MEA Energy Association (MEA) is excited to announce that, due to its popularity, Skills for Effective Training may now be hosted onsite. Energy delivery companies may now bring this one-day training class to their own training facilities.
Utilities across the country are prioritizing the transfer of knowledge from longtime field employees with specific expertise to new and existing crew members who are lacking on-the-job experience. MEA created Skills for Effective Training to help natural gas and electric distribution field experts become trainers and to provide a skill refresh to seasoned trainers.
One utility already brought Skills for Effective Training to their own facility in November 2019. Feedback from the first instructors to run through the course was extremely positive and they took away many great tips and ideas to incorporate into their own training sessions.
“When I saw that MEA was offering a Skills for Effective Training program, I immediately reached out,” said Laura Budzinski, manager technical training for Peoples Gas, a WEC Energy Group company. “Having incorporated other MEA courses into our onsite training program, I had high hopes and I was not disappointed with [this program]. I have already seen our instructors using the skills and knowledge they received in this class.”
Trainers and instructors must have practical facilitation skills to effectively teach fellow adult learners. The one-day class creates a foundation for trainers to build upon; participants will leave with a solid understanding of trainer expectations and basic knowledge of adult learning styles.
The class is designed for 12-25 participants and includes workbook-based lesson plans, utility-specific examples, and interactive exercises. Units include: facilitation basics, adult learning styles, training people different than you, training styles, and encouraging learner engagement.
“Our members are facing a skills gap due to a large number of retiring Baby Boomers,” says MEA President Patrick Van Beek. “Newly hired employees need training and new trainers must be ready to bring their field experience into the classroom.”
To host an event or to learn more visit MEAenergy.org/education or contact Mark Bechtel, markb (at) MEAenergy (dot) org, or (651) 289-9600 x109 to bring the training to your company.
About MEA:
MEA serves the people that deliver electricity and natural gas to homes and businesses. We were founded as a trade association over 110 years ago by distribution utilities whose vision was to improve safety and efficiency. Today, we fulfill the same purpose through education, leadership development, and industry connections. Energy delivery companies, contractors, and suppliers around the country benefit from our 55 summits, roundtables, and webinars, 400+ online technical courses, safety assessments, evaluator training, operator qualification compliance tools, and leadership courses for field personnel.