navigate: home: magazine: spring 2001: article

Company invests in its workforce with training from Penn State DuBois By Michele Moyer
Steve Geer, maintenance crew team leader in the specialty mill at Willamette Industries in Johnsonburg, Pa., accepts a certificate for completing a yearlong management development program offered by Penn State DuBois from Dr. Claudia A. Limbert, campus executive officer. Geer was one of 73 Willamette employees who completed the training program.	Our people are an enormous resource, and in this millennium, the company that utilizes its people best will be the winner in the long run,” said William Keswick, manager of engineering at Willamette Industries’ Johnsonburg, Pa., Paper Mill.   Keswick’s comments followed graduation ceremonies held for 73 of the plant’s team leaders and supervisors who completed a yearlong management development program offered by Penn State DuBois.   The training program, which started in June 1999, was comprised of 13 four-hour sessions. The courses were designed to help employees develop new skills in leadership, performance management, effective coaching, time and multiple priority management, managing meetings and presentations, delegation and employee development, communication, creative problem solving for individuals and teams, and conducting team meetings.   Providing training for 73 people represents an important investment for the Johnsonburg plant, which, with 525 employees, is one of Elk County’s largest employers. In the past, the plant has invested heavily in the hands-on training required to operate its machinery and process equipment, but, Keswick explained, it was time to add another tool to the toolbox: people skills.   “Years ago, the management style was ‘I tell you, then you do.’ But for a company to succeed today, its people have to be able to work and communicate effectively with others, both inside and outside of the company,” he said.   Keswick noted he already sees the benefits of the program in his shop.   “As our employees’ communication and leadership skills have improved, we’ve seen more openness, and people now feel like they’re part of the mix and can talk more freely. It has also helped to open the lines of communication between our team leaders and their crews.”   The Penn State DuBois Continuing Education unit designed the program offered at Willamette to meet the specific needs of the plant. The primary mission of the Continuing Education unit is to create individualized training programs for local businesses and industries.   “Customized training programs are essential for businesses and industries competing in today’s global marketplace,” John Piccolo, director of Continuing Education at Penn State DuBois, said. “Our program for Willamette is an excellent example of the education and training programs Penn State DuBois Continuing Education can develop in collaboration with companies to assist them in competing effectively.”   The DuBois campus works with Penn State’s Management Development Programs and Services unit to bring Penn State faculty and programs directly to the doorsteps of local companies.   “As an outreach arm of Penn State, we’re able to bring the best instructors and programs the University has to offer right to the plant floor or wherever our customer chooses,” Connie Caverno, former Penn State DuBois Continuing Education representative, said. “The training is also scheduled at times convenient for our client, even if that means after the 3-to-11 shift or on a Saturday.” Caverno now resides in Raleigh, N.C., but she continues to work part time for Penn State DuBois Continuing Education as a consultant and proposal writer.   For Willamette, Penn State DuBois developed a diverse training package to meet the needs identified by department managers and team leaders and offered the courses at various times to accommodate the plant’s rotating shift schedule.   Today, with an ever-growing global market driven by technology that moves product at the click of a mouse, on-site workforce training is in great demand.   “Companies are feeling more pressure than ever to be competitive,” said John McKissick, an instructor with Penn State Management Development Programs and Services, who taught some of the Willamette courses. “As a result of this pressure, the individual employee is held more accountable and is required to be even more productive.”   It’s an observation Keswick and his crew understand firsthand.   “The competition out there is tough. All the paper mills can essentially buy the same equipment and use it in the same way, but the company with the best-trained people will produce the best product,” Keswick said.