STULZ USA Solved Its Frontline Experience Gap With Speakap — and Cut Their Turnover to 10%

About STULZ USA

STULZ USA is a global leader in precision cooling solutions for mission-critical environments like data centers and industrial facilities. In the U.S., the company grew rapidly from a single factory to a complex, multi-site operation — scaling its workforce by 53% in just five years.

• 600+ employees across the U.S.
• Two production sites with multiple shifts and a multilingual, frontline workforce
• 75% of employees are deskless, with no company email
• Originally relied on bulletin boards, posters, and word-of-mouth to share updates
• HR systems were underdeveloped during early expansion

This kind of growth introduced more than operational complexity — it made it harder to offer a consistent, inclusive, and human employee experience for those on the factory floor. That’s when Kimberly Goad, Senior Director of HR & EHS, stepped in with a bold vision: to build a culture where every employee — especially those without desks — felt supported, informed, and empowered. (Oh, and btw — Kimberly was named one of Ragan’s 2025 Top Women in HR for Workplace Culture Leadership. So yeah… she knows a thing or two about getting this right)

The Challenge: a growing workforce with no shared employee experience

What worked for 100 people stopped working when STULZ grew to 600. There was no centralized way to welcome new hires, listen to concerns, or keep people connected across shifts. Plant workers — already facing language barriers, safety risks, and low morale — were left in the dark.

On my first day at STULZ, I was met with a disorganized onboarding experience that left me crying in my car. I made a promise to never let another employee feel that way again. Kimberly Goad Senior Director of HR & EHS, STULZ USA

Key challenges included:

• No digital access for deskless teams — no email, no chat, no app
• Safety information was difficult to distribute effectively
• Language barriers made key info hard to understand
• The war for talent in manufacturing made it difficult to retain employees
• Plant staff often felt left out of the loop, especially post-COVID when office employees stayed remote

This wasn’t just a communication problem. It was an experience gap — one that impacted retention, engagement, and operational safety.

The Solution: STULZ Connect — an employee experience platform for the frontline

We needed real-time solutions to bridge the gap in communications and create an inclusive environment. We chose Speakap because it met our needs — easily. Kimberly Goad Senior Director of HR & EHS, STULZ USA

To close that frontline experience gap, STULZ launched STULZ Connect — a mobile-first, branded employee experience platform powered by Speakap and designed specifically for the realities of a non-desk workforce. From day one, the goal wasn’t just to “inform,” but to transform what it feels like to work at STULZ. For the better.

Why Speakap was the right fit

• Mobile-first and no corporate email required
• Multilingual delivery — employees receive content in their preferred language
• Real-time updates across shifts, sites, and teams
• Interactive features like polls and comments to amplify employee voice
• Custom branding to reflect STULZ’s culture and identity

How STULZ used the platform

• Replaced bulletin boards with a real-time newsfeed
• Used polls to ask employees directly about shift preferences, not just manager perceptions
• Sent safety videos and alerts as just-in-time mobile notifications
• Promoted on-site English classes (with 49 signups in the first round)
• Posted celebration recaps, cookout photos, and employee spotlights to boost morale
• Made new hires feel seen — day one welcomes are now shared in the app
• Highlighted cultural programs and community partnerships — driving pride and participation

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STULZ Connect gave us a way to engage directly with our production teams, without relying on supervisors to translate messages. We finally had a platform built for them, not just for corporate. Kimberly Goad Senior Director of HR & EHS, STULZ USA

The Results: from disengaged to connected — and staying longer

STULZ didn’t just hand people a new tool — they gave them a better employee experience. And Speakap helped make it stick.

Adoption & engagement:

• 78% activation rate across all employees
• 46% signed up within 24 hours (talk about fast adoption)
• 67% are monthly active users — that’s more than 2x the industry benchmark
• Employees open the app 3x a day on average — it’s become part of the routine

Retention & morale:

• Reduction in turnover
  
  • Industry avg: 39%
  • STULZ: just 10.4% YTD
• Successfully implemented a 4-day, 10-hour shift policy after polling employees
  
  • Result: better recruitment, improved work-life balance, higher satisfaction

Cultural impact & inclusion:

• 49 employees enrolled in free, on-site English classes
• Monthly cookouts and celebrations now reach everyone — and yes, they post the pics
• Employee spotlights and day-one welcome posts help build community
• Speakap polls continue to guide culture initiatives and program planning

Safety & operations:

• Real-time heatwave precautions and training reminders
• Bite-sized safety content is now mobile-accessible (and actually used)
• Updates are translated into employees’ native languages — no more miscommunication
• Community outreach and recruitment efforts targeted to non-native English speakers

STULZ USA didn’t just upgrade how they communicate — they transformed the entire frontline employee experience for the better

With STULZ Connect, every plant worker now has the same access to information, recognition, and input as their office counterparts.

This is what happens when you stop treating engagement as an HR initiative — and start designing around the real lives and needs of your frontline teams.

When you center experience, people don’t just stay — they show up fully.

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