Employee Training Increases Success

John Wolz

Providing employee training is essential to success, according to Carmen Vertullo of Simply Better.
Speaking at the joint spring meeting of the Western Association of Fastener Distributors and the Los Angeles Fastener Association, Vertullo said good training sets a high-expectation business culture.
“Those companies that you admire, and are the most profitable, value training.”
In contrast, on-the-job training is very expensive and can lead to costly mistakes.
“It”s great to learn from personal experience, but it”s much cheaper to learn from someone else”s learning,” Vertullo noted.
In addition, properly trained employees are motivated to do a better job, which reflects well on their companies, Vertullo stated.
And training does not need to cost a bundle. In addition to free vender tutorials, Vertullo advised using magazine articles or even a catalog page to organize quick education sessions.
Joe Greenslade of Greenslade & Co. said training can build employee confidence while reducing possible liability claims. Having served as an expert witness in court cases, Greenslade has seen firsthand how training can help.
“Being able to show your people are trained helps in your defense.”
Fastener technology training is especially important for employees who work in quality assurance, sales and purchasing. Greenslade recommended assembling a company library and promoting its use among employees.
Another valuable training tool is LAFA”s certified fastener specialist program, something Greenslade called “the best course in existence in the world for fastener training.”
Continuing education opportunities should not be limited to engineers.
“It”s amazing to me how many people sell fasteners every day that have no idea how a fastener is made,” Greenslade observed. Proper training also helps to demystify terminology and specifications, he continued.
Greenslade agreed with Vertullo on utilizing vendor training, but he urged distributors to be aware of product bias from suppliers. To overcome this, he suggested requesting technology-based training from suppliers instead of product promotion.
“If a company sells hammers, everything they see looks like a nail.” \ �2005 FastenerNews.com