Best Practices
Learn
how to start, keep and evaluate a
workplace literacy and basic skills
program by learning from other
Canadian companies – several
programs are presented here as Case
Studies.
Suggested steps
for learning from Case Studies:
-
Choose
from:
Small
(less than 100 employees),
Medium
(between 100 and 500 employees)
or
Large
(more than 500 employees)
businesses.
-
Read the
highlights of each case study to
see just the challenges and
solutions used.
-
Read and
download the Case Studies in full
(pdf files) for short, factual
reports.
-
Mix and
match the highlights from
different Case Studies to create a
customized solution that works for
your organization.
Note:
Case studies on other education and
learning issues can be found at: www.conferenceboard.ca/education/best-practices
Small
Business Case Studies
Small businesses
(less than 100 employees) face unique
challenges in providing training to
employees. While businesses of all
sizes experience challenges in
providing workplace training, small
businesses may need to take different
approaches to these issues. Short
staffing and lack of access to
training materials are two of the
biggest challenges for small
businesses in this area.
Technology-based
learning, distance learning, using
volunteers and on-the-job mentoring
are possible solutions for them. A
combination of solutions, customized
to meet the needs of the small
organization, often works best.
Learn how to
start, keep and evaluate a workplace
literacy and basic skills program by
learning from other Canadian companies
– several programs are presented
here as Case Studies.
Suggested steps
for learning from Case Studies:
-
Read the
highlights of each case study (below)
to see just the challenges and solutions used.
-
Read and
download the Case Studies in full (pdf
files) for short, factual reports.
-
Mix and match
the highlights from different Case
Studies to create a customized solution that
works for your organization.
Case Study -
Durabelt
Inc.: Empowering Adult Learners
(pdf,
163 kb)
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with Boardwise and download the report
Small Business: Charlottetown, PEI
Industry: Machinery and Equipment
| Challenge |
Solution |
- build support for workplace training at all levels of
the organization
|
- design an employee-centred process for employee training
- use a workplace project team for program development, and include
representatives from management and every department
|
- maintain investments in employee education despite
challenges of measuring its success using quantified methods
|
- provide in-kind services such as space, training
program administration, and learning materials
|
- create an inviting environment for learning
|
- foster a learning culture
- involve learners in program development
|
- provide meaningful incentives to employees as a reward
or recognition for skills upgrading
|
- provide time off work for learning
- assist employees achieve their GED
- motivate employees to enroll in community college programs
|
Case Study - Achieving Industry Standards in
a Remote Northern Community: Developing
Employees’ Skills at La Ronge Motor
Hotel (pdf, 102 kb)
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Small Business: La Ronge, SK
Industry: Hospitality/Tourism
The hallmark of
learning at the La Ronge Motor Hotel is
that worker development is conceived as
a process, not an event. Learning is a
daily activity supported by senior
managers who regard education and skills
development to industry standards for
Aboriginal peoples as a top priority.
|
Challenge
|
Solution
|
- administrative and project
management are a burden for
employers who seek government
funding for programs
|
- employer is creative and dedicated
to pursuing limited, short-term
funding for continuous workplace
education
|
- managers are required to act as
"coaches" for
worker-students who wish to apply
new skills to their jobs
|
- managers are trained to act as
group leaders and mentors to workers
- managers challenge worker-students
to apply what they learn on the job
|
- working at the hotel competes with
other priorities, some of them
cultural, for hotel staff
|
- engage and train a large group,
whose members can substitute for one
another
|
- relatively low levels of formal
education are available to residents
of northern Saskatchewan
|
- use an on-site learning centre
- create a workplace environment
that supports learning opportunities
|
- workers are typically raised in a
culture in which knowledge is passed
on orally
|
- use existing storytelling skills
of native workers in coaching
exercises
- Lac La Ronge Indian Band engaged
in training efforts of band members
- create a basic training video that
is narrated in Cree, Dené and
English
|
- workers’ past experiences with
formal education tends to be
negative
|
- leverage results of one course to
enhance the impacts of the next;
build a culture of workplace
learning
- an aboriginal, also a former
employee, engaged to conduct
training
- peer tutoring is used extensively
|
Case Study -
Excellence
in Workplace Literacy, Small Business
Winner, 2002: Diversified Metal
Engineering Ltd. (pdf, 73 kb)
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with Boardwise and download the report
Small Business: Charlottetown, PEI
Industry: Machinery and Equipment
|
Challenge
|
Solution
|
- difficult to maintain production schedules while
workers take time off for training
|
- stress benefits of training to supervisors to gain their support
- support the positive attitude and commitment of supervisors and workers
- agree upon overtime arrangements
|
- need for customized course materials
|
- use a hands-on trainer who understands the work tasks
- use real workplace documents and situations as course materials/problems
|
- some workers reluctant to participate
|
- stress the benefits of training to workers, as well as
participant confidentiality
|
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Medium
Business Case Studies
Medium businesses (between 100 and
500 employees) often face some of the
same challenges as small businesses,
such as gaining access to training
materials, as well as those of large
businesses, such as calculating how
much to budget for training.
