1. Empathy Map &
Problem Statement:
Re-designing the school-to-work environment
Yellow Venture Lab
2. Empathy Map: Say
• “credibility starts with a good internship program”
• ”we have an opportunity to do more” with respect to
internship program
• “coursework at one school deemed a bit light compared to
other”
– “Maybe because that school is not an engineering school”
• Company is “moving from hiring new college grads for a
specific need”
– Instead, hiring for “aptitude and fit” with the recognition that can train them
– Trying to have smaller, more general list of requirements so can get broad pool
• Also realizing we will need to train at some level
• Have hired more straight out with MS than BS
• Many from UO via 9-month full-time internship program—
80% success (convert to RFT)
3. Empathy Map: Say
• Many from UO via 9-month full-time internship program—80%
success (convert to RFT)
• Most of the company’s college hires have been “opportunistic”—no
specific budget allocated or number to be hired
• Conduct relatively few on-campus interviews
• Hired one jr. engineer after internship even though were originally
looking for sr. process engr since fit and aptitude were good
• Usually hire eng new grads, but have hired 2 ops, 1 finance, 1 HR
• “need to recruit more deliberately, including via the web”
• Meetings conducted with CEO during internship and in first 6
months—including breakfast meetings
– CEO shares company values, strategies, objectives
4. Empathy Map: Say
• Posted internship positions on web—and generated tons of
interest! Hired MIT, UW, Rose Hulman, OSU students for summer
internship.
• “never cracked into Oregon State before” post internship
openings on the web
• Internships seen somewhat as “community service”
• Some talks..CREOL, Stanford, UO
• “not clear where students are looking” for jobs or how they
conduct their search
• On-boarding process “too unwelcoming…don’t introduce well to
company…left up to hiring manager”.
– Need to support mgr as well.
• Suggests structuring first 3-6 months, early on clarify
expectations, assess performance more formally
5. Empathy Map: Say
• Make sure the new college grads “don’t drown”. How do develop
a jr. level person and take them up appropriate career paths and
compensation structures?
• Company does no rotate them through different positions or
track “how they are doing”
• “we expect a level of maturity that does not always exist”—e.g.,
finding apartment
• A bit of GenX vs. GenY
• “don’t own them—see them punch out at 5 pm”
• “don’t put in the hours of the baby boomers”
• Turnover low—“people tend to stick”
• New grads include undergrads, master’s and PhD students, but
mostly master’s to date
7. Empathy Map: Think
• Walter K. believes company needs a better way to do the
following:
– Identify new college grads
– Attract them to the company
– Understand how new college grads identify employers
– Mentor, coach, retain and evaluate them—especially during their first
1-2 years
– Connect to new grads and better understand their needs and desires
• He believes the company should formalize its methods and
deploy specific programs—and be more thoughtful and
deliberate about its approach
8. Empathy Map: Feel
• Feels like should be doing more on hiring and developing new
college grads since have not hired as many as he believes the
company could benefit from
• Feels responsibility for making improvements and feels like
perhaps missing some big opportunities with the absence of
a formal program and fewer new grads
9. Stakeholder: Walter Knight
Vice President of HR (of the baby-boomer
generation) at a rapidly-growing laser company
in the Pacific Northwest. Responsible, among
other things, for identifying, recruiting, hiring
and developing talent, including new college
graduates.
11. Insight
Without the new, fresh and different ideas from new
college graduates, the company may not retain its vigor,
vitality and creativeness to the level required to be
competitive—let alone a leader—in the laser industry.
