Ocean Spray

One Ocean Spray Drive
Middleboro-Lakeville, Massachusetts 02349
United States
Phone: 508-946-1000
Fax: 508-946-7704
www.oceanspray.com

EMPLOYEES

2,000

PRIMARY BUSINESS

Ocean Spray Cranberries, Inc. is an Agricultural Cooperative that is owned by more than 600 cranberry growers and 50 grapefruit growers throughout the United States and Canada. The company is North America’s leading producer of shelf-stable juice drinks, and has been the best-selling brand name in this category since 1981. With products sold in more than 60 countries around the world, Ocean Spray posted fiscal revenues of roughly $1.9 billion in 2008.

Headquartered about 45 minutes South of Boston in Lakeville-Middleboro, Massachusetts, the corporate office employs over 450 people in Marketing, Finance, IT, Operations, International, Supply Chain, Agricultural Supply, Research & Development, Human Resources, and Communications.

Ocean Spray also operates food and beverage manufacturing facilities, which employ more than 1,500 associates, in Massachusetts, New Jersey, Wisconsin, Nevada, Texas, and Florida.

VISION STATEMENT

To be the best branded cooperative in the world.

PERSONNEL PHILOSOPHY

As one of the most successful cooperatives and prized consumer brands in the world, Ocean Spray is unique. Employees experience first hand the labor of love the company’s grower-owners put into providing healthy fruits for the world to enjoy. The company’s values reflect their hard work:

Respect
We encourage diversity of thought, heritage and experience. Our collective commitment to openness and teamwork fosters a culture where collaboration, coaching and trust prosper. We take pride in making products that come from a good place, so we protect our resources to meet present needs without compromising our future.

Ownership
Our efforts are as equally devoted and passionate as those of our Grower-Owners. We hold ourselves and each other accountable to the highest standards and results in everything we do. We are committed to supporting and engaging one another as we are the catalysts for our success.

Innovation
We approach each day with initiative, curiosity and creativity to meet the wants and needs of our customers and consumers. Asking ourselves what is right for our customers and consumers inspires meaningful innovation and a culture of continuous improvement that strengthens our brand and business

DIVERSITY & INCLUSION

Ocean Spray’s consumers are as diverse as it’s product offerings. The company seeks employees who can help them engage their consumers around the world.

Ocean Spray is committed to having an inclusive work environment that leverages the ideas and talents of a diverse workforce. They believe that in order to maintain their position as the world’s largest supplier of cranberries and cranberry products, they need to hire and retain the best talent.

Diversity at Ocean Spray is defined as “all of the ways that we are different and similar to each other.” The company values diversity as it is found in not only ethnic and cultural backgrounds, but also in different ways of thinking and different lifestyles.

Ocean Spray is committed to incorporating diversity into how they do business every day. They have an active diversity action committee, a quarterly Diversity News newsletter and regular intranet postings of cultural information. They have partnered with community organizations and are actively recruiting candidates from a wide variety of backgrounds.

Ocean Spray Cranberries Diversity Mission and Vision:

Definition of Diversity:
Diversity includes all of the ways that we are similar and different from one another.

Diversity Vision:
Create an inclusive culture in which individual perspectives are valued and differences leveraged for greater opportunities in today’s multicultural society.

Diversity Mission:
The Diversity Mission at Ocean Spray is to build a culture that values, respects and leverages diversity for greater individual and organizational advantage.

In 2009, Ocean Spray was the recipient of Color Magazine’s All Inclusive Leadership Award. The company was honored for their strong commitment to diversity and setting a standard for inclusion.

Congratulations New Hires!

Lois Bonsu – The Hershey Company^TM
Marcus Pease – Hostess Brands

FREE Tele-Seminars:

March 16, 2010
Grab Their Attention in 10 Seconds With an Effective Qualifications Summary

With only 10 seconds to convince a reader to put your resume on the “to be reviewed later” pile (vs. the trash can), you need to hit the ground running with a well-written Qualifications Summary. Join us as we examine what works and doesn’t work in a Qualifications Summary, discuss how to create a unique promise of value, and show you how to deliver value from beginning to end. Kevin Morris and Kathy Keshemberg will lay out a formula for resume success that begins with an attention-grabbing Qualifications Summary.

April 6th, 2010
Gain Job Search Momentum with Social Media

Has it been awhile since you interviewed for a job? Will you know how to answer the tough questions: Why did you leave your last company? Why have you been out of work for so many months? Why do you want to work here? And, for those who have been interviewing and keep coming up with the silver medal, what strategies can you use to uncover and then articulate your uniqueness so that you land gold next time? Join Kathy Keshemberg as she has a conversation with Carole Martin, The Interview Coach, who will provide guidance on how to answer these questions and more. Carole has over 18 years in human resource management plus holds a Masters Degree in Career Development. She is an acknowledged expert in the use of behavioral interviewing techniques and has made interviewing coaching her specialty.

Click here to register for these calls, which will be recorded and the link sent to those who pre-register.

References: A Critical Interview Prep Exercise

By Kathy Keshemberg, NCRW, CCMC

Quite often I’m asked “do I provide references with my resume” – the answer is a resounding “NO”! You want to make your own first impression.

