HIGH ACHIEVERS IN THE HORTICULTURE INDUSTRY
Horticulture Training Pty Ltd is a winner in the training field and the horticulture industry in Queensland is more efficient as a result.
Liz Smith, Director of Horticulture Training Pty Ltd, was thrilled to receive the award for excellence in training delivery from the Nursery and Garden Industry of Queensland. The award recognised the quality of training and services provided by Liz and her companies for training of New Apprentices.
This award capped off a winning night for Liz who also trained the individual award winners in several training categories.
The Award Winning Trainees
The Category 1 winner (Trainee up to AQF Level 3) was Chris Paschedag who works for The Plant Management Company in the landscape maintenance area. Kerri Motson who now works on a contract basis in the propagation field was the winner of Category 2 (Trainee up to AQF Level 4). Chris was awarded a Certificate III in Horticulture (Parks and Gardens) while Kerri received a Certificate IV in Horticulture (Nursery).
As part of the selection process to decide the winners of these categories, candidates were asked to respond to the question "Can Training Help Increase a Business's Market Share".
Both award winners gave a ringing endorsement of the role of training in staff, business and industry development with Chris Paschedag pointing out that well trained employees can "govern the success of a company at present and in the future in securing and maintaining business market share."
Kerri Motson commented that training "assists staff to achieve a level of knowledge, confidence and expertise that will be beneficial to productivity and subsequently ensure quality customer service. Customer satisfaction is the base for any business's market share." Furthermore, "training of staff should not be limited to a small minority ··· with training as a standard requirement in any business's Plan, it is reasonable to assume that their future market share will continue to grow."
The Award Winning Trainer
Liz Smith, Director of Horticulture Training Pty Ltd, the training organisation which provided the training for Chris and Kerri's qualifications, told Rural Skills Australia that her organisation was a strong supporter of the New Apprenticeship arrangements currently in place.
Liz noted that incentives available for people signed up as Horticulturalal New Apprentices were a big help to employers in covering the costs of new starters while they became fully productive in the workplace. The subsidies were a very strong incentive to employers, especially those in small enterprises. (Employers can obtain details of subsidies and incentives from New Apprenticeships Centres.)
Liz said that at Horticulture Training Pty Ltd they place a very strong emphasis on meeting the needs of both the employer and the trainee and work with both parties to ensure that a workable training plan is developed at the beginning of the traineeship.
As a Registered Training Organisation, Horticulture Training Pty Ltd have in place comprehensive quality assurance arrangements and ensure that they meet employer and trainee needs through offering flexible on or off-the-job training. For more information contact RSA on 1800 647 798.