By the Numbers:
- 72 Employees
- 6 Teams
- 6 Training Pit Stops
- 15 Trainers
There are a lot of philosophies on learning and engaging training is seen as not only enjoyable for participants and instructors, it is also more effective. Taking that theory to a new level is Pelivan Transit in Big Cabin, Oklahoma.
Pelivan Transit Director Debbie McGlasson said an interactive learning environment has come to be an annual event the employees look forward.
The original safety training day was the employees come in, the managers hit the topics, they got lunch and, McGlasson said, it was lacking pizazz. They rolled the day into a theme, focused on making it a fun environment and as she said, “It transformed from that ‘gotta go learn about blood-borne pathogens,’ to a fun take on training.
“We spend so much of our valuable time on the job during the day … I think it enriches the core of an individual that’s working with you when you adopt those little things … employees really want to be valued and they want to enjoy life.”
Oklahoma Transit Association Executive Director, also a previous volunteer trainer for this day,
Stephen Lalli said even though you’re spending the day working, it doesn’t feel like you’re working; it’s like being back in school when you got to go on a “field trip.” He added, “Even though you’re working, it’s like you’re not working. It’s a nice change of pace.”
Planning
Each year a different theme is picked, 2015 being the fourth year of this type of training. They take something that’s popular, this year it’s Mission Possible. Previous years have included themes like Survivor and The Amazing Race.
Pelivan Transit has about 70 employees and as a rural transportation provider, serves seven counties in northeastern Oklahoma. With such a large service area, this is one day a year where all the employees come together and see each other. The employees are divided up into six teams with 10 to 14 players per team, giving people the opportunity to work alongside people they don’t work with on a day-to-day basis. It allows employees to bond in a different way and to take that team dynamic to a different level.
Service is shut down for the day and all of the employees come to the vehicle maintenance facility in Big Cabin, Oklahoma, where a team of trainers have “pit stops” set up for learning the different modules.
The trainers include in-house staff as well as outside leaders that volunteer their time to come for the day. Topics include things such as customer service, risk management, emergency preparedness, drug and alcohol testing, vehicle inspection and maintenance, and wheelchair securement.
The trainers have the liberty of creating their own training module and teams compete throughout the day during their “pit stops,” last year following “route info,” “detours,” “roadblocks,” “speed bumps” and “intersection instructions” following “The Amazing Race TV show guidelines.
Kristen Joyner, executive director at South West Transit Association and a volunteer trainer for the day, said it’s a way to get adult learners up and moving around. She explained that in her session, there was some classroom elements, reinforcement with a game activity, more classroom time, an outdoor activity and a competition.
“It was great for building camaraderie, for reinforcing learning and learning in a lot of different stles to meet adult learners’ needs.”
One of the outside trainers was a regional sales manager with RouteMatch Software. Melody Floyd, Education Services Manager for RouteMatch Software, said, “It’s incredibly important to make training as fun and hands-on as possible. Adding ‘wow’ elements and variety help create a relaxed environment which lessens resistance. It’s a big part of why I love what I do.”
She continued, “Training is one of the first touch points for us and an agency, and the feelings of good will, confidence and ‘fun’ left behind often set the tone for future experiences.”
Lalli said, “It give them a general understanding of so many areas where you hit the bullet points in a fun environment. You take so much away from it.”
Speaking on the topics employees are learning about, McGlasson also said drivers are exposed to some of the same information that is critical every year, and there are always new things that come out, such as vapor cigarettes. Though a smokeless environment on the vehicles, if someone drops a vapor cigarette, there’s a liquid on the vehicle floor that can be toxic to a driver reaching down with a napkin, picking it up. “The Center for Disease Control has issued a warning that that is toxic,” she said. “It’s things like that, that piques their interest.”
Beyond the Training
All of the employees get a shirt, get lunch, there are prizes for employees and the service is closed for a day. Pelivan staff goes out into the communities it serves to get sponsorship for the day. More than just sponsoring safety, they stress to the area businesses, it’s a day to say thank you to the drivers that are out in those communities every day, getting people to and from those same businesses. McGlasson stated, “We’ve just never not had success with that using our marketing team. They go out there and they give the community a chance to say thank you.”
Joyner added that by going out in the community to get prizes, it’s another opportunity they’re creating to educate people about public transportation. Whether it’s movie passes, a free oil change or gift certificates to area restaurants, it gets the community involved.
Following the event, they send information out to the area media outlets, as well. McGlasson said they send out a press release and photos of employees to the newspapers. She said it not only gives the employees recognition that they were part of a great training day, it’s exposure to the community that these employees come together and get safety training that is part of a mandatory Federal Transit Administration (FTA) training protocol.
“It reminds the community that we’re abiding with what we need to do and exposing our drivers and our dispatchers to the necessary training,” said McGlasson. “It makes a good read for people to see topics that they covered and they came together, and it reminds them that we’re immersed in their community, too.”
Outcome
While McGlasson acknowledges it was a brave step to transform the safety training protocol, she said if the leader is willing to let his or her hair down for a day and have fun, it is easier to have all employees see that this is fun. Finding a way to have staff step outside of its box has created a positive response where people look forward to training day.
Joyner said what she thinks makes this work so well is the amount of pre-planning on the part of all the departments involved. “You have everyone involved in the conversation and it’s often and early. It’s a lot of pre-planning, getting everybody involved, and communicating all the way down the line that this is going to be a fun day. A lot of ‘team’ language.”
McGlasson said, “They relax and have a little fun when you create a theme and get lost out of the business-y aspect of the job.
“They come in knowing we’ve really gone out of our way to make this day fun for them.” She continued, “They have to do it; it’s mandatory training. But, I think it really touches them because they see we were willing to give that extra to make it an enjoyable day.
“That’s why we do it like this.”
