Training strategy breeds success

Central Penn Business Journal, Aug 10, 2007 by Ryan, Jim T

REGION

The best athletes on the planet have to train year-round to become champions.

In business, employee skills need the same attention. Just as coaches devise training strategies to build winning teams, so do company executives.

Some industries are not the focus of state funding for workforce development. Businesses that don't fit into one of the state's targeted growth industries, such as manufacturing, need to develop training practices that work. As training initiatives grow, executives said, so does a company's prestige. The better skilled and happier the employee, the more satisfied customers will be with service, executives said.

That's a strategy for success.

"One of the benefits of being a franchise for a multinational is training resources," said Lee Carroll, president of Circle C Corp. in Lemoyne, Cumberland County.

Circle C owns eight of the 1 9 Papa John's pizza stores in the region and employs more than 200 people. Service and product consistency are key in a franchise, Carroll said. Papa John's standardizes training to teach employees and supervisors the best slice for the pies.

That training includes job skills, soft skills and career pathways within the company, he said.

Carroll is chairman of the subcommittee for training improvement with Papa John's International Inc. The company is in the process of forming its own university, similar to Hamburger University, the corporate training ground for fast-food giant McDonald's Corp.

Solid job training is important for any industry, but Carroll believes the food industry takes a big bite for future employers. After all, burger stands, pizza shops and retailers are the places teens and young adults receive their first work experience, he said. Retail companies have the opportunity to solidify soft skills, such as arriving on time.

Commerce Bank/Harrisburg has a university at its headquarters in Swatara Township, Dauphin County. Entry-level tellers learn the ins and outs of banking, career pathways and involvement with the community.

Commerce University is four years old and offers 70 classes, said Patricia Noel, its director and a vice president with Commerce Bank.

The number of university courses grew from five to 1 7 in the first six months, Noel said. Commerce Bank assesses employee progress and then directs training to build needed skills. Employees with better skills build relationships and the client base. The company also has continued to grow, and Noel attributes some of that growth to employee training.

Commerce Bank added 13 stores and 400 employees since 2002, according to the company. Revenue increased from $35.4 million to $71.5 million during the same period.

"We have a very strong service culture here at Commerce Bank, so these classes allow us to fold those values back in every time," Noel said.

The company is developing succession planning based on employee competence in various areas. By promoting employees with a drive to succeed, Commerce Bank hopes to boost morale, retain more workers and continue company expansion. Two more branches will be completed before the end of the year.

Wegmans Food Markets Inc. is a successful company with 70 stores throughout the Mid-Atlantic region. The Rochester, N.Y.-based grocery chain will open its first store Sept. 16 in Cumberland County.

"It's best if employees train in existing stores," said Kevin Lang, the manager of the Silver Spring Township store.

Wegmans focuses its training on customer service, teamwork and diversity, computer and Web-based testing, and one-on-one shadowing with employees of an existing store.

The employees coming to Central Pennsylvania are spread out to learn their new jobs. Wegmans sends employees to nearby stores with the best departments. It also sends new employees to stores similar in size to their home store. The amount of work at those stores will be comparable to the job they'll do later. The process takes months, but Wegmans keeps employees happy by paying for hotel bills and allowing plenty of time off so trainees can see family and friends, Lang said.

Wegmans also conducts inhouse seminars on food safety and sanitation for all workers. Workers in perishable departments, such as the seafood and deli, also learn culinary skills. Those courses are broad, but Wegmans has college-style classes for the perishable departments. Employees learn more advanced food-preparation techniques in the classes.

Wegmans is successful with these strategies. It was named to Fortune magazine's list of the "100 Best Companies to Work For" 10 years running. It placed first in 2005 and third in 2007.

"We've put a lot of thought into it," Lang said.

BY JIM T. RYAN

jimr@journanlpub.com