Building on a successful first offering of “Learn to Train,” BEMA, Overland Park, KS, has re-imagined the course with the help of two training and baking industry professionals to include more hands-on learning and make the session more meaningful for participants and more impactful for their companies. The second course will be held Nov. 11-12 at the Four Points by Sheraton Philadelphia City Center in Philadelphia. Interested parties can learn more and register for the workshop at www.bema.org/learntotrain.

“Both our members and their customers have expressed how challenging the start-up and training environment can be for technicians and bakery production personnel,” says Kerwin Brown, president and CEO. “We sought to create a workshop that helps our members maximize training opportunities in this difficult environment. We’ve engaged Renee Rouwhorst, an experienced corporate trainer who also happens to be a retail baker, and Monica Kline, an education specialist and BEMA member who has effectively implemented customer training programs for her company, The EnSol Group, to revamp our Learn to Train program.”

The workshop’s format has also been revised. While still specific to engineers, installation teams and those on the front line with customers in baking facilities, it is now shorter and includes more hands-on and customized learning. “We begin with a needs assessment of the conference attendees,” says Rouwhorst. “In that way, we are able to build on existing skills and experience to provide a meaningful learning experience and more immediate transfer of new skills to their training environment.”

Workshop learning objectives include understanding how adults process learning and how to help them through their learning curve; identifying techniques to improve participation and maintain high energy throughout training sessions; and identifying training techniques that will reduce training time and increase retention. The workshop also addresses adapting training to the noisy, busy bakery environment.