“Learning is not compulsory … neither is survival.”

W. Edwards Deming

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Have you ever been tossed into a work situation for which (whether you knew it or not) you were unprepared?

It happened to me when I was promoted from an account representative role in an ad agency to a supervisor’s job. I thought being a supervisor meant mainly being a super account rep. I didn’t grasp that now my role was to get the most from my team – not to be an individual high performer.

I failed miserably – my own fault. On the other hand, I got no mentoring from within the company and was not sent to any training. Maybe if those resources had been available, things would have gone better. What about your people? Are you preparing them adequately for whatever role you expect them to fill?

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“The school is the last expenditure upon which America should

be willing to economize.”

Franklin D. Roosevelt

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This month’s Cleaner focuses on Lovett Services of Portland, Ore., and its training and continuing education program, Lovett University. Many cleaning contractors invest in training, some quite generously. Lovett Services goes clear over the top.

The university, started in 2009, offers a dozen courses, most required to some degree, depending on the person’s position. How do they afford it all? Well, they’re a pretty big company, but that’s not the full explanation. Their attitude is that they can’t afford not to train their people to high levels of competence.

“If you think education is expensive, try ignorance.” 

Andy McIntyre

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What are the costs of sending technicians to the field without proper training? Most likely, unhappy customers. Mistreated equipment. Inefficiency. Harm to your company’s reputation. Or maybe worst of all, a serious accident because someone failed to recognize a hazard or used a machine improperly.

Now consider: What are the costs of failing to train the people who answer the phones? Skimping on training for first-line supervisors? Neglecting your own professional education?

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“Learning is like rowing upstream: Not to advance is to drop back.”

Chinese Proverb

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As you contemplate the importance of training, think also about what your competitors are doing. What happens if they have formal training programs, if they regularly attend industry trade shows and conferences, if they send themselves to management seminars – and you don’t?

You’ll lose ground. On the flip side, if you educate and train better than everybody else in your market, you’re likely to have an advantage. Your customers will notice the difference – in your technicians’ confidence and efficiency, and in your office associates’ courtesy and knowledge.

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“Man’s mind, once stretched by a new idea, never regains its

original dimensions.”

Oliver Wendell Holmes

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If you’re a smaller company, not a place with 50 or 100 employees, you probably can’t duplicate what Lovett Services does, and most likely you don’t need to. But that company’s example can at least give cause for an owner to ask: Are we doing all the training we should? Could we benefit from taking it up a notch?

Training and education have the power to multiply the effectiveness of each individual and of an entire team. Our venerable 16th president may have said it best:

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“If I had six hours to chop down a tree, I’d spend the first

four hours sharpening the axe.”

Abraham Lincoln