Business Buzz 

Volume 2, Issue 1May 2013        
In This Issue
Snyder's Lance
Urban Kid Finds Calling
Meet The Expert
ATI logo letters only

Business Training & Educational Services

Looking Ahead

  

MAY 2013

 

6 - Summer semester classes start

 

11 - 20th Annual Plant Discovery Day at OARDC

 

JUNE 2013

 

5 & 6 - Bioenergy Workshop for Educators

Click for conference flyer & registration form

 

17 & 18 - Bioenergy Workshop for Educators

Click for conference flyer & registration form

 

23-28 - Biotechnology Camp for High School Students

Click for more information & application form

 

 

Check out more events! 

 

 

 

Learn More About Us

 

Business Training & Educational Services Facebook 

 

Ohio Landscape Certification 

 

Ohio State ATI 

 

OARDC 

 

Shisler Conference Center 

 

The Ohio State University 

  

Contact Us

  

Kim Sayers

Director, BTES

330-287-0100

Sayers.1@osu.edu

Twitter-KimberlySayers 

  

Melanie Garcia

Customized Training and Consulting

330-202-3524

Garcia.301@osu.edu 

Linked In-MelanieGarcia 

  

Jan Elliott

Office Manager

330-287-7511

Elliott.3@osu.edu 

Linked In-JanElliott 

 

Snyder PLC PhotoKeeping the Cookie from Crumbling

 

Snyder's-Lance & BTES Partner for a Multi-year Maintenance Training Program

  
When the production managers at Snyder's-Lance, Inc. sat down with Ohio State ATI's Business Training & Educational Services (BTES) team in the fall of 2011, they had one thing on their mind: training. Originally the Archway Cookie Co., the Ashland, OH plant had been purchased by snack maker Lance, Inc. in 2008, then merged with Snyder's of Hannover in 2010. With all the uncertainty and change during that period, training hadn't been a priority. Now the Snyder's-Lance merger gave the management team the stability and the resources to address their training needs, but they weren't sure where to start. 

 

Melanie Garcia, Corporate Training Account Executive, and Bill Ferguson, lead instructor, from BTES suggested a multi-phased approach:

  

Phase I: Assessment

First we assessed the knowledge level of the current maintenance team using MultiCraft Assessment, an online assessment of mechanical and electrical skill. The results of these assessments identified skills gaps and allowed BTES to create a training program to "fill in the gaps." They also provided a benchmark score for post-training assessment.

 

Phase II: Analysis of Assessment Results and Recommendations for Training

After reviewing the results of the MultiCraft assessment, it was clear that Snyder's-Lance, Inc.'s maintenance team had a wide range of knowledge, which reflected the varying ages and experience of the employees. Our goal was to establish a solid foundation of skills for those who needed it, while building on the knowledge of the more experienced employees. The team's mechanical knowledge was strong, but there were gaps in their electrical knowledge, so we suggested the following training program of lecture, demonstration and hands-on labs:

 

Snyder's-Lance, Inc. - Maintenance Team Customized Training Program

  1. Basic Industrial Electricity
  2. Troubleshooting Electrical Systems
  3. Industrial Motors & Motor Control
  4. Programmable Logic Controllers (PLC) I
  5. PLC II
  6. Instrumentation & Control

For complete descriptions of our industrial/technical training courses, please click here.

 

Phase III: Training & Logistics

Snyder's Lance, Inc.'s maintenance employees worked on all three shifts, and their unusual work schedules made it impossible to attend traditional on-campus courses. Luckily, it turned out to be ideal for BTES customized on-site training. Ohio State ATI worked around the company's schedule, curtailing training during their busy season, then resuming in late fall. "At BTES, we understand that the company's business comes first. In this case, it's making sure that Archway and Stella D'oro are on grocery shelves," says Garcia. "Training is important, but companies struggle to do it because they can't find a training partner flexible enough to meet their needs. We do everything we can to reduce the strain on day-to-day operations and employees -- from bringing the classroom to the company with portable training labs to working around work shifts and busy seasons. If that's what our clients need, then that's what we do."

 

Our instructors set up class in a convenient training space in Snyder's-Lance's distribution center. By attending training with their co-workers, they were able to discuss and solve actual company maintenance problems in class.

 

Results

Since January 2012, The Snyder's-Lance maintenance team has been engaged in this intensive training program, currently completing PLC II. What are the results? According to Kevin Canfield, Maintenance Manager at Snyder's-Lance, Inc., the immediate benefits have been numerous. He notes that there has been improvement in the team's morale.  "They see that the company is willing to provide the necessary training to help them become better maintenance technicians.  I've seen increased skills in the team, as they are more confident in troubleshooting problems, where in the past they would have backed off," says Canfield.

 

Congratulations, Snyder's-Lance, Inc.!

 

Interested in bringing training to your workforce? Contact Melanie Garcia

 

Urban Kid Finds Calling, Career Path in World of Agriculture

 

Ohio State student's story shows the reach of College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences programs across rural and urban Ohio.

 

How does an urban kid with no background in agriculture discover a love for plants and a professional interest in horticulture? For Cleveland native Josh Henry, it started with a gardening class in elementary school.

 

A greenhouse and nursery management major at Ohio State University's Agricultural Technical Institute (ATI), Henry was a fourth-grader at Benjamin Franklin Elementary in Cleveland's Old Brooklyn neighborhood when he attended a gardening course offered by the Cuyahoga County Master Gardener Volunteer program.

 

The Master Gardener program is run by Ohio State University Extension, which along with Ohio State ATI is part of the university's College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences (CFAES).

 

Learning about plants in fourth grade was a defining moment for Henry, so much so that he has been involved with the classes and the gardens at Benjamin Franklin ever since. He has helped kids look at plant parts under microscopes, taught them how to identify vegetables, assisted them with planting and harvesting vegetables, and talked to them about his history with the Master Gardeners and with horticulture.

 

"Since my interest in horticulture came from when I took that class, it is very important to me to think that I might get another child interested in the field," Henry said. "Even if only one student becomes interested, I still count my involvement as a victory."

 

Henry's interest in gardening and plants in general led him to Ohio State ATI, an associate-degree-granting unit of the university. ATI is ranked No. 1 in the U.S. among two-year institutions in the awarding of degrees in agriculture.

 

Read more about Josh here.

 

Cindy Biggs PhotoMeet The Expert

Cindy Biggs 

 

Cindy is a Certified Co-active Coach specializing in leadership development, mentoring, professional co-active coaching, board development and governance, strategic planning, merger integration facilitation, and human resource solutions.

 

 

Corporations and nonprofits alike look to Cindy for human resources solutions in order to successfully recruit, orient, evaluate, discipline, reward and retain diverse groups of leaders and employees who add excellence to their organizations.

 

Individuals, groups, and businesses seek assistance from Cindy for both personal and professional co-active coaching for their executives, leaders, and employees. Individuals on their own seek out coaching to fully and vividly engage in all aspects of their life or work that are most meaningful, most compelling, and most alive.

 

 

Areas of expertise:

  • Coaching & Mentoring
  • Strengths Based Leadership
  • Employee Retention
  • Strategic Planning
  • Diversity
  • Board Development

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Spring into action with assistance from BTES