Leadership & Development Training Produce Success at Idaho Forest Group
Company Profile
From its Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, headquarters, Idaho Forest Group (IFG) is a closely held, family-owned company that is one of America’s largest lumber producers, with a capacity for over one billion board feet per year and markets around the globe. IFG operates 5 sawmills and a finger-joint facility in North Idaho and a sawmill in Lumberton, Mississippi.
Situation
For over a decade, IFG’s leadership team had regularly collaborated with TechHelp, part of the MEP National Network™, to develop customized solutions to IFG’s challenges. When IFG needed better methods for training new employees and practical tools for developing future leaders, the company turned to TechHelp again.
Solution
TechHelp and IFG introduced the “Training Within Industry” methodology to bring new employees up to speed quickly. Technical employees learned the fundamentals of project management and Lean Six Sigma to ensure the successful rollout of new methods and equipment. Future leaders learned the principles of Lean Manufacturing to create a culture of continuous improvement.
Results
- Invested $25K in employee training over two years.
- Dramatically reduced the learning curve for new and current employees.
- Improved ability to track employee skills for development and succession planning.
- Reduced communication errors.
- Increased process uptime, & improved product quality.
“TechHelp is an integral partner for Idaho Forest Group’s talent development and continuous improvement strategies. The project management resources shared by TechHelp enable supervisors to plan, organize, and deliver on improvement initiatives that impact key performance indicators.”
Marie Price, Director for Training & Development