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Managers, Operators Place Great Importance on Continuing Education, Survey Says

CHICAGO — Many managers and operators polled in the October Wire survey place great importance on continuing education, based on the number who said they have received training or certification, attended educational sessions and/or read industry trade magazines.
Asked to classify their industry knowledge, 58.9% of respondents say they are more knowledgeable or as knowledgeable as other managers or operators. Roughly 27% say they’re knowledgeable, but “need to brush up on a few things.” Small percentages say they’re extremely knowledgeable (8.8%) or are too busy running their operation to spend time learning about the industry (5.9%).
Nearly 79% have attended a training program or certification program specific to laundry/linen management, and 82.4% have attended an educational session (convention seminar, service seminar, etc.).
Roughly 77% are planning to attend an educational session in the next year, while 8.8% are not. The remaining 14.7% are unsure.
When respondents were asked to pick an area they’d like to learn more about, there was no clear favorite. Operating costs was most popular at 20.6%, followed by labor management at 17.6%. There was a three-way tie for third with maintenance, laundry chemicals and “other” each at 11.8%. Another three-way tie occurred for sixth, with sales and marketing, different types of equipment, and energy conservation each at 8.8%.
Roughly 41% of survey respondents are planning to attend the Clean Show, slated for next June in New Orleans, which offers a wide-ranging agenda of educational seminars. Roughly 35% are not. The remaining 23.5% are unsure.
When asked about the importance of trade publications, 61.8% say they read most of the stories in an issue. Roughly 18% read about half of the stories, and roughly 12% read every story. Approximately 6% read less than half of the stories, and 2.9% say they never read such publications.
Subscribers to American Laundry News’ Wire e-mails — distributed weekly — are invited to participate in an industry survey each month. The survey is conducted online via a partner website. Each survey is developed so it can be completed in 10 minutes or less. Readers are encouraged to participate, as a greater number of responses will help to better define operator opinions and industry trends.
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Wire ALN 2008 10 A
Wire ALN 2008 10 B

Have a question or comment? E-mail our editor Matt Poe at [email protected].