Business View Magazine | April 2020

141 BUSINESS VIEW MAGAZINE APRIL 2020 TRSA Management counterpart, a Maintenance Manager Job Analysis Advisory Task Force has met. Culled from graduates and faculty of TRSA’s Maintenance Management Institute (MMI), this group is working to identify and gather resources, develop surveys and guide the overall process of documenting the maintenance manager’s roles, responsibilities, skills, tasks, and knowledge. Identifying, recruiting and retaining maintenance personnel, particularly skilled, knowledgeable managers, is one of the industry’s most troubling issues. Through the task force’s work on the certificate program and other assessment tools, TRSA is assisting companies in developing the skill sets and improving retention of these valuable employees. While TRSA emphasizes finding good people, it remains a high priority for the association to support operators in reducing labor requirements through automation. Members open their laundries to each other at TRSA analysis and validates candidate’s acumen across production and management. The CPLM designation ensures a set of knowledge and skills, demonstrated a commitment by both the employee and company to develop individuals’ increasing engagement and retention. As one TRSA research participant noted regarding current industry practices, “We promote an individual when someone is reaching 100 percent of their production target, but that’s the wrong reason. If there were a formalized program to prepare someone to go into that supervisory role, that would be a benefit for the whole industry. It’s good for retention for people to see there’s upward mobility in that you can be promoted from the inside.” TRSA’s emerging Core Curriculum Certificate Program consists of online modules and testing for skill development. The Production Management Certificate program is now available online. To develop its Maintenance “Toolbox Talk” at TRSA member Superior Linen Service, Springdale, Ark., reflects TRSA emphasis on elevating the industry’s ability to recruit, assess, train and retain the best, more engaged talent.