General Motors

Money is great. Benefits are good, too. Most of the people are nice.

This place runs on opinions, documentation is generally poor, and the constant pressure to fix all the problems with machinery that should not have been accepted into the factory in the first place is not for everyone. Most people who work here understand this, but that doesn't fix the problem. Processes are only taught by word-of-mouth by the one person who people think knows the most about it, so consistency is a bit of a myth. The company's entire work philosophy depends on salaried employees working more overtime than is worth it for them to make ends meet.

Create training programs and clear documentation for new hires to show them exactly how you want them to run machine qualifications, whether for safety, quality, or general production. Show and document clearly what your design standards are. Teach them the safety standards you hold your machines to so they will know where to find them and incorporate them into their designs. They should be able to spot safety problems without it being in the middle of qualifying the machine with the local safety experts.

The company is not set up for rapid turnover (employees staying <3 years) that will be happening a lot more because of changing workplace dynamics. The best thing for you to do to not keep relying on tribal knowledge is document everything.