Corporate Training Spotlight: What’s Trending This Week
Understanding the world of corporate training, employee learning and development, e-Learning and online training technology can be fostered by taking a look at what’s happening in the headlines.
Every week there are thousands of headlines about corporate training, and we’re delving into a few making the news right now, either directly or indirectly:
The New York Times and Lululemon’s “Kumbaya Capitalism:
The New York Times published an online story with a print version released October 25, 2015, which features athletic wear powerhouse Lululemon.
Lululemon is still one of the world’s most recognized retailers of yoga pants and other athletic clothes, but it is a company that has experienced significant setbacks in recent years, including a 2013 recall of see-through yoga pants. After the problem had arisen, the company’s founder and then-Chairman Chip Wilson blamed the problem on women’s bodies, saying some of them just don’t work for their pants. It was a significant scandal for the until-then untarnished reputation of Lululemon.
Since then the company has really started focusing on corporate culture and learning initiatives in what they hope will help them remain competitive in what’s becoming an increasingly saturated market.
The Takeaway: When facing adverse situations, it can be effective to double down on employee engagement and development to improve morale and get a company back on track.
Gig’s Cupcakes Launches Flagship Corporate Training Center
In a country that loves baked goods, Gigi’s Cupcakes is flourishing. The largest cupcake franchise in the country has just opened their flagship corporate training center and test kitchen, located near Nashville, TN.
Not only will this be a hub of the company’s franchise and corporate training but it’s also where new menu items will be tested.
The Takeaway: The launch of Gigi’s Cupcakes new training and kitchen test center shows a few important lessons. The first is that constant innovation is a pivotal part of success. The next is that for a franchise to be successful there has to be a robust focus on providing unified and consistent training to franchise operators.
Gold Mining Company in Hot Water Over Training Records
The Drumlummon Gold Corporation and the company’s operator Seibert Smith have pled guilty in federal court after failing to comply with an order from the U.S. Mine Safety and Health Administration. The company was fined nearly $37,000 after mine safety officials investigated the company when they received a tip about a vehicle accident that went unreported.
What the company pled guilty to was a lesser charge than the original, and it boiled down to whether or not an employee’s training records were falsified.
The attorney for the company initially responded to the charges saying that while the employee did undergo the proper training, a form included a wrong date.
The Takeaway: The story demonstrates the importance of not just overall employee safety training, but its particular importance when working in a highly regulated industry where government oversight is a crucial part of compliance training. It also shows the value of comprehensive training tracking and accurate record keeping, all of which can be achieved through the use of learning management system, where these features are automated.
Employee Training Impacts Alcohol Sales
Georgia statistics show that 50,000-60,000 driver’s license are suspended annually as a result of DUI, and research demonstrates about 90 percent of alcohol consumption by young people under the age of 21 occurs through binge drinking situations.
Some advocates are pushing to lower these numbers by providing more employee training for businesses that sell and serve alcohol.
Advocates pushing for more employee training say it should be focused on the details that come with checking IDs, and failure to follow proper protocol should result in fines for the establishment providing the alcohol.
The Takeaway: Thorough compliance training can not only prevent fines and legal issues in all types of industries, but it can also help communities become safer. Investing in life skills early on either in high school or college can help build resilient communities later on.
Everett Community College Announces Expansion of Manufacturing Training
Everett Community College is located near Boeing headquarters, one of the top employers in Washington State. This is one of the reasons ECC has announced it will expand its advanced manufacturing training program, which trains students not only for careers at Boeing but also other local manufacturing facilities.
According to a Seattle Times report, the college board opted to fund the expansion to respond to a growing need in the manufacturing industry and near-term employment opportunities.
A representative for Everett Community College said the institution will attempt to secure grants and corporate donations to support the instruction and training taking place in new courses.
As well as the advanced manufacturing program, which focuses on training people to look for employment, Everett Community College also has another area of corporate training in which it provides customized training to existing employees who work at local manufacturing companies.
The Takeaway: This decision on the part of Everett Community College could signal a strengthening of the American manufacturing industry and it also demonstrates the increasingly blurred lines between educational institutions and corporate training. Expanding manufacturing training program in concert with industry provides skills employees can leverage to begin careers in non service industry organizations.
The Sacramento Business Journal Names Robert Half International as one of the 2015 Best Places to Work
The Sacramento Business Journal released its list of the 2015 Best Places to Work awards, with Robert Half International’s local operation earning the top spot in the medium-sized company category. Robert Half International says it shows appreciation for employees in many ways, including a dedication to learning and development programs.
Opportunities for growth include training, tenure development and coaching programs. Robert Half also offers constant employee access to online corporate universities, where employees can find proprietary training materials. There is also a blended learning approach at Robert Half where online training and learning are paired with instructor-led training on topics including diversity, inclusion, and communication.
The Takeaway: Online training and an active employee learning and development strategy allow companies to become top performers in their industries.
Forbes’ Piece Highlights the Role of Short-Term Thinking in Corporate Scandals
Highlighting the recent issues of the VW scandal, Forbes contributor Karen Higginbottom argues that a focus on short-term thinking means a company’s next scandal may already be in the pipeline.
One of the solutions she points out to avoiding such scandals is to make employees feel secure by investing in them through training.
She also points out the importance of transparency and honest reporting.
The Takeaway: Scandals can spell the end for a business, so to avoid them invest in long-term thinking and strategizing.