The LEGO group began making their famous interlocking plastic blocks in 1949. In 2006, they outsourced production to plants in Mexico, Hungary, and the Czech Republic to cut costs. This, along with keeping only their most skilled workers and relocating production closer to markets, transformed LEGO from a manufacturing firm to a market-oriented company and helped them achieve an operating profit of over $1.8 billion in 2016 with nearly 17,000 employees in 42 offices worldwide. Modern HR systems now allow LEGO to track employees' leadership potential, develop careers, and forecast recruiting needs.