TALENT DEVELOPMENT KNOW-HOW
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a position dedicated solely to ensuring our growing workforce was trained, which is why we hired a full-time training program facilitator, Jaci Zimmerman, last fall.” GEOTEK wanted to invest in its employees by establishing further a robust training program from the first day, emphasizing the importance of safety and quality. “Jaci has been responsible for helping to restructure and create a new training plan, but as GEOTEK had grown, we realized this new training program was going to need a dedicated space,” Young says. This space started off as a test lab, complete with concrete floors, massive metal structures simulating those found to hold powerlines in the field, and everything you’d need to test the strength and resilience of GEOTEK’s products. “After our expansion a few years ago, the space became a secondary warehouse,” Young says. “I knew we couldn’t wait to build a space, so Jaci and I worked together on a proposal to turn the former test lab into a state-of-the-art learning center.” It took help from almost every department at GEOTEK to make the room come together quickly. People were stopping in after their shifts or between meetings and assembling furniture, designing custom safety posters, getting hands-on learning stations designed and assembled. “To say it was a team effort would be an understatement. By April 27, we were finally ready to open the doors and have a ribbon cutting to celebrate the GEOTEK Learning Center,” Young says. “We had a space designed and dedicated to our employees, their learning goals, and their career goals.” As a multifunctional space, GEOTEK has a section that serves as a computer lab, customizable classroom section with seating and big screen for presentations, and multiple hands-on learning stations that replicate the equipment found on the company’s different production departments. Currently, GEOTEK holds an orientation session for new employees, which takes place in the Learning Center both Thursday and Friday every other week. The Learning Center also has provided a landing space for new hires during orientation with dedicated lockers for learners, a room where all new hires can enjoy a company-provided lunch with their new supervisors, and everything they need to complete their first day of training.
In a rapidly changing business environment where information can quickly become obsolete, staying on top of training can be a mountainous task. Changes in the global economy, advances in technology, shifting workforce demographics, and corporate restructuring have all contributed to a profound shift in the way America trains its workforce. GEOTEK, a designer, manufacturer, and distributor of reinforced fiberglass pultrusion products in Stewartville, MN has recently introduced its GEOTEK Learning Center, an innovative space designed for employee training and development. “We identified gaps in our training program, and we wanted to make sure we were still investing in our employees,” says Julie Young, director of quality at GEOTEK. “We realized that it was necessary to have
JULY 2023 — ROCHESTER AREA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE ADVANTAGE MAGAZINE | 5
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