PN Group Poland is a company owned by EcoRide AB, a manufacturer of high-end EcoRide electric bicycles. With EcoRide, daily cycling becomes enjoyable and efficient, as well as environmentally friendly.

CHALLENGE

The owner of PN Group decided to move production from Asia to the European Union due to legislative changes. He chose Poland, specifically Gdańsk, because of the good logistical connection to Sweden, where the company’s headquarters were located. He was looking for a business partner who could not only recruit the entire team for him in a very short time, but also introduce him to the realities of the Polish labour market, help him with labour law issues, design the salary grid and optimal employment model, and take care of the day-to-day HR, payroll and occupational health and safety services.

We faced a challenge:

- build a whole team in an extremely short period of 1 MONTH – from management (Production Manager, Purchasing Manager, Warehouse Manager), through the administrative team (accounting) to foremen and production workers (assemblers, testers, quality controllers, warehousemen)

- build an employment model – contract recommendations, remuneration system, development paths

- full, bilingual HR and payroll services, including representation of the company during audits

- regular advice on labour law, remuneration and good practices on the Polish labour market

- ongoing hiring of staff throughout the 5-year period of cooperation

- support to the Management Board and employees in carrying out redundancies when the Client has decided to liquidate the factory in Poland

- providing career guidance and finding new jobs for all permanent and temporary staff

As part of our cooperation:

- we have thoroughly researched the Client’s needs in order to understand the nature of the work, the expectations placed on the candidates, the formal requirements and to match the people with the Scandinavian organisational culture and values of the company’s founders;

- we created job descriptions, agreeing with the Client the most relevant competences, and, based on these, we prepared advertisements and selected other sources of candidates;

- as part of the recruitment process, we posted responsive job advertisements, were active on social media groups and contacted people from the Jobhouse database, verifying key competencies;

- we prepared a communication strategy for social media (Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram);

- we selected CVs, interviewed selected candidates and recommended the best ones to the Client;

- we have made recommendations on remuneration and forms of employment for particular positions

- we were responsible for the full HR and payroll service – we prepared employment contracts and documents for personal files in Polish and English in accordance with the requirements of the Polish Labour Code and the GDPR, all activities regarding health and safety at work, notice periods, cost analyses and other necessary documents;

- we calculated the remuneration of temporary workers employed by PN Group and calculated the salaries of those employed directly by the Client;

- we have periodically undergone positive verification of the correctness of operations and accruals by a foreign, independent auditing company and have jointly passed an inspection by the National Labour Inspectorate, during which we represented the Client;

- we have always supported the Client with information and advice prior to any change in legislation;

- in connection with the closure and relocation of production abroad, we have prepared and implemented a support programme for all employees – permanent and temporary.

RESULTS

During our collaboration, we have found and employed a total of 152 temporary workers and recruited and provided HR and payroll services to 58 permanent employees. Together we have built a thriving factory with very low staff turnover.

Following the company’s decision to move production abroad, 40 people benefited from the outplacement support programme we had prepared, which consisted of individual consultations with a Career Counsellor, joint preparation of application documents and support in the search for new jobs.

- PN Group is one of our referral Clients. We were recommended by a company that helped Martin, the company’s founder, choose the best location for the new factory. It was a quick action – a meet-and-greet e-mail, a meeting, the signing of a contract and the launch of recruitment for the first 35 positions. The target was ambitious, as we signed the contract on 22 February and everyone was due to start work on 19 March. But who if not us? We split the positions to be filled between 3 recruiters and we pushed further. A call to the base, announcements, meetings, recommendations, meetings with the Client, a decision, paperwork and, on 22 March, everyone turned up for work (we had a three-day postponement because the production line components did not arrive in time).  I remember like today the first day in the new factory. We came to carry out health and safety training and ‘hand over’ the team to the Client. There was nothing on site apart from an empty hall. The people we recruited were building their jobs from scratch. But how it tied them to the company! I have not seen such a close-knit and low-rotation team before (apart from ours;). We have been working together for more than 5 years. During this time, we added new staff, had regular Client and employee visits and the company grew very dynamically. We went through a move to new, larger premises together, a change of group CEO, inspections from labour inspections and audits, and Martin regularly dropped by my office with crazy new ideas. One day when he asked me to meet him, I knew he wasn’t coming to me with good news. He decided that he was moving production to Sweden. The decision was final, so we started preparations for collective redundancies. It was difficult – after all, we had to say goodbye to the people we used to recruit. Unfortunately, this is the role of HR – we support our Clients when they grow, and we also support them when they exit a particular market. I am glad that we were able to go through the whole life cycle of this team together. Of course, we remain in a warm relationship. As the company still exists and employs several people, we will continue to support it, only on a much smaller scale. - says Natalia Bogdan, CEO of our company.

 WHY DOES PN GROUP RECOMMEND JOBHOUSE FOR COOPERATION?

- Jobhouse helped us to build an entire electric bike production factory in Poland from scratch. This is not just an employment agency, but first and foremost a partner for the development of any business! They built us a whole team, established a model of cooperation with employees, they were responsible for full HR and payroll services, provided regular advice, passed the National Labour Inspectorate inspections and an external auditor in an exemplary manner, and finally carried out the entire outplacement process – says Paweł Kowalczyk, Plant Manager at Ecoride. – says Paweł Kowalczyk, Plant Manager at Ecoride.

He also adds: The Jobhouse team stands out for its great commitment, knowledge and accessibility and its comprehensive approach to HR issues. I could always count on advice and support at every stage of our collaboration.