2016 Game Changer: Brooke Dolbare

When ThyssenKrupp sold its steel mill in Calvert, Alabama, to a partnership of ArcelorMittal and Nippon Steel in February 2014, the new company — AM/NS Calvert — learned its compensation system was antiquated.

This reality would soon place the company in a tough spot when it came to retaining top engineers and other employees. To bring order to the program, AM/NS Calvert turned to its compensation team that includes analyst Brooke Dolbare, 30.

With the challenge in hand, Dolbare, who previously worked as a “one-woman engine,” advancing the growth of the Washington County Chamber of Commerce as executive director, went as far as obtaining professional certifications in compensation and visiting other parent company offices in the U.S. and Canada to develop an extensive database comparing compensation practices across the steel industry.

Dolbare would go on to play a key role in AM/NS Calvert’s rollout of a modern compensation system for the company’s more than 600 employees whose salaries and benefits are based on performance metrics. Her colleagu
es value her resourcefulness and entrepreneurial spirit. She does not let up in coming to the table as a manager consistently pressing the company to provide innovative solutions.

“She maintains meticulous records,” said Anna Scully, an associate at the law firm Burr & Forman, in her nomination letter, “carefully tracks every affected employee’s compliance dates and is sensitive to the cultural nuances that often come into play when hiring foreign nationals.”

For more on the 2016 Workforce Game Changers, visit workforce.com/GC2016.

Bravetta Hassell is a Workforce associate editor. Comment below or email editors@workforce.com. Follow Workforce on Twitter at @workforcenews.