BEST JOB TRAINING PROGRAMS Crane Hydro-Aire When aerospace manufacturer Crane Hydro-Aire began a training program at Glendale Community College more than 10 years ago it was a dramatic change for the Burbank company. “This is mind boggling by today’s standards, but there were six people with (personal computers),” said Michael Smalley, director of communications and advertising for Crane’s aerospace group. Factory: Crane, Glendale Community College work together. Among the first training programs Hydro-Aire employees took part in was computer education which expanded into other areas including English as a second language and quality management, Smalley said. Today, Hydro-Aire is one of the long-standing companies receiving technical, office and leadership training through the Professional Development Center at the Glendale College. Companies often come to the center with a specific training need, get a taste of the quality of the training and it builds from there, said Pamela Welden, program manager at the Professional Development Center. “Our instructors are very well experienced in the areas they are training,” Welden said. “They were presidents, vice presidents, and operational managers of significant organizations.” In a four-year period, Crane reported $10 million in savings that it credited to the training and its boosting of efficiency at the company. Smalley personally knows about the training as his job as a photographer for Crane was deemed obsolete. Through this training program, Smalley said he became computer literate and learned other skills that led to his current position. Mark R. Madler Superior Super Warehouse Superior Super Warehouse operates 29 locations including two Valley locations in North Hollywood and Pacoima making it the largest independently owned chain of grocery stores in Southern California. Superior collaborates with local and state agencies, including work source centers and community-based organizations to hire its employees. Starting in 2005, the chain partnered with L.A. Valley College to provide training for new hires, cashiers, customer service representatives and managers. Each store has about 180 employees, including 20 managers. The company is run by Chief Executive Officer Mimi Song. Those employees are drawn from people who live in the community where the stores are located, said Lennie Ciufo, the director of the job training program at Valley College. “Most of the jobs are living wage jobs with benefits,” Ciufo said. “They are using resources available from the city and state to find these people.” Superior wants to be a strategic partner in the neighborhoods where it locates stores and make a positive contribution, said Aneisa Young, training and development manager for the company. Any employee who has a desire to succeed can do so at the company through the training program, Young said. “A lot of employees come in with low skill levels and the training provides opportunities in growth and career advancement,” Young added. Superior also gives back to the community in other ways, Ciufo said. Valley College received a $10,000 gift from the chain to use for scholarships, he added. Mark R. Madler Galpin Motors By assisting Pierce College with its automotive service program, Galpin Motors secures its future in having a supply of trained technicians. The relationship is a “good marriage” between the dealer, the school and students, said Karl Boeckmann, vice president of Galpin Motors. “They need to be brought up to the educational standards that the cars require,” Boeckmann said. “A junior college is the best place to find people because they are there for the love of automotive repair.” Galpin the largest Ford dealer in the world in terms of volume played a vital role in persuading Ford Motor Co. to make Pierce the site of authorized classes in light maintenance and repair. The dealer also helped in getting late-model vehicles for the students to work on. “We have currently three late-model Fords,” said instructor Tom Rosdahl. “We’re supposed to get three more fairly soon.” The donation of a hoist and its no-cost installation was also the doing of Galpin. Ford offers the training program nationwide but Pierce is the only location in the San Fernando Valley. Students completing the two courses are ready for entry-level work at a dealership and many have ended up working at Galpin, Rosdahl said. Getting a foot in the door is often the hardest part for young people starting a career and the training program eases that entry, Rosdahl said. “It is a very good path to get them an entry level job where they can then get in and get additional training and move up through the ranks,” Rosdahl said. Mark R. Madler
