David Scheitlin
NTEA Board Chair
Director of Operations
Holman Manufacturing & Distribution
(Roanoke, Indiana)
This article was published in the May 2023 edition of NTEA News.
It takes a combination of talent, hard work, consistent operational execution, persistence — and a little good fortune — to achieve and maintain excellence in our daily endeavors individually and as a team. These days, with more level playing fields, the gap between winning and losing is even tighter than you might think. Take a look at the recent March Madness, which featured a number of upsets of basketball favorites and powerhouses in just the first two rounds, which demonstrates that on any given day, the perceived underdog who never gives up could become the victor. We’re all in the game, and that’s why it’s so important for individuals, teams and organizations to maximize opportunities to gain a competitive advantage.
In the workplace, one important way for individuals and teams to gain that competitive advantage is through education and training. As a business leader, I see firsthand the value of learning. It can help develop individuals expand their skillsets, think critically and innovatively, and ultimately contribute to a team’s and organization’s success. And in my service on the NTEA Board, I see that education is such an important driver for our industry’s wellbeing and success.
NTEA offers a variety of learning resources for members and industry companies through online educational courses, webinars and during events like Work Truck Week. One opportunity my organization has personal experience with is the Work Truck Industry Welder Certification Program, which offers industry companies applied learning and resources to train and certify welders in the workplace. At Holman, we participated, along with other organizations, in the development of this initiative and have used this valuable resource to build our own welder training and certification. You can find more details about this industry initiative at ntea.com/weldercertification.
Another great opportunity for learning is the Truck Equipment (TE) 101, 201 and electrical basics courses NTEA offers. These are tremendous programs that cover all aspects of work trucks and the industry. We at Holman utilize these programs to continually train our new and seasoned employees. We encourage all companies to work with the NTEA staff to set up your learning and training opportunities.
Relating to NCAA March Madness — it wasn’t long ago in 2018 that a tremendous upset in the first round of the tourney with No. 1 ranked Virginia led to a national championship for that team the following year. We all must continue to learn from our past experiences to grow and develop. Through training and educating our employees, we all can continue to improve and create opportunities to gain a competitive edge. Learn about other educational opportunities the Association offers at ntea.com/onlineeducation.