What you do want to do, however, is have a list of 3-5 references prepared to provide at the interview. Here are a few tips to help you develop an effective list and also prepare your references to maximize the information that is shared about you.

Who belongs on your list?

You want to carefully choose individuals who can speak to your professional capabilities, expertise, credibility, and accomplishments. They need to possess first-hand knowledge of your work performance. Obvious candidates will be your direct/indirect supervisors, colleagues, peers, or subordinates (current and past employers). Also consider clients, vendors, professors, and professionals from industry/volunteer associations. Take care not to include anyone who could compete for the same position, and of course, friends, relatives, or outside-work acquaintances aren’t appropriate.

What information should be included?

Make contacting your references easy for the potential employer by providing as much information as possible – email address, office, cell, and/or home phone numbers, and mailing address. Confirm with each reference the contact information that is acceptable to provide. Also include on the reference page how you know that person, i.e., direct supervisor at XYZ Company. Format the page similarly to your resume with your contact information at the top. Bring several copies of this list, as well as your resume, printed on quality stationery to the interview.

What can you do in advance to prepare your references?

There are several things you can do to ensure that your references do a good job of positively representing you. First, let them know the type of position that you will be applying for and your skills, accomplishments, education, and qualifications relevant to that position. Next, ask each reference to speak to a specific strength. For example, you might ask one reference to discuss your leadership abilities, another could talk about your problem solving skills, and the third your integrity and work ethic. Finally, be sure your reference is aware of another reference they can provide the interviewer. Quite often, knowing that you are providing people who will have good things to say, a hiring manager might ask the reference for the name of someone else who can speak about your work performance. Strategizing another name in advance will ensure the hiring manager speaks with people who will make a positive impact.

What will your past employers say?

If there is any doubt surrounding what your previous employer(s) will say, give their human resources department a call – posing as a potential employer – to confirm what they will say. Or there are professional firms that will conduct reference checks for you to determine what will be said. Being aware of this information will give you the opportunity to determine the “spin” you want to put on the information when you are in an interview situation. If there is doubt about how to handle “sticky” information, hire an interview coach for an objective opinion and assistance in figuring out how to neutralize the situation.

Finally, after you’ve landed your new job, let each reference know the outcome of your search and thank them for the contribution they made to your success

For more than two decades, Kathy Keshemberg, NCRW, CCMC and her team at A Career Advantage have been providing professionals with world-class resume consultation and writing, career coaching and personal branding services.
Learn more…

Candidate Q & A: “Why Have I Received No Reply To My Job Submissions?”

Every week I answer a huge number of emails from candidates who have questions about the job submissions process. One common concern is the response rate from employers advertising open positions.

Recently I received the following question from a candidate:

Penny,
I saw your profile on LinkedIn and I am seeking assistance in my job search. Been a rough road with trying to land something. With many opportunities out there, and the economy in rough shape, I am seeing if possibilities could be made to land through your services.

I have applied numerous times through CPG site, with no replies to submission sent,I have enclosed my resume, professional references/contacts and recommendations, thoughts welcome. Thank you for your time and consideration.

Here is my reply, which many of you may also find helpful:

Thank you for contacting me. I checked on your submissions and see that you have applied to Company X a lot. X is a company that receives a lot of candidate submissions— and not just from us. They are so big in fact, that they have 3rd party vendors to which they outsource their initial candidate screening processes. This 3rd party vendor handles a lot of Company X’s early qualifying. They too are big, move slowly AND they don't want help— even though they don't do such a great a job and really need the help. I'm telling you this not to discourage you, but only so that you set your expectations about response time realistically. Company X does hire people, so the best thing to do with them is to apply whenever you see something that is appropriate…but don't expect a quick response or any response unless they go to step 2.

Because there are currently so many people looking for work, you must always be prepared for someone else getting the job. I know that isn't what you want to hear, but out of the hundreds of qualified people who apply to each job, only one of them gets hired. Make sure your resume is perfect, and I mean perfect. Any grammatical errors, font errors, spelling errors (oh no!), and formatting errors are just an excuse for them to throw you in the trashcan.

Remember too, this is a numbers game. You might have been the next person they were going to contact when they found Mr. or Ms. right. It's timing, a perfect background and resume, and luck, the trifecta of getting hired. It has really always been this way but more people are involved now and like you, they are getting anxious and scared.

I don't blame you for feeling this way, but keep checking the site and keep applying to the jobs that are appropriate. Try not to expect a call from recruiters telling you that you aren't a fit, they won't be doing that. I know it's rude, but they barely have time to call the people that are a fit. So instead of using up your energy on being angry or upset about that, use the energy you saved to apply to another job or attend a networking event.

When you do find a position on CPGjoblist that you think is really a good fit for you, perfect your resume and cover letter, submit, then wait for 3 weeks. If you don’t get a call, send me an email telling me why you would be perfect for the position. If, upon reviewing your background and experience I agree, I will personally forward your information on to the Hiring Manager with my recommendation that they give you a closer look. After that it's up to you and your resume. I hope this helped a little bit.

Penny Sallberg-Carrillo
Senior Vice-President & Co-Founder,
CPGjoblist
penny@cpgjoblist.com