Qualified Remodeler is an online publication and monthly magazine subscription giving out all the latest information regarding the remodeling industry, from current building trends and style guides to state-of-the-art technologies. It also contains an abundance of resources like a calendar of industry events and two bi-weekly podcasts. Our very own Charlie Schloegel spoke with them about NARI and the resources available at Schloegel Design Remodel for our designers, craftspeople, and staff.
NARI
Our relationship with the National Association of the Remodeling Industry (NARI) allows for many opportunities to advance the skills of our team members. NARI, and more specifically, the Kansas City NARI Chapter, provides member-focused education through training and certification programs as well as facilitates local business relationships by organizing networking and marketing opportunities.
“Our Kansas City NARI chapter hosts many educational seminars, and we pay for our team members’ registration to attend. We also take advantage of the educational webinars from NARI National. Without NARI’s continuing education, there aren’t that many resources widely available to remodeling professionals.” – Charlie Schloegel.
Schloegel YOUniversity
Realizing a need for training within our team we created our own training program, “Schloegel YOUniversity.” Schloegel YOUniversity addresses the need for qualified craftspeople and a desire to see a new generation of carpenters and project managers succeed in the remodeling industry. This collection of educational resources has been a game changer for our relationship with our team members and the confidence they carry to the job site.
“Often, we develop additional education based on gaps in knowledge we identify when one of our employees attends a NARI training. We will take that topic further and do a deeper-dive internal training that is tailored to the needs of our company and team members.” – Charlie Schloegel.
When our team members feel empowered to continue educating themselves, they produce higher-quality work and a better client experience!
Some of our internal training programs include:
- Bringing in third-party instructors well-versed in various topics around remodeling and related industries
- Utilizing current staff members to do monthly training sessions for their coworkers, strengthening our Schloegel family and their level of craftsmanship. Examples include how to use certain tools, how to build stairs, etc.
- Prioritizing soft skills like training sessions on how to manage subcontractors and improving communication skills for our sales, design, and production teams
The information shared in these training sessions can be referenced anytime by our team members in an online library maintained by Schloegel, so there’s never fear of forgetting what they learned.
Team members attend a stair-building workshop hosted in our warehouse.
Our designers are always welcome to attend hard skill workshops to broaden their knowledge of materials, get hands-on building experience, and be a carpenter for a day. Andrea Breer takes a break from her designer duties to learn how to build a set of stair risers from Ron Webster.
Chris Peterson, Ryan Waters, Trevor Gariety, Brandon Edgerson, and Thomas Schauffler attend a virtual training session on the mathematics of remodeling.
Apprenticeship Program
But wait, there’s more! Schloegel also offers a competitive apprenticeship program that includes in the field, hands-on training, and monetary compensation (that’s right, a PAID apprenticeship!). Learn more about our apprenticeship program from Chris Peterson in our blog post here:
Chris Peterson Discusses Schloegel’s Apprenticeship Program on KC Live
Two of our core values are Innovation and Self-Growth. Innovation to us doesn’t just mean keeping up with the latest building technologies and reimagining how we invest in our team members and their success. We thank Qualified Remodeler for taking the time to talk with us about the continuing education opportunities at Schloegel Design Remodel!
To read the full article from Qualified Remodeler, follow the link here:
NARI: Leveraging Education to Build a High-Performance Team – Qualified Remodeler