A Wal-Mart Education: Employees going through new Ooltewah training academy

Staff photo by Mike Pare / The first graduates of Wal-Mart's new training academy took part in a ceremony outside the company's Ooltewah supercenter on Wednesday.
Staff photo by Mike Pare / The first graduates of Wal-Mart's new training academy took part in a ceremony outside the company's Ooltewah supercenter on Wednesday.

It gives you the tools you needed instead of training as you go.

Wal-Mart support manager Matt Rehring said Wednesday that one big lesson he learned during training at the retailer's new academy in Ooltewah was "courageous conversation."

"It's being willing to say [to my supervisor] 'Let me finish this task first,'" he said, and doing it in a way that still shows respect.

The Harrison man was one of about 50 employees at the company's Ooltewah supercenter who made up the first graduating class of the training academy.

The academy is Wal-Mart's 33rd nationally and only the second in Tennessee. It's one of 200 the retailing giant plans to set up nationwide by the end of 2017.

Walmart created its new end-to-end training program called Pathways for associates at all levels of store operations, from entry-level to regional general manager. The retail giant aims to provide academy training for all of its 140,000 employees in the future.

Ooltewah store manager Todd Suchy said the academy, set up inside the supercenter, now will provide training for the 30 or so other Wal-Mart stores in Southeast Tennessee as well.

He said that up to 90 Wal-Mart workers are expected to go through the academy every week.

The two weeks of training are a combination of classroom work and going onto the store floor to apply what the employees have learned, helping to provide consistency and improve performance, according to the company.

Jennifer Upham, a department manager at the Ooltewah store, said she and her husband both went through the training regimen.

She said the training stresses having the proper attitude and staying positive. If she wants to move up in the company, she'll put it into her resume, Upham said.

"It's a really good experience," said the 5-year Wal-Mart employee. "You think you know everything This puts a new perspective on it."

Rehring, who has worked 10 years at the retailer, said he wished he'd had this type of training when he was first hired.

"It gives you the tools you needed instead of training as you go," he said.

Terry Edwards, who watched wife, Diana, graduate, said the training wasn't easy, though she scored a 100 on an exit test.

"She learned a lot of stuff she didn't know," the Cleveland, Tenn., man said about his wife, who's a 23-year employee and a customer service supervisor.

Jesse Williams said his fiancee, Dubois Battle, "loved the training."

"It's her field," he said, adding that it helped the department manager learn how to become more of a leader.

Sean Riley, a Wal-Mart regional general manager, said the training academies help provide employees with the skills they need to succeed and advance, while creating a better and more consistent customer experience.

"Skills training increases productivity, confidence and knowledge, which leads to greater job satisfaction, personal and professional growth and helps make working at Wal-Mart a smart career choice," he said.

The first week of training is dedicated to retail fundamentals and gaining core retail skills, according to the company. The second week involves training on the sales floor to gain the knowledge and skills to run the specific department where the associate works.

Areas of study include leadership, merchandising, operations, technology and customer service, in addition to the department-specific training.

Contact Mike Pare at mpare@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6318.

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