While I was interviewing people for this month's feature on hiring, a common theme emerged: It's hard to find and keep people who want to work in a warehouse—especially young people. The stereotype is that warehouse jobs are for box-kickers. Dead-enders.

Name one person who got anywhere worthwhile through a warehouse.

You're looking at one. 

Warehousing and shipping jobs gave me my start in the working world. I learned MH-101 in the shipping room of the William Tricker Co., a tropical fish and plant supplier in my hometown of Independence, Ohio. Even in the 70s this company had a healthy mail order business. It was my job to prepare koi and giant goldfish for their adventures aboard a big brown truck. That meant netting them out of a tank, pouring them into a plastic bag, oxygenating them, sealing the bag, boxing the bag, sealing, labeling and weighing it, and applying the appropriate postage. Humble beginnings for me, and I hope not an ending for those exotic creatures.

It wasn't all about shipping fish. I was lucky enough to serve Tricker customers who visited the store. Meeting customers helped me do a better job for our mail order customers. It helped me make the transition from box filler to service provider. That lesson has stayed with me to this day. Now I'm not only writing about the kind of people who work for companies like Tricker's, but I'm writing for them. We're netting our stories, giving them air, wrapping them for delivery, and hoping the package that ends up on your desk contains viable product.

Just as materials handling taught me to associate a customer with each name on the boxes in a shipping room, I now think about the person receiving our editorial package. I hope the people on Modern's receiving end are doing the same for their customers—and for the people they're trying to hire.

What image comes to mind when you're writing a want ad to fill a slot in your warehouse or DC? Many employers looking for materials handlers don't know how to attract the kind of young talent they're crying for. Just as materials handling is an art, so is describing what a materials handler does. The Warehousing Education and Research Council just came out with “A Guide for Establishing Warehouse Job Descriptions.” Under Appendix C, WERC offers some phrases that will help draw the kind of person you have in mind. Do the following phrases match what you have to offer?

• Keeps updated on new products and processes;
• Quickly learns to operate new equipment and computer systems;
• Crosstrains in functions other than one's primary role;
• Keeps up with industry trends and updates knowledge appropriately (e.g., export knowledge, use of automated equipment, advances in technology, e-commerce, etc.)

These are the opportunities that draw talented people. Do they match what you offer? If not, you can either re-write your want ad or rethink what's wanted. The second option will probably yield a better catch.