As part of their efforts to support diversity, equity, and inclusion, Sensata Technologies has introduced a special Returnship program to help experienced professionals who took a break from the workforce in restarting their careers. The program is new for 2021 and is currently being piloted from Sensata’s Attleboro office before it rolls out globally to all of the company’s workspaces.
MassTLC’s Talent Community reached out to Sensata’s Senior Director of Global Talent, Krista Allan, to learn more about this exciting new program. Here’s what we learned.
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What is the Sensata Returnship Program?
Sensata’s Returnship Program is a six-month, full time, paid program for experienced professionals who are unemployed or underemployed for two or more years and are looking to restart their careers. Should this Returnship prove successful for both the Returner and Sensata, it is our intention to offer a permanent position. Returners will be provided a structured re-entry to the workforce including training and development, mentorship, and program sponsors and leads who are committed to enabling their success.
Who is this program geared towards?
Our program is not geared toward any one group, rather it is a way of expanding the diversity of our workforce. It’s possible any of our open positions may be offered as a Returnship in the future. For example, the open Returnship opportunities right now include a Compliance Coordinator, two Program Manager positions, a Risk Management Analyst, and a Commercial Excellence Process Leader. While we currently have open positions in Carpinteria, CA and Attleboro, MA, we aim to expand this to our global locations in the future.
How large is this program or projected to be? What percentage do you expect to hire?
For our pilot year we have five Returnship opportunities available. As we learn what works best for our Returners and Sensata, we will iterate and grow its reach.
Is this a new program at Sensata, or have there been similar programs in the past?
This is the first time that Sensata has offered an opportunity such as this. We have taken best practices from our university internship program and leveraged guidance from industry leaders in this space to craft the pilot. Returnships have proven successful in other companies – we consider ourselves “early adopters” in adapting this program at Sensata. As we continue to build on our diversity, equity, and inclusion mission and vision, we are committed to action that helps enable change.
How is this program making a difference in your organization?
Sensata Technologies is aiming to increase not only the number of women in our organization, but also women in leadership. While this program is not designed solely for people who identify as female, statistically speaking they represent the majority of people re-entering the workforce. Our Returnship enables us to offer a re-entry point to individuals in our communities who wish to return to the workforce, with planned training and development, mentorship, and more. We’ll be connecting to a largely untapped talent pool of experienced professionals, helping us to strengthen our pipeline of diverse talent and make progress on our goal of increased hiring of underrepresented groups.
