Flexible Schedules for Hourly Talent

Chris Hoyt: So, Kurt, tell it—I’m learning all kinds of things about you! You did a stint in the Middle East as a recruiting professional. Do you have any fun stories you can share?

Kurt Rippelmeyer: In Bahrain, the way you get visas is very easy because it’s a small kingdom. So we were able to find people and then get visas, instead of other countries where the visa process determines who you can bring in. We had the world to source from—Europe, Greece, Russia, the East. We were starting to bring in folks from the Far East who hadn’t necessarily been outside their country before, giving them a chance.

We had an entire group that meets arrivals at the airport—gets them through customs and immigration and all that. One time, the person didn’t show up to meet the group, but he was on the flight. We kind of lost him for a little bit. About three days later, we got a call from the local police—they found him. He wasn’t allowed to drink in his home country, and when he got to Bahrain where alcohol is served, he ended up in a bar and never left.

Chris Hoyt: Did you determine if this was his plan all along?

Kurt Rippelmeyer: It was crazy. He was on the next flight home, needless to say. But that was one of the funnier stories.

Chris Hoyt: Oh my God, that’s intense. Three days in the bar—I love it. Were you guys ready to jump right in?

Kurt Rippelmeyer: Sure, sure.

Chris Hoyt: All right, here we go.

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Chris Hoyt: I think I’ve probably driven some candidates to the bar, but I don’t know that I’ve ever enabled them to go there as part of the interview process—or an escape route. One of the two.

Welcome, everybody, to the Recruiting Community Podcast. This is your weekly insight, delivered in the form of a conversation. I’m Michael. This is my co-host, Scotty.

Scotty: Hi, Michael.

Chris Hoyt: Yeah, it’s Jordan and Pippen today. Jerry—good Lord, I can’t do all that.

Look, we’re looking forward to hearing from our CXR community member Kurt Rippelmeyer from Land O’Lakes. We’re going to talk about an initiative that’s been put forth—introducing more flexible schedules for hourly manufacturing and frontline workers. He’s going to share some learnings and processes, and there’s a fun article that just got published recently. We’ll talk a little about how they had to rethink talent attraction and strategy.

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Ready to welcome Kurt in?

Scotty: Let’s do it.

Chris Hoyt: Kurt, how are you? Welcome back.

Kurt Rippelmeyer: Thank you. Doing all right. How are you guys today?

Chris Hoyt: Good! Might ask for more funny Middle East recruiting stories later, but first, for those who haven’t met you, give us a quick intro. Who is Kurt and why should we be paying attention today?

Kurt Rippelmeyer: I’ve been recruiting for 30 years. Started in ‘95 on the contract contingent side with Aerotech. After eight years, I wanted more and got into RPO and consulting. I loved solution design—figuring out how to overcome talent issues. Then in 2012, I moved to the corporate side. It’s easier to get into meetings and drive decisions from the inside.

Chris Hoyt: So let’s talk about the flexible scheduling initiative at Land O’Lakes. What drove the decision to make such a big change?

Kurt Rippelmeyer: Early 2022, we piloted at one site. Their unemployment was under 3% even before COVID. Post-COVID, the churn made it hard to keep the plant staffed. It’s one of our chemical plants—Land O’Lakes owns Purina feed manufacturing, dairy, and herbicides under Winfield United/Omnium.

We were staffing 60 contractors just to get 30 to show up. It was unsustainable. Our SVP Yani said, “Figure something out. Build flexibility. If we fail, fail fast and fix it.” That mindset let us really innovate.

We had HR, TA, and ops brainstorming sessions. We looked at what made sense to the plants and what the people wanted. What came out was similar to retail—four-hour shifts, selected two weeks out, minimum 16 hours a week, max 29. They get to pick their shifts.

Chris Hoyt: That’s a big change. Was there a lot of resistance, especially from the plant leaders?

Kurt Rippelmeyer: Not at the prototype site—they were involved in the solution from the start. They understood the need. At the time, full-time staff was working 50-hour weeks and couldn’t even take time off to hit the bank or see their kids. One unexpected benefit of flex was that it gave full-time staff more breathing room.

Chris Hoyt: That’s a great byproduct. What about challenges and the impact on TA?

Kurt Rippelmeyer: There was a Wall Street Journal article about this—short link is cxr.org/wsjlol. Flexibility in frontline work is rare. That article came from me sharing our approach in a forum. A journalist followed up, and it turned into a great story.

Chris Hoyt: So your leadership encouraged risk and fast failure. That’s powerful.

Kurt Rippelmeyer: Yes. It let us explore all options without blinders. We added different workstreams—training, safety, operations toolkits, benefits, compensation. Once the prototype worked, we scaled it. Some facilities embraced it, others struggled—especially if they were used to “this is how we’ve always done it.”

Chris Hoyt: Was change management the biggest challenge?

Kurt Rippelmeyer: Absolutely. Even with success stories, some leaders were hesitant. But we emphasized low-risk entry points—like housekeeping—and showed the brand advantage. Our plants aren’t fully automated, so we have to get creative to attract people. We peeled off entry-level duties so full-timers could focus on critical tasks.

We even found people with chemistry backgrounds who wanted part-time lab work. Now we use flex in maintenance, warehouse, quality, sanitation. Our goal is to have 10–15% of the workforce as flex in the next two years.

Gerry Crispin: That’s great. Purina has a history of bold organizational change. Glad to see that legacy continues.

Kurt Rippelmeyer: I didn’t know that. Thanks for the insight.

Chris Hoyt: Sounds like this changed not just scheduling, but also your recruiting strategy.

Kurt Rippelmeyer: Yes, we shifted marketing. We targeted non-production folks via social media and banners. Within a week of launching Flex, we had over 200 applicants in three days. We heard great stories—people with leadership experience, folks wanting weekend work, single parents, disabled vets.

It also helped with diversity. Manufacturing is 78% white. Our flex program? Only 60-some percent white.

Chris Hoyt: That’s real impact. And it sounds like it forced recruiting to evolve too.

Kurt Rippelmeyer: Absolutely. We added high-volume scheduling modules. We can go from ad to start in less than two weeks now.

Chris Hoyt: Any insights for other organizations—maybe those not in manufacturing?

Kurt Rippelmeyer: Think about work differently. Will the way you’ve done it still work tomorrow? Start focusing on skills instead of job titles.

Chris Hoyt: You mentioned humanity in hiring—but not much tech. Was there any AI used?

Kurt Rippelmeyer: Just basic automation—text-to-apply and interview scheduling. But the process was very hands-on. Like old-school agency days—offer before they leave the door.

Chris Hoyt: I love it. There’s still value in that approach. So, Kurt, if you wrote a book about this experience, what would the title be?

Kurt Rippelmeyer: What Got You Here Today Won’t Necessarily Get You There Tomorrow.

Chris Hoyt: I love that. Who gets the first signed copy?

Kurt Rippelmeyer: My boss. She’s had my back the whole way. I worked for her in Saudi. She got me off the beach during COVID!

Chris Hoyt: That’s fantastic. Kurt, we’re super grateful for you being on the show and for your boss letting you blow a few things up to make great change happen. Great to see your face.

Kurt Rippelmeyer: Thanks for having me. Much appreciated.

Chris Hoyt: All right, everyone, we’ll be back. We do this weekly—cxr.works/podcast is where you can check it out. We’re well into the 400s now. Great guests ahead, just like Kurt. Thanks again, Kurt!

Kurt Rippelmeyer: Thank you. Have a great day.

Chris Hoyt: You too.

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