PMA SHOWS VERSION OF CD-ROM TRAINING PROGRAM

AMY I. STICKEL

DALLAS -- The Produce Marketing Association demonstrated a preliminary version of a CD-ROM training program amid the technological advances on display at the association's FreshTech 96 conference here earlier this month.

Aimed at entry-level produce clerks, the program is designed to cut training time in half and boost retention rates significantly, according to Steve Ahlberg, vice president of member programs for Newark, Del.-based PMA.

The trade association plans to make the program available to retailers by the Annual Produce Conference, which is scheduled June 8 to 11, Ahlberg said.

The CD-ROM format allows employees to work at their own pace. Ahlberg said it is estimated to take about six to eight hours total for clerks to get through the program, which is comprised of eight training modules.

The modules break down the training this way: an introduction to the produce department, customer service, safety and sanitation, the perishability of produce, basic receiving and storing, maintaining freshness, trimming and merchandising, Ahlberg said.

A testing feature in the program allows managers to track individual and group scores, both at the store level and the corporate level. That way, managers can identify if an entire group of employees is struggling with any particular module, Ahlberg said.

"That type of information is extremely useful, when it's trackable," he said.

The program can also be customized by retail operators to suit their needs. The customization can be as simple as affixing a company logo on the program, to inserting an introduction by the vice president of perishables, Ahlberg said. Produce executives can also choose to increase the emphasis on a specific module.

PMA designed the CD-ROM in conjunction with the international division of IGA, based in Chicago, and AMMG, a multimedia company based in Auburn, Calif.

The CD-ROM will have an initial price of $750 per store, bumping up later to a regular price of $1,200 per store, said Kent Rhodes, chief executive officer of AMMG.