Finding a balanced approach to
training is a key challenge for
medium-sized businesses, where the
skills development needs of both
individual employees and the
organization are met.
Learn how to start, keep and
evaluate a workplace literacy and
basic skills program by learning from
other Canadian companies – several
programs are presented here as Case
Studies.
Suggested steps for learning from
Case Studies:
-
Read the highlights of each
case study (below) to see just the
challenges and solutions used.
-
Read and download the Case
Studies in full (pdf files) for
short, factual reports.
-
Mix and match the highlights
from different Case Studies to
create a customized solution that
works for your organization.
Case Study
- Cameco Corporation
(pdf, 70 kb)
Medium Business: Key Lake, SK
Industry: Metallic Minerals and Metal Products
|
Challenge
|
Solution
|
- difficult to schedule training in a 'work camp' environment where employees
alternate between being on and off site each week
|
- use of a Learning Centre with a
flexible, open-door policy
|
- remote location of workplace makes delivery of training difficult
|
- offer on-site learning opportunities at work
- provide distance education to high school, college and university courses
via satellite
|
- cultural background of employees generally lacked higher educational
opportunities
|
- stress benefits of long-term literacy and basic skills development to
supervisors, employees and management
|
- high costs of supporting employee training
|
- company matches one hour paid for one hour of training with employees
|
Case Study -
Learning for Life:
Employee Literacy at Honeywell Limited (pdf,
88 kb)
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with Boardwise and download the report
Medium Business: Scarborough, ON
Industry: Machinery and Equipment
Learning at
Honeywell Limited drives business
success. Through its commitment to
workplace learning and developing
literacy skills, Honeywell has become a
highly productive and innovative
organization.
|
Challenge |
Solution |
- difficult to ensure that the
learning reflects the
strategic needs of the
organization, in order to
maximize training ROI
|
- individual learning programs
reflect short- and long-term
needs of the company
|
- the costs of designing and
maintaining its own learning
programs are high for the
organization
|
- the company regards
investments in its employees
as a necessary part of doing
business
|
- the day-to-day pressures of
work and life outside work
often limit the amount of time
employees can devote to
learning programs
|
- employees are encouraged and
supported by management and
the union to take part in
initiatives to raise their
skill levels
|
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Large
Business Case Studies
Large businesses (more than 500
employees) often face both strategic
and operational challenges when they
offer training to employees. For large
businesses, measuring the success of a
training initiative is an important
part of program sustainability.
Meeting both the skills and career
development needs of individual
employees while maintaining a healthy
ROI (return on investment) for the
organization is another key challenge
to training for large businesses.
Learn how to start, keep and
evaluate a workplace literacy and
basic skills program by learning from
other Canadian companies – several
programs are presented here as Case
Studies.
Suggested steps for learning from
Case Studies:
-
Read the highlights of each
case study (below) to see just the
challenges and solutions used.
-
Read and download the Case
Studies in full (pdf files) for
short, factual reports.
-
Mix and match the highlights
from different Case Studies to
create a customized solution that
works for your organization.
