Bullen Ultrasonics in Eaton, Ohio, seems to have a lot going against it. It’s located in a rural area, it’s a very small company without name recognition, and it’s highly specialized. These factors should make it nearly impossible to hire top talent, but Bullen, which makes precision-machined components for the aerospace, automotive, and medical device industries, has had no problem hiring and retaining the best and the brightest. So how do they accomplish this? Through a combination of community outreach efforts, in-house training, partnerships with local schools, and a history of offering meaningful perks. However, training is where Bullen really shines. The company builds all of its equipment in house, so its training must be proprietary as well. Most of the shop floor training is hands on, and employees come from diverse backgrounds. “That’s one of the advantages of on-the-job training—we’re not tied down to one specific field that we can hire from,” says Tim Beatty, the company’s president. He adds that new hires are assigned to a veteran employee who observes and guides their progress over three months. They also receive an extensive orientation where they learn about the history of the company, its core values, and what expectations are placed on employees.