Kansas City, MO (Aug. 14, 2019) — On Sept. 5, the Business Technology Association (BTA) will start the second session of the association’s newest online educational offering, BTA Service Success Training. This is the first training program for supervisors and managers that addresses the fundamentals of supervision and management. The online format, with live lecture and discussion, will allow supervisors and managers to continue working in their jobs while learning at the same time.

Taught by veteran service manager Ken Edmonds, this training program approaches the art and science of dealer service management at a near-college level. There will be assigned reading and collaborative projects for students to develop the skills they are learning. Since the program is conducted online, students can begin to apply the things they learn immediately.

This program runs for 15 weeks, meeting twice a week. Each session will be between one and one-and-a-half hours, depending on the subject and level of participant discussion. Sessions are recorded so students who miss a session can watch the video and not miss the instruction. There will be graded quizzes and a final test. Edmonds will provide the results to participating dealerships for future reference.

Supervisors and managers who take this course will have a better understanding of the service departments and the actions they can take to increase productivity and profitability while boosting their teams’ morale and competence.

The program covers the following areas:

Introduction to Supervision and Management
Leading and Improving the Team
Working with Other Departments
Service Department Costs
Identifying Areas for Improvement
Time Management
Dealing with Customers
Understanding and Using Service Metrics
Service Role in the Dealership

For nearly 16 years, Edmonds served at Sharp Electronics Corp. and then at Konica Minolta Business Solutions as a problem solver for both technical and service management issues. In early 2018, he retired from Konica Minolta as a district service manager. Before that, Edmonds had an extensive background in the imaging business, having owned a successful dealership and serving as a service manager for multiple dealerships. In total, he has more than 40 years of experience in the technical and computer fields. Edmonds is currently consulting with dealers on strategies to improve profitability. He also writes for ENX Magazine, Office Technology magazine and blogs for the Imaging Channel. He also publishes a blog for his own website, kedmonds.biz.

Feedback from course attendees has been positive:

“When I was first told to take the class, I was not sure what to expect. After just a few classes, I was 100% on board. The course content covered a lot of areas. I am sure in some dealerships some of these areas are just not within our control, but having more details helps … plan for the best outcome. It quickly became the refresher I needed to get my head back in the game. After 30 years in service, you tend to glaze over some details, but this brought new light to old things.”
— Steven Robinson, MC Business Solutions, Chatham, Ontario, Canada

“I thought the class was very informative. As I’ve gone through this, it has really helped me grow as an individual in this industry. I personally found it very helpful and would recommend this to any new service manager or even a lead tech.”
— Bill McMurray, Kraft Business Systems, Grand Rapids, Michigan

“I have to admit, I was a skeptic. Would the Service Success Training be worth it? Let me say … It was worth every penny! Our director of service signed up for Ken’s course and the amount of usable information he took away from the training was nothing short of amazing. Great value! This course is a must for service management.”
— Debra Dennis, CopyPro Inc., Greenville, North Carolina

BTA member tuition for BTA Service Success Training is $995. A second attendee from the same dealership is $895, and third or additional attendees are $795 each. BTA members may apply their $150 educational discount received with their membership toward this workshop (discounts do not apply for additional attendee registrations). Non-member tuition is $1,425 and includes a one-year BTA dealer membership.

For more information or to register, click here or call (800) 843-5059.

###

About the BTA
Founded in 1926, the Business Technology Association serves office technology dealerships, resellers, manufacturers, distributors and service companies. Its core members — office technology dealerships — consult, sell and service hardware, software and supplies with the goal of helping businesses maximize their investment in devices and technology. Through the association’s various educational programs, information, research, legal services, publications and guidance, BTA member dealerships are positioned to be the premier source of the office technology used by businesses throughout the United States every day.