F IDI AC A D E M Y One of the trips outside of the FIDI classroom leaders of our company, and Academy training programmes ensure our staff receive the best industry training and that they grow in their roles, he says. Only by training your staff can you prepare for the future and retain your talent. Not being at work for a week is not that much of an issue, as our enthusiastic team members will always cover for each other and training benefits us all. Philip Wells is SVP global move management, international division, at JK Moving (USA), which invests heavily in in-house and external training. He says that while any intensive training has an upfront cost, the return on this type of investment in your staff is invaluable to both the individuals career growth as well as the companys long-term growth. Such courses are, he says, a cornerstone for our company culture and overall produce a more experienced, well-rounded, and dynamic workforce. He adds that sending staff on formal external training provides a good opportunity to measure the results of internal learnings to date and to identify areas where the company can improve. At Santa Fe Group which sent two employees to the recent MiM2 deputy CEO Runar Nilsen says the company takes a balanced approach to training, supplementing FIDI Academy online content and webinars, as well as local courses which add an extra dimension. The minute we stop training and development of our people, we start on a road to failure, he says. The planning and following up of training is an important part of our annual development planning and performance review with all individual employees in our group. Roup adds that staff also appreciate the chance to meet their industry peers face to face, create networks, and form lasting friendships. A retention must-have Crucially, providing high-quality training also helps offer the career development opportunities modern employees are looking for and helps companies retain them as a result. If your staff cannot see a future for themselves in your company, they will go elsewhere, says Wells. So, what did they think? Feedback from students from the Barcelona MiM2 The course was intense, but very interesting, very enriching and well structured. There was a lot to take away from the course that will be used in different aspects of my work. I would recommend it to anyone who can attend. It was a very valuable, intense, and fun week. I really appreciated getting trained on management and leadership topics by industry colleagues, rather than a standard trainer with a cookie-cutter approach. After two years of online interactions, it was Maud Juzio, Santa Fe Ciska Pieterse, Atlas International Movers really refreshing to have some faceto-face time with my peers. It was an unforgettable experience. The MiM2 was a great experience. It was an intense week with a lot of theory, but there were many exercises to bring this into practice together with our fellow students. It was a good opportunity to discuss industry problems and to learn from each other. It denitely gave me some ideas to bring the theory into practice within our company. It was great to meet industry peers and extend my global network. George Kabasele, Alfa Moving Jackie Stouffer, JK Moving I was originally registered for the MiM2 two years ago when I was new to managing a team. Since then, my goals have completely changed. MiM2 is invaluable for all levels of experience. Back then, I hoped to learn the basics of being a manager. Today, my goal was to share experiences and gain insights and bring some of this back to JK. The MiM2 is intense, but the more you participate, the more you will take away. 66 FF308 Dec-Jan 23 pp64-68 FIDIAcademy.indd 66 05/12/2022 17:15