Help New Employees Grasp the Industrial Distribution Business Model with Elements of Industrial Distribution

Chicago, Ill.—February 16, 2009—A new online training, Elements of Industrial Distribution, is making it easier for employers to train employees or interns on the ins-and-outs of industrial distribution.  Developed by the Industrial Careers Pathway^® (ICP), the unique online course provides a comprehensive overview of the industrial distribution business model.

“As an employer, have you screened a candidate on the phone and wanted to tear your hair out when you hung up?  The person responding to your ad can’t distinguish between a manufacturer and a distributor.  When you ask what role your company plays in the supply chain, the candidate doesn’t have a clue.  Such is the challenge facing companies in industrial distribution.  Ours is a hidden industry,” said John Masek, vice president, Bearing Service Inc.  “Until Elements of Industrial Distribution.”

First released in the fall of 2008 as a curriculum for colleges to use in their introductory industrial distribution classes, Elements of Industrial Distribution is the perfect tool for companies to orient new staff, prepare interns, transition employees into a new position and broaden the understanding of employees serving in niche roles.  Employees enrolled in the course cover four key areas of study, each containing 17-20 lessons:

• Industrial Distribution Fundamentals introduces employees to the industrial distribution model.
• Functional Operations Overview familiarizes employees with the operating and business components of industrial distribution.
• Customer Service & Sales focuses on the industrial consumer and their relationship with the industrial distributor.
• Marketing & Profitability covers marketing to industrial customers, financial concepts in distribution and profitability.

As employees progress through the course, industry terms are highlighted in text, so employees can review definitions as the terms are used. A complete glossary of industry terms is an easy reference for employees.  Visuals of industry equipment and concepts reinforce lessons.

With Elements of Industrial Distribution, supervisors can monitor employees’ progress through the course with access to employee’s progress through the areas of study as well as results of pre- and post-tests.

To purchase the course, contact ICP at +1.312.516.2100 or info@industrialcareerspathway.com.  The equivalent of a three credit-hour college course, Elements of Industrial Distribution costs $200 per employee.  The course is available at a 25 percent discount of $150 per employee for member companies of the ICP Alliance Partners, including the American Supply Association, Bearing Specialist Association, Industrial Supply Association, International Association of Plastics Distribution, National Fluid Power Association and Power Transmission Distributors Association.  Quantity pricing is also available.

For more information, visit www.industrialcareerspathway.com/ElementsofID.

Spearheaded by the PTDA Foundation, the Industrial Careers Pathway is a multifaceted North American workforce initiative that addresses the need for a skilled industrial distribution and manufacturing sales and customer service workforce today and tomorrow. ICP links students and job seekers to career paths in industrial distribution and manufacturing through partnerships with local educators and employers.  

For more information about efforts being made by ICP to address the need for a skilled industrial distribution workforce, visit www.idcareers.org or contact ICP at info@industrialcareerspathway.org or +1.312.516.2100.

The PTDA Foundation, whose work is funded solely by donations, was founded in 1982 to enhance knowledge, education, professionalism and productivity within the power transmission/motion control (PT/MC) industry. 

The Foundation is a not-for-profit, tax-exempt 501(c)(3) corporation whose operations are funded entirely by tax deductible contributions. Contributions are tax deductible to the full amount allowed by law.