In business terms, prosperity is often measured as profit. But profit is not the purpose of our business—rather it is how we fund our future and make our business sustainable for all stakeholders, including our community.
As part of our commitment to the prosperity of our community, we participate in frequent student engagement efforts including tours, talks and job shadowing. Our Director of Operations, Toby Curry, is highly involved in our student engagement activities. Check out his experiences with our Careeline Tech partnership below.
Director of Operations, Toby Curry on his experiences with student opportunities and engagement at Coastal Automotive.
Every year, I look forward to welcoming dozens of Careerline Tech Center (CTC) seniors to the plant. I see it as a chance to show off our culture, engage the community and have a lot of fun. Many of our production employees are Careerline Tech alums, so the tour often turns into a reunion. Plus, at the end of the day, the students go home holding a piece of a Tesla Model Y—our IMPAXX™ energy management foam.
It’s more than just a tour—it’s an opportunity to share our purpose and mission. We’ve worked hard to build an environment at Coastal Automotive that sets us apart from bigger manufacturers in the area, and I want students to understand that a great career is about more than a paycheck. It’s impressive to see students getting into manufacturing and engineering, and for them to already be seriously thinking about their futures.
Last year, 96 students in four groups were able to observe our entire manufacturing process. I was very open with the students about the challenges employers in Holland face. We talked about how to strike a healthy balance when implementing automation into the production process, and we also discussed how local supply chains usually cost more at first, but do more to build community engagement in the long run.
Our success with the Careerline Tech visits have led to more intensive job shadowing opportunities. Over several months, job shadowers receive special instruction on project and operations management, and our hope is that the experience will encourage them as they start their own careers in manufacturing.
Learn more about Coastal Automotive and our community in our sustainability report.