Case Study - Cominco Ltd.
(pdf, 172 kb)
Large Business: Trail, BC
Industry: mining, mineral exploration, smelting, refining
|
Challenge
|
Solution
|
- develop ability of the workforce to adapt to change and work with new
technology
|
- support broad, employee-driven learning, in addition to employer-driven, job
specific training
|
- engage both management and the union in employee education initiatives
|
- a joint labour-management committee guided the basic skills education
program development at Cominco
|
- offer training to employees at a convenient time and place
|
- use an on-site, drop-in style Learning Centre
|
- provide flexible learning opportunities to suit the needs of individual
learners
|
- through the Learning Centre, employees can work one-on-one with a tutor, in
small groups, by computer, or by correspondence
|
Case Study
- Skills for a Stable Workforce:
Workplace Education at Avon Foods (pdf,
458 kb)
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Large Business: Kentville, NS
Industry: Food, Beverage and Tobacco
Avon Foods Inc.
instituted a workplace education program
to give workers easy access to skills
upgrading opportunities. The success of
the program has resulted in its being
used to promote workplace education
throughout Nova Scotia.
|
Challenge
|
Solution
|
- difficult for a long-time employee base to adapt to new technology
|
- offer skills upgrading opportunities to all employees
|
- introduction of a new quality control system placed greater demands on
employees’ writing and reading skills
|
- offer literacy and basic skills upgrading opportunities to all employees
|
- management reluctance to invest in training for an experienced workforce
|
- over time, training shows positive impacts and benefits
|
- union concerns that increased paper qualifications for recruitment and
promotion may hurt members
|
- offer all employees opportunities to upgrade GED and other skills leading to
formal credentials
|
Case Study 6
- The North West Company
(pdf, 62 kb)
Large Business: Winnipeg, MB
Industry: Consumer Goods and Services
|
Challenge
|
Solution
|
- deliver training to a workforce located all cross a vast geographic area
|
- adapt on-site training to local or regional needs
|
- difficult to design training for diverse employee populations and cultures,
including Inuit, First Nations and Francophone
|
- use translators to provide training in employees’ first language
- offer flexible, meaningful training programs
|
- the wide variety of customer services provided requires a similar variety of
training for employees
|
- use ‘Best Practice’ stores to promote internal service excellence to
others
- promote informal mentoring in stores
|
Case Study -
Literacy through E-learning: The Second
Language Learning Café at the Bank of
Canada (pdf, 453 kb)
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Large Business: Ottawa, ON
Industry: Crown Corporation; Financial
To address the
lack of e-learning materials for second
language training, the Bank of Canada
launched its own language training
e-initiative – The Second Language
Learning Café.
|
Challenge
|
Solution
|
- lack of e-learning materials for second language training
|
- internal staff creates training material content, based on job tasks and
client suggestions
|
- support formal second language training courses
|
- use a language learning resource that employees can access anytime at their
desktop
|
- providing training to an employee base spread across Canada
|
- provide simultaneous access to learning for all employees through the Bank’s
existing Intranet system
|
- provide immediate feedback to learners
|
- provide feedback instantly using an electronic training delivery method
|
- keep track of individual employees’ learning progress
|
- the computerized database creates customized learning for each employee
|
- maintain a catalogue of language training activities and exercises
|
- electronic delivery system serves as a permanent and ever-expanding library
of language exercises
|
Case Study - Establishing a Baseline for
Training: Literacy and Numeracy at
Bristol-Myers Squibb (pdf, 60 kb)
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Large Business: Candiac, QC
Industry: Chemicals and Chemical
Products
At
its Pharmaceutical Research Institute,
Bristol-Myers Squibb recently assessed
the skill levels of all employees
without a university degree and provided
development opportunities to help them
address skill gaps.
|
Challenge |
Solution |
- overcoming the assumption that
existing workers have
appropriate skills for new
manufacturing processes
|
- assess employees’ skills in
a non-threatening way, and then
offer support for developing or
refreshing skills
- company views skills upgrading
as a long-term commitment
|
- difficulty measuring changes
in behaviour versus change in
competence
|
- track impacts of training on
workplace productivity
- reinforce idea that quality
assurance in the concern of all
employees
|
- estimating the amount of time
needed for individual learners
to upgrade needed literacy and
numeracy skills
|
- create a realistic training
implementation plan, with help
from training experts
|
Case Study
- Breaching the Access Barrier:
Developing and Retaining Talent at
Palliser Furniture (pdf, 63 kb)
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Large Business: Winnipeg, MB
Industry: Consumer Goods and Services
Palliser
Furniture’s vision statement speaks of
"building value with values."
