It’s the third year in a row that Pilot Company has been selected for Training Magazine’s APEX Awards – a renowned, well-known award that recognizes the top training organizations and programs across the globe. The jump from #126 in 2020 to #66 last year to #36 this year is a tribute to our learning and development team’s strategic, focused enhancements to create meaningful programs that “train the right behaviors and drive the right results.” Likewise, this recognition would not have been possible without the commitment and collaboration from our field leaders who supported and executed on our training initiatives.
Like most companies, we faced a major challenge when the pandemic hit. We had to find a way to keep training our team members remotely. It turned out to be a fantastic opportunity to refresh and enhance our offerings. Take our General Manager Leadership Development (GMLD) Program for example. What used to be a 5-day program at our SSC in Knoxville, TN where general managers would learn various processes, company initiatives, best practices, and leadership coaching quickly had to be redesigned.
“The pandemic was not discriminant,” Gene Baquet, Pilot Company Manager of Learning and Development, said. “Organizations that did well and performed well were the ones that could pivot to train and develop team members in new ways while being just as effective, if not more effective in some cases. That’s one reason why we jumped 30 spots in the ranking.”
There’s another reason for winning this training award. Our senior leaders are invested in our Team Members training and success. For instance, Jason Nordin, Pilot Company chief operator, attends every GMLD orientation session and graduation, and he signs each certificate of completion. “For Jason to talk to our team members and ask what’s working well and what’s not shows that he’s willing to listen and take the time to hear,” said Kina Chapman, Manager of Field Learning and Development. “It shows that our leaders care and are invested in our team members.”
We have similar support for our other programs which is a key ingredient to success. “Any training program will fail if it’s not aligned with your business imperatives and where your company’s going,” Gene said. “We couldn’t do what we do without the sponsorship from our senior leaders.”
Along with the overall ranking, Pilot Company was also recognized for a Best Practice Award for Service Leader Development, which is based on project scope, link to business goals, innovation, reinforcement, senor leadership involvement, and business impact.
The Service Leader (SL) Development Program provides SLs with a defined career path and development plan:
After 20 days of in-store training, our SLs attend off-site classes – facilitated by Region Managers and HR Business Partners. They learn HR, leadership, and job specific skills they can put into immediate action back in their stores. While the course also has a virtual option, the in-person classes have proven to increase confidence, build skill, and reduce turnover for our highly valued Service Leaders.
“I am very proud of what our team and Company has and continues to accomplish. This year we’re particularly excited about the Team Member Experience (TMx) initiative and ways we will evolve and expand our programs, tools, and classes. We look forward to continued alignment with business needs, delivering outcomes-based development opportunities, and strengthening business partnerships to positively impact the Team Member experience and overall growth and success of our company.” – Craig BeVier, Pilot Company’s Director of Talent Development.
