. “When you think about the technical aspect, the people are a part of that as well.”
In striking a balance between the personal and technical needs for success, a company can transform its structure into a culture that draws in the next generation of workers.