Corporate values are supported by a
strong tradition of workplace education.
Palliser regards solid grounding in
basic skills among its workers as
fundamental to its business success.
|
Challenge |
Solution |
- reduce costs of staff
turnover
|
- offer skills upgrading
opportunities to employees
|
- maintaining shop floor
schedules while workers are
"absent" in training
classes
|
- market benefits of retaining
talent to managers on an
ongoing basis
|
- creating training
opportunities for workers
whose first language is not
English
|
- offer ESL training for
employees
- write workplace documents in
plain language for clarity and
easy reading
|
- new immigrant employees may
feel isolated in the workplace
and the community
|
- coaches make new employees
feel welcome and communicate
company expectations clearly
- new employees placed on work
teams to promote inclusion
into the workforce
|
Case Study
-
Literacy Training on Demand:
Michelin Learning Centres (pdf, 454 kb)
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Large Business: Waterville, NS
Industry: Transportation Equipment
The multifaceted
approach to learning featured in
Michelin’s Learning Centres provides
the range of training required to help
workers learn how to practice the
teamwork approach, while providing them
with growth and fulfillment.
|
Challenge
|
Solution
|
- changing work environment, to self-guided teams, required the workforce to
upgrade skills
|
- provide literacy and basic skills upgrading through the Learning Centre
|
- employee reluctance to ‘return to the classroom’
|
- the Learning Centre offers an open-door, comfortable learning environment
with a variety of activities and resources
|
- scheduling training around work shifts and priorities
|
- management support of training
- flexible, adaptable shop floor supervisors
- continuously market the benefits of training to shop floor supervisors as
well as individual employees
- Learning Centre open 24 hours a day
|
Case Study - Employee Literacy and Learning
in the Workplace: Suncor Energy Inc. (pdf,
84 kb)
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Large Business: Fort McMurray, AB
Industry: Energy
By
supporting the training and development
needs of workers, and promoting from
within, Suncor Energy Inc. has created a
workplace where commitment is freely
given and workers have a strong desire
to exceed expectations and ultimately
outperform the competition.
|
Challenge |
Solution |
- program training costs are
as high as $4,000 per
employee/student
|
- management and the union
fully support the program
- the company views training
as a long-term investment and
promotes from within
|
- the testing and assessment
tools used in the program
require regular upgrading for
accuracy
|
- Test of Workplace Essential
Skills (TOWES), a tool that
has been extensively tested,
is used to screen job
applicants
- company works in partnership
with local colleges to ensure
appropriate training and
assessment tools are used
|
- due to enrolment
constraints, demand for this
sector-specific training
program far outweighs the
supply
|
- employee candidates for
training are rigorously
screened for attitude and
aptitude
|
Case Study - Peer Tutoring: Employees
Helping Employees at Canadian Forest
Products Ltd. (pdf, 97 kb)
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Large Business: Prince George, BC
Industry: Wood and Paper
Canadian
Forest Products Ltd. works
collaboratively with unions in its mills
to train workers to become peer tutors
who lead learning activities in the
workplace.
|
Challenge |
Solution |
- providing resources for a
workplace education program in
tough economic times
|
- company sees enhancing the
basic skills of its workforce
as a long-term venture
- trained peer tutors used
extensively
|
- managing time demands of
tutors
|
- peer tutors work with
college instructors to
establish learning plans and
programs
|
- overcoming history of
adversarial labour-management
dealings
|
- training program provides a
framework for a joint labour-management
approach to workplace literacy
skills upgrading
|
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